We need to meet people’s needs

“Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.'”

Matthew 25: 34-40 (TNIV)

We probably don’t know all of the needs of everyone around us, but sometimes it is obvious, or God reveals a need to us, and we just need to get on and address those needs.

The needs we meet might be very basic – food, welcoming, clothing, looking after people (even if we can’t heal them), keeping in touch and visiting people (even if they did something to put themselves in prison). We are surrounded by friends and colleagues in need, as well as many other people we don’t know who have basic needs.

Jesus says that whoever’s needs we address, whoever we serve, it is as if we are serving God himself when we serve someone in need.

It is useful to know that serving others, therefore, does not contradict what we’ve already learned, that we should only serve God. Meeting God’s needs and wants is done by obeying him, which means we follow Jesus’ instructions to love and serve other people.

Extra information

We spent a lot of time yesterday looking at how Jesus served in a remarkable number of ways. Without getting bogged down in complication – because Jesus’ instruction here is very simple – it would be worth us spending more time today thinking about the needs of others around us. It may be that our work colleagues don’t lack for basics of food and shelter, but may need other things, such as:

• Physical needs – are they getting enough rest and sleep, relaxation and breaks from stress?
• Safety needs – are they feeling protected and secure, stable and free from the effects of crime?
• Belonging needs – are they in loving relationships, feeling appreciated and part of the team?
• Esteem needs – are they achieving, growing, recognised, given responsibility and feeling valued?
• Cognitive needs – are they learning and becoming more self-aware of their skills and purpose?
• Aesthetic needs – are they getting satisfaction and inspiration from beauty, wit and laughter?
• Transcendence needs – are they finding purpose in serving and helping others to grow?

Many psychologists say that these needs form a hierarchy – the most basic needs need to be met before we experience the more advanced needs. A person’s point of greatest need can be considered to be their most basic (in this case, the first in the list above which they find to be a need). How does that apply to the people you know? Do you know your work colleagues well enough to meet their needs?

To consider and pray throughout today

• How ready am I to serve? Do I know what the people around me need?
• How could I get to know my colleagues better?
• How can I meet their needs without patronising or judging them?

We need to know what people need

“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done."

Luke 22:42 (TNIV)

How did Jesus set such a good example of service? It is partly because of his extraordinary love for other people, and his ability to put this love into practice without worrying about how to meet his own needs. Jesus trusted God to provide for his physical and emotional needs in the desert (Matthew 4:1-11), to provide wisdom and authority as he taught, and spiritual power as he worked. Ultimately Jesus trusted God to address his need for self-preservation against death – we see this need expressed in Jesus’ prayer in Luke 22:42, and we see the trust expressed in Jesus’ submission to death on the cross.

But Jesus also knew that service was not about doing good things he wanted to do, but knowing and meeting the needs of others. He became famous for this, and this is why crowds followed him even though not all were committed to obeying – people wanted their needs to be met and thought Jesus could do this for them. Let’s look at some examples in Luke’s gospel:

• Luke 2:46 – even aged 12, Jesus met teachers’ need for closeness to God with the sharing of wisdom
• Luke 2:51 – Jesus then met his parents’ needs not to worry with obedience
• Luke 4:31 – Jesus met people’s needs to hear clearly from God with authoritative teaching
• Luke 4:33-41 – Jesus met many people’s physical needs with healing sickness and casting out demons
• Luke 5:1-11 – Jesus met the needs of disciples to trust with a miraculous provision of the fish they sought
• Luke 5:27-6:10 – Jesus met the needs of Pharisees to be challenged by eating with tax collectors, and gathering grain and healing on the Sabbath
• Luke 7:1-10 – Jesus met the need of a centurion by healing his son, but also used to the opportunity to meet the needs of many others to find faith by praising the centurion for his faith.
• Luke 7:36-50 – Jesus met the need of a sinful woman to show love and find forgiveness by letting her bless him, and at the same time met the need of Pharisee to know God by explaining debt forgiveness
• Luke 8:1-15 – Jesus met the needs of a rural community by explaining God’s kingdom in farming terms
• Luke 8:24 – Jesus met the needs of his disciples for safety and freedom from fear by stopping a storm
• Luke 8:49 – Jesus met the need of people to trust in the right leadership by healing a dead girl
• Luke 9:1 – Jesus met the need of disciples to grow and develop by giving them power and responsibility
• Luke 9:16 – Jesus met the need of people to trust in God’s provision by thanking heaven for loaves & fish
• Luke 9:41 – Jesus met the need of people to find their own faith by rebuking them before healing a boy
• Luke 9:51 – Jesus met the need for his disciples to know God’s will by rebuking their odd suggestion
• Luke 10:1 – Jesus met the need for people to learn by giving more responsibility, even after mistakes
• Luke 10:41 – Jesus met Martha’s need to be understood by acknowledging her worry and comforting her
• Luke 11:37-54 – Jesus met the need of comfortable Pharisees to be disturbed by challenging them
• Luke 12:22-34 – Jesus met the need of his challenged disciples to be encouraged by reassuring them
• Luke 14:25 – Jesus met the need of people to control their lives by illustrating the cost of following him
• Luke 15 – Jesus met the need of people to understand God by explaining the kingdom in familiar terms
• Luke 17:23 – Jesus met the need of disciples to know what is coming by warning them against deception
• Luke 18:22 – Jesus met the need of a ruler to change by setting him the hardest personal challenge
• Luke 18:29 – Jesus met the needs of disciples to be reassured with a faithful, encouraging promise
• Luke 20:3 – Jesus met the need of chief priests to be challenged by asking them a pertinent question
• Luke 20:46 – Jesus met the need of disciples for clear leadership with a warning against bad teachers
• Luke 22:24-30 – Jesus met disciples’ need for importance by explaining true greatness and service:

“A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. Jesus said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. You are those who have stood by me in my trials. And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel."

Luke 22:24-30 (TNIV)

To consider and pray throughout today

• How ready am I to serve? Do I know what the people around me need?

We need God’s heart for service

“Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because those who have suffered in their bodies are done with sin. As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you.”

1 Peter 4: 1-4 (TNIV)

From what we read yesterday, we know we should serve God, putting his needs and wants first. God also set us examples of service, by providing for our needs. Jesus himself was the greatest servant, sacrificing his own life to meet our need to be brought back to God. We have no reason to put our own needs first.

Peter wrote about Jesus’ sacrifice, service and suffering on our behalf in the passage just before the quote above. “Therefore” – because Jesus has set this example for us – we should be prepared to live for the will of God, serving God rather than serving ourselves, living to satisfy our own wants. We already know that satisfaction only comes from God, that it is pointless to chase satisfaction elsewhere, so the things we and others do which are self-serving – including “debauchery, lust, drunkenness”, etc – are pointless for us. Peter writes that serving God rather than ourselves has a number of effects:

• It should change what we do, and what we want to do
• This causes surprise amongst other people who have different priorities
• This is likely not to invite admiration, but abuse and suffering for us!
• Although this hardly seems fair, we are to remain committed to serve as God serves:

“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms.”

1 Peter 4: 8-10 (TNIV)

We are commanded to love other people, and show this in practice. Hospitality is one way we can do this – letting others use our personal space, our food, our time. Each of these things is precious to us, and it’s not surprising that we feel the need to protect them. Nevertheless, if we are living to please God, we need to do what he tells us to do. God tells us to love and serve other people, even people who cause us problems.

This is what “love covers over a multitude of sins” means – even though sin causes hurt and separation, love gets over this and fuels the desire to serve. Just as God loved us so much that he served us and died for us in spite of our sin, we are to love and serve others. Peter calls those of us who serve “faithful stewards of God’s grace.” Our ability to love and serve comes from God, our gifts come from God for the purpose of service, and our attitude to service should not be “I’m a great person because I’m serving”, but “God is great because he has served me, and enabled me to serve others.” Then, let’s get on with it!

To consider and pray throughout today

• How does what I choose to do reflect God’s heart for serving others?
• Who am I choosing to serve? Who am I excluding from serving, and why?
• Has God given me love enough to cover sins? If I don’t feel he has, can I ask for this love?

We need to know who we are serving

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money. Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

Matthew 6:24-34 (TNIV)

Service is important. From the introduction, you might have been thinking this week would be like a management textbook on service, full of clever theories or urgent calls to improve or perish. We’ll certainly meet challenges this week, but we need to be clear on where those challenges come from, what we need to work hard for, and what we don’t need to worry about.

Jesus is clear that our first priority in service is God. Everything else we are meant to do comes from our commitment to serve God. It’s that simple.

Service is doing something to meet needs and wants. Jesus shows us here that before we served others, even before we chose to follow Jesus, God served us. In the creation of the world, God provided for our needs, and God carries on providing for us. God knows what we need and has promised to take care of us. This can, and should, make our priorities different from those of people who don’t know God.

Sometimes we think we have to balance serving God with trying to serve other interests or serve ourselves – fulfil our desires, or simply meet our practical needs. Do we have time to think about others when we have to worry first about ourselves? Jesus is totally clear on this – we can’t serve two masters. We’re not to try and balance our church life and service against our other practical needs. This is not a suggestion or even a command from Jesus – he is simply pointing out that trying to serve two masters, e.g. God and Money, is impossible. The good news is that not only is it impossible, it’s unnecessary, because God loves us. (He has even given us privileged status, calling us friends and family.)

Jesus tells us what to seek – God’s kingdom and his righteousness – we should be looking to live and work the way God intended us to, for him, serving him and other people. God’s promise is that our own needs will be met – and because we don’t need to worry about our own needs, we can concentrate more on serving others than on the need to be served ourselves.

To consider and pray throughout today

• How much do I trust God to provide for my needs? How much do I try and get independently?
• How much do I worry, and what do I worry about? Is God telling me to worry less?
• What does serving God mean? What does God need or want, and what can I do about it?

Starting tomorrow - A one-week bible study about what service means, and how we get on with it

Introduction

We should be experts in service. In the UK, virtually none of us are self-sufficient – we rely on other people to meet our basic needs such as growing our food, building us a place to live, providing clean water to drink, etc. We pay for these things with the money we make serving others, doing things they are willing to pay for – things which meet their needs and wants. We can live because we can serve.

Day 5 – The point of having and using gifts from God

Very truly I tell you, all who have faith in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

John 14:12-14 (TNIV)

These verses we considered yesterday answer a very important question - why does God give us spiritual gifts? We know that one reason is for us to live the purposeful, satisfying lives God designed us to live, by putting the gifts into action. Another reason is for us to have an effective church body, where we rely on each other putting the gifts into action so that we can, together, achieve works as great or greater than Jesus. Our church should be famous for its good works. But why? The overall reason, and the greatest purpose of spiritual gifts, is “so that the Father may be glorified” – in other words, so God will be recognised, known by our friends and colleagues to be real, and given the credit for what he has done. The change this can cause in our workplaces is immense!

Jesus promised to do whatever we ask “in (his) name” – in other words, consistent with his will and purpose (to obey God the father), and in consultation with Jesus. How will Jesus keep this promise? He will act – he will use his body. Guess what – that involves us, because we are part of the body! So when we ask for God to do things, expect God to give us things to do – within the abilities God has given us. We should be ready to work together and act, and give God the credit for making this possible. So what kind of things should we be looking and asking to achieve, to glorify God?

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same attitude of mind Christ Jesus had: ‘Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a human being, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death - even death on a cross!

Philippians 2:3-8 (TNIV)

We have this amazing ability to ask God to do what Jesus did, and be used to achieve what we ask for, so that God will be recognised. Paul is clear on how to decide what to do – it’s all about service to others, rather than selfish ambition. Jesus demonstrated this with his attitude and actions. Even though he was God (and not just connected to God, in the way that we are), he was human and showed us the way to glorify God – obey God, and serve other people.

Regardless of our status at work, this is what God is telling us to do with our talents, our gifts and our lives – serve our colleagues. At work people expect us to show ambition, and to act in our own interests rather than the interests of others. We need to agree our aims with God – what are we really ambitious for? It’s not wrong to want to do a great job – far from it. But we also have to keep God’s greater purposes for us in mind. These are achieved by working for God, obeying him, and following his orders to put others’ interests ahead of our own.

To consider and pray throughout today

• What is my greatest ambition? How does it reflect God’s call for me to serve others?
• What do my colleagues need? How can I serve them and help to meet their needs?

Day 4 – The gifts God has distributed to those who know him

For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

Romans 12:4-8 (TNIV)

We have seen that it is possible, although costly, to know what God has in mind for us, and that this knowledge should not make us proud, but humble. Here Paul explains why we need strong relationships with other people, as well as knowing God.

Paul’s picture is that, in Christ, we form a body of people much like a human body. This body has many parts, each with a different function. This picture shows that we are important in ourselves and part of something bigger, together. We have a unique, individual purpose, and we are not separated from other people in the body – we rely on them, and they rely on us.

Paul puts it very strongly here – “each member belongs to all of the others.” It’s already clear that we belong to God – how can we also belong to other church members? The body of believers we call the church is Christ’s body – we all belong to God, and God’s will is that we belong together. Whatever we think we have discerned about God’s will for us, it needs to be consistent with this. (See also 1 Corinthians 10:17 and 12:12-27, and Ephesians 4 for more of Paul’s writing about the church as a body.)

Spiritual gifts are given by God, according to “grace” – we don’t deserve them, so we shouldn’t boast about them. We should get on and use them, however. They are given so that we can serve each other and make the body effective. They are distributed so that we need to get together as a body in order to work. Between us, we are given all of the gifts and abilities that Jesus has, and this body stretches across workplaces, cities, countries, the whole earth – so it is no wonder that Jesus said:

Very truly I tell you, all who have faith in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

John 14:12-14 (TNIV)

Earlier we looked at what “faith” means. Many of our work colleagues probably think it means a weak form of belief, without proof. The biblical definition of faith is more of a challenge – it is always linked to action. Faith is not belief minus proof, it is belief plus action – the strongest kind of belief.

Paul tells those with the gift of prophecy to use it “in accordance with (their) faith” – in other words, in accordance with the willingness and commitment to get on and do something with the knowledge God gives a prophet. God does not speak to us so that we know things, but don’t put them into practice. God does not call us to speak his words but not do anything about them ourselves. “All those who have faith in me will do the works I have been doing,” said Jesus, and his brother James wrote "Faith without deeds is dead." Faith = belief + action.
  

To consider and pray throughout today

• What am I doing today that demonstrates my faith? Is it something like Jesus’ works?
• What difference would Jesus make at my workplace? What does he want me to do today?

Day 3 – The attitude which should go with knowing God’s will

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgement, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.

Romans 12:3 (TNIV)

We have been reading about how it is impossible to get our heads around God and prise from him the secrets of how he works and what his will is for us. We then read how God’s will can be known to us if our minds are renewed by God and transformed, and that this is done by God’s mercy when we give up control, seeking forgiveness, committing and offering our whole selves “as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God.”

When we start to be transformed and know God’s will, there is still a danger that we will go back to our old habits of thinking we are in control. Knowing God’s will does not mean that we are now perfect like God. So Paul is quick to remind us to stay humble.

Look at how even Paul, a well renowned teacher the church is looking at in order to find God’s will for them, starts his warning by acknowledging how he knows what he is about to write. “By the grace given me” – Paul does not teach us about knowing God’s will because he is a clever teacher, or has worked it out by himself. Paul only teaches because God has mercifully given him what to say. “Grace” refers to something given but not deserved, and Paul is confessing that he has not earned wisdom – God has given it even though Paul did not deserve it. We are no more deserving ourselves.

So how highly should we think of ourselves? Some people think Christians hate themselves, and this would be a mistake. God loves us, and is the source of our love for ourselves and each other. This isn’t something to get carried away over (God chooses to love us, it’s not because we’re especially lovely), but we can think of ourselves “with sober judgement” – our transformed minds can recognise and think about how we relate to God and each other. We do this “in accordance with the faith God has distributed.” In other words this thought and faith, like everything else, come from God. (Now here’s an interesting question – what do you think “faith” means here?)

To consider and pray throughout today

• How do I think of myself? How does this compare with how I think of others?
• How much do I feel loved, ready, proud, humble, clever, blessed, talented… what else?
• What is the faith that God has distributed to me?
• How do I see that faith being put into practice through what I am doing?