When Jesus calls us to follow him, he calls us to a life of
service. Jesus himself set the
example. He came from his Father’s
throne in heaven, entitled to receive worship and obedience from humans . . .
“when he brings in the firstborn into the world he says, ‘Let all the angels
of God worship him.’” —Hebrews
1:6
“Have this in your mind, which was also
in Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, didn’t
consider equality with God a thing to be grasped, but
emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of
men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to
death, yes, the death of the cross.” —Philippians
2:5-8
Should we shrink back from some humble form of service God
may call us to? During the years before
embarking on his three-year ministry of preaching and working miracles, Jesus
evidently worked for years in his foster father Joseph’s carpentry shop. How could we think ourselves above menial
tasks, when Jesus was even willing to do a household servant’s job, washing the
feet of his disciples?
“Jesus, knowing that the Father had
given all things into his hands, and that he came forth from God, and was going
to God, arose from supper, and laid aside his outer
garments. He took a towel, and wrapped a towel around his waist. Then he poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples’
feet, and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. . . . he said to
them, ‘. . . If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, have
washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.’” —John
13:3-5, 12, 14
So, in our church or place of Christian fellowship, we
should gladly accept any service that God may call on us to perform. There are many ways to help in the
church. Paul wrote,
“And in the church God has appointed
first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of
miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those
with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of
tongues.” —1 Corinthians 12:28 NIV
One Christian woman cited as a good example
was Tabitha or Dorcas, whom the Apostle Peter resurrected after she fell sick
and died. She was in the habit of making
articles of clothing and giving them to poor widows who, in ancient Roman
society, struggled to survive, depending on the charity of others:
“Now there was at Joppa a
certain disciple named Tabitha, which when translated, means Dorcas. This woman
was full of good works and acts of mercy which she did. It
happened in those days that she fell sick, and died. When they had washed her,
they laid her in an upper room. As Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples,
hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to him, imploring him not to delay
in coming to them. Peter
got up and went with them. When he had come, they brought him into the upper
room. All the widows stood by him weeping, and showing the coats and garments
which Dorcas had made while she was with them.” —Acts 9:36-39
Jesus views such good works and acts of mercy done to his
followers as if they were done to him personally:
“‘“. . . I was hungry, and you gave me food
to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me drink. I was a stranger, and you took me
in. I was naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you visited me. I was in
prison, and you came to me.”
“‘. . . “Lord, when did we see you
hungry, and feed you; or thirsty, and give you a drink? When did we see you as
a stranger, and take you in; or naked, and clothe you? When did we see you sick,
or in prison, and come to you?”
“‘. . . “Most certainly I tell you, inasmuch as you
did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”’” —Matthew
25:35-40
Such good works and acts of service do not earn us our
salvation, of course—salvation is a free gift from God through Jesus Christ—nor do they offset sinful conduct. Jesus warned that those who persist in sinning
and doing evil will not be able to claim entrance into heaven by citing their
service to God:
“‘Not every one who says to me, “Lord,
Lord,” shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father
who is in heaven. On that day many will
say to me, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons
in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?” And then will I declare to them, “I never
knew you; depart from me, you evildoers.”’” —Matthew 7:21-23 RSV
Good works of Christian service do not earn us our
salvation, but rather when God gives us the free gift of salvation it is our
duty to respond by doing good:
“For we are God's workmanship, created
in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” —Ephesians 2:10
NIV
So, as followers of Jesus we have a responsibility to do
good works—it is expected of us.
One of the greatest works is to carry out the great
commission of bringing the Gospel message to others. Before ascending to heaven, Jesus said,
“‘Go, and make disciples
of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit, teaching them to
observe all things that I commanded you.’” —Matthew 28:19-20
We may not all be called to be teachers or evangelizers,
but we can all tell others what Jesus has done for us—our personal testimony of
being saved from our sins and having our lives turned around by our Lord and
Savior. After healing a man and rescuing
him from a terrible life,
“Jesus sent him away, saying, ‘Return to your house, and declare what great things God has done for
you.’ He went his way, proclaiming throughout the whole
city what great things Jesus had done for him.” —Luke
8:38-39
We can do the same when relatives or work mates or neighbors
notice that we have changed after becoming followers of Jesus. We can tell them what Jesus has done for us,
and thus introduce them to the Gospel message.