More Motives to Serve get_app

We have looked at two motivations to serve that the Bible gives us. Let’s check out two more today – gladness and forgiveness. (Yes; there will be some overlap, but some repetition is good for us; it sinks these truths deep into our hearts.)

We should serve God with gladness.

Read Psalm 100:2.

• Earlier this week, we looked at this verse to see the command to serve; but how does this verse say to serve the Lord?
  (with gladness)

When we grudgingly or glumly serve the Lord, we contradict with our attitude and heart what we so often confess with our lips – that we have a good master who is a privilege to serve.

Read Psalm 84:10.

• How does the psalmist say serving and being with the Lord compares with anything else?
  (even to serve one day in God’s courts as a doorkeeper is better than to lounge in comfort anywhere else)

God has made known to us the path of life; thus, we should be joyful and glad as we serve him, remembering all that he has done for us in Christ (Ps 16:9-11; Ps 30:11; 1 Jn 1:1-4).

We should also serve God because we have been forgiven.

Read Isaiah 6:5-8.

• Does Isaiah’s guilt motivate him to serve or paralyze him?
  (it paralyzes him, making him cry out, “Woe is me!”)
• What is Isaiah’s response once his guilt is removed?
  (he wants to serve God, who has forgiven him)

Like Isaiah, we should not serve God in order to be forgiven, but because we are forgiven. Forgiveness should cause us to serve willingly the one who atoned for our sin. If we believe that Christ died for the forgiveness of our sins (Eph 1:7-9; 1 Cor 15:3-4; Col 1:13-14; Matt 26:27-28), then we should serve him because of the forgiveness with which he has forgiven us.

Close by praying that we would serve the Lord with gladness and out of forgiveness rather than guilt.