“The Gospel is not God’s Help Wanted Ad. Neither is the call to Christian service. God is not looking for people to work for him, so much as he is looking for people who will let him work for them.” (Piper) (See Isaiah 64:4)

But if this is the case, what are we to do? Is it not commanded: “Serve the Lord!” (Romans 12:11)? Aren’t those who do not serve Christ rebuked (Romans 16:18)? Yes, of course, we must serve him. But, if so, how? Again, borrowing directly from “Desiring God,” let me suggest the following is the best explanation I have ever heard or read.

How Do You Serve Money?

Matthew 6:24 gives a pointer toward good (acceptable, God honoring) service.

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”

Ever asked how somebody serves money? Do you bring it breakfast? Sweep its floors? Wash it? Do you take it for a walk?

How does a person serve money? He does not assist money. He does not enrich money. He is not the benefactor of money. How then do we serve money?

When Jesus is talking about “serving” (we know intuitively), he’s talking about control. He’s talking about letting something have power and sway over us. He is saying: If you let it, money will dictate the direction of you life. It will tell you what to do. It will have power and sway over the decisions and plans of our life.

Money exerts a certain control over us because it seems to hold out so much promise of happiness. It whispers with great force, “Think and act so as to get into a position to enjoy my benefits.” This may include stealing, borrowing, or working. Money promises happiness, and we serve it by believing the promise and walking by that faith.

Key: So we don’t serve money by putting our power at its disposal for its good. We serve money by doing what is necessary so that money’s power will be at our disposal for our good.

The same sort of service to God must be in view in Matthew 6:24, since Jesus puts the two side by side: “You cannot serve God and money.” So if we are going to serve God and not money, then we are going to have to open our eyes to the vastly superior promise of happiness which God offers. Then God will exert a greater control over us than money does.

And so we will serve God by believing his promise of fullest joy and walking by that faith. We will not serve by trying to put our power at his disposal for his good, but by doing what is necessary so that his power will be ever at our disposal for our good. And of course, God has appointed that his power be at our disposal through prayer. “Ask and you will receive!” So we serve by the power that comes through prayer, when we serve for the glory of God.

Without doubt this sort of serving also means obedience. A patient who trusts his doctor’s prescriptions obeys them. A convalescent sinner trusts the painful directions of his therapist, and follows. Only in this way do we keep ourselves in a position to benefit from what the divine Physician has to offer. In all this obedience it is we who are the beneficiaries. God is ever the Giver. For it is the Giver who gets the glory.

Have a Great New Year,

Ron

• Christmas Eve at Merit School of Music (38 S. Peoria), 6pm (click here to learn more)
• Christmas morning at Covenant Presbyterian Church (2012 W. Dickens), 10:45am

UNITY This Christmas Eve, three city churches will worship together: Cityview Presbyterian, a West Loop church that meets each Sunday at Merit; Ethos Chicago from Lincoln Park; and Living Hope Church from Hyde Park.

CHARITY The Christmas Eve service will include an offering to benefit The Women’s Treatment Center, a West Loop non-profit dedicated to equipping women with the skills and support they need to rebuild their lives after battling substance abuse.

WORSHIP Join us for an evening of song, Scripture and teaching related to the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem. We gather together on Christmas Eve to celebrate the coming of “Immanuel”—literally translated “God With Us.” Let us come together in worship to proclaim God’s love for us!

6pm-7pm, December 24
Merit School of Music, 38 South Peoria Street, Chicago
Childcare provided.

Have you ever wondered, “Why Jesus?” Not just, “Who is he?,” but also why he was born and what he came to to do?

Last fall we began a series from the Gospel of Mark entitled “The Unexpected King.” We looked at the first half of Mark’s Gospel, which is all about the question, “Who is this One who claims (and, by all appearances, seemed) to be such a different kind of King?” This spring, we are going to pick up our study of Mark, this time looking at the second half of the Gospel. In this part of the book, the questions changes dramatically to, “Why did Jesus come?” Or, put another way: What did this unexpected and unlikely King come to do, and why?

We invite you to join us as we explore together the purpose of Jesus.

1. Donate a used or new item listed below and contact me for drop off (josiah@ethoschicago.org)
2. Donate money and we will do the shopping for you, just email me with the amount you’d like to contribute.

If you would like to meet the Bhuttarrii family join us in setting up their apartment with them this Tuesday at 3pm in Rogers Park.  Thanks

Food Items

• 1 Bottle Cooking Oil
• 1 Box Salt
• 1 Can Black Pepper
• 1 Case Coke/Pepsi
• 1 Jar Instant Coffee
• 10 lb.. Flour
• 10 Lbs of potatoes
• 5 lb Onion
• 5 lb. Sugar
• 5 lbs rice
• 1 Box of Ice Tea

Kitchen

• 1 Set of frying Pans
• 1 Tall Kitchen Trashcan
• 3 Sets of Kitchen Towels

Miscellaneous

• 1 Book Stamps
• 1 Calendar
• 1 Fan
• 1 Small Tool Kit
• 2 Light Bulbs

Off-site childcare is available starting at 8:30 am. Contact Sarah Westrom (swestrom1 [at] yahoo.com) for details.