We Gain the Most When We Lose the Most

Over six years ago I took the plunge for helping coordinate the volunteers of our newly seeded church.  I’ll be honest, as excited as I was in that very moment, I had no idea what I was about to learn.  It was one of those seasons I expected to take life by the horns, and life ended up taking me by the horns.  It quickly became a learning season and not a leading season, maybe you know what I mean?  And honestly, these are some of the most beautiful seasons we are gifted with aren’t they?

I love to learn!  And y’all – life goes on, and sometimes I think, surely I’ve learned this already, and more learning comes!  So, this blog comes less from a place of leadership and more from a level playing field.  I’m walking with you in learning how to be a part of a local church, and how to move from just a participant to being a partner, a person who is deeply invested in seeing community come to life.

We’re going to hang out in Philippians 2 for this next little bit, and unpack FIVE things we can learn so that we can effectively love and be a part of the local church, and even better, God’s church.

 

Philippians 2:1-18

“Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ’s return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless. But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God, just like your faithful service is an offering to God. And I want all of you to share that joy. Yes, you should rejoice, and I will share your joy.”

 

1. Embrace ONE

Christ died once and for all, for ONE thing, people.  He died for all people.  Those we would disagree with,  those with a different skin color than we have, those who speak a different language than we do, and those who would struggle with different things than we do.  It was important to Jesus that his death accomplish ONE goal, that all people, every single ONE would have access to his impartial, relentless, grace-filled love and sacrifice so that they could experience the fullness of God and eternity. If ONE mattered to Jesus it has to matter to us!  Paul tells us as believers we must work together with ONE mind and ONE purpose, which is to love people just as our Father did.  In order that we effectively serve the church we must embrace the beauty of ONE.  While each of us were created uniquely, we were created with ONE intent, to fellowship together with one another under the community of God.  Do you have divided eyes where you struggle to see ONE?  I hope not, because divided eyes are the result of a divided spirt, and a divided spirit will inevitably create division in the community surrounding, the church you’re serving, and the relationships you’re a part of, and division will destroy God’s mission for us. Love your neighbor.

 

2. Emulate Jesus 

Once we know God’s mission and accept His sovereignty over our lives, we are called to be imitators of Christ.  For it is when we emulate Him that He is seen in us and those who see us will find Christ for themselves.  It would be nice to pick and choose what parts of being and serving the church we prefer, and just do those, but the truth is, we gain the most when we lose the most.  Emulating Jesus requires that we sacrificially submit ourselves.  Not sure what this might mean… We all have preferences, don’t we?  Probably more than we’d like to admit.  But you know, I’ve searched scripture through and through, and can’t seem to find where we’re given permission to let our preferences dictate our purpose.  As Christ followers, our purpose is beautifully wrapped in God’s word, where He instructs us on how to live fruitful lives yielding the fruit of salvation for others through imitation, sacrifice, and service.  Philippians 2: 5-8 tells us to have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had, to recognize our position with God, live humbly, and walk in obedience.  Be imitators.

 

 

3. Eliminate Complaining

It comes naturally doesn’t it, we complain about how we feel, or what we don’t like, or what we disagree with.  The root of complaining is self-centeredness.  We’ve convinced ourselves that how we feel is more important than how we’ve been given an opportunity to learn.  Ouch! I’m talking to myself here.  What if before every moment we wanted to complain, we asked ourselves what we could learn from the discomfort we feel?  I imagine as hard as it may be, these would be moments where we would even begin to look more like Jesus, just like we mentioned above.  And let’s be real y’all, if the root of complaining is self-centeredness then the impact of complaining is division, which goes right back to our number one;  embracing ONE.  The truth is, how you feel may be valid, but it doesn’t mean that it’s valuable.  Stop complaining!

 

4. Eradicate Darkness

As children of the light, we are called to live in the light, keeping darkness from over taking the light within us.  The light in us is what sets us apart, it’s how we’re identified as Christ followers.  In order for your life to be light, you must be willing to have the light shine on you.  This is tough isn’t it?  No one likes to feel exposed!  I remember using a face mask not too long ago called “detox.”  I was told by a friend that this mask is meant to pull the impurities of your skin to the surface so that they can be dealt with.  I was so afraid, I DID NOT want to have zits y’all!  The same thing is true spiritually.  When the light shines in our life it will expose the dark places we’ve allowed to come in, and while I know this sounds scary, it’s absolutely necessary.  In order that we be the light, we must let the light shine in and on us, letting it move us to repentance and change.  Once the darkness is eradicated, our light will shine brightly, and our bright light will be the light that leads others to the hope filled light of Christ.  How can the church be the light if it’s people are walking in darkness?  Lean to the light.

 

5. Engage Scripture 

I almost wish this one was number one, but there is no way I’m re-working this blog! Kidding, but seriously, all the latter will be tough if we aren’t engaged in God’s word in such a way that we’ve learned about His heart for ONE, that we know His character well enough to emulate it, where we’ve learned how to have an attitude of praise instead of one that complains, and we know the true meaning of light and we fully embrace being able to walk in it freely.  Scripture is our lifeline, it’s our outline for how to live, and how to remain steadfast as we live as believers among a fallen world.  God’s word is His love letter to His church, and the church is who He sent his ONE and only son to the world to die for.  How can we love and be a part of God’s church without reading His word where he outlines his heart and affections for you and for me, and where he expresses the urgency of moving the good news of Jesus beyond our experience and to the ends of the earth?  Stop believing the lie that you don’t have to read God’s word to be a follower.  Stop only getting in the word when you attend church or bible study, and step up to the table to eat for yourself.  Study scripture.

 

So where will you start?  Where can you start learning?  We’re blessed to be able to be a part of a church, both local and global.  We are God’s church, and we’re called to engaged in His church, not just for the benefit of others, but for ourselves as well.  The church is called to look like Jesus in every way that it can, therefore those of us who make up the church should be sacrificially aiming to live lives that look just like Him.  We must be intentional to choose to be a part of the church in a healthy way, with one mind, one purpose, praising God without complaint, bringing light to the dark places by letting the light shine in us first, and writing God’s word on our hearts so that we can live lives that abide by it.

 

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Brittany Henderson is the Serve Teams Coordinator for Revolution Church. Her passion for serving others developed in her college years, but have grown tremendously throughout her time in ministry. While organization may be her strong suit, she serves from an angle of building relationships with others over focusing on the task. She believes that serving God is an opportunity to learn things about yourself that you are unable to learn in any other social setting. Brittany has learned that when we set ourselves aside to be used by God, He always shows us how small we are, and how big He really is!