You're gonna serve somebody
By Julia Fowler, Worship Arts Pastor
Word Perfect is the number 1 computer word processor with over 7 million registered users. In poll after poll, it is the word processor of choice among computer users. It isn't that Word Perfect's product is superior to anything else on the market—it isn't that the price is lower. Word Perfect is number 1 because of its superior service. One-third of the company's employees, 750 in total, are trained and equipped to handle customer questions and problems. They deal with more than 16,000 toll-free calls each day at a cost of half-a-million dollars in long distance charges per month. Word Perfect's operators are on call 11 hours per day and can be reached at over 25 different 1-800 numbers. Corporate policy is not to have any customer on hold for more than 60 seconds; so far this year, the average wait time is about 41 seconds. Word Perfect has discovered that service is the key to its success. Somehow Corel Word Perfect Corporation has identified, recognized and has acted on the principle of serving—they get it and they are reaping great monetary and temporal rewards for basing their existing on such value.
Jesus also based his entire life’s work on the value of service as well—of course the stakes were much higher and the reward much more priceless. The apostle Paul writes the following in the Bible book of Philippians:
“1If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. 3Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: 6Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross! 9Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Christ’s mind, attitude and actions were all motivated by a deep rooted desire to serve! His love for the Father, and for all of humanity was poured out through the action of service towards other people. You and I are also called to this great assignment but as was the case even with Christ, the choice is ours to choose whom we will serve.
The truth is that choosing to do nothing, is still doing something—the something you have chosen to do is nothing. Joshua faced confrontation with the Israelite people much along these same lines over 3000 years ago. The book of Joshua continues to chronicle the story of the Israelites after their exodus from Egypt and describes for us approximately 20 years of Joshua’s leadership after Moses anointed him at the end of Deuteronomy. In the final chapter of the book after the Israel nation finally enters their promised land and divides the treasures they find there Joshua’s departure speech includes the following exhortation to the people:
“14 "Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. 15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD. 16 Then the people answered, "Far be it from us to forsake the LORD to serve other gods! 17 It was the LORD our God himself who brought us and our fathers up out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on our entire journey and among all the nations through which we traveled. 18 And the LORD drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will serve the LORD, because he is our God." – Joshua 24:14-18 (niv)
If our statement of faith remains faithful to those of our forefathers then we must follow our choice with action. Far too often we have been found staring up the staircase steps, surveying the climb ahead, which is often necessary, but then neglectfully have never made a move to actually ascend. Now is the time for the Church (God’s Chosen People) to reclaim the promise made by our forefathers, to throw off the things we know to hinder us and start climbing! We’re going to serve someone regardless. Remember that no man can serve two masters: “it may be the devil or it may be the Lord, but you’re gonna serve somebody”. Why not choose to make your service top-notch and eternally rewarding. “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ” and get out there!
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