Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Playing by the Rules”
Our Bible verse for today: “Joseph, a Levite and a Cypriot by birth, the one the apostles called Barnabas, which is translated Son of Encouragement, sold a field he owned, brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.” Acts 4:36-37 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “Our focus should be on God and on others.”
Barnabas is one of my favorite New Testament characters. The Son of Encouragement was a blessing to all those he encountered. Not only was he evidently an upbeat and pleasant person to be with, but he was a sacrificial servant. Every time we see Barnabas on the pages of the New Testament he is doing something for someone, or giving something to someone, or in some way serving and assisting others.
Barnabas obviously understood that he was there to serve the church, rather than the church being there to serve him. He didn’t go to church for what he could get out of it, he went in order to worship God and to bless others. This attitude is Biblical and it’s what’s expected of devoted followers of Christ.
Jesus Himself was a servant of others and He instructed His followers to do likewise (John 13:12-15). In 1 Corinthians 12:4-26 the Apostle Paul teaches that everyone is endowed with spiritual gifts and with skills and abilities by the Holy Spirit so that we can then utilize those abilities within the context of the church for the benefit of everyone. In Ephesians 4: 11-12 he wrote: “And He personally gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, for the training of the saints in the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ.”
“…for the training of the saints in the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ.” The purpose of Sunday school and Bible studies are to teach and equip individual Christians so we can then participate in acts of ministry. The purpose of worship is to give to God the honor and the reverence that He is worthy of, it’s an expression of our love for Him and our devotion to Him. Like Barnabas, we are to go to church to give. We are to give worship to God and we are to give service to others.
The worst comment on a worship service any Christian can ever make is “I didn’t get anything out of that service.” My response is, “You weren’t supposed to!” You don’t go to church to “get” you go to church to “give”. Rather than asking “What did you get out of the worship service?” a better question would be “What did you put into the worship service?”
When you go to church this weekend I encourage you to play by the rules. Focus on giving; give worship to God and give service to others.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 