Unity in Service

A dozen pair of dirty feet

Jesus desires unity in the church: We should be known as a unified group of humble servants.

Key Verse: Romans 15:8

Paul presented Jesus Christ as the model servant.

Bear each others’ weaknesses (15:1).

obligation: something owed; ought to be done.

bear: to carry; to endure; experience.

strong: a person whose belief in the gospel is secure and firmly established. This, in contrast to those whose belief is not secure.

weaknesses: a failing. In the context, failing due to belief that is not yet secure. I'm thinking, like a toddler learning to walk. Walk was a common metaphor for following Jesus. Those who are strong in the faith can serve those whose faith is young and developing by "walking beside them: grace, model, encourage, support, patience, mentor, gentle correction. These are words)actions that come to mind. We owe it to them because we have received the same from others. Seldom does anyone grow into maturity alone. We all have had someone in our past that bore us up when we were immature and weak in our faith.

please: accommodate. It is human nature to live/act/decide in such ways that accommodate our personal preferences and needs. We can't serve others if our primary focus is to accommodate ourselves.

Galatians 6:2“Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”

1 Thessalonians 5:14 “And we exhort you, brothers and sisters: warn those who are idle, comfort the discouraged, help the weak, be patient with everyone.”

Unity happens as we mutually bear each other up. It also happens when we …

Build each other up (15:2).

please again, but this time it's used in the positive; that is, a good action for the sake of others. Rather than living to accommodate ourselves, we live to accommodate the needs of others.

build: to construct a building. It can also mean "to strengthen. "

1 Corinthians 10:24 “No one is to seek his own good, but the good of the other person.”

Our service is to be so others -oriented that we live to accommodate the construction and strengthening of their faith. And of course, if the church is unified in this pursuit, while I am serving to strengthen you, someone is serving to strengthen me.

Building each other up means that we live to please others.

What this does not mean: flattery; currying favor; compromising our own faith; trying to win people's approval.

What it means: teaching; exhorting; correcting; modeling.

After exhorting us to bear and build each other up, Paul reminds us of the primary purpose of serving each other:

Why do we serve others to bear them up and build them up?

Because that’s what Jesus does for us! (15:3-4)

Philippians 2:6–8 “who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death— even to death on a cross.”

Christ did not live to please Himself.

Christ gave Himself up in service and sacrifice.

Christ emptied Himself -> the Creator of all things made Himself nothing for our sake.

Christ humbled himself to serve.

As Paul focused on Christ as our example of pleasing others instead of ourselves, the nature and purpose of God's written Word flushed through his mind. Briefly, here's what we can glean from Paul’s "thinking out loud":

1)Scripture has contemporary relevance. Though written in and for a certain people in the past, God's Word was also written to teach us. Scripture is never out of date or out of place.

2)Scripture has a Christological focus. Paul applied Psalm 69 to Christ's suffering on the cross, bearing our insult of sin. In fact, Jesus explained to the disciples "what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself"(Luke 24: 25).

3)Scripture has a practical purpose. 2 Timothy 3: 15 reminds us that Scripture is able to make us "wise for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. It also has power to give us encouragement and endurance so that we have hope. Stories like David and Goliath, Daniel in the lion's den, Esther's bravery, and others teach us that God's power can enable us to do whatever he calls and wills us to do.

4)Scripture is a divine message. The first part of verse 5 informs us that it is God Himself who gives us the endurance and encouragement spoken about in verse 4. God speaks to us through His Word. Scripture is the living voice of our God.

The voice of the Triune God is an unequivocal voice. In other words, Father, Son, and Spirit speak and work in perfect harmony with each other. As Christ’s disciples, so should we; which is why Paul instructs us to …

Live in harmony with each other (15:5-6).

Paul returns here to his admonishment of service and unity.

live in harmony: think the same thing. It's very, very important to notice the antecedent of this phrase -i. e., what comes next. What comes next qualifies and clarifies the harmony of thought Paul was talking about > "according to Christ Jesus. "

Paul was not speaking of what we might call "group think." He didn't mean that we have to agree on everything. He wasn't forbidding individual ideas. No, the point is that we all think like Christ.

Our collective mindset is Christ's mindset. We agree on the essentials of the faith, while there is room for kind and humble disagreement on secondary matters.

For instance, there are at least four views of end times held by good, conservative Christian scholars. We can all agree that Christ will return, believers will be resurrected from the dead, and we will live with Him in the new heaven and new earth forever. How that takes place, however, we can agree to disagree. But it should not become a point of division. That's just one example of disagreeing on secondary (non-essential) matters. But regarding the gospel, the truth of Scripture, the divinity of Christ, and other such matters that are essential to the faith, we are of the same mindset.

Yet, I think there is more to it than that. I go back to Philippians 2 listen carefully to Paul's words: "Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus". That word, attitude, is exactly the same word as harmony in Romans 15: 5.

And there is a glorious purpose for our harmony: glorifying God! All of our service is for the glory of God.

1 Corinthians 10:31 “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.”

Note that Paul emphasized the oneness of the church in verse 6: one mind, which signifies togetherness; a spirit of unity. And one voice, which signifies that their is unity in the language of our lives -God's Love is spoken here! God's gospel love is the language of our heart, the language of our mouths, and also our body language. This promotes harmony in the body of Christ, and speaks grace to those outside our fellowship. And that is a very persuasive voice. That kind of speech makes an impact!

In fact, I would say that when a church lives in harmony with each other, it will be a very attractive church to those outside. People are looking for harmony, for unity, for peace. People are longing for real fellowship. So Paul instructs us to …

Be hospitable to each other (15:7).

That's what the word, welcome, means here. Literally, it means "to welcome or receive" but on a larger scale, the idea is showing hospitality to each other. And again, just like living in harmony, being hospitable to each other is for God's glory. In fact, let's pause here and remember that every aspect, every reason, every purpose of our service is for the glory of God. God's servant never asks or expects recognition. God's servant does not work for applause. We serve at God's pleasure and for God's glory.

Let's think for a moment: what are some ways we can demonstrate hospitality to one another?

We practice hospitality by being a welcoming church. Just a Christ welcomed us into his fellowship, we extend a warm welcome to those who enter have. Not based on what others look like, or talk like, or what they wear, nor their background, but on the basis of Christ's grace and love. The moment a person drives onto our campus, they should feel that they are welcome here.

We practice hospitality by maintaining a warm spirit of acceptance. We treat each other as family. We forgive. We encourage. We comfort. We help. We value each others' ideas. We welcome the same from others.

We practice hospitality by followshiping with each other. We learned a few weeks ago that eating meals together was a sign of fellowship and love in the New Testament culture. I dare say it's the same today. Let's open our homes to each other. Let's spend time together, praying, eating, playing, sipping coffee, telling stories around a campfire. Hospitality requires doing things together.

We practice hospitality by opening up our lives to each other: not only our homes, but our time, our resources, our hearts.

In verse 8. Paul takes another diversion, this time describing the unity between Jew and Gentile. Verse 11 is the hinge on which the unity of Jew and Gentile swings:

"Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles; let all the peoples praise him! "

Paul is instructing us to …

Praise the Lord together (15:8-12).

Praise – worship – unites.

You might ask: What does this have to do with unity in serving? And I'll answer: Everything! Serving each other unites. But serving each other depends on our serving the Lord. And corporate worship—praising, singing, rejoicing—is serving the Lord together. As we grow in our worship, we will grow in our service, and grow stronger in our unity.

So, let us praise the Lord together. Let's sing! Let’s rejoice! Let us worship our Savior together.

benediction

Verse 13 is a little benediction from Paul's pen that ties everything together. All that we're learned about unity— belonging, pursuing peace, building each other up, serving each other and the Lord together—all are in Paul's heart that pours out in verse 13. As we experience, maintain, and practice unity in the body of Christ, look what happens:

The God of hope fills us with joy, fills us with peace, fills as with faith, fills us so full of these that they overflow, pour out in abundance, all because of the power of the Holy Spirit working in us.

That sounds good to me. I'm excited! I expect God's filling as we continue to grow in unity as God's body of Christ.

Our Response

During the Christmas holidays, Cindy and I took our children and grandchildren to one of our favorite hamburger joints in Hattiesburg. The place was packed. There were only two tables left; put together, they were just enough room for the ten of us. In the back of my mind, I’m thinking that with such a crowded restaurant and only a few servers, we were in for a long wait. However, we were pleasantly surprised. The young woman waiting our table was remarkable. She didn’t miss a beat: not in getting and delivering our drink orders; not in getting every detail of our food orders correct; and when the food was delivered, there was no confusion about who ordered what. And while we were eating, she was right there, refilling our drinks, grabbing extra condiments that some of us requested; I mean she delivered excellent service. She got a big tip.

Everybody loves good service. No one loves bad service. The question is: Do I love to give good service? And what we’ve learned today should remind us that a sign of a healthy, unified body of Christ is that we are a serving community: serving each other and serving the Lord together.

So what is our response to God’s divine message to us today?

Paul lifted up Jesus as our ultimate model of service. That reminds me of Jesus’ words to his disciples, who were arguing about who was the greatest. He said (Mark 10:45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Luke 9:23 “Then he said to them all, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.”

The Christ who washed a dozen pair of dirty feet, who gave himself as a sacrifice for our sins, invites us to follow him on a path of service.

Followers of Jesus come to serve, not to be served.