You Were Shaped For Serving God

You Were Shaped For Serving God:
Purpose Driven Life 40 Days Study - Week 5
Message Presented by Bob Koehler at the Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station
For the Military Community Christian Community
Sunday, June 1, 2008

Good Morning. Welcome to the Seal Beach Military Christian Community.

Deep down inside we all want to be successful – we need to believe that our lives have meaning. But most people feel uneasy about where they are at in life. They want something more.

The literary genius Henry David Thoreau said, "Most men live lives of quiet desperation." H. G. Wells, the famous historian and philosopher, said at age 61: "I have no peace. All life is at the end of the tether."
Ralph Barton, a top ranked cartoonist, left this note pinned to his pillow before taking his own life: "I have had few difficulties, many friends, great successes; I have gone from wife to wife, from house to house, visited great countries of the world, but I am fed up with inventing devices to fill up twenty-four hours of the day."

So how do we find meaning and success in our lives? Here is what Kareem Abdul-Jabar has to say about the subject: "Ive had enough success for two lifetimes. My success is talent put together with hard work and luck."

Here is another idea from a web page called “Top 7 Business/Life quotes: "The perfectness of who you are, knows which direction is right for your life. In order to discover this path, you must be quiet, calm your mind, and LISTEN intently to your subconscious mind as it will guide you to what your role on Earth is supposed to be." Now those are some the ways that “the world” tells you to find meaning and success.

Today we’re going to find out more about God’s way as we continue our 40 Days of Purpose Bible Study. In our first week we asked the question “What on earth am I here for? We discovered that God has five primary purposes for our lives: We have studied worship, fellowship and discipleship. Today we are going to look at God’s fourth purpose for your life, there on the top of your outline…you were Shaped For Serving God.

“We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Eph. 2:10 (NIV)

Now whenever God gives us an assignment to do something, He never gives it to us without equipping us first. As Job was talking about God he said: “Your hands have made me and fashioned me, An intricate unity;” Job 10:8a (NKJV)

God uses five things to fashion or shape you: Spiritual gifts, Heart, Abilities, Personality, and Experiences. That spells ‘SHAPE’. Those five things make you who you are and God uniquely shapes you, different from anybody else in the world, for a purpose. And that purpose is to serve Him.

Let’s look for a moment at 1 Peter Chapter 4 Verse 10. Take a look at your outline and you will see the first part of the verse:

Each one should use whatever gift he has received to “make lots of money???” Is that what the Bible says? No

“Each one should use whatever gift he’s received to serve others.” 1 Pet. 4:10 (NIV)

Do you remember the first line in the Purpose Driven Life book? “It’s not about you.” Your purpose in life is to be what God made you to be. And He gave you gifts and talents and abilities and background and experiences and all these things for the benefit of other people, to be used in serving others.

So write this down:
MY 4th PURPOSE IS TO: SERVE GOD BY SERVING OTHERS

Let’s turn in our Bibles to Mathew Chapter 20 … move down the page to verse 27. Two of Jesus’ disciples, James and John, the “Sons of Thunder,” have just asked Him (through their Mom!!!) if they can get promoted. They want to sit on either side of Jesus when He rules in His kingdom. Jesus tells them that the people who will sit in those places of honor have already been pre-determined by God the Father. Then He uses their question to teach an important lesson.

Listen to the words of Jesus Christ on the subject of service and ministry: He says: “…whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave - just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Mt. 20:27-28

So Jesus has told us that : Our attitude … must be like His attitude … Because He did not come to be served, but to serve...”

So let’s talk about LEARNING TO SERVE LIKE JESUS:
First of all SERVING LIKE JESUS MEANS BEING AVAILABLE.

One of the interesting things about Jesus’ teaching method is that He almost always gives us a principle that is closely linked to an example of He … Himself … doing what He wants us to do.

Let’s look at verse 29: “Now as they went out of Jericho, a great multitude followed Him.” So Jesus is with his entourage. He is in the limelight. He is being admired. People are following Him. He is BUSY!!!

Verse 30: “And behold, two blind men sitting by the road, when they heard that Jesus was passing by, cried out, saying, “Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!”

These guys know that Jesus is someone special. They have never seen Him but they have heard about Him. They believe that He is the Messiah. They believe He can help them.

Let’s listen to the normal human reaction to this situation. Vs. 31:
“Then the multitude warned them that they should be quiet; but they cried out all the more, saying, “Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!”

The crowd has pre-judged these blind men. They probably thought, as many of us do in our hearts, that the reason these guys have a problem is because of some sin or personal failure in their lives. The crown is selfish. They want Jesus for themselves. After all just a few chapters back he fed them for free. They react as many of us normally react. We do not want to interrupt the flow. We do not want to stop what we are doing. We are TOO BUSY to help anybody else.

But look at what Jesus does! In verse 32: “So Jesus stood still and called them, and said, “What do you want Me to do for you?”
Jesus stopped – He took the time to care – He made Himself available. Verse 33: “They (the blind men) said to Him, “Lord, that our eyes may be opened.”

Verse 34: So Jesus … said He had to hurry and find a room at the inn and He might be able to see them tomorrow??? NO
So Jesus … said call Mary and make an appointment??? NO
So Jesus … said its not in my job description. You see, I’m in my civvies today but I am actually the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. I’m in a hurry to get to Jerusalem because I’m scheduled to be Grand Marshall of the Triumphal Entry parade. These Spec Four Healers here can take care of you!! No!

The Bible tells us in Verse 34: “So Jesus had compassion and touched their eyes. And immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed Him.”

Jesus took the time to care and to actually do something for people in need. The Bible tells us in the Book of Proverbs: “Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come back, And tomorrow I will give it,” When you have it with you.” Prov. 3:28 (NKJV)

What is the matter with us? Why is it that we are so unwilling to actually stop what we are doing and serve other people? Let’s talk about three barriers or mental roadblocks we have that can keep us from doing what God has told us to do:

Write this down … the 1st Barrier is: SELF-CENTEREDNESS

In Philippians Paul says: “Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.” Philippians 2:4
This means we need to “Forget (ourselves) long enough to lend (others) a helping hand.” Phil. 2:4 (MSG)

Let’s turn to the Gospel of John the 15th Chapter: Jesus and His disciples have just finished the last supper. He is giving them final instructions because He will soon be going to the cross. He has just talked with them about bearing fruit and shared with them that the only way a person can bear fruit that is pleasing to God is to be connected with or to abide in Him - Jesus Christ.

Let’s go to verse 9: Jesus is speaking:
“As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.
“These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. 12This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.”

OK – so how do we have a joy filled life, how do find purpose and meaning? We love others and we serve them by laying down our lives for them. If you are in the military you may actually be called to put your life on the line. You might have to go to Iraq. You might get shot at. You might have to risk your life to save someone else. You might die for your country. If you have a civilian job you go to work and you follow the boss’s instructions. You know what it means to serve. That’s your job.

So yes, you are serving when you are at work. You follow orders. But while you are wearing your uniform or while you are at your job, are you serving your fellow soldiers or the other men and women in your unit or your department? When you get back from drill or from work, when you are on leave or vacation with your family, when you are out in the community, are you making sacrificial service to others a priority?

We need to have correct priorities. The military is loaded with alphabet soup acronyms. Here is one to help you remember a biblical truth:

JOY: J = Jesus; O = Others; Y = Yourself. Put Jesus first, then you will want to serve others, and you will have plenty of time to spare for yourself. The result of this will be a joy-filled, purposeful and successful life.

Now we turn to the 2nd Barrier, you can jot this in your notes:

The 2nd Barrier is: PERFECTIONISM

When I was in charge of a boat group for the SEAL Team in Viet Nam, the SEAL platoon leader would always plan our missions very carefully. One false move might mean detection by the enemy. Careful planning is important but when our goal is actually accomplishing a mission there is a time to stop planning and move out.

Using the example of agriculture, the Book of Ecclesiastes says: “He who observes the wind will not sow, And he who regards the clouds will not reap” Eccl. 11:4. Now what is this verse talking about. If the farmer waits for absolutely perfect conditions the job will never get done. And there will be no crop – i.e. no fruit.

I am a student in Bible College. When Cypress Church opened the door last fall and asked me to be responsible for Outreach I could have said, “I’m not sure this is the right time. I still have some more classes to take to finish the program.” Instead I recognized the need and asked God to use me, as an admittedly imperfect tool, to accomplish His purpose on a moment by moment basis. We need to train to expect the unexpected. We need to pray for God to open doors of opportunity. When the door for service opens we need to move out.

Now on to the… 3rd Barrier which is: MATERIALISM

In the Gospel of Luke we read: “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” Or “money” in the NIV.

All of us like money. Why? Because we use money to buy stuff or go on vacation or go out to dinner or go to a Lakers game. Speaking of money, I’ve got some good news for military families. The House of Representatives has just approved a possible 3.9% pay increase starting in 2009. Assuming this goes through, where will that extra money go?

I would like to invite you to give yourself a couple of little tests. First, open your checkbook or look at your last couple of bank statements or credit card statements and see where you spend most of your money. Have you given any to charity? Have you contributed to God’s work?

Next, start keeping track of how you spend your time. How much time do you spend studying God’s word and praying for your family, your church, your community, your nation and the world? How much time do you spend actually doing something for someone else?

You have control over two very basic assets in your life: Time and money. Whenever you spend time or money doing one thing you are sacrificing the opportunity to have or to do something else. You will spend the most time and the most money on what you care about the most. Whatever that thing is … it is in essence your Lord and Master or your God.

Paul tells us in the Book of Romans: “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? Romans 6:16

Romans 12 Verse 1 tells us: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.”

Jesus tells us that as his disciples we must be obedient to His word and sacrifice our time and energy and money … the things that the world thinks are valuable … so that we will be able to devote our time, our energy and our money (everything available to or produced by our bodies) as a living sacrifice to serve God by serving others. In the process of serving others, we (that is our character) will be gradually transformed into the image of Christ.

We have all seen the bumper sticker that reads “He who dies with the most toys wins.” But that is a very short sighted, secular, non-Christian viewpoint. How many of you have ever seen a hearse pulling a U-Haul trailer to the cemetery. You can’t take it with you! Invest in God’s kingdom and you will receive eternal rewards in heaven and a joyful, abundant life here on earth.

Next - #2 - SERVING LIKE JESUS MEANS BEING GRATEFUL.

In the Gospel of John Chapter 11 we read: “Jesus looked up and said, ‘Father, I thank you that you have heard Me. I knew that you always hear Me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here...’" John 11:41-42 (NIV)

The Book of Psalms says to: “Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before His presence with singing.” Ps. 100:2 (NKJV)

Paul writes in Philippians: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Phil. 4:6 (NKJV)

And later in 1 Thessalonians he tells us: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thes. 16-18 (NKJV)
I want you to notice that each of the last three verses we just looked at were not suggestions but commands. We must find ways to be thankful for the opportunities God gives us to serve.

But, once again, there are barriers in our path. Serving others is not always easy. Our sinful human nature tells us that we really need to compare ourselves with others, see ourselves as overburdened and be critical. The first barrier that keeps us from following God’s command to be thankful as we serve others is:

1st Barrier: COMPARING & CRITICIZING

How many of you have every tried to get some help with a project and run into some of the members of the Tate Family? They are everywhere. You find some of them at work, some right here on the base, some in your family and also some at church.

There is old man Dic-Tate who wants to run everything, while Uncle Ro-Tate tries to change everything. There's sister Agi-Tate who stirs up plenty of trouble, with help from her husband, Irri-Tate. Whenever new projects are suggested, Hesi-Tate and his wife, Vege-Tate, want to wait until next year. Devas-Tate provides the voice of doom, while Poten-Tate wants to be a big shot. Then there is Aunt Imi-Tate, who wants her church to be like all the others.

In Romans chapter 14 Paul says: “Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.” Rom 14:4 (NKJV). So Paul is telling us here: “Who are you to criticize someone else's servant? The Lord will determine whether His servant has been successful.” Rom. 14:4 (GW)

Jesus says in Luke Chapter 6:37-38: “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

Now the 2nd Barrier: WRONG MOTIVATIONS

Self-promotion and servant hood don’t mix, but it’s easy to get them mixed up. A lot of our service, let’s just be honest, it can be self-serving at times. Sometimes we serve to get others to like us. We serve to be admired. We serve to achieve our own goals. We serve as sort of a bargaining chip with God. You know … we say: “God, I’ll serve and You take care of me over here.” There are all kinds of wrong motivations.

Jesus said: “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.” Mat. 6:1 (NKJV)

So this means that when you do good deeds, don't try to show off. If you do, you won't get a reward from God.

# 3. SERVING LIKE JESUS MEANS BEING FAITHFUL.

Now what does that mean? It means you don’t give up. You keep on going. You don’t quit in the middle of your assignment. At the end of Jesus’ ministry on earth, Jesus said this in John 17:4: “I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.” John 17:4 (NKJV) In the NIV this verse reads: “I have brought You glory on earth by completing the work You gave me to do.” John 17:4 (NIV)

We need to be faithful not just because it sounds like it might be a good idea. We need to be faithful because God tells us to do so:

Look at the next verse in your outline (1 Cor. 4:2 and Fill in the blanks): “Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful. 1 Cor. 4:2

Paul tells us: “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” 1 Cor. 15:58 (NKJV) Another way to say this might be: “Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for Him is a waste of time or effort.” 1 Cor. 15:58 (MSG)

In the book of Hebrews we read: “He (that’s Jesus) will not forget how hard you have worked for Him and how you have shown your love to Him by caring for other Christians.” Heb. 6:10 (NLT)

Some of Paul’s final words in 2 Timothy are: “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.” 2 Tim 4:6-8 (NKJV) That’s you and me he’s talking about. Because we love God we will love our others and serve them and God will give us a reward.

So how do we find meaning and success in life? We serve Jesus by serving others. We make ourselves available to Him. We do this by having our hearts and minds God centered instead of self centered. We do not allow the barriers of perfectionism and materialism to slow us down. We are thankful to Jesus for saving us and opening doors of opportunity for us to serve others. We avoid comparing ourselves to others and criticizing them. We search our hearts regularly to be certain that our motives are pure. And we determine to be faithful to whatever God has called us to do.

This sounds like a hard job and if we try to do it in our own strength it is absolutely impossible. But if we rely on the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit we will one day hear Jesus say: “'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things so; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!” Matt. 25:21 (NIV)

Jesus is telling us here that as we serve others and are obedient to Him in small tasks, He will use our obedience in small things to train us and change our character so that we will be ready for more. And that this process of fulfilling His purpose for us, through serving others, gives our lives meaning and as a result we will be successful in God’s eyes and we will share in His happiness.

Let’s pray together: Father I realize that I was shaped to serve You by serving others. Forgive me for the times I’ve put a “do not disturb” sign on my heart. Help me to see the interruptions as opportunities to serve. Help me to make time for what matters most. You’ve been so good to me. I want to give something back. I want to serve You freely and gratefully and faithfully, and I want to practice before I get to heaven so one day I can hear You say “Well done, good and faithful servant … Come and share your master's happiness.” In Jesus Name I pray, Amen.

(Above message outline and materials drawn in part from resources provided by Saddleback Church and the Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren)

Now let’s turn to the subject of Communion:

Let’s open our Bibles John Chapter 6. Here we have one of the Gospel accounts of Jesus miraculously feeding the 5,000. Afterwards He goes across to the other side of the lake and the people follow him. Jesus knows that they are following him in hopes of another free meal.

In Verse 26: “Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.” 28Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” 29Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.” 30Therefore they said to Him, “What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do? 31Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” 32Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.” 35And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.” John 6:26-35 (NKJV)

Then skipping down to verse 53: “Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. 54Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:53-54 (NKJV)

So let’s unpack this concept. Jesus says that we are not supposed to work to get stuff … because “stuff” is the food that perishes. We are to work for the food that endures forever … the food that will give us everlasting life. Then Jesus tells us that we must “eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood” in order to have eternal life. But … we know from the book of Ephesians that we are not saved by anything we can do. We are saved by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ. When we admit we are sinners, believe that Jesus’ finished work on the cross has paid our sin debt in full, confess our sins to God, turn away from our sins and commit our lives to Jesus by asking Him to be the Lord of our lives … at that moment we have partaken of Jesus because we have fully joined our new lives to Him.

Once we have been born again in Christ we will desire to be obedient to Him. We are told in Ephesians 2:10: “For we (that means every Christian believer) are His (that is God’s) workmanship (that means that your new life in Christ is all God’s doing), created in (meaning we trust and abide in) Christ Jesus for good works (we are supposed to serve others), which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (that means to actually serve others – not just talk about doing it).”

From the beginnings of the early church, believers have gotten together on a regular basis to study God’s Word, worship Jesus and fellowship with each other. From the very start we, as Christians, have observed two customs or ordinances: Baptism, that we talked about 2 weeks ago, and communion. At Cypress Church our custom is to offer communion to believers on the first Sunday of each month.

How did communion originate? At the last supper, just before He went to the cross, Jesus explained in detail about how Christians should remember Him. Paul tells us about this moment in 1 Corinthians Chapter 11:

23For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 25In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.27Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. 28But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.” 1 Cor. 11:23-28 (NKJV)

Let’s bow out heads. As our heads are bowed and are hearts are turned towards God, let’s silently ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to us anything sinful in our lives that we need to confess. I’m going to give you a moment to talk silently to God and then we will pray together asking Him to forgive us.

Heavenly Father, thank you so much for sending Jesus to die on the cross and pay the penalty for our sins. Lord we know that we have not always done what is pleasing in your eyes. We confess our sins to you and we turn away from them now. Thank you Lord that your Word promises us “If we confess our sins, (You are) faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” We believe in you Jesus and we place our eternal destiny in your hands. Thank you for the free gift of eternal life. Amen

When you are ready you may take the elements. The bread represents (but does not literally become) the body of Jesus Christ that was broken for you. The grape juice represents (but does not literally become) the blood He shed to pay the price for your sins. Please take a piece of bread, dip it in the juice, and we will partake of the elements together.

Lord Jesus, thank you for your finished work on the cross. We do this in remembrance of you. Thank you for giving us new life so that we can use our time, our energy and our resources to serve others in your strong Name. Amen