“Shaped for Serving God: Using Your Gifts for His Glory” (Part 3)

From Salvation to Service Sermon Series

“Shaped for Serving God: Using Your Gifts for His Glory” (Part 3)

KEY PASSAGE: 1 Peter 4:10-11(NASB)

Heavenly Father, I ask that You purify the thoughts of our hearts by the guiding inspiration of Your Holy Spirit. Help us to love You with all our heart, soul, and mind. May Your holy name be glorified through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. In His name we pray, and all God’s people say, Amen.d. Please be seated.

PRAYER OF DEDICATION BY THE CHURCH COUNCIL OF ELDERS (Ivery Johnson, Edward Barbee, Victor Barbee, and Danny Shelton - Please come to the front)

PASTORAL PRAYER of DEDICATION by Dr. Pastor Elijah Wreh

Let us pray. Gracious and Sovereign Lord, You have led us with steadfast love and faithfulness. Today, we stand in awe of Your providence, dedicating this property to Your service, Your glory, and Your kingdom purposes. We thank You for every prayer that carried this vision forward, for every hand that labored, and for the grace that brought us to this moment. This place, Lord, is Yours—established not by human effort alone, but by divine appointment. May this sanctuary be filled with Your presence. Let every message preached from its pulpit stir hearts toward repentance and transformation. Let every worship song echo heaven’s joy. Let every gathering—whether large or small—be a demonstration of Your love, truth, and power. Bless every leader who will shepherd here. Strengthen every minister of the Word. Anoint every act of service. May the walls of this church witness stories of salvation, healing, and reconciliation. Use this space to shape disciples, build families, and raise a standard of righteousness in Elyria and beyond. Make it a spiritual home to the broken, a place of equipping for the called, and a launchpad for global gospel impact. And Lord, as we dedicate 6119 West River Road South to You, may it forever be known as a holy ground. A place where Your will is done, Your name is lifted high, and Your people live as lights in a dark world. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, we commit this house to Your everlasting hands, and everyone says. Amen.

WELCOME REMARKS TO THE NEW BUILDING AND SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT by Mr. Victor Barbee, Danny Shelton, and Sylania Oliver.

SPECIAL REMARKS BY THE MAYOR OF ELYRIA, OHIO – MAYOR KEVIN BRUBAKER

Today marks a historic moment in the life of our church, and we are honored to share it with our broader community. It is our privilege to welcome a distinguished guest whose leadership and commitment to the City of Elyria have helped shape the very neighborhood we now call home. Mayor Kevin Brubaker has served Elyria with integrity, vision, and a heart for the people. Mayor Brubaker, we thank you for joining us on this special day. Please help me welcome him as he shares a few words with us.

THE LORD’S SUPPER – COMMUNION SERVICE 

Let’s read 1 Corinthians 11:23-24 (NASB): Paul received this revelation directly from the Lord Jesus Christ. He says, 23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus, on the night when He was betrayed, took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 25 In the same way, He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”

🍞 The Bread: The broken Bread represents Christ’s body given for us. We remember a Person: the suffering Servant, pierced for our transgressions. 🍷 The Cup: The Cup represents the new covenant sealed in the blood of Jesus. The blood speaks of mercy that prevailed over judgment, of sin washed away, and of a life reclaimed by grace. With every drink, we declare that Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient. This Cup is a call to surrender—to die to self and rise in Him. Let every communion be a holy proclamation: Christ has died, Christ is risen, and Christ will come again.

Let us pray.  Gracious Father, we thank You for the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ—whose body was broken and whose blood was shed for the redemption of humanity. As we gather at Your table, refresh our spirits with the joy of Your salvation and renew a steadfast heart within each of us. Bless this bread as a sacred memorial of Christ’s offering on the Cross. May the bread nourish our faith and deepen our gratitude. Bless this cup, a symbol of our unification with Christ in His death, that we may daily surrender our will and live fully unto You. Thank You, Lord, for Your unfailing love, abundant mercy, and eternal promise. In the powerful name of Jesus, we pray—Amen. We will pass around the communion elements. Please receive them prayerfully as we prepare our hearts to remember the Lord’s sacrifice.

TITHE and OFFERING

The worship team will lead us in song as we collect our tithes and offerings. Ushers, please pass around the offering plates so we can collect our tithes and offerings.

PRAYER FOR TITHE and OFFERING

Gracious Father, we present our tithes and offerings to You. May these gifts be received with favor and be used for the exaltation of Your name and the advancement of the gospel of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen!

WELCOME

Welcome, everyone, to our first Sunday Worship Service. Let’s celebrate Jesus and give God the praise, glory, and honor for His faithfulness to this church. Please stand up, greet the people around you, and tell them that Jesus loves them. Our first-time visitors, please stand so we can see you. We also welcome all who join us online.

ANNOUNCEMENT

📖Wednesday Night is our Bible Study Connect at 7:00 p.m. Please join us for a time of learning, fellowship, and spiritual growth as we study the Word of God! We are studying the Book of First Samuel, and this week we will focus our attention on Chapter 11. I encourage you to please read Chapter 11 of First Samuel and come prepared for Bible Study on Wednesday.  📅Corporate Meeting—We meet at the church every Sunday at 9:00 a.m. for a prayer meeting downstairs in the fellowship hall. I encourage all of you to please join us during our Corporate Prayer Meeting here at the church.  🗓️Church Monthly Leadership Meeting is 📍Saturday, August 16 at 🕛Noon here at the church.

DECLARATION of FAITH in GOD

Let us stand and say the Declaration of Faith in God together. Please remain standing as we pray.

PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION

Let’s pray. Almighty God, Creator of heaven and earth, I pray that Your Word will go forth with power and clarity. May the Holy Spirit illuminate the true meaning of the Scripture in every heart and bring about true transformation in the lives of Your people. Let Your presence saturate this moment, bringing revelation, conviction, and producing lasting change. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen. You may be seated.

SERMON INTRODUCTION

Have you ever gone through a car wash that only cleaned the exterior of your car? The dirt gets rinsed off, the paint shines a bit, maybe the tires get glossed—but underneath the car, the engine still struggles, the brakes still make noise, and the alignment is still off. You see, a quick car wash makes the car look presentable for a moment, but it doesn’t fix what is broken or what is wrong with the vehicle. That is the difference between just looking clean and a full service.

Many people today approach church like they do a drive-through car wash—just wanting to look good and feel refreshed. They show up to church on Sunday morning for a sermon, get a burst of inspiration, then roll back out into life until they feel dusty again. But God never designed His church to be a cosmetic stop. The church is a full-service spiritual center, and it is a place where the Word of God not only energizes God’s people but where prayer lifts burdens, worship recalibrates the soul, fellowship strengthens the weary, and the truth of God’s Word hits our hearts, showing us what needs to be changed.

You see, a full-service car wash offers more than just a quick rinse—it provides a thorough cleaning inside and out that leaves the vehicle refreshed and road-ready. Full-service churches offer far more than inspiration. A full-service church is a space [Watch This] where lives are carefully washed in truth, renewed by grace, and detailed with love through Spirit-led ministry. Every believer receives not just spiritual polish but soul-deep transformation—equipped to shine and navigate life’s ups and downs with clarity and purpose.

You don’t need to come to church every Sunday or be involved with the local church to hear a sermon preached. Radio, television, tapes, CDs, and social media allow you to listen to sermons at any time and from anywhere. The reason why God wants all of His people (and I mean all people) to be part of a local family – the church, a gathered body of believers is so that they can be full service to the church.

 SERMON EXPOSITION 1

When God established His Church—His spiritual family—God’s design was not for a quick spiritual rinse like a drive-through car wash, but for a full-service ministry center. God intended the church to be managed by [Watch This] faithful and Spirit-equipped servants, each using their unique God-given gifts to care for every need in the body. From preaching and teaching to encouragement and healing, the Church was meant to function as a place of restoration and transformation—where no part is neglected, and every member of the church is served with excellence and grace.

As we continue in our sermon series, “From Salvation to Service,” our focus today turns to 1 Peter 4:10–11. These two verses remind us that God has intentionally shaped each of us to serve Him. Our gifts are instruments of grace to be used for God’s glory. God has entrusted gifts to every believer—not for personal gain, but to minister to one another and bring glory to His name. To put this another way, each Christian has at least one special gift that must be used to the glory of God and the building up of the church. Let’s open our Bibles to 1 Peter 4, beginning with verse 10. “ As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” He says the reason that you ought to be part of a functioning body of believers [the church] is for service. That is the reason why you have become a member of this church or any church: to become fully yourself, but also to provide full service for the family of God.

He says [Watch This], the reason why this is the case is that you are a recipient of the manifold grace of God. To put it another way, if you lose sight of grace, you will lose sight of service. The author of the Book of First Peter says, as one who has received the manifold grace of God, employ what God has given to you in the service of somebody else, that is, one another, the family of God – the church. People who do not serve the Lord Jesus Christ in the context of the family have lost sight of grace.

As a recipient of the manifold grace of God…, that word manifold means multicolored grace of God; because God has been good to you, you be good to somebody else. Grace is all that God is free to give to you based on the merits of Christ Jesus. Grace is God doing for you what you cannot do for yourself. God’s grace is bestowing on you the goodness of God, even when you don’t deserve it. Who among us today does not need grace? God says if you are a receptor for grace, you ought to be a conduit for grace.

He calls it a stewardship. He says, “We are stewards of the manifold grace of God” at the end of verse 10. That raises a question. What is a steward? A steward is a manager of something that belongs to another. In biblical days, stewards owned nothing. Stewards simply managed what was provided to them by the master of the house.

SERMON APPLICATION 1

God says that you are a steward of the grace of God. You don’t own anything. Everything you think you own, one day you will leave it or it will leave you. It is impermanent, and it is to be manifested in gratitude. And that gratitude is not simply saying thank you, it is showing thank you, He says, in your ministry, to one another.

 SERMON ILLUSTRATION 1

There was a little boy who wanted his mother to pay him for all the services he had done around the house. He said, “For washing the dirty dishes, you owe me a dollar. For cleaning my room, one dollar. For hanging up my clothes, a dollar. For mowing the lawn — another dollar.” The little boy printed out a five-dollar invoice and handed it to his mom. “Mama,” he said, “you owe me five dollars. Please pay by cash or check.” The mother laid five dollars on the kitchen table — but she added a note of her own. The note from the mom said, For nine months of carrying you and feeling miserable every step of the way — no charge. For staying up all night with you, night after night, when you were sick — no charge. For working overtime to get you those special tennis and dress shoes — no charge. For welcoming and entertaining all your friends on short notice— no charge. Signed, your mother who loves you. Total bill, zero, no charge.

You see that young man lost sight of the goodness of his mother. He had turned a love relationship into a business transaction. I wonder if any of you have any children like that. Who has forgotten that you pay the house mortgage? Who has forgotten that you put clothes on their backs and shoes on their feet and pay the doctor’s bills and the insurance bills? They don’t want to volunteer their time to serve at home, but they don’t mind asking you for more money when they run low on cash. Yes, some of us have kids like that. But the deeper question is — does God have children like that? Children who forget that everything they are and have is by God’s grace. He says you are stewards of the manifold grace of God.

SERMON EXPOSITION 2

Church folks say it all the time — God is good, all the time. And all the time — God is good. But if God has been so good to you, how can you keep that goodness of God to yourself? You ought to be good to somebody else. It is called service. That is why we encourage people to serve in this church. That is why we ask every member who joins our church to get involved in a ministry to give of themselves, to tithe some of their time and their talents as well as their treasure, so that God is honored and glorified. Because if God cannot minister through you, then why should God keep ministering to you?

When Paul was writing to the Corinthian church, he said to them, “God is able to supply all grace to you …in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.” 2 Corinthians Chapter 9 verse 8. God can do it always, and He can do it in abundance so that you have grace left over. That is what you call the bonus grace.  The best way to be a receiver of greater grace is to be a dispenser of grace. He says in 1 Peter 4:10, “As each one has received a special gift…” God has uniquely provided every man, every woman, every believer, with a capacity for service. God has placed within every man, every woman, every believer a calling to serve. God has poured into every man, every woman, every believer a grace for service. There is nobody like you, and when God made you, He did not mess up.

Every Christian has been individually crafted for a special design, reason, and purpose within God’s plan and program. When you need glasses, you go and you get your eyes examined, and they prescribe glasses for you. Imagine if everyone here swapped prescription glasses. We would have a lot of blind folks in church because your glasses are crafted and designed for your eyes’ needs. He says each one has been granted a special capacity as a steward of God’s grace for servicing Him through servicing the church. And he calls it manifold – manifold means multicolored. It comes in every form and shape.

You say, well, I am different. You are supposed to be different. If everybody were the same, somebody would be unnecessary. If you do not accept your God-ordained identity, you will waste most of your life trying to be somebody else. And if God wanted you to be somebody else, God would have made you them. You are fearfully and wonderfully made, the Bible says. You are what God wanted you to be. Each one has received a special capacity for making a difference in the kingdom and the family of God.

SERMON EXPOSITION 3

Hebrews 13:21 says that “the Lord Jesus Christ will equip you in every good thing to do His will.” Anything God calls you to do, He equips you to do it with excellence and grace. Let me say that again. God never calls where He does not equip. Your special gift or ability is tied to your assignment. In other words, if your assignment is to do heart surgery in medicine, then you have to have the ability to do that. You don’t perform heart surgery unless you have the capacity that you have developed through formal training and education. If you are a mechanic, your training and knowledge mean you can skillfully handle the tools required to repair vehicles.

When it comes to cars, you understand the systems, know the right instruments to use, and apply your knowledge to restore function, accuracy, and precision. In the same way, when God equips a believer for a specific spiritual task, God also provides all the tools—wisdom, gifting, and grace—to fulfill that assignment effectively. Each believer has been endowed for God’s service. That raises the question. How can I know the exact work God wants me to do—especially the one He has prepared and equipped me for? You have to understand … the grace of God, which is given to all of us, shows up in several ways, and if you track God’s grace, you will find God’s will. You see, when God saved you, He gave you a new heart. That new heart involves a redeemed set of passions or motivation that inspires you and stirs you.

In the Old Testament, whenever God wanted to do something with, through, or by a person, the Bible says God would stir their heart. God knows your personality. Like a stained glass window where the light shines through, if the light shines through yellow glass, the light will look yellow, red glass will look red, blue glass will look blue, and green glass will look green. The light remains the same, the light itself doesn’t change—but when the light reflects through a distinct color, it takes on the appearance of that color. God is not trying to make you not you; God is trying to flow through you so that His light is manifested through the unique color of your personality. Many of us have been shaped by our experiences. There are good and bad experiences. Perhaps you were raised in a strong Christian family. Maybe you have had a great educational experience. God wants that in the equation.

SERMON APPLICATION 1

For example, the Apostle Paul was a student of Judaism. He was a Hebrew of the Hebrews. He was part of the Sanhedrin Council, the ruling body of Jews. Paul was up there, and he had all the intellect. Paul had the acumen, and he had memorized the first five books of the Bible as a Pharisee. He had …it all together. So, when God wanted to write the Bible or the New Testament, He chose the man who had the academic training and the man who understood the unique culture. Paul wrote thirteen books of the New Testament, drawing from his good experience before Jesus Christ saved him. God sanctified Paul’s training to use it for His purpose and glory.

God also takes bad things and experiences. By bad things, I mean the things that you have done wrong. God doesn’t endorse bad things. God doesn’t encourage bad things. God can use a crooked stick and still hit a bull’s-eye. Bad things refer to the mistakes that you have made. God can use the mistakes that you have made and flip them for His glory. He did that with King Solomon. Solomon made many bad mistakes and wicked choices. Solomon’s kingdom was split because of bad mistakes, according to 1 Kings 11:1. When it comes to learning how to be wise, Solomon was the expert. When it came to learn how life is to be lived, he wrote the book of Ecclesiastes.

God uses the good, the bad, and the ugly. Most of us, when we want physical comfort, we go to the Book of Psalms. Most of them are written by David. We draw comfort from the testimony of a man who endured immense hardship. Trials, sorrow, and failure marked David’s life—but through it all, God was present with David. But God mixed the good, bad, and ugly and gave David a ministry that is alive and well today. And that is what God wants to do with you: to give you a ministry that is alive. He says each one of you has received a special gift, and there are no exceptions.

SERMON EXPOSITION 4

In verse 11, he says, “Whoever speaks is to do so as one who is speaking actual words of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.” God divides this special gifting into two categories. He says, speaking and serving. Two broad classifications. He says some people in the church are called to do things that are primarily driven by communication – whether through preaching, teaching, counseling, or encouraging.

Some people are called by things that are driven by support, to serve, to come alongside and help the local church, manifested in hundreds of different ways. But he says, in whatever you have been called to do, it is all about God. We use God’s gift to make money. We use God’s gift to build our careers. We use God’s gift to serve ourselves. We use God’s gift for unrighteous things– the things of this world, where the name of God is not mentioned. And we never turn it over to God for His glory.  When you receive the grace of God, He desires glory in return. What is glory? Glory is putting on display or showing off the greatness of another person. Psalm 100 says, “Serve the Lord with gladness.” Serving with gladness means being glad about your service to God. Some of us give our bosses more excellence than we give our God because our boss has our money in their pocket.

We will serve our boss with excellence, and we do it… for a paycheck. But the grace of God is free. Grace means free. God defines sin as under His glory. Romans 3:23 says, “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” We are to reflect God’s glory like the moon reflects the light of the sun upon the earth.

Once you attach God’s name to something—whether it is your ministry, your service, or your assignment- you say, God, I am doing this in Your name, I am in this ministry in Your name, and I am doing this service in Your name; it should increase its value. Because the presence of the name increases the value of the service, if you are giving God sloppy service, it means you don’t understand the name of God. Verse 11 says, it is for God’s glory that in ALL things, God may be glorified through Jesus Christ to whom belongs the glory … He keeps using this word glory … And dominion forever and ever. It is all about God’s glory.

FAITH APPEAL, CALL to ACTION, and ALTAR CALL

In New York City, Fifth Avenue is home to many of the most iconic and upscale stores in the world. Fifth Avenue is a renowned shopping destination, lined with flagship locations that define beauty and fashion. The big stores are displayed with mannequins [Ma-ne-Kanz] that advertise the store’s fashion and beauty. On Fifth Avenue, window displays showcase mannequins styled in high fashion.  They are dressed to impress and demand your attention.

You got dummies looking good. You got dummies … dressed to the T. You got dummies … with earrings and jewelry and … you have these lifeless beings wonderfully on display all along both sides of Fifth Avenue. Why invest so much beauty, detail, and elegance in something without breath—without purpose—without life? There is a reason. It is a marketing strategy because appearance—even without substance—can still influence perception. The store owners place mannequins in the window for one purpose: to attract passersby, who will stop, look, and enter the store. The reason why these dummies are graced with magnificent beauty is so that somebody else will be attracted to the store because a dummy that has been put on magnificent display.

They step into a different world—because what drew them in from the store window was just the beginning. The store doesn’t stop with what is on display. The store unfolds, floor after floor, revealing treasures beyond expectation—all because one well-dressed mannequin caught their eye and sparked their interest. Does anybody know where I am going with this?

God has called you—yes, you, mannequin of grace. God has decorated you with manifold beauty and made you shine—not because of merit, but because of mercy. You are on display not for self-glory, but to showcase the wonder of God’s grace. The reason that God has showered you with His grace is so that somebody else can see the grace of God being manifested through you and want to enter into God’s presence, enter into His glory, enter into God’s goodness, so they can see the manifold grace of God available to them. May God raise up in this church, a congregation of mannequins for the Master—lives dressed in God’s grace, positioned for God’s purpose, displayed to draw others into the magnificent presence of God. May God grant you this day a new view of the Lord Jesus Christ in His service. God bless you.

If you are here and you are not a Christian, you just need someone to show you how. Come to the front, and we will show you how to receive eternal life today. Is there anyone here who is not a Christian? We can fix that right now. We can show you the way to everlasting life, and it doesn’t cost you anything; it is free because it is by grace. Is there anyone?   

BENEDICTION [CLOSING PRAYER]

Let’s stand on our feet and give God the glory, praise, and honor.

Let’s pray together. Father, we thank You for words of truth and enlightenment—words that confirm we are made by Your hand and graciously gifted by Your Holy Spirit. May we use those gifts to bring glory and honor to Your name. Help us to walk in excellence, always mindful that Your name is attached to all we do. May our lives reflect Your goodness so that others are drawn to You by the evidence of Your work in us. Let us be radiant vessels—bright with purpose—that guide others to Your truth. We are grateful for the past week and ask Your blessing on the one ahead. Equip us with the mindset and grace to live with intention and purpose. We praise You, we thank You, and we receive Your blessings with joy. In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray, and everyone says – Amen.

You are dismissed. God bless you. We look forward to seeing you next week at 10:30 a.m.