Twelve Stones - Lesson 12 - Service

Joshua 4:21-22, ‘…When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean these stones? Then ye shall let your children know…’

The Lord has taken us from captivity and allowed us to enter His Promised Land.
We have been in turn handed the awesome responsibility of walking differently
of loving differently and teaching differently. Have we forgotten where we came from?
Have we forgotten where we are going? Let’s not forget our foundation
and let’s certainly not forget to pass the torch to the next generation.


Some synonyms for the word service:
repair, overhaul, check, examine, tune, tune-up, overhaul and check.


Service is the rent we pay for the space we occupy. -Anonymous

When a man turns to God desiring to serve Him, God directs his attention to the world
and its need. -Brunner

No one is useless in this world that lightens the burden of it for any one else. -Dickens

It is high time that the ideal of success should be replaced by the ideal of service. -Einstein

There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up. -Holmer

The world cannot always understand one's profession of faith, but it can understand service. -Maclaren

We have committed the Golden Rule to memory; let us now commit it to life. -Markham

The measure of a man is not the number of his servants, but the number of people he serves. -Moody

What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us. What we have done for others and the world remains … (and is immortal.) -Pine

Proverbs 16:3, ‘Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established.’

Opening thoughts…





Romans 12:11, ‘Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;’

If they’re not gonna give me a raise, I’m not going to work any faster…
I’m just doing the bare minimum.

What about the business of serving the Lord?

So let’s talk about slothfulness in the workplace…

And slothfulness in the business of serving the Lord…





Romans 15:1, ‘We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.’

Your thoughts on this verse…





Galatians 5:13, ‘For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.’

I would like someone else to talk about this one
so I’m not always giving practical examples of my weaknesses…





Ephesians 6:7, ‘With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men:’

We want that little pat on the back.
That little bit of recognition.

In Matthew chapter 6 (Mt 6:4, 6 & 18)
‘…and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.’

What advice can you give us here, for those of us
who have such a low self esteem and are looking for recognition…





Mark 10:43-44, ‘But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister:And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all.’

I refer to this as servant leadership.
We get let down when we are looking for others approval.
When we are looking for others to encourage us.
When we are trying to manipulate the desired response out of others.

Can you give us an example of your practical application of this verse in your life?




It is Christ like

John 13:14, ‘If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet.’

Elaborate…





It Demonstrates Love

John 21:16, ‘He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.’

Once again you need to help me understand balance…
We are saved by faith and not by works…
Why are we talking about works here…

Help me to understand that balance please…





Service Lightens Life's Burdens

Galatians 6:2, ‘Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.’

Any thoughts here?





Galatians 6:10, ‘As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.’

I just don’t have time some may say…

What do you say?





Closing thoughts, how are we going to serve others better, most importantly our families?

Secondly, how are we going to pass this onto the next generation?



next chapter

back to index