BECOMING: Service

Hello church (and anyone else reading)!

This week we continued our 10-week study of spiritual practices that we are calling BECOMING. (If you were absent, click here to watch the sermon back--you won’t want to miss it!) 

Who we are becoming should be intentional, not accidental. In this series, we are exploring nine ancient practices that position us to be formed by Christ and so become like Him. This week, Pastor Makenzie shared with us about the practice of service, which is not just about giving charity to make us feel good but is rather a powerful way for the Christian to participate in bringing heaven to Earth. She spoke about service being the combination of seeing and sacrifice: seeing a person in need not as a problem or inconvenience but as the image of God in someone else, and being willing to sacrifice to help that person as Jesus would. Read the sermon text below and check out the resources following!

“On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?” He answered, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.” But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’ “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

Resource 1: if you’d like to continue meditating on this practice, listen to this podcast episode from Bridgetown Church on the practice of service! 

Resource 2: As we wrap up this series, we want to encourage you to take some time this week to reflect on your current spiritual health and trajectory. One good tool to promote this reflection is the self-inventory from Practicing the Way, which we shared at the beginning of this series. The idea behind this tool is to continue to evaluate your spiritual health and see areas you need to grow in throughout different seasons of your life.

Finally, here are some questions that you can use in your personal study to reflect on, whether in journaling, prayer, or conversation. 

How am I practicing seeing & sacrifice in my community context? 

After 10 weeks of this series, what practices have I identified that I love doing? What practices feel more “upstream” to me? What is one area that I can intentionally work on right now to strengthen my relationship with Jesus? 

Know that you are deeply loved and called to share that love with others. We hope to see you next week as we continue to learn and grow alongside you! 

Grace and Peace, 

Community Cup staff