Sermon Central
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Are We A Servant?
Contributed by Joe Rowland on May 14, 2009 (message contributor)
Summary: “Jesus came to serve”. We are servants to Jesus and we are to serve one another.
Are We A Servant?
12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now Are We A Servant?
much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings:
15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;
16 Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.
17 Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all.
I have entitled this today, “Are You a Servant?”
A servant is obedient to what his Master says to do. As a Christian today, if you’re a true servant of God then you are obedient to what Jesus says to do.
God has a work for each and every one of us to do. All we have to do is learn to listen and apply what He is speaking.
No matter how tough life seems, a true servant of God will push on and they will overcome the attacks of the enemy.
If we are a true servant of God then we have a friend in Jesus who will help us endeavor whatever we face in this life and we will win.
14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.
15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.
We are servants, yes, but we are also considered friends of Jesus.
Are we doing what He tells us to do?
When we do what He tells us to do, then He will reveal things to us.
In Philippians 2:12, it says: Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed,
Paul is commending them for their constant obedience.
Paul says, “not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence”,
They continued to obey the Gospel even though Paul was not personally among them.
He then goes on to say: “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling”.
This is referring to growing mature in their walks. They were learning to be Christ-like.
Paul was letting the people know that it God who was doing a work in them.
You see, God has a will for every believer to give all of themselves, all the way over to the things of Him.
In verse 14 Paul was telling the people to do all things with out murmurings and complaining.
How many of us have ever been unhappy about something in this church and you have complained?
Maybe some of us have murmured and complained about another individual of the household of faith.
Get over it, give it to God and move on.
Look at Philippians 2:15
15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;
We are supposed to be a light that is to compel others to come into the household of faith.
Look at verse 16:
16 Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.
We have to hold forth the Word of God, not let go of what He says.
When we hold forth the Word of God we understand that according to Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me”.
When we really hold forth the Word of God, we have an understanding that according to Isaiah 54:17, “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD”.
When we really hold forth the Word of God we know according to Isaiah 55:11, “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it”.
God’s Word is alive and it is active in the situations we go through.
We have to hold forth the Word of God and let it become alive in our situations.
