This article is simultaneously posted at leadershipjournal.net

There’s a lot of discussion out there about how a church’s service efforts fits with its mission to spread the gospel.  But in my experience, there are two simple ways that a congregation’s acts of mercy can help with its gospel witness:

•       First, our deeds of mercy can create opportunities to share the gospel.

As I speak, people are in the basement of our church building stocking the shelves of our food pantry.  At a typical Saturday distribution, hundreds of needy people will come to the church building to receive groceries.  Those people hear the gospel when the food is delivered and our church planters that serve their community often make follow-up appointments to continue sharing Christ with them.

It’s pretty simple, the act of service creates a point of contact; it creates a relationship between the church and the individual that would not otherwise exist. At that point, it’s the responsibility of our church members to seize that opportunity to build a friendship (through a shared meal, a visit, a personal conversation) and to continue bringing the gospel to bear on that person’s life.

•       Second, our acts of service give credence to the gospel we proclaim. 

Our actions often speak louder than our words. And while words are essential in our evangelism (hence Paul’s “And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?” in Romans 10:14), our deeds can help to break down barriers with skeptical or disinterested people.

Our church has an outreach program for at-risk students at a local high school. We gather the teenagers on Wednesday night, feed them dinner, teach the Bible to them, and give them a safe place to hang out and have fun.  As opportunity arises, we provide for some of their practical needs (food, housing, coats, supplies for their babies).  The love of the congregation for these young people has made the gospel attractive to them, it “puts feet” on the word we’re preaching to them.  Even the teachers and administrators at their high school are beginning to wonder about the church that loves their students. In this sense, our faith is shown in our service to those in need (James 2:14-18).

There is a real danger that our churches might become so focused on mercy ministries that they begin to neglect the proclamation of the gospel.  But that need not be the case. When properly conceived, our acts of service can be a tremendous tool for introducing people to Jesus.

The ultimate good of the gospel is seeing and savoring the beauty and value of God. God’s wrath and our sin obstruct that vision and that pleasure. You can’t see and savor God as supremely satisfying while you are full of rebellion against Him and He is full of wrath against you. The removal of this wrath and this rebellion is what the gospel is for.The ultimate aim of the gospel is the display of God’s glory and the removal of every obstacle to our seeing it and savoring it as our highest treasure. “Behold Your God!” is the most gracious command and the best gift of the gospel. If we do not see Him and savor Him as our greatest fortune, we have not obeyed or believed the gospel.
~ God Is the Gospel: Meditations on God’s Love as the Gift of Himself

Jonathan Edwards, the key figure in our country’s greatest gospel awakening, said,

In all companies, on other days, on whatever occasions persons met together, Christ was to be heard of, and seen in the midst of them. Our young people, when they met, were wont to spend the time in talking of the excellency and dying love of JESUS CHRIST, the glory of the way of salvation, the wonderful, free, and sovereign grace of God, his glorious work in the conversion of a soul, the truth and certainty of the great things of God’s word, the sweetness of the views of his perfections, &c.”
– Jonathan Edwards, A Narrative of Surprising Conversions

The Spirit is often called the “shy” Person of the Trinity because He is content—strike that, zealous—to turn the attention entirely onto Jesus. One question dominates the minds of leaders in a true revival: Is Jesus exalted? A false revival is built around the exaltation of a particular figure. Christ is named, of course, and often presented as the “answer,” but the greater focus is on the leader, the worship, or even the worship experience itself. Emotions may run high in such an encounter, but sadly this is not the work of the Spirit of God, but the spirit of antichrist. His goal is to redirect attention, slightly at first, away from Christ and onto another.

Imagine that you had asked your best friend to serve as the best man at your wedding. This honored position is given to a trusted friend who will selflessly serve you on that great day, and make sure your wedding is everything it could be. But imagine that at the moment the doors at the back of the church open, and your bride appears for you and begins to walk down the aisle, you notice that your friend is making eyes at her, flirting with her, and trying to redirect her attention from you to himself. This is the pastor or worship leader who is more concerned with what people are thinking about him than they are what the people are thinking about Jesus. The church is His bride, not yours. Hands off. If you think the bride, for whatever reason, might be starting to focus on you, do everything you can to get her attention back on the groom.

Edwards writes elsewhere:

When the operation is such as to raise their esteem of that Jesus who was born of the Virgin, and was crucified without the gates of Jerusalem; and seems more to confirm and establish their minds in the truth of what the gospel declares to us of his being the Son of God, and the Saviour of men; is a sure sign that it is from the Spirit of God.

(Inspired by blog by Jared Wilson at http://gospeldrivenchurch.blogspot.com/2012/01/revival-is-always-christ-

Ultimately, in the deepest sense, for Paul “our good works” are not ours, but God’s. They are his work begun and continuing in us, his being “at work in us, both to will and to do what please him” (Phil. 2:13). That is why, without any tension, a faith that rests in God the Savior is a faith that is restless to do his will.

In 1 Corinthians 4:7 Paul puts to the church those searching rhetorical questions, “Who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (NIV). These questions, we should be sure, have the same answer for sanctification as for justification, for our good works as well as for our faith. Both, faith and good works, are God’s gift, his work in us. The deepest motive for our sanctification, for holy living and good works, is not our psychology, not how I “feel” about God and Jesus. Nor is it even our faith. Rather, that profoundest of motives is the resurrection power of Christ, the new creation we are and have already been made a part of in Christ by his Spirit.

~ By Faith, Not By Sight

Key Hindrances:
1. Our relationship with God

• Lack of intimacy with God
• Not listening
• We don’t know Him as He is
• We don’t know His word and/or we are lackadaisical about it

2. Our involvement in religious traditions and legalism

• Religious attitudes
• Man-made traditions
• Religion and pride
• Comfort-seeking in our church life
• Me-centered in our church life
• Consumer mentality as a Christian

3. Our followership (our walk as disciples)

• Lack of obedience to Jesus alone
• Lack of obedience to all of Jesus’ commands
• Not making disciples
• Not surrendered wholly
• No passion for the lost
• Compromise

  For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. Rom. 8:5-9

Heavenly Father, this portion of your Word lands on my heart today like refreshing dew from heaven, like living water in a dry desert, like a fountain of grace for manifold weakness. It’s a gift to know our need. It’s a greater gift to realize everything you do for us through the ministries of the Holy Spirit.

Just as assuredly as Jesus stood outside of Lazarus’s tomb and said, “Come forth,” so you sent the Holy Spirit to preach the gospel to my heart and I came out of the tomb of my sin and death, raised to newness of life in Jesus. How I praise you for your sovereign goodness and power. Unless you had breathed new life into my dead spirit, I would’ve never, could’ve neverbelieved the gospel.

Indeed, you baptized me with the Holy Spirit, making me a member of your family and Christ’s bride. You sealed me for eternity by the Spirit, marking me as your very own possession. Your Spirit is the firstfruits and guarantee of the full inheritance of the salvation that Jesus earned for us.

Now the Spirit lives as a permanent resident in my heart—to constantly preach the gospel to my heart, convict me of my sin, make me like Jesus, and tell me over and over again that I’m your beloved child. What a generous and loving God you are, Abba, Father!

Though it doesn’t always seem this way to me, according to your Word, I’m controlled by the Holy Spirit, for the dominion of sin in my life has been broken. And you’ve given me every Spirit gift I need to live as a functioning member of the Body of Christ, and a caring servant in your kingdom. Forgive me for whining about what I don’t have. You’ve enriched me beyond my wildest dreams through the work of the Spirit.

Blessed Father, make my theology my doxology—my confession my possession.  I don’t just want to “right” about the Holy Spirit; I want to be filled with the Spirit, keep in step with the Spirit, know the joy of the Spirit, bear the fruit of the Spirit, experience more of the power of the Spirit!  Right now, by faith, I set my mind on what the Spirit desires. Bring much glory to yourself and freedom to my soul. So very Amen I pray, in Jesus’ beautiful and bountiful name.

Being “in Christ Jesus” is a stupendous reality. It is breathtaking what it means to be in Christ. United to Christ. Bound to Christ. If you are “in Christ” listen to what it means for you:

1. In Christ Jesus you were given grace before the world was created. 2 Timothy 1:9, “He gave us grace in Christ Jesus before the ages began.”
2. In Christ Jesus you were chosen by God before creation. Ephesians 1:4, “God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world.”
3. In Christ Jesus you are loved by God with an inseparable love. Romans 8:38–39, “I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
4. In Christ Jesus you were redeemed and forgiven for all your sins. Ephesians 1:7, “In Christ we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses.”
5. In Christ Jesus you are justified before God and the righteousness of God in Christ is imputed to you. 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For our sake God made Christ to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
6. In Christ Jesus you have become a new creation and a son of God. 2 Corinthians 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” Galatians 3:26, “In Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.”
7. In Christ Jesus you have been seated in the heavenly places even while he lived on earth. Ephesians 2:6, “God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”
8. In Christ Jesus all the promises of God are Yes for you. 2 Corinthians 1:20, “All the promises of God find their Yes in Christ.”
9. In Christ Jesus you are being sanctified and made holy. 1 Corinthians 1:2, “To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus.”
10. In Christ Jesus everything you really needed will be supplied. Philippians 4:19, “My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
11. In Christ Jesus the peace of God will guard your heart and mind. Philippians 4:7, “The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
12. In Christ Jesus you have eternal life. Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
13. And in Christ Jesus you will be raised from the dead at the coming of the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:22, “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.” All those united to Adam in the first humanity die. All those united to Christ in the new humanity rise to live again

How do we get into Christ?

At the unconscious and decisive level it is God’s sovereign work: “From God are you in Christ Jesus” (1 Corinthians 1:30).

But at the conscious level of our own action, it is through faith. Christ dwells in our hearts “through faith” (Ephesians 3:17). The life we live in union with his death and life “we live by faith in the Son of God” (Galatians 2:20). We are united in his death and resurrection “through faith” (Colossians 2:12).

This is a wonderful truth. Union with Christ is the ground of everlasting joy, and it is free.

“The first two petitions of the Lord’s Prayer are perhaps the clearest statement of all in the teachings of Jesus that missions is driven by the passion of God to be glorified among the nations. ‘Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come’ (Matthew 6:9–10). Here Jesus teaches us to ask God to hallow his name and to make his kingdom come. This is a missionary prayer. Its aim is to engage the passion of God for his name among those who forget or revile the name of God (Psalm 9:17; 74:18). To hallow God’s name means to put it in a class by itself and to cherish and honor it above every claim to our allegiance and affection. Jesus’ primary concern — the very first petition of the prayer he teaches — is that more and more people, and more and more peoples, come to hallow God’s name. This is the reason the universe exists. Missions exist because this hallowing doesn’t.”

~ Let the Nations Be Glad (1993), p.35

“Know this: those who live by faith will struggle in ways that those who live to make their lives work will never know.  It is that struggle, to believe despite desperate pain and confusion that a good plan is unfolding, that will open your eyes to see Me more clearly.  Is that what you want?  Will you pay the price?

“The price is this: you will tremble in agony as you live in a sinful, self-prioritizing world.  You will learn to wait in emptiness and frustrated desire for My plan of love to reveal itself.  With confidence in Me and hope in My plan, you will not only feel the pain of living in the valley but also see My glory from the mountaintop of faith.

“Only those who struggle in confusion and wait in hope will be strengthened to struggle well and to wait with confidence.

“Struggle well!  Wait in hope!”

~ Larry Crabb, God’s Love Letters to You, Page 53

Questions for Reflection:
What does it mean to “struggle well”? To “wait in hope”?

How many of us can truly say along with Paul in his letter to the Philippians that “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ…“?

Sure, it’s a nice thought and even a place that we should all (as Christians) arrive at. But if I’m completely honest, I know that I’m not fully at that point yet.

What Paul is saying in his letter to the Philippians isn’t just about physical suffering or losing possessions. He’s counting his very identity as loss and rubbish. Check out what he says just before the verse quoted above:

For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh— though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. – Philippians 3:3-7

Paul tells his readers who he is in earthly terms. He has all of these achievements and affiliations that allowed him to at one time put his confidence in the flesh, in himself. How often do we put our confidence in our experience, knowledge and skill? How often do we put our confidence in the flesh?

But that’s no way to serve God, because…

Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. – Romans 8:8

What does all of this mean?

It means that all that we are, all that we’ve accomplished and all that we have must be nailed to the cross and put to death. Our confidence cannot be in ourselves. We’re not good enough. Jesus didn’t come to fix us, He came to replace us. This is why Paul tells us that we have been crucified with Christ. Our old self is dead and we have been raised to new life in Christ Jesus.

We are a new creation in Christ. Not a repaired creation.

We once lived our lives for ourselves. Our achievements and talents were meant to further our own lives, our own glory. But now those things are of no avail. Now we must stop living for ourselves and live unto God in Christ and through Him.

What about using our natural talents for a new purpose, to serve God?

Regardless of how pure our motives may be, we can’t serve God based on our fallen nature and ability. That life has died. Our source for life and ability now solely rests in Jesus Christ, our indwelling Lord. To be honest, I can’t tell you exactly how all of this looks in real life and expression. There have been times that I’ve walked more fully in Christ, but those are probably the minority.

All that we are by nature must die. Now having died with Christ, we are then raised to new life. We have a new life source which is Jesus Christ. All is new. If I was a brilliant musician before coming to Christ I would have reason to boast in my ability. But all that was before has been put to death. Even my great talent. Now the source for musical ability is Christ and the goal is to glorify Him.

Suppose I was a great thinker and very studious before coming to Christ (I wasn’t). I now have a new source for knowledge and even a new purpose for knowledge. It’s now the Spirit that gives me understanding, not just my ability to read, focus and memorize. Without light from the Spirit I have no understanding in the things of God and no revelation of Christ.

We must come to a place where our abilities, talents and social status become worthless when compared to the worth of knowing Christ.

The first step, I believe, is receiving a glimpse of Christ and the eternal purpose of God in Christ.