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Serve

Jesus said, “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve”

This is one of the biggest shocks in the new testament. Jesus in all his dazzling authority, glory, and power didn’t demand our service of him but humbly served us by giving his life as our ransom.

It is our belief at St Nics, that as we dwell on how we have been served by Jesus, we be liberated to pour out our lives all the more in thankful service to Jesus. 

Serving Jesus...

John 15:9-17 

Verses 9-11: 
Looking carefully at verses 9-10: who loves whom? 
How do these loves relate? 
What is involved in remaining in Jesus’ love? 
How has Jesus loved us? – look up John 10:17-18 
Looking at verse 11 – Why did Jesus tell the apostles this? 
When do we lose our joy in serving Jesus? 
How does this reshape our service? 

Verses 12-17: 
What is the pattern for our love for other Christians? 
How does this reshape the motivation for our service? 
What is the difference between being a ‘servant’ and a ‘friend’? 
How does this reshape how we serve? 
What does it mean to bear fruit in this context? 
Think about an area of service you are involved in. How would your attitude be transformed by remembering that you are serving as Jesus’ friends? 

‘When Jesus says that His disciples are not merely servants, but friends, it’s no throwaway line to make us feel nice. It means something; and it helps reshape our motives for serving Jesus. Take the idea of serving to impress others. If I have a view of Jesus as being my fairly distant boss, then I may well serve to impress Him or to impress the middle-management in His company (my pastor, Bible-study leader and so on). 

Jesus declaring me to be His friend cuts this away… If I remember that Jesus is my Friend, and that my Bible-study leader is my friend [because I also lay down my life for them], then I won’t keep trying to impress them. I don’t need to. I’ll be free to get on with enjoying knowing them.’ – Serving without Sinking

Ephesians 5:25-33 

When do you feel stained, wrinkled, blemished, unsanctified, or guilty before God? 
Looking at the whole passage, verses 25-33, how does Paul relate Christ/Church to Husband/Wife? 
Why do they mirror each other? Look up Genesis 2:24 in context. 
How does Christ love his bride the Church? 

See Ephesians 2:1-6 and 5:2 

What do you think the end of verse 26 mean? See 1:13 
What does it mean for Christ to ‘feed and care’ for his own body? 
What does this teach us about how Jesus views us? 
How does this change how we view ourselves, and our service of Jesus? 
Think about an area of service you are involved in. How would your attitude be transformed by remembering that you are serving as Jesus’ bride? 

‘We are a long way from living out what it means to be the bride of Christ. So Jesus goes on transforming us; He goes on cleaning us. He marries us as we are, but He loves us too much to leave us that way. They say that men get married hoping their spouse will never change, and women get married desperately hoping theirs will! In this marriage, it’s the opposite. We don’t need our Husband to be anything more than He already is. He wants to make us into the beautiful bride we are not… 

Jesus will clean us up and get us ready for the day He comes back for us. It is not that He needs to clean us so He can love us. It is because He loves us so much that He will not leave us dirty. Our status is that of the holy and blameless bride of Christ. Our lives will match up to that one day.’ – Serving without Sinking

1 Corinthians 12  

What gifts do we celebrate at St Nicholas? Why? 
Paul begins by introducing an issue the Corinthian church have raised. What is the issue? 
What is the mark that someone has the Spirit? 
What repeated ideas can you spot in verses 4-11? 
How do we see unity and diversity in 4-6? 
Why does the Spirit give gifts in vs 7? 
Why does Paul list the ‘manifestations of the Spirit’ in verses 8-10? 
Why has God given us as individuals gifts? 
What is Paul’s big metaphor in vs 12-27? 
In what ways does Paul compare the Church to a human body? 

What does Paul say to us if we think: 

  • ‘I don’t belong to the body’? 
  • ‘God got my gifts wrong’?
  • ‘I don’t need you’ (to another member of St Nics)? 

How has our thinking been challenged by this passage? In what ways might our values need to change? 
Think about an area of service you are involved in. How would your attitude be transformed by remembering that you are serving as Jesus’ body? 

Luke 15:11-32  

When do we forget that we are sons of the Father? 

Verses 11-24 
How do we see the compassion of the Father for his younger Son? 
How did he initially relate to his father? 
What did he want? What did he reject? 
What did he do when he came to his senses? 
What did his father want for him? 
How does this address the ‘sinners’ of verses 1-2 

Verses 25-32 
How do we see the compassion of the Father for his elder Son? 
How does he relate to his father? 
What did he want? What did he reject? 
What did his father want for him? 
How does this address the ‘Pharisees’ of verses 1-2 
How do we see the last becoming first and the last first here? 
How can we remember that we are sons of the father? 
Think about an area of service you are involved in. How would your attitude be transformed by remembering that you are serving as sons of the Father? 

‘We need to remember that the [younger] son is right [at the end of verse 21]! He doesn’t deserve to be called this man’s son. But the son doesn’t decide if he gets to be a son, a servant, or nothing at all. That’s the father’s call. And he says: You are my son… 

… So what difference does all this make day by day? It becomes more natural to depend on Him; and it becomes more natural to work for Him, and to enjoy it. Surely that younger son would have whistled with glee as he walked into the fields the next day with his dad. The day before he’d woken up in a pigsty, hoping he might end it in a servants’ dorm. Instead, he was a son! He would have swung his scythe into the corn with a smile of amazement that he could work alongside his dad as a son in the family business, not as a mere servant.’ – Serving without Sinking

Serving Jesus... together

We would love to keep the serving conversation going. Why not get in touch with a member of the word ministry team they would love to buy you a coffee and chat further!

Serving Jesus... beyond St Nic's

As members of the worldwide Church, we serve Jesus is many ways – not just at St Nic’s. 

Serving Jesus... full time

God calls some of his people into ‘full-time’ ministry. If you are considering word ministry, you might also want to check out our Timothy Scheme.

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DAY 1 : MATTHEW 16:21-28

Getting our bearings

Introduction

I use satnav but I prefer maps. Of course satnav is a wonderful tool to enable you to get to your holiday destination, provided you spell correctly in order to ensure that you are not directed to a similar sounding place a few hundred miles away. But there is a problem: though satnav can get you there, it doesn’t really show you where you are. A good Ordnance Survey map, at least in the hands of someone who knows which way up it should be held, provides the context. It helps to show how the single point of your destination relates to the whole of the surrounding countryside.

It’s the same with the Bible. It’s great to look at a particular verse or passage. But it will make much more sense when you are able to understand the surroundings. In other words the context will always help to make sense of the text. So, as we prepare to make Matthew 17:1-8 our holiday destination for the next few weeks we are deliberately going to get the map out first and look at the surrounding countryside so that we can see exactly where we are. We’ll need to focus on more than a verse or two as we’ll want to try to get a good view of the whole area. However, the aim of this first study is not to notice every single detail but to help us get our bearings for Matthew 17:1-8.

Read Matthew 16:21-28

21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. 28 Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

‘From that time on …’ (16:21) introduces a new section within Matthew’s Gospel. The phrase was previously used at 4:17 to introduce Jesus’ public ministry. In getting an overview of Matthew, it is apparent that his first main section 4:17-16:20 focuses on the identity of the Lord Jesus Christ. It culminates in Peter’s recognition that Jesus is ‘the Christ, the Son of the living God’ (16:16). The second main section runs from 16:21 onwards and introduces the momentous theme that Jesus will ‘go to Jerusalem, suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised’. Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection will take us to the end of the Gospel. 

A very similar division is also apparent within Mark’s Gospel. It starts with the headline at Mark 1:1 ‘The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God’. Part one of Mark comes to a climax with Peter’s recognition that Jesus is the Christ (Mark 8:29). Part two comes to a climax with Jesus on the cross and the centurion’s recognition ‘Truly this man was the Son of God’ (Mark 15:39). So, Matthew and Mark follow the same broad approach of revealing the identity of Christ before moving on to consider His suffering, death and resurrection. 

Indeed each of the synoptic gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, include the Transfiguration at exactly the same point in their narratives.

Matthew Mark Luke
Peter's confession of Christ 16:13-20 8:27-30 9:18-20
Jesus' prediction of the cross 16:21-23 8:31-33 9:21-22
The call to the disciples 16:24-26 8:34-37 9:23-25
Jesus' prediction of return 16:27 8:38 9:26
Introducing the Transfiguration 16:28 9:1 9:27
The Transfiguration 17:1-8 9:2-8 9:28-36

So, what is happening in this new section of the Gospel?

First, we hear the paradoxical truth that Jesus, who has just been acknowledged as God’s anointed ruler (the Christ), is going to suffer and die in Jerusalem. It’s paradoxical because it simply doesn’t appear to make sense for the long hoped-for leader to die. That’s certainly how Peter assessed the situation (16:22). Yet Jesus’ robust reply (16:23) makes it crystal clear that Peter’s human perspective was completely wrong – he needed to see things from God’s perspective. In the coming days Jesus would reveal how His death would be a necessity (he must go – 16:21) so that the forgiveness of our sins would be made possible (26:28).

Second, Jesus speaks not just of His suffering and death but also of His resurrection (16:21) and future return in glory (16:27). Death would not be the end. Instead Jesus opens their eyes to the future and tells them of His glorious return as Judge. Not only is He revealing Himself as Saviour through His sacrificial death but He is also declaring Himself to be the Lord. The cross will be followed by the crown.

Third, within this section, Jesus instructs His disciples (16:24-26). Their pattern of life is to be shaped by the journey of Christ Himself. Just as Christ would take up His cross before entering glory, so that pattern must be embraced by His disciples. So, following Jesus will involve taking up the cross (16:24). Although such self denial is costly and is described by Jesus as ‘losing your life’ (16:25) the rewards are glorious. Refusing to embrace the pattern of the cross now is a recipe for disaster (16:26). Holding on to the crown now will only lead to suffering later. The cross followed by the crown is the journey which Jesus marks out both for Himself and His followers.

But, if we were to put ourselves into the sandals of Peter and the other disciples, how do we know for sure that suffering will be followed by glory? If they are being encouraged to follow the pattern of what will happen to the Lord Jesus, how do they know that this Jesus whom they have been following will end up in glory? And if they are unsure about what will happen to Jesus, how can they have confidence that their journey following Jesus will also end up in glory? These are the questions which will introduce our next study and prepare the way for the significance of the Transfiguration. 

Reflection and prayer on Matthew 16:21-28
  1. What are the most striking things we learn about Jesus’ purpose and identity in this passage?
  2. What is the normal Christian life supposed to look like according to 16:24-26?
  3. In what ways have you found the pattern of Christian discipleship to be profoundly counter-cultural?

Almighty God,
whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified:
mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross,
may find it none other than the way of life and peace;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen. 

(Collect for The Third Sunday of Lent)