Have you ever felt so thankful and so full of love because of something someone did for you that you wanted to somehow bless them back? Certainly no one has done more for us than God has. And one way we can bless Him back is to live lives of loving service. A lifestyle of loving service to God and to the household of God can be ours as we build the Word and its examples of loving service into our lives.
We can go to the Word to see what God says about service and to build those truths into our lifestyle. First, let’s see what Romans 12:1 says about why we want to build our lifestyle of loving service to God.
Romans 12:1:
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
God desires that we are a “living sacrifice” for Him, which is our “reasonable service.” The word “reasonable” means logical, and the word “service” here directly relates to service to God. Out of thankfulness for all God has done for us, including giving us life and His magnificent Word, our logical response is to give back to Him in loving service as a living sacrifice.
Romans 12:11:
Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord.
This verse says we are “not slothful in business,” but instead we get busy “serving the Lord.” We can look for ways to get busy serving the Lord our God as part of our lifestyle of loving service.
Serving God and serving in the household of God go hand in hand. There are many ways to serve in the household of God, such as supporting meetings where the Word is taught by teaching God’s Word, leading the meeting, providing musical support, and more. We can also get busy serving by praying daily, planning outreach events, and speaking God’s Word to others. And we do all this with love because God says He desires for His children to serve one another in love. Galatians 5:13 states the proper attitude and heart of service to have in the household of God.
Galatians 5:13:
For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
“By love serve one another” sums up the lifestyle of service that we can build. “Serve” in Galatians 5:13 is the same word used in Romans 12:11 for “serving” the Lord. How beautifully God’s Word ties these truths together!
God even gives us examples in the Word that we can imitate. Let’s look at a group of people the Apostle Paul wrote about at the close of I Corinthians that had an attitude of loving service that we can aspire to.
I Corinthians 16:15,16:
I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints,)
That ye submit yourselves unto such, and to every one that helpeth with us, and laboureth.
In verse 15 we read, “they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints.” The word “addicted” in its Biblical usage here means devoted. What a tremendous expression of the lifestyle of service chosen by Stephanas and his “house,” or household. As a result of the Word of God living in their hearts, they lovingly devoted themselves to the ministry of the saints—the born-again believers, God’s people. “Ministry” refers to an office or ministry of service to the “saints.” Stephanas and those he lived and fellowshipped with devoted their lives to serve others out of their great love for God. As we grow in God’s Word, we too can devote our lives to serve others out of our love for God.
To develop our lifestyle of service—making service our consistent way of living—we build God’s Word in our own hearts and minds and we also follow the examples He has set for us in His Word. This is one way we can bless God back for all He has done for us.