Holy Worship is Marked by Service for Others

Scripture: 1 Peter 1:12

It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things into which angels long to look.

Insights:  In today’s verse we observe another truth regarding those prophets of old.  Not only did they spend time in God’s Word, but they did this so that they could serve us.  Notice that verse twelve tells us they were not serving themselves, but us.  How were they serving us?  By reading the Scriptures and allowing God to speak to them through those words, they were able to receive new insights from the Lord regarding the coming Messiah.  As the Holy Spirit would reveal those prophetic messages these men of God would write them down for us.  As a result there were over 360 prophecies about the Messiah and the Messiah, Jesus, had to fulfill every single one of them in order to be the Messiah.  If He failed to meet just one, then He was not the Messiah.  By God’s providential love and plan, Jesus has indeed met them all.  He is the Son of God.  In writing those prophetic words those prophets were really serving us so that we would be ready to recognize the Messiah when He came.  We can learn from their example that for our worship to be holy, then some kind of sacrificial service to other people must be a part of our lives.  I think this may be one of the areas in which we are the weakest in the body of Christ, the local church.  What I mean by this sentence is not that we don’t serve, but rather that our service is often inwardly focused only.  We do a great job of serving the local church and its membership, but the service of the prophets was to reveal to those who did not have a relationship with the Lord about His coming in flesh.  If we honestly recognize this distinction, then we must ask ourselves how well we are at serving the lost community around us.  It is my fear that we would not get a very good evaluation for this kind of effort.  Beloved, let me challenge you today to look for an opportunity to serve a person you believe may be lost and in need of the saving power of Jesus.  Once you find the opportunity, go all the way and serve that person.

Questions:

1.  Are you looking for ways in to serve others in your worship of the Lord?

2.  What have you done most recently to serve another person?

Prayer: Father, forgive me of those times in which I have felt Your prick to serve another person and I rebelled against Your love.  Help my heart to be more serving in nature so that I reflect Your love to a world in desperate need of a Savior.  Amen.