Show Up, Serve Up – the Matthew 25 Challenge

by Pastor Gary Ritchie of One Way Ministries

Matthew 25: 31  “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne.  32  All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  33  He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34  “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.  35  For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,  36  I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37  “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  38  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  39  When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40  “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

In ministry what defines success? Serving as a pastor for many years now, it is tempting to be the bean counter and believe that numbers is a sign of success. Worldly success may suggest that is the right metric. It is easy to rationalize that as a growing church would appear to be in the center of God’s will. I believe most of the time that is true as long as the tools we are using to build the church are the same ones that God is using to build the Kingdom!

I believe the church has earned a bad rap recently and maybe for good reason. For many believers, we make more about what we stand against than what we are for. I would suggest that the best way to be salty in the world is to present a loving Jesus who is just too good to resist. I know that some of us came to Jesus only for fire protection. But I believe Jesus’ pursuit of us is one of unconditional love that is just too pure that it cannot be denied.

So what should be the focus of the church? A great place to begin is to practice the Matthew 25 principle. In two Saturdays, One Way will be handing out food to those who have food insecurities. It is one of my favorite days of the month. I will explain why so. I imagine that my serving on this special day is as if I am giving to Jesus himself. The scripture gives a beautiful picture of serving the King, “for I was hungry and you game to something to eat.”

Last month our church celebrated Christmas in July. On that day, approximately 50 volunteers showed up to give away toys, food, clothes, household items, shoes, diapers, and so much more. Another favorite day for me. Did we gain any church members that day? I doubt it but we planted plenty of seeds of love. We were truly declaring what we stand for and was showing that truth in word and deed. Once again, I was reminded of scripture, “I needed clothes and you clothed me.”

Hands and Feet Ministry is another beautiful ministry who understands heavenly outcomes of success. Those involved in that ministry goes behind prison walls to present the gospel and love unconditionally. Once again I am reminded of the words of Jesus, “I was in prison and you came to visit me.” Prison ministry is such a small part of what Hands and Feet do and they continue to make such an impact in the Kingdom.

What are the ministries of your church that match the Matthew 25 Principle? You can probably name a few immediately. The second question, which is equally important, are you involved in any of them? If not, why? I can testify that you are missing many blessings by not serving in these ministries. I realize that my serving may not always be pure. I may have intentions to build bigger, never thinking about the essentials of Kingdom Expansion! If you are anything like me, I offer this prayer for all of us to consider:

Lord Jesus, Give me a vision of ministry success. Write upon my heart the

Matthew 25 principle. How today can I help the hurting all around me?

Help me realize that my serving others in this way puts me in direct contact

with you, Lord Jesus. As I am called to build your church, may my

intentions be pure with my every move orchestrated by your mighty hand.

May my serving be done with joy, motivated only by my love and devotion

to you. Give me strength to honor you in every way and may my

successes only point others to you. For then I will know that I have

honored you and completed my duty. Amen.

Pastor Gary can be reached at pastorgary@onewaydamascus.org or through the web site at www.onewaydamascus.org 

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