Why serve in church when there are so many needs outside?
It’s been really encouraging seeing folk serving in various ways at the Tab and especially a large crowd turning out to help with the spring clean. Our service of Jesus goes well beyond our church into all areas of life. But I believe it should involve all of us serving together within the church in some way.
Why?
• Why clean the church building when I could go and offer to clean a neighbour’s house?
• Why take on stressful leadership at church when there are other committees in clubs and charities?
• Why give money to church when I could give to a homeless charity?
• Why invest in hospitality and friendships at the Tab when I could just get to know people (and Christians from other churches) I choose to know?
• Why join the visiting team when I could join a secular befriending service?
• Why take on some of the admin in the church when I have piles of paperwork at home?
These are important questions. Christians have an urgent mission to a lost world and want to stay involved and witnessing. Hopefully many of us don’t have to choose between these and can do both. But time and resources are limited. So why serve within the church?
Ephesians 4.16 says: “from Jesus the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”
This gives us three answers to our question.
1) God says so. “Each part does it’s work” and the context shows that’s service within the body. Of course we don’t all have the same part, or gifts, or strength, and we may serve in informal or hidden ways rather than being on a rota.
2) Your service is essential. You may find that hard to believe. But it’s “as” each part does it work that the church body grows, builds, and functions effectively. For example: if no one visits the housebound or befriends newcomers we’re failing as a loving family; if creche isn’t staffed parents won’t hear God’s word (and visiting families will try elsewhere), if the building isn’t maintained we’ll fail an inspection…
3) The local church is central to God’s plans and mission to the world. Church is Jesus’ body on earth through which “the manifold wisdom of God is displayed” (Eph 3.10). This is why it’s at the heart of God’s purposes more so than charities, clubs, parachurch organisations, or even big Christian conferences. The local church (with all its ordinariness) is how God evangelises non-Christians, disciplines young Christians, and keeps encouraged and limping on old-timers all the way to heaven. It therefore must be resourced and healthy so that as we build connections with the community we’ll have somewhere healthy and life giving to bring them.
How do I get more involved? Have a chat to Barnaby who’d love to hear from you.