We are CR Students- We are students that SERVE

Introduction

ITS MIDWK!!!!!

Romans 12:3–8 “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.”

You should have GODfidence, not ARROGANCE.

Paul starts the conversation with our pride. Don’t think more highly of yourself than you should. What has the gospel taught you about you?

There is a fine line between godly confidence and straight up arrogance. The word “Sensibly” in greek literally means accurately. The gospel makes you think rightly about yourself, not too highly, or too lowly. God saved you, put his Spirit in your heart, designed you specifically and uniquely with particular gifts, and has a role for you in his Kingdom.

The gospel overturns our pride and our despair. It shows us that both our pride and our despair come from the same place. Focusing on ourselves and what we bring to the table and not the grace of God and what he is doing through us.

After what God has done for us in the gospel, we should offer our lives back in full surrender to him as a living sacrifice.

If God has saved you, He has gifted you.

God gives everyone gifts, and each are important.

Spiritual gifts aren’t some tightly defined list that you look through like a catalogue. A spiritual gift is whatever God wants to do in the world through his church.

Each Christian has one.

Paul says in 1 Cor. that when we come together as a church, everyone should come with something to offer. When you see something around here that is lacking, instead of complaining about it, maybe you should see that as God’s invitation to do something about it.

The first part of a spiritual gift is perceiving a need and wanting to do something about it. You may say “Well, I don’t like this youth group because no one speaks to me.” Great, see you on the first impressions team next week.

It doesn’t take a wise person to walk around here and point out what’s wrong. It takes two eyeballs and a pen and paper.

Someone who understands the gospel will begin to take ownership of those things that they know God has called us to be When we give Jesus Christ His rightful place as Lord of our lives, His lordship will be expressed in the way we serve others.

God gifted you to serve others for His glory.

It starts in the church and operates outside of the church, too.

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45)

“For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.” (2 Corinthians 4:5)

True leadership in our giftedness is summed up in this word…servanthood. Jesus Christ was not only the greatest leader of all time, but He was the greatest example of humility and service. Christ “who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant.” (Philippians 2:6-7)

Matthew 20:26 “It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,”

Land the Plane

When we

At the end of the day, you have a unique gifting that God has given you to be a blessing to the people around you. That means you have purpose, and that means that you have a responsibility.

And we want to help you figure out what that is. Most of you probably don’t know what yours is. And honestly your Christian life won’t really take off until you start the process of discovering it. Christianity will be boring to you if this is you. Why? Because you have never experienced the joy of being used by God in the lives of others.