So often
folks in the church, they think about ministry
they gotta have their ministry.
But I was thinking, you know what that word means?
It means serving.
Your ministry is your service.
And the saints are being equipped for the work of serving.
That's really what it is.
Sometimes we get this idea about this official capacity of the ministry.
"I need a ministry!"
It's kind of like this thing that is mine
that everybody recognizes that I have where I go out and do "my thing"
but the idea is
just like David was hitting on
the very last words that he said "serving God and serving one another"
and that's what it's about
what ways, what ways can I serve and give my life for the others.
And I was thinking about that text as he was talking,
in Hebrews that we looked at some time ago about not forsaking the assembly
because you know what happens when you don't come here
you rob others
because if God has brought you into a vital member with this body,
it's like if get up in the morning and you head out on the street
and you go to jump in your car and you take off and do your thing
and your left arm just decided, I don't want to be here today.
Which is exactly, he is talking about member,
a body, and the members, and if you have all these arms
or if you have all this.
But you know what, if your left arm just says, "Well, I am not going to go today."
The whole body is hurt by it.
And so if you don't come, you actually are robbing the church.
And that's a reality, that we help one another,
we encourage one another.
I was talking to one of the brother's just recently
and he was saying something about
whether or not he should participate in a certain ministry of this church
because he wasn't certain if it was so profitable to him.
And I said, but brother, the thing is, when you participate in that
you bring profit for others, you bring encouragement to others.
It's not just about what we get,
the whole idea of having your ministry is not having a soapbox to stand on
it's having your capacity in the church to wash other's feet.
That's really what it's about.
And so what it does is that it ought to change
the whole mindset behind not just what I get.
Undoubtedly, we should be receiving.
Because if we are going to grow, if we are going to be equipped,
we are receiving.
But we receive to give.
That's what the Christian life is all about.
We are channels.
Grace comes in so that it might flow out.
That's how the body builds itself up in love.
And remember, the loving part.
We build ourselves up in love.
Well the love comes in because I am actually thinking about your needs
and esteeming you beyond myself so that when I don't feel well,
or I got the sniffles or I got this, or I got that,
what I am really thinking about is not just oh what about me,
"Well, I don't feel exactly good",
but if I don't go there, how is that going to detract from others.
And some of you might be led to believe,
nobody misses me.
But don't believe it, don't believe it.
There are ways that you help other people
and you build the church in ways that you may not know.
Like I can tell you, this is a simple thing.
But through the years, just this little simple thing.
Freddy Garza, used to be vocal, I could hear his voice.
Johnathan Sanguinetti, would say little things, like during the singing,
Mark, will often cry out in the middle of the singing.
Little things like that.
Or just that extra voice in the singing.
I mean what glory sometimes when the Spirit just fills.
How encouraging it is when a brother who has labored to teach a Sunday School
comes into the pulpit and he sees the room full.
I mean do you know what it is like for a man to study
and he has the sheep in his mind, remember it is shepherding,
there are sheep, there's a shepherd.
You get one of these guys, and he has been thinking about you,
and he comes in and he stands in the pulpit,
and you aren't here because you decided to sleep in that day.
Where as if you were here, not only would you get what he has to give,
you would give to him something and it would be encouragement.
There's just so many ways that we help one another,
that you may not recognize.
You just think on those things.
Serving, serving, serving.