Serving In 2021

WHAT DOES 2021 LOOK LIKE FOR THE GIDDINGS CHURCH OF CHRIST? Are we ready to give up, or get up and work? We have the pandemic looming over us. Attendance is down, funds are down, we’ve lost some folks, fellowships non-existent, works of service non-existent, outreach non-existent. What is in store for the Giddings church of Christ in 2021? The virus is not going away anytime soon no matter how much we wish it would, so what are we going to do? It is not in my nature to give up, in fact those words do not exist in my vocabulary. So the answer is we need to get up and work for the Lord.

1 Corinthians 15:58 NASB95

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.

How do we go about the work of the Lord? This year is going to be about love and service. It’s an all in type of thing. Everyone going to have to find a way to love others and serve others. It’s a simple as that. Love and service go hand in hand and if we all participate, and all are involved then we can make difference in the hearts and lives of people here in Giddings.

Let’s talk about love for a moment because I truly believe that love leads us to service.

We have a tendency to think about “love” as something we feel, but the Bible speaks of “love” as something we do.

It can be clearly seen through a person’s actions; and by contrast, a lack of love can be clearly seen through a person’s actions. Let’s talk about how love means doing good to others.

Love is Not a Feeling

When we hear Jesus tell his disciples, “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39) or “love your enemies” (Matthew 5:44), what do we think he means by that?

Do we think he means, have a warm and sentimental feeling in your heart? If so, how could we possibly feel that way about people we don’t know? Even harder, how could we feel that way about people who have intentionally done us harm?

If someone hates you and is trying to kill you, it would be unreasonable for Jesus to tell you to feel affectionate toward that person. But in spite of how you feel about that person, Jesus does expect you to love them.

Love is Action

Not only is love more than a feeling, it is also more than words. In 1 John 3:16-18, we read:

1 John 3:16–18 NASB95

We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.

How do we know love, Jesus laid down his life for us. It because he did this that we should love the brethren.

Consider the implications of that passage. Whether or not we love others is determined not by our words, but by our “deeds.” Specifically, the deeds by which love is determined is selfless acts of meeting the needs of others. We measure love by looking to Jesus; because he laid down his life for us, “we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.” And if we are willing to die for each other, we are also willing to give anything we have for each other.

This is why, in the Bible, the phrase most closely associated with the command to “love” is the command to “do good.” We are told:

do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith (Galatians 6:10)

do good to one another and to everyone (1 Thessalonians 5:15)

do not grow weary in doing good (2 Thessalonians 3:13)

do good, be rich in good works, be generous and ready to share (1 Timothy 6:18)

do good and share what you have (Hebrews 13:16)

Loving people means doing good to them. It means using whatever we have to meet their needs. If they are hungry, we feed them. If they are thirsty, we give them something to drink. If they are lonely, we visit them.

Shipleys do-nuts gets it. They have 7-core values that they hold to today

S - ervice, exceptional service to exceptional people

H - ospitality, treating each guest like they are at home

I - ntegrity, honesty and going above and beyond

P - assion, a sense of urgency to be positive & achieve greatness

L - eadership, inspiring & guiding

E - nergy, positive attitude, outlook, & mindset

Y - ummy, delivering deliciousness daily

Love Your Enemies

This is how we can love our enemies. We may not be able to feel sentimental or affectionate about people who are doing us harm, but we can certainly do good and not harm to them. Take some time and really listen to Jesus’ words in Luke 6:27-36.

Jesus tells his disciples to love those who:

hate them (vs. 27)

curse them (vs. 28)

abuse them (vs. 28)

strike them (vs. 29)

steals from them (vs. 29-30)

Jesus’ instructions do not have anything to do with the way we feel about those who hate, curse, abuse, and strike us.

Our love for them is determined by whether or not we:

bless them (vs. 28)

pray for them (vs. 28)

give to them (vs. 29-30)

do good to them (vs. 33)

lend to them (vs. 34)

show them mercy (vs. 36)

It is all about how you treat your enemies. Do you, like those in the world, hurt your enemies? Or do you live as one of Jesus’ disciples, blessing and giving to your enemies?

Paul captures what love for enemies is all about when he says:

Romans 12:14–21 NASB95

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. “But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Do Good to All People

Love is pretty simple and can be summed up by this proverb, “Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it” (Proverbs 3:27).

But, we might ask, to whom is it due? The proverb says to do good to whom it is due, but surely it is not due everyone, is it? This is exactly the sort of question a man asked Jesus in Luke 10:25-37, as they discussed the command to “love your neighbor as yourself.” The man wanted to know, “Who is my neighbor?” Jesus told the man a parable about a loving and merciful Samaritan. Jesus concluded by saying, “Go, and do likewise.”

Our marching orders are simple: Love your neighbor. Your neighbor is everyone you meet and loving them means doing whatever is in your power to help them and serve them. We do this not in an effort to save ourselves, but because we’ve been transformed by Jesus. We do this because Jesus loves us and has done everything within his power to help us and serve us. He has transformed us, through his love and through his Spirit, into people for whom love is an action word.