2015 GLCC 19th ANNIVERSARY MESSAGE: CALLED AND EQUIPPED TO SERVE I. INTRO  When we begin to realize that we are just one year shy of two decades of existence, we then begin to see how far the Lord has brought us as a church.  We need to ask ourselves, “What do we have to show for these 19 years?”

~ And as witnesses of the multitudes of the evidences of God’s grace in our church and not just witnesses but also recipients of the same, shouldn’t we want to respond in a way that would not only please Him but also glorify Him and make Him known to others?  And what better way to do this than to respond to His call to serve Him!

~ TO SERVE THE GOD WHO SAVED YOU IS BOTH THE LOGICAL ANSWER OF DUTY AND THE NATURAL RESPONSE OF DEVOTION OF ONE SAVED FROM THE DAMNATION OF HELL.  In Deut 10:12, we read of what God had required of His chosen people whom He had brought out of Egypt. ~ Deut 28:47

~ Their failure to do so would signal the profoundest irreverence and ingratitude that would incur the great displeasure of God upon them.  Read Joshua’s command in Josh 24:14. ~ The bottom-line choice all boils down to only two things in v. 15.

 IF WE ARE NOT SERVING THE LORD, WE WILL FIND OURSELVES SERVING SOMETHING OR SOMEONE OTHER THAN THE LORD, AND WHATEVER THAT WOULD BE BECOMES A RIVAL TO GOD IN OUR HEARTS. ~ Matt 6:24 ~ No wonder the Lord commands in many places in Scripture to serve Him; otherwise, we will soon find ourselves giving our hearts to another.

II. CALLED AND EQUIPPED TO SERVE  Read Eph 4:12. ~ As such, than there is none among us here – both formal members and regular attendees – who has an excuse not to serve the Lord. B ACKGROUND  Paul wanted them to think of themselves as people in Christ – people with a radically new identity (2:12-13).

~ That is why one of the key themes of the book of Ephesians is the believer’s riches in Christ – who he is and what he has in Christ. U NDERSTANDING THE P ASSAGE  See Eph 4:1-3. ~ vv.4-6 ~ vv. 7ff; v. 11 ~ v.12

 If the reason God gives grace for special abilities and offices in the church is to equip the saints for service, does this not then tell us that serving God through serving the church is not an option but rather an expectation for believers?  This passage also shows us that those mentioned in v. 11 were not to do all the work for the people but were to train, to equip the people to do the work of ministry themselves.

~ God’s basic design for the church is for the equipping to be done so that the saints can serve each other effectively. ~ THE ENTIRE CHURCH, THEREFORE, IS TO BE AGGRESSIVELY INVOLVED IN THE LORD’S WORK!  J. MacArthur: “Spiritual service is the work of every Christian, every saint of God. Attendance is a poor substitute for participation in ministry.”

~ This should inevitably result in “the building up of the body of Christ.” III. CONCLUSION  In this whole scheme of things, we see the beauty of being part of a local church. ~ The Holy Spirit has given each Christian special gifts for building up the church.

~ Are you spiritually mature, exercising the gifts God has given you? ~ Still, one of the best ways to discover your gifts is just simply by starting to serve.  God has given His church an enormous responsibility – to make disciples in every nation (Matt 28:18- 20). ~ If we had to fulfill this command as individuals, let’s not even try – it would be impossible.

~ But together we can obey God more fully than any of us could alone. ~ Working together, the church can express the fullness of Christ (cf. Eph 4:13).