The Gift Of Service

Romans 12:7 If service, in service…

Galatians 5:13 For, brethren, you have been called unto liberty; only do not use your liberty for an occasion of the flesh, but by love serve one another.

These are gifts of assistance, it means literally servants. We are all called to serve, but some are especially grace-gifted for the service of the body of Christ.

Every gift that we have mentioned was characteristic of Jesus Christ. So naturally, if all of those things were part of His fleshly existence, then, all of them will also be a part of His spiritual body, the church. These gifts exercised are the reproduction of the attributes of Christ into His body the church.

The Proper Evaluation of Our Roles

Romans 12:3 For I say to every man that is among you, through the grace given unto me, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

All of the spiritual gifts must be exercised with love for the sole purpose of building up the body of Christ.

Any misuse of our gifts, especially through a wrong attitude, will be harmful to the church,

The way we use our spiritual gifts in the body of Christ, the church, also impacts our witness in the world.

Characteristics Of The Server

 They see practical needs, and often see them first
 They love to help free others up to achieve, and to help others accomplish their tasks
 They do not quit. They are driven and just keep going, and never tired of doing what God calls us to do
 They are alert to likes and dislikes of others
 They often need approval and recognition; it confirms what they are doing is important,
 They like short range projects, not long term. They want to see progress being made. They want to meet the need quickly; they don’t like red tape.
 They often will feel inadequate and not qualified, but their commitment to serve can overcome their inability

The Server Can Be Misunderstood

 They want to get the job done, so they can appear to be pushy
 They avoid red tape, so it appears they exclude others
 In their eagerness to serve, others may think they are trying to advance themselves
 They can appear to reject others who are serving them because it is awkward for them
 They are so practical it might seem they are not spiritual
 On the job, their desire to help others can appear they are slacking on their own job

Serving in the Spirit and in the Flesh

 In the spirit servers are alert to the needs of others In the flesh, don’t see any needs
 In the spirit they are hospitable; in the flesh, servers may want to be loners
 In the spirit they are generous, in the flesh, stingy
 They have joy working in the spirit; but in the flesh, they are martyrs, thinking no one cares
 In spirit they are flexible, in the flesh, they stay on a more rigid path
 They are available and ready to work in the spirit, in the flesh, they say (or think), don’t ask or bother me
 In the spirit, they have significant endurance to serve; in the flesh, they have no energy and are drained

By love, let us serve one another so that Jesus is glorified and so that the body of Christ, the church, can function fully, just as
it was designed to do.

As we thank God this week for so many things: Our salvation, family, friends, church family, health, jobs, strength, and help in all we face, remember to thank Him for our spiritual gifts, and ask Him to help us fully use them.