Lifting the Lid

Rev Ronald Ooi

I had a wonderful meeting over breakfast with the ministry leaders this morning. We are closing the gap so that every ministry is interdependent with one another. And we had a time of prayer and this will continue for a while. Nehemiah rebuilt the wall together with the workers around him and they closed the gap but there was some form of opposition but as long as we are united we can do all things. Amen? As we grow in maturity the church will bring in new ones and we will disciple them.

I want to interview my wife this morning. This is impromptu. Time has flown, five months we have been here. Are you ready to leave Penang yet?

Jasmine: No. The people have been so accepting of me and it's hard to leave. TOP has been a fertile ground and all the seeds we have sown have grown and developed. My heart is bursting with joy and you all made me feel so welcomed and loved and you have been feeding us with all the makan makan and has helped me grown by leaps and pounds.

Ronald: I know I'm not ready to leave Penang yet and you know why? Because the durian season is not here yet and I'm waiting for the best durian in town. But I'm also waiting to see like what Jasmine said about the seeds being sown, of seeing like spring of young shoots springing up. I sense that in my heart and we see how the young people are growing up with the adults coming alongside with patience and love and also the cell groups which my wife have been going around.

My health and energy is not like before and I trust you understand why as I have a lot of challenges but God gave me a younger wife who has a lot of energy so I must find ways for her to release this energy. By the time she comes back at 11pm I'm already half asleep. I'm really looking forward to retirement as this year was supposed to be the year we're with our children and stay quiet for a moment. If the Lord takes me home tomorrow I can say Lord, I have done what you have asked of me.

We went to Balik Pulau and saw some local fruits as the durian season is not here yet. I want not just to see the best durians but I also want to see the best in all of you. That this is going to be the best in TOP. Gabby steals everybody's heart when in the interview she said mommy you're the best.

We are moving into discipling and when you grow as a disciple the work will do well. Bro Koay spoke at the prayer meeting about the worker and the worshipper and sometimes we can be so busy as a worker that we forget we are first a worshipper.

Jasmine: My husband has helped me and encouraged me to share and grow like a caterpillar to a butterfly. I used to be very shy but he has helped me open up. So this butterfly is for him. We are like elevators. We bring people up or we bring people down. And when we step into that elevator, how do they feel? Will they feel like it's bringing them up, or bringing them down to the basement, Minus 1? TOP is the only elevator with a Minus 1. So I hope that all of us will be that elevator that takes people up. Similarly, I'm also very concerned about family and marriages where we will continue to affirm and encourage one another and we will have happier homes and happier children and happier spouses. Encouragement is like oxygen. It's like those oxygen therapy as it helps you shine and glow. 

This morning I want to share about lifting the lid. There is this story we all know about David. If there is no Goliath we would not have known David. Goliath brought up the David we know and I'm praying this morning that we will find there is a David in all of us.

1 Samuel 17:34-37 (NIV)

34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, 35 I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. 36 Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. 37 The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”

Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you.”

There's no greater joy in my life than to see others succeed. Maybe it's this father in me and I'm sure every parent feels the same in wanting to see their children go far in life. Teachers play an important role in teaching us the ABCs at kindergarten. The kindergarten teachers then surrender us to primary school and then to the secondary school where we have the secondary school teachers that takes us to another level.

1. Lifting the lid

And the secondary school teachers leave us to the university lecturers. I call this lifting the lid. This is a container and there's a lid here. When I take out the lid, the lid determines how high we can go.

I take my lid off him so that he can go higher. As long as I have the lid on him, that's the highest he can go. Another way is I improve myself and I go higher and move the lid up and he can also go higher.

Just last night someone WhatsApp me about someone preaching at a Bak Kut The outlet winning souls. I almost gave up on this man who is about my age. This guy came to Bible school and he did something wrong and I had to suspend him. In Bible school it is very strict and I suspended him hoping he would change. He went for rehabilitation and he came back to apply for Bible school and I told him he cannot afford to make another mistake.

I had to bench him but he came back and grew from the lesson. He sent me some photos yesterday and he is now an evangelist and he has won 38 people at his Bak Kut Teh outlet. I am so encouraged and I told him well done. I suspended him for 6 months but he never regretted it. That's what a father does. You correct wrong.

David here took the challenge to fight Goliath. From a Shepherd a low position to the highest position. He was able to lift the lid himself. He may have killed the lions and the bears but no one saw it. The sheep didn't clap for him but he loved his sheep and he became a sheep leader.

So when Goliath came he knew he has done this. David was a man trained by God in the wilderness. I love training. That's the key to the next generation. One of the most fulfilling time was when I was at Bible school. To train and train and train. But you must want to be trained. To ask God to grow you.

Me and Jasmine have been doing that, to bring out the best in people. Building people and empowering lives. So that we can take the lid off them so that they can become what God intended them to be.

David is another who is in one of the largest developer in Malaysia. God has taken him from the dumps of society to one of influence in the corporate world.

Saul had a weakness. The army wasn't with him. He put the lid of impatience over himself. Because of that he cannot go on. He was living in an attitude of denial. And when he was rejected as King he lived like everything was okay. Then pride was another lid.  Jealousy, anger, deceit were lids that he put on himself and because of this he lost his kingdom.

I sat under James Maxwell before and he said as long as we limit ourselves that's as far as our organisation will grow. If you don't grow then that's the level the organisation will reach. You are the lid. Churches and organisations are dynamic. We are meant to grow. And serving is a lifetime serving. Different seasons and different approach.

If you throw an apple up it will come down. It's the law of gravity. It's a law. Same as the lid. When you grow them, grow the worker and the work will grow. It takes patience and encouragement and there are no shortcuts. It's a lot of work. Take the lid off yourself. Don't limit yourself. When you overcome the obstacles the word cannot shouldn't be I'm our vocabulary.

I was in a hotel and asked for a soft pillow and they said cannot. Cannot be done. It's limiting. At least say I'll think about it, or let me research first or give me some time and cannot should be our last word. That's where we change our mind set. The spirit of cannot seems to be a Malaysian thing. Can TOP be different? Can Penang be different? Say can with me. Sometimes we stop our children by telling them they cannot do this, cannot do that and they grow up thinking they cannot.

I don't like to talk too much about Josh, because we can be misunderstood as boasting but it's not. My son grew up as a Pastor's kid growing up in public school. He was an ordinary boy. Jasmine can you talk about the godly do dirt?

When we go looking for gold, there's a lot of dirt with it. The same with children, do we look for the good and not the bad. We highlight what's good in them and it gives them the opportunity to developed themselves.

He just spoke to 700 scientists in Japan. He was sent there as a team. What I was saying is that when he was young the whole house was a laboratory. We groomed him from young. He has a head gift, a hand gift and a heart gift. Heart gift is that he's soft and he loves animals. Hand gift is that he likes to do things and also a head gift. So we just took the lid off him.

Look for the gold and not the dirt. Look for the good.

2. Lift the lid for others.

1 Samuel 17:51-53 (NIV)

51 David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine’s sword and drew it from the sheath. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword.

When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran. 52 Then the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines to the entrance of Gath and to the gates of Ekron. Their dead were strewn along the Shaaraim road to Gath and Ekron. 53 When the Israelites returned from chasing the Philistines, they plundered their camp.

David went out and cut off Goliath's head and the rest of the army came out and they are now ready to fight the Philistines. He did something that brought out the best in others. When we take the lid off ourselves we complete others with our courage. So that they can be the best that they can be.

Ananias and Barnabas took the lid off Saul who became Paul, one of the greatest apostle. We sometimes take the lid off someone and another come and put the lid back on. So you need to also learn how to take the lid of yourself. Let's not use people. The world use people. We must not. We do not use people, we grow people. My wife and I are sowers. To build people. That's what we do. We want strong people who can stand persecutions .

My wife is my lid lifters.

3. Don't let others put a lid on you.

1 Samuel 16:11 (NIV)

So he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?”

“There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.”

Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.”

1 Samuel 17:28 (NIV)

When Eliab, David’s oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, “Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.”

1 Samuel 17:33-39 (NIV)

33 Saul replied, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.”

34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, 35 I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. 36 Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. 37 The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”

Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you.”

38 Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. 39 David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them.

“I cannot go in these,” he said to Saul, “because I am not used to them.” So he took them off.

David had opposition as others tried to put a lid on him. Saul even tried to put an armour on David and he refused because it didn't feel right.

We have to discover each other, the gifting and personality. And our different love language. If I buy flowers for Jasmine she'll ask, why waste money they'll die tomorrow. We are all different so we need to discover and understand each other. Then we can embrace each other and work together.

If we did not take the lid off my son, he would not be a scientist today, probably just a preacher. We took his kid off and he flew. My daughter also fly. We need to take the lid off them.

Take the lid off. Stretch your heart TOP and recognise that we are different and from today onwards no more putting lids on people. We are going into another level now. It can be done. We cannot say cannot. Who says anyone among you cannot be a Pastor. Who says none of you can be a politician. Who says cannot? You'll never know. Who says someone here cannot be a greater scientist than my son? Who says? Who says one of our children cannot become the Prime Minister of Malaysia? From now onwards all can. With God all things are possible.

Super Moms

Rev Jasmine Ooi

Happy mothers day to all mothers, spiritual mums and everyone who honours mothers.

• This is a day set aside to appreciate mothers for all their love and sacrifices. Motherhood is a high calling from God but we often forget due to the stress of caring for our household.  From dawn to setting sun, a mother’s work is never done.
• A busy mother’s psalm goes like this ..the lord is my shepherd. He invites me to lie down but I cant because my laundry basket is running over. My daughter made this mothers day for me which humorously describes the things mothers do

Super Mum has:

• A stomach to eat leftovers (to save money for family)
• Brains to resolve family conflicts, to think what to cook
• Ears to listen to children’s problems and needs
• Shoulder to cry on, carry the weight of the family
• Knees to kneel to pray for family

My daughter Joy sent me this

• It takes so many different people to replace the roles mothers play
• Its easy to see why mothers can get stressed and forget their high calling from God.

Because Motherhood is a high calling from God:

• He calls us to Honor your Father & Mother, which is the first commandment with a promise: that it will go well with you and you will live long (Eph. 6:2)

How to honour mothers?

• to pay attention to her words
• to speak to her kindly
• and respectfully,

What it means to Honour?

• to speak positively about her to others
• tell her whenever you see in her a virtue/quality that speaks of God’s love
• Let me give you an example of what I mean in a mothers day card I received from my son, Joshua

A Mother’s day card from Josh, my son

• I likened you to be a mirror of God’s love
• showing me the true heart of a servant who took what her master invested in her…and unselfishly gave and invested back into His eternal kingdom by serving me and those who need Him…
• “Of all the things I could thank you for, it would be for giving me a  glimpse of how much Jesus loves and cares so sacrificially for me…

If not for your “Jesus loves you”, there won’t be this love I have for the world and for you.

• now that I am physically pulled apart from that spiritual umbilical cord, I have learnt to kneel on my own knees and worship Him…
• My daughter in law recently posted on her Facebook how grateful she was to God for such a loving husband who took care of the kids even while he was busy writing his research paper which was recently published in a top Science journal in the world. I told her how proud I was. And she replied I should be prouder that I have raised a good man, a great husband and father.

Joshua’s PhD Graduation - A Story of a Mother’s Prayer & God’s Provision

• When Josh wanted to pursue his bio medical studies in Australia, he said that he had faith God will provide the finances because he has seen how we had prayed as a family and how has provided for us since he was very young. Thank God for giving Josh a full scholarship to complete his PhD in medicine.
• Whenever josh gets discouraged in his experiments, he would call home to talk to me and ask me to pray for him. I was the one encouraged when he said he knows that God is building his character.

1. A Mother’s Purpose

1. To be fruitful and multiply what? (Gen. 1:27,28)

• To multiply Godly seeds/offspring – (Mal. 2:15).
• How does she do that?
• By being a role model of God’s love
2. A loving Mother Reflects God
• “As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you” (Isaiah 66: 13)
• God gives us children so we can understand the capacity of His heart to love, to give, to sacrifice, to teach, to discipline us, …to reproduce all His goodness and love in us, His godly seed

2. A Mother’s Priorities

• Example: Mothers of Moses and Samuel
• Only a few years with them but they were smart to make use of the opportunity to train them to know and love God
• Crucial foundation
• Character-training years
• “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Prov. 22:6)

Importance of Spiritual Training in the Early Years

• Researcher George Barna:
• Children age 5 -13 have a 32% probability of accepting Christ as their Savior.
• The rate drops dramatically to 4%, for kids age 14 -18.
• Timothy’s grandmother and mother passed down their sincere faith to Timothy…
  (2 Tim. 1: 5)
• Grandmothers too have a vital role to play. I love to share my testimonies to my grandchildren. “We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power and the wonders he has done..so the next generation would remember His deeds, put their trust in God, keep his commandments… and they in turn would tell their children.(Psalm 78:4-7)

Chloe praising God

• What are some things we can teach our children and grandchildren
• I love to see my children lift their hands when I say “Praise the Lord”
• Chloe sharing her food
• Chloe thanking God for her food

3. A Mother’s Problem

• Meet Eve…the mother of all living (Gen. 3:20)
• And Satan..the father of lies (John 8: 42-47)
• What was she thinking when she bought the devil’s lies? Gen.3:1-7
• Mothers beware cos Satan is still seducing us today that
• “I or my children must know everything”
• “My life/my children must be perfect”
• “I’m my own god-I call the shots”
• “If it looks good, get it”
• Woman (2 Cor. 11: 3; 1 Tim. 2: 14)
• Prone to fall prey to his lies
• Influence the men around us to sin
• Set a pattern for subsequent generations

As a result of Believing Satan’s Lie

• Adam and Eve – loss of esteem, disconnection with their Source 

Meet Mrs. Zebedee

• Matthew 19: 28,29; 20: 20
• What did she do? She tried to pull strings with Jesus to put her sons next to him in position/prestige
• How did she feel? Insecure cos of competition
• What was she thinking? Of her own security, self-esteem, significance
• Matt. 20: 22 “You don’t know what you are asking”?
• What do you want for your children?
• What is being great to you?
• Jesus said if u want to be great in God’s kingdom, learn to be the servant of all

“Supermom” Today

• Raising children has become an aggressive competition.
• The compulsive woman-have to mentality
• Caught in a performance trap. How many As did u get?

Leah was unloved  (Gen. 29: 16 – 30)
She longed to be esteemed

1. A Mother’s Focus

• Leah named her first son “Rueben”
• It is because the Lord has seen my misery (Gen. 29: 32)
• Leah focused on God

2. A Mother’s Peace

• Leah named her second son “Simeon”
• “The Lord hears” (Gen. 29:33)
• The Lord is near…
• Do not be anxious (Phil.4: 5-6)

A Peaceful & Powerful Mum

• The Lord is near…I do not fret or worry about anything, but in everything and in every circumstance, by prayer with thanksgiving, I let God know my wants. And God’s peace shall guard my minds in Christ (Phil. 4: 5-7)
• I Fix my mind on whatever is true, lovely and worthy of praise…
• I have strength for all things in Christ who empowers me = I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him who infuses inner strength into me.
• Think= what is true according to God, e.g my children must have straight As to have a secure future? (Phil. 4:8)
•  Feel =Peaceful (God of peace will be with you v.9)
• Do =I can do anything through Christ who gives me strength (v. 13). I am not depressed/anxious

3. A Mother’s Security

• Leah called her third son, Levi=attached, priestly line
• Needs for attachment and security
• To be met in God first 

4. A Mother’s Choice

• 4th son- Judah- this time I will praise the Lord
• Turn your pain to praise, worry to worship
• Judah = kingly line of
• David and Jesus
• Leah became the matriarch of the tribes of Israel.
• She was finally honoured by being buried next to Abraham and Sarah. Jacob asked to be buried next to Leah.

5. A Mother’s Reward & Honour

• 5th son = Issachar = Reward
• 6th son = Zebulun = Honour
• God has presented me with a precious gift (Gen. 30:20)
• An honour to raise child up to please God. We obtain our honour and reward from God.

A Mother’s Reward

• Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her. (Prov. 31:28)
• Arise = help to lift up, strengthen

6. A Mother’s Strength & Beauty (Prov. 31)

• She has strength and dignity because of her desire to please God
• Free of worry
• Speaks wisely
• Faithfully instructs

Thank God that all my children are serving God in their church. Ps. 116: 16 “ O Lord I am your servant, I will serve you as my mother served you”

Conclusion: What does God want you to know?

• Motherhood = high calling
• You as a mom reflect God’s character to your kids. Love them unconditionally, not based on their performance but let them know they are loved, accepted and secure in God.

A Mother’s Prayer

Our loving heavenly Father,

We sometimes get so bogged down in the daily battles that we lose sight of where we’re going.

Help & empower us to make the most of opportunities today to love and teach our children.

Yet we feel so inadequate. It’s frightening to realize how much our own example will influence our children in what they do, and what they believe about you.

But we take comfort in knowing that you only expect us to do the best we can with the Spirit’s help..

Thank you for the positive examples you have given us and for the eternal guiding wisdom from your Word.

We pray most of all that our family circle will remain unbroken when we gather to celebrate and praise your name in heaven.

Thank you for the children You have given us.

In Jesus’ Name we pray.

Amen

Arise & Bless your Wife and Mother

• Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her. (Prov. 31:28)
• Arise = help to lift up, stir up, strengthen

Please note that these notes are extracted from the PowerPoint presentation used.

Saved to Serve

Sis Melinda Song

INTRODUCTION:

Galatians 5:1, 13-14, NIV

¹ It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

¹³ You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. ¹⁴ For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbour as yourself.” ¹⁵ If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

1. We Are Called To Freedom

Braveheart, tells the story of Scottish freedom fighter William Wallace who led a war against England during the 13th century. One of the most memorable quote from the movie is: “…they may take our lives, but they'll never take... OUR FREEDOM!”

Wallace was captured. Just before he was hung, drawn, and quartered for high treason and crimes against English civilians, he indicated to the magistrate that he had something to say. With his last breath he cried, “Freedom!”

Freedom implies that there was a former captivity, oppression or bondage, e.g. Israel in slavery in Egypt or under the Roman rule. Wars have been fought and countless lives lost for freedom’s sake Freedom is the prevailing cry of the world today.

We are called to freedom, yet Christianity has often been perceived as repressive and an enemy of freedom with a lot of dos and don’ts.

As a young Christian, my sister and I always felt guilty and condemned whenever we went to the movies. I gave up dancing while others burn their records. Like the Galatians, we obsessed with rules and regulations. 

But true Christianity is a relationship based on love and grace. Those things we do or don’t do is out of our love and relationship with Jesus, not because we cannot do so.

Biblically, freedom is primarily relational. We were called to freedom when God called us into a relationship with himself through his Son, Jesus Christ.

Luke 4:18, NIV

¹⁸ “The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
    because he has anointed me
    to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
    and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,

John 8:34-36, NIV

³⁴ Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. ³⁵ Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever.³⁶ So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 

You are only as free as you are in right relationship with the living God. The more vibrant and intimate your relationship with the living God, the more freedom you will enjoy.

Now that you are free, what next? Paul offers two ways to manage our freedom – one negatively and the other positively.

2. Negatively - Freedom To NOT Indulge The Flesh

Notice it is God who calls. This is a reminder that God is our Master. Our freedom is won at a great price so it is not a license to sin.

Paul discusses the life of license thoroughly in Romans 6. After we are saved by the grace of God, can we go ahead and live in sin? And Paul’s answer to that question is “absolutely not. God forbid that we do.” You cannot live in sin and be a Christian on your way to heaven.

You may fall into sin, but you will quickly get out of it! You repent and ask God’s forgiveness. It is evident from the Lord's prayer (Matt. 6:9-13, Luke 11:2-4) that confession of sin should be a regular part of the Christian life, and 1 John 1:9 advocates repentance that is an ongoing part of our sanctification (not for salvation but for restoration of fellowship).  You do not use God’s grace of deliverance to continue to live in sin. 

Biblical freedom is not, “Now I can do what I want.” Biblical freedom is, “Now I can do what God wants.”

It comes with responsibility and boundaries and we are accountable for the way we use this freedom.

In most of Paul’s writings, “flesh” is not our body, but our sinful nature which is selfish, self-centred and self-serving. Later in the chapter, Paul goes on to give a list of appetites and attitudes that characterises the deeds of the flesh in verses 19-20 of Galatians Chapter 5.

Even though the flesh is crucified with Christ, it is not altogether eliminated. We still live in these sinful, fallen bodies; we still inhabit this sinful, fallen world and we all still live in “this present evil age” (Gal. 1:4).

So what is the solution? Paul says, “live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature” (v. 16). We can resist the inclinations to indulge in the flesh when we are Spirit-filled, Spirit-led, Spirit-controlled and bearing the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

Although Jesus said this in the context of money, it is true that no one can serve two masters (Matt. 6:24). Humans may think they are autonomous beings but the reality is that all of us are slaves. It is a matter of who our master is. Therefore we are to submit and surrender to the Holy Spirit instead of to the flesh.

We should channel our freedom in the service of Jesus Christ, our King, our Lord and our Master.

3. Positively - Freedom To Serve

Luke 4:8, NIV
⁸ Jesus answered [the devil], “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’”

In response to God’s unfathomable love to us expressed in Jesus Christ, you and I are called to love and serve God. This is only possible because we have been set free from the bondage of sin by Jesus.

Note that God does not need our service.

Acts 17:24-25, NIV
²⁴ “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. ²⁵ And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.

But He has chosen to use us in His service.

Ephesians 2:8-9, NIV

⁸ For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— ⁹ not by works, so that no one can boast. ¹⁰ For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

We are not saved BY works but we are saved FOR works.

Why? Because serving is an important component of growth. Serving is listed as one of the six most important disciplines for Christian growth and maturity in the book “Six Habits of Highly Effective Christians.”

Ephesians 4:11-16, NIV

¹¹ So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,¹² to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up ¹³ until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Our church theme is to Grow in the Word, Serve with Love and Transform Lives.

·     Serving offers an opportunity or outlet for us to channel out what we have learnt or received.

·     Freely we have received so freely we ought to give.

·     Maturity is for ministry. We are saved to serve, healed to help, blessed to be a blessing.

·     Compare the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea in Israel. Both have water coming into them but only Galilee gives out water. It is a vibrant living sea. But the Dead Sea is just that. It doesn’t have any outlet; it does not give out. You and I risk dying, risk stagnation in our faith, if we don’t give out.

·     Service leads to transformed lives.

Most of us are well grounded in our faith, have a good grasp of the Gospel, know what God wants of us. We need to serve: to stretch our faith, to develop our spiritual muscles.

"Growth leads to service and serving leads to growth – it's deeply connected," says Ed Stetzer, President of Lifeway Research.

Serving God is expected but here Paul says that our freedom is a…

3.1 Freedom To Serve One Another

Colossians 3:23-24, NIV

²³ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,²⁴ since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

We grow and the church grows when we cease to look inwards and begin to serve one another. It’s all about body ministry.

At the Damascus Road encounter (Acts 9:4), have you ever wondered why Jesus said Paul was persecuting Him, when he was in fact persecuting the church? That’s because the church is the body of Christ on earth. Therefore, the visible evidence of service to God is seen in our service to one another.

Unfortunately the default setting for humans is to be selfish. We don’t have the time or energy to serve others because we’re preoccupied with our own agendas, dreams, and pleasures. Only a small minority of people use their lives to serve others, but Jesus said, “If you insist on saving your life, you will lose it. Only those who throw away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35, LB)

Very often the church is considered a commodity we consume and not a place where we should give of ourselves. Such self-centered, self-absorbed thinking hinders us from experiencing the fullness of God and the joy found in making a difference in the life of another person.

Too often when we are looking for a church to belong to, we look for a church that meets my needs, where I feel comfortable, which will be a blessing to me. Maturing Christ-followers don’t ask, ‘How will my needs be met?’; don’t say, ‘This church isn’t doing anything for me!’ Maturing disciples of Jesus ask, ‘Where can I serve, who needs my help, how can I be a blessing?’

In the early days of TOP we used to have revival meetings on Saturday evenings where new believers run the service. Everyone did something. Even the millionaire helped to arrange chairs and distributed the song-books.

It became a platform for us to discover our gifts and for the Pastor to identify budding leaders. Now we do it in the cells.

Serving is not natural in our modern, individualistic culture. But if we aren’t serving, we aren’t living life to the full; at least not the Jesus’ Way.

That is why Albert Schweitzer said, "The only really happy people are those who have learned how to serve".

3.2 Freedom To Serve One Another Humbly

Paul uses a different form of the word for servant here. In fact in almost every place where the word servant is used in the New Testament it is the Greek word “doulos” which means a “slave, bondman, man of servile condition.” 

Philippians 2:3-8, NIV

³ Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,⁴ not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

⁵ In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

⁶ Who, being in very nature God,
    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
⁷ rather, he made himself nothing
    by taking the very nature of a servant,
    being made in human likeness.
⁸ And being found in appearance as a man,
    he humbled himself
    by becoming obedient to death—
        even death on a cross!

When we look into the life of Jesus we find Him living a life of servanthood.

·     He said emphatically that He came not “to be served but to serve” (Matt. 20:28). Here, diakonéō is used for the word serve. The basic meaning of diakonéō is a servant who runs errands. It also is the root for the position of “Deacon,” in the local church (diákonos, i.e. Deacon).

·     Jesus says to His followers in Matthew 20:26, “Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.”

·     Then, on the night of His arrest, Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, leaving them with a final teaching to serve one another: “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you” (see John 13:12–17).

·     A foot washing ceremony can be very meaningful, but far more important than any ceremony is putting into practice the principle of serving others. Let us not forget that our calling is to serve others not to expect others to serve us.

There is no place for pride in service/ministry because:

1.   Everything we have – talent, time, treasure, our very breath – comes from God.

2.   The gifts of the Spirit are special abilities provided by the Holy Spirit to Christians for the purpose of building up the body of Christ. They are simply God enabling believers to do what He has called us to do. The Greek word most frequently used for spiritual gifts is charismata, a word that relates to the grace (charis) of God. 

But that does not mean we don’t appreciate or encourage those who are serving.

A word of warning here. It is very easy for us to only serve God in one area of ministry. Do not limit God. Let Him stretch you. We should not miss out on other opportunities to serve God.

Do you see a need in your church? Do what you can to meet it. Is there a position in a ministry that is vacant? Pray as to whether God would have you fill it. If we seek God's will and obey His leading, He will always equip us with whatever gifts of the Spirit we need.

"Growth leads to service and serving leads to growth – it's deeply connected," says Ed Stetzer, President of Lifeway Research.

To that I add, “Humility leads to service and serving leads to humility – it’s deeply connected.”

3.3 Freedom To Serve One Another Humbly In Love

We are a T.E.A.M. All of the gifts of the Holy Spirit working together are needed to produce the full potential of the church. Since they are gifts of grace, their use must be controlled by the rule of love - the greatest of all the gifts of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 13).

1 Corinthians 13:1-3, NIV

¹ If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. ² If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. ³ If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Ephesians 4:11-16, NIV

¹¹ So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,¹² to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up ¹³ until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

¹⁴ Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. ¹⁵ Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. ¹⁶ From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

The emphasis on love is all-important because it is not law on the outside but love on the inside that makes the difference. Christianity works because it changes people from the inside out.

It was love that motivated God to send his Son to the earth. True love sees the need and then moves to meet the need even at great personal cost. Love of Christ and love for Christ will change our heart and bring obedience.

If duty, obligation or necessity is our attitude toward God and toward serving we will never have the heart for serving. We serve out of an overflow of love. Very often it starts as a duty, that grows into desire and finally becomes a delight.

Without love, you’ll end up serving for the wrong reasons: trying to earn the approval of others, trying to run away from your pain, trying to remedy your guilt, trying to impress God. Service motivated by these illegitimate reasons is bound to leave you burned out and ­bitter in the end.

A church that is not full of love and service will turn inwards like a cancer to destroy and consume itself – biting, devouring and destroying each other (Gal. 5:15). If we are serving one another because we love Jesus, then there will not be any cause for divisions and fighting.

"Growth leads to service and serving leads to growth – it's deeply connected," says Ed Stetzer, President of Lifeway Research.

To that I have added, “Humility leads to service and serving leads to humility – it's deeply connected.”

And now I add on, “Love leads to service and serving leads to love – it's deeply connected.”

CONCLUSION

8 Blessings We Experience By Serving Others (Source: https://newspring.cc/articles/8-blessings-we-get-from-serving)

1. Serving allows us to discover and develop our spiritual gifts.

2. Serving allows us to experience miracles.

3. Serving allows us to experience the joy and peace that comes from obedience.

4. Serving helps us to be more like Jesus.

5. Serving surrounds us with other Christians who can help us follow Jesus.

6. Serving increases our faith.

7. Serving allows us to experience God’s presence in new ways.

8. Serving is good for your soul.

We make all sorts of rational explanations for not serving but the reality is the Lord doesn't call the equipped; He equips the called.

God wants to use you to make a difference in His kingdom.

May each and every one of us aspire to and encourage each other to Spirit-filled, Spirit-empowered and Spirit-led service.

Hebrews 10:24, NIV

²⁴ And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds,

Serving one another is not the main goal, serving Jesus is. Jesus said in John 12:26, “My Father will honour the one who serves me.” Someday I want to stand before Jesus Christ and I want to hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant” and it will be worth it all.

Will you dedicate yourselves to God’s service in this local assembly, taking practical opportunities to carry out your calling?

For some of us God's Spirit is showing you or reminding you that you are not free. You know you are in bondage this morning. You can feel the chains weighing you down.

Well, I am overjoyed to tell you this morning that God wants to, and God can, set you free. And He can do that when you believe in what Jesus already did on the cross.

Don't you want to be free this morning? If you do, reach out in faith. Put your trust in Christ.