Hearts for Ministry

Jesus set the perfect example for the way after which Christians should model their lives. Reduced to simplest terms, He came to serve, not to be served (Matt 20.26-28, Luke 22.27), a distinction which speaks not only to His perfect love and humility but also to the priorities of God. From Jesus' example, it is abundantly clear that our responsibility as His followers is to share our Savior's priority of ministry.

In this vein, we too often tend to view ministry as something we have to do.  While it is absolutely true that we do need to participate in this way, our sense of required service should not override our desire to perform those tasks.  A willing heart attitude is what is pleasing to the Lord, not an empty action that is devoid of true desire or purpose.  A willing heart obeys the truth and expresses “sincere love for each other” which comes from the heart (1 Peter 1.22).  Our service to one another should come from heart-felt devotion to our Savior, and subsequent love for our neighbors.

This issue of heart-worship ties into the discussion in James concerning faith in relation to works. The brother of Jesus states bluntly, “Faith without works is dead, being by itself” (Jas 2.17).  Quite simply, James calls upon the fruit and service of Christian lifestyle as evidence of genuine faith.  If we claim to be Christians, then our lives should be devoted to ministry.  We cannot claim faith and not use it.  If we desire to truly worship the Father, then we will glorify Him through worshipful service to one another.

That's not convicting at all.

Unfortunately, it is simply a fact that we will not always feel like worshiping or serving one another.  We will be too tired, too stressed, too upset.  However, we should not predicate our service to God and/or others upon how we feel, because emotions are an unstable foundation.  As a new husband, I am learning this concept more and more every day.  Loving my wife the way Jesus loves her is not dependent upon how she makes me feel, or how much she appreciates my attempts to meet her needs.  I need to love her in every season of the soul.  Therefore, my strong emotions for her should only spur me to serve her more and not simply bask in a warm sense of self-worth.  In the same way, my frustrations should not prove an obstacle to demonstrating Biblical humility and selflessness.

As Christians, we need to learn to worship/serve because of what we feel and in spite of what we feel.  Are you joyful?  Then use that emotion as a tool to glorify God in praise and thanksgiving, both in your heart and with your voice – so that others can share in magnifying Him!  Are you sorrowful?  Then remember your trust in the One who is sovereign, the only One who has the power to heal and to restore.  Are you exhausted?  Don't forget Paul's admonition that we should not “grow weary in well-doing,” regardless of failures, setbacks, or resistance, for “in due season, we will reap, if we do not give up” (Gal 6.9).  Lean upon the One who does not require rest, but constantly restores our strength.  I submit that the only true cure for a burdened, exhausted, or broken heart is worship and service to the Lord.  Nothing else brings us closer to the Father.  Worship/serve in spite of what you feel, and because of it.

When Jesus sent out the seventy-two in Luke 10, He commissioned them with the following: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.  Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest” (Luke 10.2).  From this passage, we learn that we never need to pray for opportunities to serve or chances to reach the lost.  Those opportunities surround us.  The problem is that not enough of us truly respond to them.  There is more work to be done than worshipers to fulfill the task.  What we should pray for is willingness to embrace the opportunities we see and hearts that are less preoccupied with personal comfort than loving the ones whom God loves.  That starts with our own hearts, by the way – not with our friends' or family members'.

As American Christians, we reduce the biblical definitions of “ministry” and “service” to specific roles.  My ministry to God is (fill in the blank), at (specific time) on (specific day[s] of the week).  That is not the correct way to understand the responsibility which God has given His children, a responsibility which should involve every aspect of our lives.  But we like to compartmentalize in order to feel good about our lives.  We check the box in order to remind ourselves that we're still doing the Lord's will, so we're doing well.  Furthermore, we have a tendency to hide in our home-front, tailored roles of service – e.g. handing out bulletins on Sunday mornings, holding doors for the elderly, maintaining the church announcement bulletin board.  Don't get me wrong: no act of service is too small or unimportant.  However, we should not limit ourselves to types of service which require a minimum of interaction with other people and consider that our reasonable service to Him.

What God truly requires for service is complete renewal of our hearts and minds, the type of renewal which spurs us to action (Rom 12.1).  Paul's admonition is that our lives evidence the work of Christ within.  Our ongoing sanctification should lead us to desire to reach out to the individuals with whom we come into contact, fellow believers or otherwise, and in so doing demonstrate the love of Christ to them.  THAT is ministry, and that is what our entire lives should be about.

In sum, our approach to ministry should not be out of a religious sense of obligation, but a desire to worship God through a heartfelt act of service.  If this is truly the case, then we may be confident in the fact that we are following the admonition of Paul to the Colossians: “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Col 3.17).  This type of service is truly synonymous with worship, because our lives have become living testaments to the grace of God at work within our hearts.