“Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men.” –Ephesians 6:7 (NIV)

“Christian service, in its purest form, is nothing more than imitating him who we see [Jesus].  To see his majesty and to imitate him is the sum of Christianity.”  --Max Lucado, The Gift for All People

When you set out to serve your family and friends in ways that draw them closer to Christ, if there’s one thing you can count on, it’s that it won’t be convenient.  Our English word service bears this out.  It derives from servus, the Latin word for slave.  If by slavery we mean working incredibly hard for someone else’s benefit without receiving pay or appreciation, then loving others is positively a completely voluntary form of slavery.  When we serve, we choose to surrender our freedom to do whatever we feel like doing in order to do what’s best for someone else.  As we said, it’s seldom convenient.  But it can have miraculous results.

The Transforming Power of Service

The first miracle of Jesus as recorded in the Gospel of John was an unselfish act of service to his mother.  Mary, Jesus, and his disciples were guests at a wedding in the village of Cana in Galilee.  John doesn’t identify who the bride or the groom are, only what Mary asked of Jesus when the host family ran out of wine.

When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”

“Dear woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied.  “My time has not yet come.”

His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.

Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water;” so they filled them to the brim.

Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”

They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine.  He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew.  Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.”

This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee.  He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him (John 2:4-11, NIV).

If you could turn water into wine, wouldn’t you want to grab this golden opportunity to show off your power?  Apparently Jesus didn’t think so.  It’s clear he didn’t believe it was the right time to reveal what he could do.  Though it doesn’t appear in the text, we can only imagine the subtle communication that went back and forth between Mary and Jesus after he voiced his objection.  Theirs must have been the sort of relationship where words weren’t needed in order to discern each other’s hearts.  Perhaps the gentle smile spreading across Jesus’ face told Mary that he was willing to change his plans.  If there had been words, maybe Jesus would have said something like, “OK, I’ll readjust my divine timetable—that I’ve had in place for eons—just to show my love for you.”

Mary’s request wasn’t convenient, but it came from a heart filled with kindness.  How could he not honor her loving impulse?  Turning water into wine—it’s what serving is all about.  It’s taking some humble, day-to-day action like washing the dishes in the sink or listening to someone’s problems and transforming it into an act of love.  In the same way Jesus turned plain old water into a remarkably good vintage of wine, he wants us to transform tiny thoughtful actions into messages that say, “God loves you and so do I!”

Humble Acts of Service

Serving your family and friends doesn’t usually consist of grand gestures like buying lavish gifts or taking them on an all-expense-paid vacation.  No.  It’s usually the little stuff that makes the biggest difference.  As Mother Teresa put it, “It’s not the magnitude of our actions but the amount of love we put into them that matters.”  God transforms each humble act of service we offer in his name into a miraculous opportunity for the one who receives it.  As Scottish theologian William Barclay once explained, “More people are brought into the church by the kindness of real Christian love than by all the theological arguments in the world.”  In fact, humbly serving those closest to us is probably the most persuasive theological “argument” of all.

As we conduct workshops on evangelism all over the globe, we often ask folks to raise their hands to indicate how they came to faith in Jesus.  In most groups, less than five of every 100 people indicate they came to Christ through a combination of evangelistic revivals, crusades, television or radio preaching, Christian books, or Bible tracts.  On average, more than 95 percent indicate that a personal relationship with a Christian close to them is what brought them to Jesus.  Think about what that means for a minute: Your personal relationships are potentially more powerful than Billy Graham, the very best TV and radio preachers you’ve ever heard, and the most profound Christian authors you’ve ever read—all rolled into one!

We’ve always believed that just about any evangelism is good evangelism, so we aren’t putting down any of the ministries or methods mentioned above.  That’s not our point.  Our point is that you have an amazingly powerful influence—if you’re willing to use it.

It’s not always convenient, but it can be incredibly fun and fulfilling.  Don’t worry, we aren’t asking you to be pushy or obnoxious.  On the contrary, we’re hoping you’ll become an active goodwill ambassador for Jesus in your own home, at your workplace, and with your friends.  Active is a critical term because there is little or no fruit in being a passive, silent Christian.  When Jesus turned water into wine there were immediate, tangible results.  The Bible says when Jesus “revealed his glory . . . his disciples put their faith in him” (John 2:11b, NIV).

In Christ’s Name 

Love in action produces the fruit of faith, but inaction doesn’t produce anything.  Serving is both intentional and relational at the same time.  It’s more than just silently being a Christian and hoping those around you will be insightful enough to come to Jesus on their own.  If we love people because Jesus loved us first, what’s wrong with giving God credit when his love flows out through us?  We’ve heard a lot of people say they were trying to be “silent witnesses” of God’s love to those around them; but how would you feel if you asked someone to testify on your behalf in court, and they exercised their right to remain silent instead?  Christ-like service and God-honoring words go together like macaroni and cheese—they’re made for each other.

When someone close to you asks you why you’re going out of your way to serve him or her, there are a lot of different ways to give God the credit.  You might say something like, “It’s just my small way of showing you how much God loves you.” Or, “You looked like you could use some encouragement, and I thought if Jesus were here, it’s what he might do.”  The basic message is: You’re so important to God, and to me, we can’t help trying to show you that every once in a while.  Though it may sound a little odd the first few times it comes out of your mouth, it’s something everyone needs to hear.  In our experience most people—even those hostile to organized religion—appreciate the idea that God thinks they’re worthy of special treatment.

Many years ago Steve [Sjogren] tried to “win” one of his sisters to Christ by arguing with her.  He’d read books on evangelism and watched others go through scripted arguments guaranteed to get anyone to accept Christ's salvation.  When the opportunity came during a long car ride, he was all practiced up and ready for the encounter.  Through much arguing and bulldog persistence, Steve finally persuaded his sister to make a commitment to Christ.

Unfortunately, though she’d said “all the right words,” her forced conversion was neither deep nor lasting.  She didn’t experience any real life change or show clear signs of the overflowing life until years later when she had a heartfelt (and non-coerced) encounter with the Lord.  After that, her spiritual life really took off and she began growing like crazy.

The good news is that Steve learned from the experience.  When the time came to reach out to his other sister, he took a completely fresh approach and served his way into her life instead of arguing his way in.  Steve looked for dozens of little ways to pour out God’s love in her presence.  He gave his little sister rides without hesitation or complaining.  He was openhanded when she needed money and generous with encouragement when she was down.  In short, he acted like a truly loving brother and poured out the love of Jesus on his little sister.  She took notice of his overflowing life and opened her heart to Jesus without a single argument or high pressure technique.  Not surprisingly, since her conversion was heartfelt and not forced, she immediately began to grow and to overflow with evidence that God was in her life.

By taking this simple, authentic approach, we appeal to those we serve.  We are essentially saying, “Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you” (2 Corinthians 5:20b, The Message).

In the same passage, the Apostle Paul calls us to be “Christ’s ambassadors” and says God wants us to be the official means for communicating his message of reconciliation to all people.  As his ambassadors we represent him.  Our job is to act and speak in the ways he would act and speak if he were physically present with the people around us.  We are to communicate and represent his living water—his unconditional love—to the world around us.  Which leads us to a very important point.  Religious people are notorious for attaching a variety of conditions to God’s unconditional love.

No Strings Attached

If we serve in order to get something, we’re really serving ourselves. Candace, a young woman we both know, related an unpleasant experience she had with some Christians who befriended her during her high school days.

There was this group of girls in my school who all attended the same church.  They seemed nice and went out of their way to talk to me and invite me to hang out after school with them.  After a few weeks, they asked me to come on a weekend retreat sponsored by their church youth group.  I was excited to go.

It was kind of like summer camp, but a lot more religious than I was used to.  On the last night, their minister got up and spoke for almost two hours about Jesus dying on the cross.  His talk was filled with bloody descriptions of what the Romans did to Jesus, and how much Jesus suffered so that we could get into heaven.

At the end, when the minister asked anyone who wanted to accept Jesus as their personal Savior to come up front, my friends all looked at me expectantly.  I could tell they really wanted me to go forward, but something about the whole experience was just creeping me out.  I could tell they were disappointed that I hadn’t accepted Jesus, but I didn’t realize how much.

In the weeks following the retreat, my new friends seemed a lot less interested in me.  When I worked up enough courage to ask one of them what I’d done to make them all mad at me, she told me it was because they didn’t want to waste their time on me if I wasn’t ready to get saved.

I was totally humiliated when it finally dawned on me that they’d never really been my friends at all.  To them I was just another prospective convert.

We wish Candace’s story was unique, but unfortunately it’s not.  These kinds of experiences leave such a bitter taste behind, it’s no surprise so many of our family members and friends have become cynical about Christians, church, and even Jesus.  It’s almost second nature for them to suspiciously ask, “What’s the catch?”  Maybe that’s why in Revelation 22:17, the Spirit says, “Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life” (NIV).  The living water Jesus offers is an absolutely free gift—no strings attached.  If we offer less, we turn God’s good news into one more “bait and switch” scheme.

Once your friends and family members get past their fear of being deceived, taken advantage of, or manipulated, you’ll find that their favorite F-word is “free.”  That’s why opportunities to serve and perform small acts of kindness that are absolutely, totally, entirely, utterly, no-kidding, no-strings-attached free are so powerful.  When this brand of free love flows from God into you and then out to others, it’s incredibly enticing to all those around you.

More than Enough

Many of the wedding guests at Cana were probably there for the free food and free wine.  And when the wine ran out, Jesus didn’t just make a few glasses or a few bottles of water turn into wine.  He transformed six water jars, “each holding from twenty to thirty gallons” into top-quality wine.  That’s somewhere between 120-180 gallons of wine—enough to fill between 600-800 table-sized bottles.  And every drop of it was free.  Nobody there earned it, and it’s hard to imagine anybody at that wedding being turned away with an empty glass.  It’s one more picture of the amazing generosity and abundance Jesus wants to pour out to you and through you.  There’s more than enough of Jesus’ love to overflow from you into your friends and family and into your whole community—filling everyone around you with the amazing richness and fine bouquet of his love.  That’s what our next section is all about.

Getting Your Feet Wet

Put your money where your mouth is.

Think of something you’d really like to do for yourself—like going out to a movie or buying that new fishing pole you’ve been eyeing down at the sporting goods store.

Now figure out how much that thing would cost and spend an equal amount on a friend or family member.  Buy the person a gift that you think might communicate how important he or she is to God.

When you give your present, do it secretly, leaving a typewritten note that says something like, “Here is a small token of encouragement for you.  Remember, God loves you!”

The Reflection Pool

When has someone served you in the name of Christ—no strings attached?  How did that make you feel?

• How could you transform some of your daily activities into acts of service?
• What’s one daily activity you can transform into an act of service tomorrow?