14 Principles of Our Service Christ

Here are 14 principles we learned in our study of Ephesians 1:1-4:16 regarding our service for Christ. I invite you to join me in printing these off and in implementing these with intention and purpose as we serve Christ together here at Hamilton Hills.

We learned:

1. That our service for Christ is built on a foundation of Christ blessing us from the heavens with “every spiritual blessing.”
2. That God is more interested in our availability than in our ability.
3. That we are God’s well-crafted poem, into which God wrote us (he created us in Christ Jesus) to do good works.
4. That God is our advance team—he has prepared the good works he calls on us to do—he makes ready both the context of our service and the specific deeds he calls us to do for him.
5. That God enables our service for Christ with the same power instrumental in raising Jesus from the dead.
6. That we are empowered specifically to bring the love of Christ to bear on every circumstance related to our service, thus to know the height and depth and length and width of Christ’s love.
7. That gifted service is intended to showcase humility gentleness, patience, over-the-top forbearance, love, cooperation, and submission.
8. That gifted service for Christ is not about us, but about Christ’s Body, the Church.
9. That not all of Christ’s gifts are abilities or talents, some are people (e.g. apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastor-teachers).
10. That gifts are said to be “grace” that Christ gives to us, indicating the rich variety of abilities, talents, and roles he gives to the Church.
11. That gifted service is to be rendered with certain ends or goals in mind: all of us reaching oneness of the knowledge and of the faith of the Son of God; becoming mature (a reference to “perfect” love); and attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
12. That gifted service is to be directed toward making coworkers out of everyone else in the Body.
13. That gifted service is to be directed toward preparing or training others to serve.
14. That service rooted in ordination is to lead the way in applying these principles; with service rooted in designation and discipleship just as committed in applying the same.