Seek Serve Send - Pt 4: Serving One

Oftentimes when we read God's word as something is repeated over and over again, it is repeated because he wants to get the reader in a position to understand what he's trying to proclaim. And so that's when we read what is a record in God's Word. But when we worship as something is saying over and over, God is trying to proclaim something in His sung word. And so what we're singing is I'm going to make it through. That is for somebody here today. We don't know what you're dealing with of what you're going what's going on in your life. God wants you to realize that you're going to make it through. And as I think about Psalms 91, David writes, Those who live in the shelter, the most I will find rests in the shadow of the Almighty.

He says this I declare about the Lord. He alone is my refuge. My place of safety. He is my God that I trust. For He will rescue you from every trap and protect you from the deadly disease. He will cover you with this fire, with his feathers. He will shelter you from his wings. His faithful promise is your armor and your protection. It says, Do not be afraid by the terror. By night, nor the air was a fly by the day. Do not do not driven it. A disease that stalks in darkness, nor the disaster that strikes by midday. Though a thousand may fall by your side and 10,000 are dying all around you. Evil would not come near you and this is God's word. You can stand on it. You can you can know that his word would now return void and so wherever you are today, rejoice in knowing that God has revealed himself to you this morning. As a father today, God, we celebrate the newness that's taking place right now. God, the revelation of second place right now. God, we bind everything that's not of you and God.

We cast it back down to the pit of hell right now. God, we will trample on scorpions and serpents because you are giving us that authority. God, you told us in your word that we are more than conquerors. So, God, we know that God we are, and we know that we are more than conquerors. So we will walk it out as such. So, Father, we thank you, God willing, shall we say, have you waited a God? We thank you, God, for your redemption. We thank you, God for your restoration. The Father, most importantly, God, we thank you for your son. Jesus Christ. Holy Spirit. Have you wait here today? You inhabit the praises of your people. We love you, God. And we are you. As in Jesus Christ. We say amen.

Family. We've been in a sermon series about the vision of one church. Simply put, the vision of one church comes out of John 1721 and John 1721. The Scripture reads that all of them may be one father, just as you are in me and I am. And you may also be enough so that the world may believe. Have you been in a series for the past three weeks and we're landing the plane next week as we wrap up our Our Vision series. And last week, we talked about the seeking the one because one matters like right. You know, there's there's value in that one. The one that we need to go after. And we, we lift it up. The passage of Scripture, Luke Chapter 15, where we read the past, the Scripture where this young lady, this woman who turned her house upside down looking for one coin, one coin slipped up under every covered in cup and dish, and she moved the couches and furniture out the way she was looking for something that was so precious to her. She began to look entire house. And we talked about last week as well about how the man would lead the 99 to go after the one. He has a forward of 100 sheep, but one got lost. One drifted away somehow, some way. And he left the 99 to go after the one because that one matters. The father found one of his sons decided to go off and do what sometimes we want to do ourselves.

And he waited month after month, week after week. He waited by the gate by the threshold of his house, looking for that one son. And when he saw his son from afar, he went off to go meet him, because that one matters. So the church, I'm reminded to tell you today that, yes, that we are called to seek the one while seeking the one recall to seek the one the one that's lost, the one that's sitting by themselves, the one that's not connected to the body of Christ. But while seeking that one, we are call also to seek the one because everyone has a face, everyone has a name, that one has a soul, that one is the person that Jesus Christ died for. The one sitting outside the margins matter. I we want you to know that you are loved. We want you to know that you're known. We want to remind you that you are needed. A church is now something that you go to, but it's a family that you belong right? This gathering to church every single Sunday doesn't mean that there's just a place or a facility or or a temple that you just go to. But no, it's more than a place that where you belong.

That's what church is about. Yeah. That you belong to a community, that you belong to a family that may not look like you talk like you dress like you may be in a different economic status than you, but yet you still belong. And so today, after seeking the one we're called to serve, the one. So I had to lift up a title today. It was it would be called Serving the one. This is not on a screen. But Matthew, chapter nine verses 35 to 39, I'll be reading in the Navy version and it's a very familiar piece of pass. I want to just kind of set the stage of where we go in today. Matthew Chapter nine verses 35 to 39. Then I'll be crossing over to Chapter ten. Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in the synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were harassed and helpless like sheep. Without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.

The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few as the lord of the harvest. Therefore, to send out workers into the harvest field, into his harvest field. Chapter two In verse one, Jesus called his 12 disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. These are the names of the 12 Apostles four Simon, who was called Peter and his brother Andrew James, son of Zebedee, and his brother John Philip and Bartholomew Thomas and Matthew, the tax collector James son of Alpheus and Thaddeus Simon, the zealot and Judas Iscariot who betrayed him. See, this scripture reminds me that everybody needs somebody, that everybody should have a partner, a crime, a man. For many of you, some of you had the partner crying before you were saved. You're running, buddy, your road dog, your right to die, brother, sister, chick, whatever you want to call them. You had the partner who did you did ministry with a man.

We understand this. Everybody needs somebody. And when we begin to understand the why everybody needs somebody, then we can begin to really tell the how and the where and even the what. Why partners and people who partner together and the CO labor is in the faith. Those who serve together is need it in the body of Christ. Why did Matthew and Jesus call the 12 disciples? Jesus called the 12 disciple was because he needed partners in the ministry. Those theologians who graduated Magnum Coolgardie from Bible study a man, those who may graduated magna cum laude or summa Gulati or thank you, Lord, from any type of education institution. You may know the reason why the 12 disciples mirror the 12 tribes of Israel. That's true.

But I say that there's even more to the reason why we have the 12 disciples and that reason why is found in chapter nine. In Verse 37, because Jesus is telling us that He's traveling to Judea. While He's traveling to Judea. He's teaching, he's preaching and he's healing. Did you get that while he's traveling through Judea? He's teaching. He's preaching and he's healing. So while he's teaching through this vast land, he's preaching his father's lessons. He's healing the people that he's coming in contact with. And he realizes that he cannot do it all by himself. He says that the harvest is plentiful, but those who serve, those who go labor with him in the gospel are few and he needs help. Jesus understand that there's more work that has to be done. He understand that He is not able to do it all by himself. So what does he do? He calls on 12 disciples, 12 apostles to be specific. He pray for some partners to help co labor in the faith because in ministry, sometimes our assignment that God gives us is greater than our individual ability. The assignment that God has for you and nine is greater than we can do by ourselves. So we need co laborers.

We need help people to partner with the Kingdom of God, with the kind of mission of God to walk out what God has called us to do. So we're now called to be by ourselves. This is the reason why he selected and commissioned his 12 apostles. He said, I need some help. I can't do this by my self. Now, let now let's let's really understand. Is this is Jesus right? This is the Messiah. The Messiah, the Reverend. The beginning of time. The one that created the heavens and the earth. He said, out of heaven into earth to do the work of his father. He is saying that he needs help. This is Jesus, right? The same Jesus that was in the water for 40 days. The same Jesus that walked in water got no. It turned water into why cast out demons. The same Jesus that you know, when the young lady touched him of his garment became whole. This is the same Jesus that did all of these miracles, saying, I need some help.

So if Jesus needs some help, right? You little me born in the South out of Rochester, New York might be the Easter down a without it was this south side because it's now better right because nothing good come from the north. They man hey, hey, hey. Okay, okay. Okay. My bad north. Asheboro Oh, bless them. Jesus. If Jesus needs help, then you and I, we need some help because this great commission, this great commandment that God gives us, the gospel is too great and our mission is too urgent for us to do about ourselves. We see this for the beginning time. We see this in Genesis chapter two. Right? So God brings takes Eve out of Adam to accomplish the work that he needed to do. We see in Genesis chapter two, we see that he is called her his help meet to accomplish the things that God when and Adam to do. And we see here in chapter ten of Matthew where he says Philip and Bartholomew, in Thomas in Matthew the tax cut.

And James son is Deputy James, son of Alpheus and Thaddeus that Jesus knew he could have just said James, John, Peter, Mark and all of that. And he said, No, Jesus John in Bartholomew, Thaddeus in Philip. He wanted to know that we were committed and needed to serve the Kingdom of God. Which brings me to our first point for today. We serve the one because we're committed to the Gospel. We serve the one not only the one which is our risen our risen savior, Jesus Christ, but the one individual we serve, the one the mission, the one vision, the one gospel that God has called us to do because we are committed to the Gospel. People ask, Ryan, why do you always go all in? Why are you here? Set up to send and why are you here? Because I believe this. I want to give my best because he gave his best. I want to give God my. Oh, I don't want to give God half baked stuff now I want to give got all that I am because he gave us all he gave us his best. Now no second hand-me-downs. God gave his his very best. Jesus is the true go. Amen. Jesus is the greatest of all time, sir. I don't care what you say. He's not Kobe is not LeBron the second go. Definitely MJ man, we can argue about that later. If you a Kobe friend or a LeBron fan, I'm sorry, but Michael Jordan, he changed.

He changed the whole game. Right. Come on, now. Yes. We're LeBron fans. Oh, yeah. This is good cherished. That's all I'm talking about. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yes. We serve the one because we're committed to the gospel. We're called to serve. And it's all throughout the game. If you don't believe me, let's lift up first. Peter Chapter four verses nine through 10/1 Peter Chapter four verse 913 says this offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.

So what that means when I come to your house, have some sweet tea. Ready? Right. Nathan, water my back, my bed, maybe have some water ready. He's in a whole nother regiment. You come to our house with our speeches and what we call intimidate or own upon or whatever you want to call it. Some cheer. Why? Half and half? But it says Offer hospitality, meaning that you have to offer your service, that you're willing to lay down your self to take care of someone else, to lay down your needs, to take care of someone else's needs. Says this to do it one and to another without grumbling. Right. Each of you should use what? Every gift first since chapter 12. I mean, you have received to serve others as a faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms. Let me break that down quick. It says each of you should use whatever gifts that God has endowed you with by the Bible tells us that we all have gifts. Go back and read Paul's writing in first Corinthians Chapter 12.

He talks about the different gifts that he has given us. And we I did a sermon series a while back and we talked about gifts and talent. Your gifts is different from your talents. Our guest is there are gifts are received from from on high from heaven. Your talents is something God has given you, has ingrained into you to mobilize and then perfect and help execute the gifts that God has given us is a platform that have allowed us to have, as a faithful steward of God's grace in various forms, is what that means is this that everybody has the ability to use your gifts to serve, to serve the body of Christ and be

the vessel of Christ in wherever, workplace or platform marketplace leader that you are where you are in Matthew Chapter 20 versus 26 and 20 says this not so with you. As said, whosoever want to become great among you must be your servant. Whoever wants to be first must be your slave. And I know slave is a very harsh word, but in the King James, I believe as a servant as well. And then when we say serving those that we're willing to serve our brothers and sisters in a faith, we're willing to serve those who are not even a part of the faith because we have to be the hands or we should be the heads, the feet of Jesus Christ. Mark. Chapter ten, verse 45 says this for 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, we see all throughout Scripture that God has call you and I to serve.

So my question is why isn't it happening? I'm let you guys think about it for a second. I want that awkward past that silence to just kind of sit in. If God has called us to serve, then why aren't we serving? We'll come back to that. We serve not to be seen, but we serve so that others are known, are willing. We serve not to be seen, but we serve so that others can be known. Imagine this when you have people come into the church, our host team, our Greek team and our our connections team, they have the opportunity to really begin to speak life into their situation and begin to had that the first encounter. You know, my former profession, slight hustle. I serve at home as at a hotel. And, you know, we we we engage a lot of different people, right? People come in mad. They come in on ten already, like, man, what's going on? Like they come in hot. Like, it's like it's unreal. But then we have to have to remind our team members that you never know what they encounter to get to where they're at today, even in your jobs or when you call.

Or better yet, when you go to the DMV, come on church, who when you go to the DMV that would test your Christianity? Amy It would test Your Holiness on a whole different level. It's something that comes that just rises up. You why you see that the license plate ABC in North Carolina near mine. Let me just let's just pray for I'll say this. You never know what the person that you're talking to are going through. And you may be the only Jesus that they may encounter for that day or even that lifetime. And how you serve them will make a difference. And I believe this church, our church, we're a church who love to serve. Yeah. And the reason why I know that, because we're going to show this video is just a reminder how we love to serve our city.

Come on. Our church, 300 cups of coffee, over 300 families that we were able to connect with for for for groceries and laundry and things like that. Guys, you we were the hands and feet of Jesus Christ that met them in a space that was not within these walls, but right where they're at right now. Yeah. Yeah. In my favorite part was on Sunday where we closed the church, went to City Lake and, and you can hear the worship of God across the lake. You can feel the presence of the Holy Spirit just encamped around everyone. Then we got to cook out and eat and play cornhole and games and different things like that and begin to love with each other but then serve one another in such a capacity. I love how those who were serving at one point said, Stop serving, you go eat. And then let this team serve you. They had a heart to serve one another. And that's the beauty of it. Right. And that's what Jesus wants us to do. So Jesus wants us. He He wants us or desires us to partner with him in what the gospel is called to do is not only proclaim who he is, but proclaim what he does as well and how he redeemed and how he restores. My second point is this Not only are we called to serve the one because we're committed to the gospel itself, we're called to serve the one because we're connected to each other as God created us to serve each other in the local church room, become more like Christ. We should become committed servants through the body of a local church.

Well, how is it? Scripture tells us that we're one body in many parts, and then we operate on all cylinders and use all parts and we become more effective vessel. And we'll say this There's always a seat at the table for you. We will make room for you. And so my question goes back to why are we all serving in the local body in Samoa? My goal, my encouragement for you today is just think about and pray how you can begin to serve within this local body or a local body of a church so that we can become more effective. And what God has called us to do, I'll tell you, some women in a process of like in transition of our our kids ministry in this past Wednesday night, you know, not only was a daddy daycare the nursery a man. Yeah. Know I love daddy daycare but I was on daddy duty literally on daddy duty. I missed it. Oh, there goes Prince. I was changing diapers. I haven't changed a diaper in years, but I love our church so much that there's nothing that I would not do to serve. There's nothing that I would not do to ensure that our body is healthy.

But guess what? This is where you get to come in and partner with this church in so many different ways that you can serve in different capacities. So next week we will have a small ministry fair where we're going to have all of our ministries outline to you, get to have opportunity to kind of talk about what does it look like for me to serve? And I remember I was talking to one of our members and I'm a call them out quick because they're just an amazing couple. Um, Brandon and Vere, they recently joined our worship team and I was talking to Deary because we work in the same facility they were. Brandon Man, like, you know, this, this dude, he's so cool. Just an amazing man.

I'm like, but he's not connected anymore. How can we get him connected? And she said, Right, you know what? He's a drummer. I'm like, Okay, is he a drummer drum or he drum like me? You know, he definitely drums like me. And the long story of it is and he said that we are a had a drummer like we had two drummers. But my dear, you know, we live in a motto of in a position that we will always make room at the table right. So Brandon came in. He was kind of nervous a little bit. Start playing the drums and killing it. And now he's serving on a worship team. And the beauty of it is that their son can see mom and Dad serve on the stage together.

And it's not about serving on the stage, but more importantly, that their son can see their mother and their father serve the church. I'm going to tell you this. We serve because we're connected, serving in the body of Christ connects you to the body in a whole different level. So you coming to church on Sunday or Wednesday nights is one thing, but serving builds community serving builds and one isn't it? Togetherness is such a way that you begin to be like, man, get to know things differently about people, right? And so I would just encourage you to to really begin to to serve or begin to serve in some capacity so you can build relationships with other people is through serving a fellowship that the body of Christ grows.

So it's what we served at the body of Christ in the fellowship of Christ. We grow one of James, his words that I learned just talking with him how to do a world that is canonically. Right. Pastor James, did you continue is talked about 43 times in Greek in the New Testament 43 times just in a New Testament. So that's spoken of 43 times in the New Testament. And that means that there's some importance about it. Right. There's something that's important about the fellowship of believers coming together so you can see the sun gathering is great because Hebrews chapter ten, verse 25, says it for sake, not the assembly of ourselves. That's what we're doing today, right? We're assembling together. That's that's our Sunday gatherings. But what about our life groups? Are I Connection Groups Acts Chapter two that we should meet and break bread in each other houses the gathering. We are brothers and sisters together to go over God's Word. See, that's our connection groups, right? But what about serving? Serving? We are to read that first, Peter chapter four verse said that we are called to serve those three things is the fellowship of believers is to continue the 43 times of what the Scripture talks in the New Testament.

The Sunday gathering is the connection groups and the serving. Why aren't you serving? What are you afraid of? Have you been hurt before? Have you served to a capacity? Were you just burnt out with that? You just don't want to serve him. I get it. Yeah, I get it. But watch this. If you serve maybe once a month, you take the burden off your other brother or sister who may been in that seat for quite some time. If we fully operate in all cellars of the body of Christ and everybody serves at least once in some area of the church, imagine what that would look like serving others. Prepare you to lead others. They may serving others prepares you to lead others. So Jesus was a servant leader, our church remodel servant leadership. So when we look at leaders and we begin to slick leaders like we're talking about our elders, our deacons, our worship team, I mean, just where we are talking about like our core leaders that lead and guys is church.

So those who are on staff, those who have biblical authority in this church, our elders, our staff and our deacons, how do we get how do we how do we begin to look at those leadership styles first? Timothy Chapter three verses went through to let me read it for you. It says, This is how you select biblical leaders. Here's a trustworthy saying Whosoever aspires to be an overseer, a leader desires a noble task. Now the overseer or leader is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife. That's interchangeable, temperate, self-controlled, respectable. And guess what? The next word hospitable, which means they should serve. We are called to be servant leaders in the last pass is apt to teach. My last point is this Not only do we serve one because we're connected, we serve one because we're committed to the gospel. We serve one because we care. We serve the one because we care. We care so much that we want to connect with them outside of what is comfortable for them at times. Right. Brittney Manning said this.

He says, I don't know this man named Jesus, but one thing I do know, that his life conveys one message. Any one at any time can start over. He says, I don't know this man named Jesus mean meaning that he's not he's not a believer. But he says that his message, this Jesus message, conveys one thing that I know and I know for certain anyone at any time can start over, because serving matters. Many of you guys remember back in February or March of this year, you know, Felicia, we found ourselves a kind of like a a tough spot, you know, just, you know, in marriage and relationships, you know, ups and downs, valleys in, you know, mountains and valleys. You know, ministry for me was was was rough. I've experienced some things over that that season of my life, of just leading a ministry.

It was just rough. The pears look like we were winning on an outside. But inside I was I was I was losing. I felt like I was losing. You know, you look at our social media and everything else, you know, we we felt like we were winning. We were doing great things. We were hidden, the accolades, things were moving forward, ministry was taking place. But deep down inside, I was hurting, to be honest. I was getting ready to just to just to throw in the towel. I felt like I was losing it all. I felt like I was losing at my marriage, which now we were at, at odds ends. You know, we were we just we were in rhythm. And oftentimes in marriages, you know, you desire to walk in rhythm.

You desire to walk in, step together in unison. But there's times in in your relationship, not only with Christ, but also with the people that you do life with, that you are out of sync with. In a season in my life, we're in February, March, guys, I'm a be honest. Almost like I'm done. I was I was I'm like, I'm tired of it. I was ready to walk away from it all. But because serving matters, serving connecting me with a group of people who cared about me, we get it. Pray for me because I'm connected to these individuals. I called on them and because this individual served in our church and serves in our church, I remember that Sunday morning I said, David, come up on stage and pray for Felicia and I. Those though you may not know, David Yates and Kelly Yates, they serve as leaders of our marriage ministry at Felicia. Because because ministry was hard. Life was hard. It trickled down to my family. And what does that mean? He wants to do? He wants to separate. He wants to divide. And I said a devil's the lie and I had enough. So I called David Yates up. He didn't know I was going to call on him. I said, David, just pray for us and y you pray for us for Felicia. I just pray for other marriages, the other relationships just out in a congregation that is struggling right now, because truth be told, many of us feel like throwing in the towel.

But when you serve and you care and somebody walks through that door and you ask them, how are you doing? And they say, I'm not doing well. Let me pray for you. See, when our parking lot of tennis, our our greeters, our coffee shop, those who our connections, those who are men in the tables, when you see that face or you see that connection with that person, you just don't let them pass you by, slow down. They take time to recognize where they are and say, we care because church is not something that you go to, but it's a family that you belong to. It was at the moment where David came up again to pray for Felicia and I. The shift took place. The tide began to change for guys. You know, we keep it real.

I'm not going to sugarcoat like we got to, right? Every single Sunday, like we try, we strive towards perfection did that we have not reached towards perfection. We have not reached that goal. But we're still walking towards it. But we that's what God wants us to do. So even when you were you served the church in the past, you've been hurt or you've been burnt out. I would say reengage, get reconnected. And guess what? There's going to be another maybe another season, at least in our lives or our marriage, that we're we may be out of rhythm, out of step. I'm calling my brothers, my sister Alma. Say, look, can you pray for us? We can help a brother sister out. Amen. Because we're not perfect, but we desire to lead and serve our church in such a way that is Bible focus, that we build community, and then we make sure that we care.

I'm sorry, this last thing and I'm going to be finish it says this If Christ has no hands but our hands to do his work today, it probably has no feet but our feet to lead him and men in the way he has no tongue but our tongue to tell men how he died. He has no help but our help to bring them to his side. And what this is saying is this this poem is very basic. This poem is say that we are the hands and the feet in the mouth of Christ. And so we should lead and serve in such a way that our brothers and sisters, our community, our marketplace leaders, which you all of us are, were called to do, that this is our worship team, make their way to the front as well.

To remind our church today that we're called to seek the one as we're seeking the one that we're called to seek, the one that the brother or sister who sitting by themselves, the one that is the strange one that's not connected to the body, the one that may not have any community whatsoever ever seek after them, make yourself available. But we're also called to serve the one. And lastly, church, as we wrap up next week, we're called to send the one that we're seeking, that we're serving and we're sending and we'll talk about that next week. MAN So let us then we're going to close out with the song called Another in a Fire. So I don't know about you if you ever been in a storm of life, just know that there's another in a fire. There's one that's in there with you. Because he said that he would not leave you. No. Forsake you. And we just have to lean into that individual. So when you feel like you're all by yourself, ask for some help. And I'll say this if you are feeling alone, if you're feeling neglected even by this church, come and see me and we'll make that a change.

That's one area in our church that we want to make sure that we do better, that we are, that we're closing that back door, that we're closing the gaps in our ministry, that no one feels like they're left out there, no one feels like their march, that they're a part of a margin. We want you to feel that you're connected to the body of Christ completely. And I want to make sure that we model that I want to out of that. Amen. But but one of the best ways to do that is to begin serving in the church and building community. Amen.