Why Do We Serve?
Every Sunday, something remarkable happens at Oasis. Before many of us arrive, people are already here. Coffee is being made. Musicians are rehearsing. Kids rooms are being prepared. Sound systems are being switched on. Welcome teams are ready at the doors. After the service finishes, people stay behind. They stack chairs, wash dishes, pray with others, clean up, and lock up.
And that's just Sunday! Across our church, almost 290 people are serving on a team in some capacity—nearly half of our adult church family.
But why? Why serve? Why give up evenings? Why arrive early? Why stay late? Wouldn't life be easier if we didn't serve?
The Bible gives us at least three reasons why we serve.
- We Serve Because God Has Served Us
The most important reason we serve is simple: we serve because God has first served us.
Jesus said: "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve…" (Mark 10:45). Jesus came from heaven to earth to do for us what we could never do for ourselves. He lived the life we failed to live and died the death we deserved to die. At the cross, the greatest Servant gave himself for us.
That's why Christians serve. We don't serve to earn God's love. We serve because we have already received God's love in Christ.
The apostle Paul writes: "Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice…" (Romans 12:1). Notice the order. First comes God's mercy. Then comes our service. Grace before service. Mercy before ministry.
Serving doesn't make us Christians. But Christians serve.
- We Serve Because God Has Gifted Us
God doesn't just save us, he equips us.
Peter writes: "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms." (1 Peter 4:10)
Every Christian has received gifts from the Holy Spirit, not for ourselves, but for the good of others and the building up of the church.
Of course, we don't only serve where we're especially gifted. Often love simply sees a need and steps in to help. Parents don't ask whether they're gifted at changing nappies, they lovingly do what's needed. Christians are called to have the same servant-hearted posture.
- We Serve Because Jesus Is Coming Again
Peter begins that same passage with these words: "The end of all things is near." (1 Peter 4:7). Jesus is coming again soon. How should we respond? Peter doesn't tell us to withdraw from the world. In the next few verses, he tells us to pray, love one another, show hospitality, and use our gifts to serve.
The hope of Christ's return should make us more faithful, not less.
One day Jesus will return. On that day, no one will regret having served too much. No one will wish they had shown less hospitality, prayed fewer prayers, discipled fewer children, or loved fewer people. We will only wish we had given him more.
Thank You
If you're part of a service team at Oasis, thank you. Thank you for arriving early, staying late, serving quietly, and faithfully loving others. Whether you're welcoming at the door, making coffee, leading music, serving in Kids Church, running sound, preparing meals, cleaning up, or serving in countless other ways, your labour in the Lord is not in vain.
If you're not yet serving, we'd love you to consider joining a team. Serving isn't simply about filling a roster; it's about becoming more like Jesus and using the gifts God has given you to bless his people.
So, let's keep serving. Because we serve a Saviour who first served us, with gifts he has graciously given us, until the day we see him face to face and hear those wonderful words: "Well done, good and faithful servant" (Matt. 25:23).
Grace and peace,
Adam
