Today we continue our seven-week series, “7 Dimensions of A Spirit-Filled Disciple.” Through this series, we will look at seven areas where we all need to grow in our effort to be disciples of Jesus Christ.
Last week we emphasized Studying The Bible. As you may know, I am a firm believer in helping you read and understand the Bible for yourself. I want you to become biblically literate on your own. Reading your Bible on your own is a must for a Spirit-Filled Disciple. The trait we will look at today is serving in the local church.
We are going to start by looking at Malachi chapter 3. Yes, this is the “tithing” chapter, but there is something else here, and I want to refresh your memory on the context. In our Kingdom Builders series, we talked about Malachi. Malachi lived about 100 years after the Israelites returned from Babylon. And the book of Malachi was directed at the people that had been there for some time.
The temple was rebuilt, but things still were not going very well. They have returned from exile with high hopes. They were expecting the Messiah would come, the nation would be reunified, and there would be peace and justice. High hopes faded quickly, the repopulated city was just as unfaithful as their ancestors had been, and the nation was once again corrupted.
The way this book is set up is a series of 6 disputes or disagreements between God and the people. God makes a claim, the people disagree, and God has the final word. Today we will look at that 6th claim about serving. Let's look at that passage now…
Do you ever get discouraged in serving God to the point that you feel like quitting? Can I let you in on a secret? Many pastors do. The Barna Group (the country's foremost researcher on religion) put out some research at the end of last year that the great resignation is reaching churches on an alarming level. They showed that two out of five pastors nationwide are seriously thinking about quitting the ministry. The two groups of pastors most likely to leave were those in ministry for over 20 years and those under 45.
While studying the well-being of pastors, Barna Research found that 38 percent of pastors want to quit compared with 29 percent in January of 2021. The reason why? Church attendance has softened quite a bit since the pandemic started. "During and after the pandemic, it is estimated one-third of practicing Christians disengaged from their congregation – just sort of stopped showing up."
More than 4,000 churches reported closed in America in 2020. Over that same time, over 20,000 pastors left the ministry, and 50 percent of current pastors surveyed say they would leave the ministry if they had another way of making a living.
Can I tell you what I believe are two of the most significant reasons for this?
The people who left stopped giving, which was unexpected. This missing giving affecting budgets, which affects ministry, which involves staffing, which places pastors in the problematic place to let staffing go.
These same people who disengaged were also serving in the church. So now, as budgets get cut, staffing is potentially a threat to be let go; the pastoral staff has to work harder, do more, and carry more stress because if they cannot turn it around, the church will enter a death spiral. All the while, they face the fallout from making the difficult decisions because the first group of people left.
So not only are people in the church asking, “Why serve God?” but so are the pastors. Our text speaks to all such burned-out workers, answering the question, “Why serve God?” The people in Malachi’s day had grown indifferent to God’s great love. The prophet seeks to show them that the problem was not on God’s part. It never is. The problem was their sinfully selfish, temporal perspective.
Get In The Game
There are two groups in our passage of scripture today
The Avoiders (3:13-15) This is the group that wants to avoid serving. This group grumbled against God, complaining that there is no reward for serving Him;
Now let me throw another thought into this mix. I have been doing full-time ministry of some type since 2008. I have gotten this answer a lot over the years. I did my turn; I’m going to take a step back. This attitude can come from one of two places. I don’t have the energy/passion for doing what I once did. So I will take a step back and allow someone else to serve.
But you don’t stop serving because the last season is done. You prepare to step into the next season! However, if you say it’s someone else's turn to serve and do nothing, you are like the Israelites. You are effectively saying there is no value in serving God.
All In (3:16-18) These people feared God and esteemed His name. They encouraged one another to continue serving God despite the seeming prosperity of the wicked and suffering of the righteous.
The service we do now may look different, but we do not throw in the towel. If there is air in my lungs, I am doing something to serve.
How Do I Live All In?
There are four characteristics of this Avoiders Group that we need to avoid:
These People Were Sitting In Judgement Of God, Rather Than Submitting To His Dealings With Them.
Whenever we grumble about our circumstances or the unfair treatment we have received, we elevate ourselves above God. We are saying, in effect, “God, I could run this universe better than You are running it! I’m just trying to serve You; all I get is unfair treatment and trouble. But the guy who arrogantly defies You is living a happy life. I’d fix this problem if I were in charge!”
Now let me point myself out. I still fail at this, and what arrogance on our part to think that somehow we’d do a better job running the universe than the Lord of hosts!
One of the most prevalent sins of the Israelites in the wilderness was their spirit of grumbling and complaining against God. They, instead, would have returned to slavery in Egypt than trust God and endure hardship in the wilderness!
Whenever we grumble about our circumstances, we are impugning the character of God and exalting ourselves above Him. We’re saying, “God doesn’t love us, or He wouldn’t let us be in this difficult place.” And, we’re saying, “I know better than God what is good for me.”
These People Had A Self-Centered Attitude
They ask, “What profit is it that we have kept His charge …?” (3:14). What’s in it for us?
The Hebrew word translated as “profit” was a technical term for a weaver cutting a piece of cloth free from the loom. The idea here is that these people expected their “cut” or percentage, much as a gangster would demand his cut for his dirty work.
They were grumbling that God hadn’t given them their fair share. Be careful here! The flesh is inclined to self-pity, self-focus, and self-centeredness, and the world feeds this. If there’s nothing in it for you, why do it? If the church isn’t meeting your needs, bail out.
We need to be careful about how we present the gospel. If we approach it as, “Come to Jesus, and He will meet all your needs,” we aren’t giving the complete picture. It’s true, of course, that Jesus satisfies the deepest longings of every heart that trusts in Him. But He is not Aladdin’s Genie, waiting to grant our every wish.
These People Had Lost The Motivation For Holy Living
They asked, “What profit is it that … we have walked in mourning before the Lord of hosts?” (3:14). Outwardly, they went through the motions of fasting and humbling themselves before God. But they were not doing these things out of a heart of love and devotion for God.
Inwardly they were thinking, “This religion stuff is a drag! We want some fun out of life!” Motivation is everything when it comes to obeying and serving God.
Think about a time when someone is helping you out of love for you or out of perceived obligation. You know the difference in their motivation, and the same goes for serving God. God knows the difference, and the people around you also know it.
When Jesus restored Peter to service after his fall, He asked three times, “Do you love Me?” With that as a foundation, He said, “Tend My sheep.”
These People Had Focused On The Seeming Prosperity Of The Wicked, But Had Lost The Eternal Perspective.
While saying it is vain to serve God, they called the arrogant blessed. From all that they could see, there was no reward for following God, and there were many rewards for defying God and seeking your own prosperity.
Whenever we start thinking that way, we have lost God’s eternal perspective and adopted the world’s temporal perspective.
And when we live there, we have lost the entire purpose of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
Fear The Lord And Esteem His Name.
So our second group chooses to fear, honor and respect God’s name. They saw value in serving God, even when they couldn’t see the value with their eyes.
Now today, we have an even better perspective because we are in the church age, the New Testament age. They experienced God through a priest; we experience God through Jesus.
We may not always see the value at the moment, but it’s there. Think of the Last supper. John 13 tells us that Jesus washed their feet before this meal. During the meal, he begins to lay out what will happen and what it will mean. Peter says he will never deny Jesus, and Judas begins to betray Jesus.
And don’t forget, in the Luke account, they are arguing about who the greatest is.
Don’t Get distracted by the things of this world or your worth or purpose. Just ask what God wants you to do, and then do it.
What Does This Look Like For Us?
Pre-school
Know that God created them to serve and help others.
Learn To Serve By Imitating Others
Express Thanks to people who help and take care of them
Elementary
Understand the meaning and importance of serving and understand that God has a plan to save all people so that they may help God and others
A Desire to help others, at home, at church, and in the community.
Develop gratitude and respect for the work and service of others and be willing to help others.
Youth
Take the initiative to serve others and participate in fulfilling the great commission.
Begin to grow as good team members.
Show gratitude and respect for the work and service of others and be willing to help others.
Recognize and Develop their God-given gifts, knowing they must use them for God.
Become good managers of their time, talents, and resources so that they can serve others.
Adults
Display Biblical Ethics in all areas of their service. They know that their holy living is a part of serving others and leading them to Jesus.
Good team members desire to see the good for all they serve.
They are an asset to all they serve and will gladly serve whoever God puts in their path.
They are good managers of their time, talents, and resources to serve others.
Want to study this trait more in depth? Check out the FULL Message here on YouTube!