Discipleship: Service

Josh Barker
Apr 19, 2020
3 min read

And the second is like it: ‘love your neighbour as yourself.’

Matthew 22:39 (NIV)

So we continue to look at what it means to be a disciple of Christ. Today, we focus on the spiritual discipline of service.

I feel like sometimes, it can be too easy to think we do, or take part in ‘service’. We can be so busy, doing the most good that it becomes ritualistic and not what Jesus asks of His disciples. Service is much more than doing charitable things. I want to start today by asking you a few questions; what does it mean ‘to serve’? Do you give a part of yourself in the act of service? What service do you do?

For me, service the discipline is the giving of your time, talents and money when you can’t really afford to. Personally, service is about giving a part of yourself to someone who needs it. Jesus gives us many examples seen throughout the gospel but then He makes it real. On the night of the last supper, He takes what He has taught about and acts on it. The king becomes the servant. In this way, we are to serve. He knelt and washed the feet of the disciples. You see, in that moment Jesus showed us what it means to serve.

True service is not about rank or how much you give but rather the way in which a person humbles themselves to help another. Jesus didn’t have to wash the feet of the disciples that night. Especially when you consider how dirty they would have been. But Jesus did it anyway, right until His death He lived to serve.

Through His death and resurrection, He provides a way back to God. He pays the ultimate cost so that we don’t have to. He gave us life by service, so, why shouldn’t we live a life of service?

In Matthew 22, we see a Pharisee try and trip Jesus up but instead, Jesus uses it to tell them exactly what God expects. Not ritualistic service but authentic love. A love that will grow until it is so powerful, you can’t not serve others.

When we sit down and talk about what our ‘service’ should look like it would be easy to get caught up in the grand acts of love but instead, I want to challenge you to not get caught up in the big acts but actually think instead of the small things. The boy didn’t feed the 5,000, he just brought the fish. In the same way, we aren’t called to change the world in big acts like feeding 5,000 but instead serving in a way that Jesus can multiple to feed the 5,000. Jesus encourages us to change the world one act at a time, one day at a time, in your little corner of the world.

In these times of COVID-19, it can be hard to see ‘what I can do’, but maybe it’s because you are thinking too big. Yes, we can’t physically meet each other. Yes, we can’t do a lot of things. But there are things we can do. We can send a text message, ring or video call someone. Give a gift to someone by dropping it off at the door. You see, the act of something small repeated by 10 people will have a greater impact than just one person on their own. In the Bible we see many stories of small acts achieving great things. Just like the tiny stone that fell Goliath, we too must bring the tiny stone so that our faithful, almighty, all-powerful, all-loving God can work in miraculous ways even in these dark times.

When my friend passed away earlier this year, I was challenged by the impact he had on my life. I knew him for only a few weeks yet in that time he changed my life in many ways. At that time, I was challenged by the idea of the impact brief encounters have. Today, I challenge you once more, in a time where the world is a radically different place – how can you serve?

Keep loving, keep serving

Keep listening, keep learning

Keep praying, keep hoping

Keep seeking, keep searching

Out of these small things and watch them grow bigger

The God who does all things makes oceans from river

So dream small Don't bother like you've gotta do it all Just let Jesus use you where you are One day at a time

Live well Loving God and others as yourself Find little ways where only you can help With His great love A tiny rock can make a giant fall Yeah, five loaves and two fish's could feed them all So dream small Dream small