In Philippians 2:7-8 Paul wrote of Jesus that He “took upon him the form of a servant…and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” When Jesus came to earth He displayed an unmatched willingness to serve.
As God He deserved to be served, but He rejected the service of others and said that He “as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28). Additionally, there was an urgency to His service – He didn’t have to be persuaded to serve but instead He said, “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work” (John 9:4). But, too, He was complete in His service. He did not approach serving wondering how little He could do and still get by, but He served to the point that nothing was lacking. In fact, He promised us that if we will give “it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete, withal it shall be measured to you again” (Luke 6:38).
Wouldn’t it be marvelous if every New Testament Christian approached their ability to serve in the same way as did Jesus? We could not build enough church buildings to contain the resulting growth! But we’re not. We’re not serving like we could and we’re not growing like we should and the underlying question for decades has been “Why?”
I can sum it up in one word: attitude. Every congregation is defined by a particular attitude. It can be an attitude of doing, an attitude of indifference, or an attitude of defiance. But every congregation has an attitude. And that attitude determines the success or failure of that congregation. Congregations defined by an attitude of doing grow. Congregations defined by an attitude of indifference are happy maintaining the status quo. Congregations defined by an attitude of defiance are dying.
I wonder how many people you know who are interested in willingly assuming a role of total Christian service. The likely answer is very few. “Work” has become a dirty word whether it is in the workplace, in the home, in the community, or in the church. That is why sometimes churches develop programs in which there is absolutely no doubt as to its value and people have to be begged to get involved. Then those same congregations sit back and wonder why they are dying while other congregations are growing and thriving. It’s all about attitude.
In Philippians 2:5 Paul had said, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus…” If we could all develop within ourselves the same servant attitude that Jesus displayed during His ministry we could not perceive the impact it would have on churches in our world. But too many churches are more closely defined by poor attitudes. They are dying and they may not even know it, nor do they possibly care. Attitude. That is the one thing that will impact the future of every church.
-Andy Brewer