CHURCH VOLUNTEERS: AT YOUR SERVICE

“If you are a local church or non-profit, you live and die with volunteers.” – Andy Stanley

What does faithfulness look like? You can often see it in the church volunteers.

Church volunteers are essential to a healthy, growing church. They willingly fill in the gaps wherever they’re needed in order to help churches serve their members and communities. It’s not a stretch to say church volunteers are the unsung heroes behind the scenes — most ministries couldn’t function without them.

You can’t attend Northstar without being impressed by the faithfulness of God’s people. They are truly the force behind everything that takes place at Northstar. They do what they do because they love the Lord and His church and they have a heart to serve.  They do what they do because they are faithful to the God who has always been faithful to them. When you go to worship this Sunday, take a good look around at your fellow worshipers, and thank God for the willing people who give their time, talents, and resources.

But churches never have enough volunteers. It’s just part of the ebb and flow of ministry.  There is always a place for motivated servants to meet the needs of God’s people.  “How excellent are the Lord’s faithful people! My greatest pleasure is to be with them” (Psalm 16:3 GNT).

The Church does not exist for us. We are the church and we exist for the world. We have the responsibility and the opportunity to show the love of Christ by serving other people. In other words, saved people serve people so that served people can become saved. “God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.” (1 Peter 4:10-11).

The point is the church needs you. We want you to be a part of God’s body in the way He designed you. You’re here because of Him, and we know He put you here for a reason. Find a place to serve that aligns with your passion, personality, and availability.   

Discussion Questions:

  1. Your devotion to God is illustrated, demonstrated, and authenticated by serving others.  Agree or disagree?
  2. What hurdles do you have serving others?
  3. What must you do, beginning today, to acquire the authentic heart of a servant?

THE MEANING AND PURPOSE OF PARABLES

“He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them. That is why I use these parables, For they look, but they don’t really see. They hear, but they don’t really listen or understand….But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.” – Matthew 13: 11-13, 16.

The Lord Jesus frequently used parables as a means of illustrating profound, divine truths. Mark 4:34 says, “In fact, in his public ministry he never taught without using parables; but afterward, when he was alone with his disciples, he explained everything to them.” They are vivid, rich, arresting stories that make us think and teach us lessons about our relationship with God and others. Parables enabled Jesus to share religious truths that connected with people because these stories corresponded with things from their daily lives they could relate to. When asked about God’s love, Jesus talked about a wayward son. When asked about the storms of life, He talks about building foundations. And, when asked about how we should love one another, He tells the story of a helpful passerby. Jesus spoke volumes with few words. Jesus used parables to describe the nearly indescribable, and often, these stories left listeners amazed and speechless.

If you rewind through your life you will recall stories that have stuck with you through the years.  A good story sticks with you. You can remember it years later, maybe not all the details, but at least the premise. Good stories stay with you. In contrast, all that information, facts, dates, and equations that you spent learning in high school and college fade away once you walk off the stage at graduation.

This is the genius of Jesus’ teaching. His parables take essential information and wrap it up into a memorable story. You take it with you because you can easily remember it. Jesus could have just said the raw facts. But He didn’t do that. Instead, He chose to tie truth to a story.

While the parables were initially shared in the first-century context, their lessons and principles remain relevant in our lives today. They continue to challenge our perspectives, inspire us to live with compassion and grace and remind us of the eternal truths of God’s kingdom. Applying the lessons from Jesus’ parables requires active reflection and a willingness to examine our own lives. They challenge us to see beyond surface-level interpretations, encouraging us to show love, mercy, and forgiveness to others.

Jesus used principles to make profound spiritual truths accessible to a wide range of people. These stories remain relevant and impactful, challenging us to examine our hearts, grow in faith, and embrace the transformative power of Jesus’ teachings by understanding the purpose and significance of parables, we can fully appreciate the timeless wisdom and apply their lessons in our lives.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Why do you think parables are so easy to remember?
  2. How can parables influence our lives?

A PASSION FOR THE LOST

“With Christ as my witness, I speak with utter truthfulness. My conscience and the Holy Spirit confirm it. My heart is filled with bitter sorrow and unending grief for my people, my Jewish brothers and sisters. I would be willing to be forever cursed—cut off from Christ!—if that would save them. They are the people of Israel, chosen to be God’s adopted children. God revealed his glory to them. He made covenants with them and gave them his law. He gave them the privilege of worshiping him and receiving his wonderful promises.” – Romans 9:1-4.

Some people cynically believe that the epitaph of society should read: “Our civilization died because it couldn’t be bothered. Call it apathy, call it indifference, the reality is that things that once mattered don’t seem to matter as much. People seem to go through life with less interest, curiosity, creativity, or passion. So what are you passionate about? I mean really passionate about? Or put another way, what do you care about most?

We cannot read Romans 9 without understanding Paul’s burning passion for lost souls. Paul is deeply sad that many Israelites were not in a right standing before God (through faith in Christ), despite knowing firsthand who Christ is. Paul said he would be willing to be cut off from Christ for the sake of his Israeli brothers and sisters who were separated from Christ.

Paul’s desire for the salvation of his people is similar to that of Moses in Exodus 32:30-32 when Moses visits the Lord after the people of Israel sin in making the golden calf. Moses says to the people of Israel, “Perhaps I will be able to obtain forgiveness for your sin.” Then he says to the Lord, “ But now, if you will only forgive their sin—but if not, erase my name from the record you have written.” Moses’ love for his people was self-sacrificial, like Paul’s. He was willing to be cut off for their salvation.

Listen to the apostle’s prayer for us in 1 Thessalonians 3:12, “And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows.”  A passion for the lost means we are concerned for those people who come across our path.

As you read or study the gospels, take some time to note every instance where Jesus demonstrates His intense affection for the lost. Then find a way to internalize these passages. You could journal about them, memorize them, or get together with friends to discuss them. And then pray for a real passion for the lost.

There are nearly 8 billion people on the planet today, and every one of them needs to hear about Jesus. There are a lot of wonderful activities, programs, and ministries in the church, but none of them should take the place of a real passion for the lost.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Do you believe that anyone is beyond God’s reach and love? Why or why not? How does your answer impact your view of those far from the heart of God?
  2. Why do you think the Lord Jesus put such a strong emphasis on proclaiming the Gospel?

AM I WASTING MY TIME AND EFFORT?

“So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.” – 1 Corinthians 15:58.

The phrase, “sharing your faith” can bring up all kinds of emotions. It might trigger excitement and gratitude or nervousness and anxiety. We sometimes have it in our minds that sharing our faith requires effective public speaking and extensive Biblical knowledge. People are concerned that if they couple their public speaking with their Biblical knowledge, awkward and sometimes weird conversations are going to be the end result. It can seem so intimidating to start a conversation with someone about God and religion and faith in general, especially when you don’t know where they stand, how they feel, or even whether other Christians have soured them on Christianity.

But before you start to worry or become anxious remember it is only through the power of God that people are saved. It simply doesn’t happen through human effort ability or knowledge. This should take off some of the pressure when we are concerned we are not saying the right things or when we don’t have enough Biblical knowledge

Success in evangelism is measured not in the outcome, but in your obedience to the command of Christ. The story of Jesus and the rich young ruler in Matthew 19:16-30 is an example of this point. The young man approached Jesus, interested in hearing about how to get to heaven. You would think that any encounter with Jesus, the Son of God, would have been a sure-fire conversion. This was not the case. After Jesus told him the cost of discipleship, the Bible says, “when the young man heard this, he went away sad…” If Jesus was rejected, we can be as well. But that does not mean it was a waste of time. You could be planting the seeds that God could water and grow in the future.

You may look back at over their life and the hundreds of people you’ve connected with and wonder whether you make a positive difference. Could you have done more? The Apostle Paul speaks on that subject: “With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don’t hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort” (1 Corinthians 15:58 MSG). Nothing that you do for God is a waste of time or effort.

So, the next time you have a moment of doubt wondering if your life is making any difference in the world, or having that awkward conversation with somebody about the gospel is really achieving anything: stand your ground and don’t hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Lord, confident that nothing you do for Him is a waste of time or effort.

What you do matters, more than you realize and could life and peace and joy here on earth and an eternal life in heaven.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Do you believe that anything you do for God is a waste of time or effort? Why or why not?
  2. What are some of the obstacles to sharing our faith with others?

THE COMPLEXITIES OF LIFE

“On the near side of complexity is simplistic; on the far side of complexity is simple.”- Oliver Wendell Holmes

There is a story of an American businessman named Wilson, tired of the Great Depression, rising taxes, and the poverty of the worst economic downturn in modern history decided to sell his home and business in 1940 and move to an island in the Pacific. Balmy and ringed with beautiful beaches, the island seemed like paradise in comparison to what he left behind. Life he thought, would be grand and certainly a lot less complex. The island was Iwo Jima.

There are many stories like this throughout history of people who tried to avoid the complexities of life. What these stories illustrate is that life is messy; it does not fit in nice neat categories; and it cannot be explained easily. The fact is life can be complicated. Into such complexity, into such messiness, steps the Lord. He offers, not to remove us from the complexity, but to help us live in the midst of it, and even more, to help us be transformed so that we rise above it.

Jesus understands life’s complexities better than anyone. Jesus knew every day of our lives before we were born; He knew every disappointment, pain, and heartache. Jesus personally knew the complexities of this fallen world—He was tempted in every way, just as we are: “ This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin” (Hebrews 4:15).

Faith, however, is not complicated, people are. Faith is simple, love God and love others. The simpler your faith, the easier it will be to walk in it. “…and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8 NIV).  The apostle Paul wrote, “But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3 KJV).

God’s word is simple, we are the ones who complicate it. We complicate it because we cannot believe it could be so simple. To grow in your faith is not through knowing more, but simply trusting more. It increases not by changing more, but by being willing to be changed more.

 “For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2).

Discussion Questions:

  1. Do you ever feel like following God is too hard?
  2. What can you do this week to make life less complicated spiritually?

SEEK AND SAVE THAT WHICH WAS LOST

“Our greatest enemy is lostness. Lostness is the terrible enemy that Jesus commissioned His followers to vanquish with the battle strategy that He spelled out for them in Matthew 28:18–20. He was addressing this same enemy when He plainly clarified His purpose in coming: “I have come to seek and to save those who are lost.”― Nik Ripken, The Insanity of God: A True Story of Faith Resurrected.

How often in the middle of a conversation with someone do you pose a simple question?  How can I best communicate Jesus to this person? The reality is we never share Jesus in a vacuum: there’s always an audience, conversation, context, messy circumstances, and complicated people. These conversations are usually far different from the ideal  evangelistic encounters we imagine in our heads.

We quickly discover that we are not “mega-Christians.” Fortunately, God is not looking for superstars, He is looking for faithfulness. He is looking for believers who will open up their lives and have a “gospel conversation,” sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with the lost and searching and trusting the Holy Spirit with the results. The Lord is looking for people who are willing to take a risk.

God chooses to work through people. He could have made other choices, and sometimes He does make other choices. However, His normal plan is to invite His children to go and invite those who do not know the name of Jesus to accept His gift of salvation.

There’s an incredible story Nick Ripkin tells in the book Insanity of God about a Muslim man in the Middle East. A Christian ministry opened a health clinic in this man’s community, and each day he would curse and insult the staff as they passed by his shop on their way to work. He did just about everything he could to undermine the clinic until, one day, he was diagnosed with cancer. Slowly his friends began to abandon him until the only people who cared for him were the clinic’s staff. They reached out to the same man who had cursed them, taking care of him and offering him medical care. Towards the end of his life, this man gave his life to Christ – all because of the radical love he encountered in Christ Jesus.

But the story doesn’t end there. This man’s family was so impacted by how the staff ministered and cared for him that his wife became a bold, outspoken follower of Jesus. In fact, she was so outspoken that she was put in prison. Undeterred, she continued to share about Jesus with the other prisoners until she was moved to solitary confinement. Even when isolated from every other person, she was heard singing praises to God. Finally, the police chief released her and asked her to explain what made her so fearless.

These are not easy decisions or discussions. However, they are necessary and honoring to God and to the peoples of the world who have not yet had a chance to hear about Jesus. Decisions to embrace risk involve loving others more than we love ourselves.

Discussion Questions:

  1. God goes to great effort to seek lost sinners and He greatly rejoices when they come to repentance. What does that mean for each one of us?
  2. God pursues sinners until He finds them. What does that mean for us? 
  3. Determine one concrete step you can take this week to develop more empathy and passion for the lost.

THE REALITY OF FOLLOWING JESUS?

 “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

At the end of Luke 9, we find a story about three men who approached Jesus, eager to follow Him. In surprising fashion, though, Jesus seems to have tried to talk them out of doing so. The first guy said, “I will follow you wherever you go.”

Jesus responded, “foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.” In other words, Jesus told this man that homelessness was part of the journey. The second man told Jesus that his father had just died. The man wanted to go back, bury his father, and then follow Jesus. Jesus replied, “Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.”   A third man approached Jesus and told Him that he wanted to follow Him, but before he did, he wanted to say goodbye to his family. Jesus told the man, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.” Plainly put, a relationship with Jesus requires total and exclusive devotion.

What if you were among the three would-be followers of Jesus in Luke 9? What if you were the potential disciple being told to become homeless? What if you were the one who couldn’t bury his dad? What if we were told that we couldn’t even say goodbye to your family? What if you didn’t want to deal with the least, the last, and the lost?

This is where we come face to face with the reality of following Jesus. We do have to give up everything we have to follow Jesus. We do have to love Him in a way that outweighs our closest relationships. Things get real when we give ourselves fully and completely to the endless quest of knowing Jesus and achieving His purposes.

So, we need to continually ask ourselves self-probing questions to see if our commitment is what it should be.  Does your life show commitment to Christ?  Does the frequency of your church attendance show commitment to Christ?  Does the way you worship show commitment?  Does the way you conduct yourself when no one is looking indicate a commitment to the Lord?

Jesus came to serve, not to be served. He washed the disciples’ feet, He served them as He also served the people that they met each day. Healing and teaching the common folks, from farmers to prostitutes, to tax collectors. Jesus sets the example for us to follow in our commitment. Jesus was committed to going where He was needed and suffering for a people who rejected Him.

Jesus is looking for disciples who will follow Him and make him the most important part of their lives so that He is in control of every part. He is looking for commitment.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What does following Jesus mean to you?

FAITH AS SMALL AS A MUSTARD SEED

“Jesus said, “How can I describe the Kingdom of God? What story should I use to illustrate it?1 It is like a mustard seed planted in the ground. It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of all garden plants; it grows long branches, and birds can make nests in its shade.” – Mark 4:30-32.

The next time you are walking down the spice aisle of your local grocery store, stop and look at the jar of mustard seeds on the shelf. By themselves, they don’t mean much but when coupled with faith, “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible” (Matthew 17:20).

Jesus is telling them that even with a tiny bit of faith, they could move a mountain. In other words, the impossible. They needed only a tiny amount of the right kind of faith to do the impossible.

Jesus knew that the disciples would have difficulties later in their ministry. They would need a faith that could overcome those difficulties. Jesus uses the mustard seed to help teach the disciples that even the tiniest amount of genuine faith can bring something great out of something very small.

Never underestimate what just one individual can do when God is allowed to work through us.  We can trust Him to work through even the smallest of genuine, faith-filled acts to bring about His purposes. Faithfulness does not mean that we will be perfect. It does not mean that we won’t struggle or that we won’t make poor decisions. It does mean that we will continue to trust in God and try to follow His commandments even when life is difficult.

Faithfulness means steadfast loyalty that isn’t easily swayed. Our faithfulness to God means trusting in Him and loving Him through all circumstances. It means following His commandments even when we’d rather choose a different path. The good news is we don’t have to produce this faithfulness alone. God promises to give us strength when we need it. “He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:29-31).

C.S. Lewis said, “[To have Faith in Christ] means, of course, trying to do all that He says. There would be no sense in saying you trusted a person if you would not take his advice. Thus if you have really handed yourself over to Him, it must follow that you are trying to obey Him. But trying in a new way, a less worried way. Not doing these things in order to be saved, but because He has begun to save you already. Not hoping to get to Heaven as a reward for your actions, but inevitably wanting to act in a certain way because a first faint gleam of Heaven is already inside you.”

Discussion Questions:

  1. What are some ways that God has tested or is testing your faithfulness?
  2. What people do you look up to because you consider them faithful — people who are full of faith for the Lord? What attributes do they have in common?

HAMAN THE BULLY

“When Haman saw that Mordecai would not bow down or show him respect, he was filled with rage. He had learned of Mordecai’s nationality, so he decided it was not enough to lay hands on Mordecai alone. Instead, he looked for a way to destroy all the Jews throughout the entire empire of Xerxes.” – Esther 3:5–6.

Have you ever been bullied? Has your child ever been bullied? It can be devastating when someone out of the blue decides that they don’t like you, and they are going to attack you physically, verbally, and mentally.  Bullying has been around for a long time.  In fact, several well-known figures in the Bible were bullied.  One of those examples is the story of Esther and Haman.

Esther is a book of the Bible that reads like a novel. It’s got heroes and villains, romance, intrigue, drama, you name it. Esther is a beautiful young woman being raised by her uncle Mordecai after the death of her parents. Esther wins an extended beauty contest to become the next wife of Xerxes, the King of Persia.  Esther is chosen to be the new Queen.  Life should be good for the queen, right?  As the queen, you should surely be immune from bullying, right? Esther’s uncle, Mordecai, was being bullied by another leader named Haman.  Haman hated Mordecai because of his truthfulness and because Mordecai would not bow down to him.

Haman was determined to kill Mordecai.  And not just Mordecai.  Haman wanted to kill everyone else who was Jewish. How does Esther deal with her bully?  Queen Esther is brilliant.  She makes sure that she has the attention and favor of the King.  Many times, others will overlook bullying.  They don’t realize what is going on, or they just choose to look away.  Queen Esther goes to the person who can stop the bullying and pleads for help. God is at work, and Queen Esther, Mordecai, and all the Jewish people gain victory over those who want to bully them and kill them.

While this may be an extreme example, bullying happens in every walk and every season of life. The bully is not your real problem. The real problem is a spiritual force. It’s called evil. The bully is just being used by Satan. You’re not fighting against human beings. You’re fighting against wicked spiritual forces. Ephesians 6:12 tells us, “For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” All evil and hatred come from Satan. You may not have the power to stop that bully, but God does.

Esther’s role also reminds us of the fact that God has a unique purpose for each and every one of our lives. As a young orphaned Jewish girl living in Persia, Esther could have never imagined she would become queen and save all the Jews in Persia. Yet, God uses the least of us to accomplish His will, reminding us that it is in His strength, not our own, that we can succeed when faced with bullying and harassment.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What do you do when someone is bullying you?
  2. In what ways does your perspective shift when you see the spiritual forces at work behind bullying?
  3. How does prayer connect us to God’s power?

KNOW JESUS, KNOW THE FATHER

“While Jesus was teaching in the Temple, he called out, “Yes, you know me, and you know where I come from. But I’m not here on my own. The one who sent me is true, and you don’t know him. But I know him because I come from him, and he sent me to you.” – John 7:28-29.

How well do you know God? For most Christians, we go through life with a sense that we know God. One of the greatest challenges we face today is a lack of understanding about who God is. You may know about God, but do you truly understand what He says about Himself—and what He wants from you? Job 36:26 seems to suggest an answer: Look, God is greater than we can understand. His years cannot be counted (Job 36:26).  Hosea grabs this idea in Hosea 4:1… no knowledge of God in your land.”

If we want to know God then we need to look at Jesus. Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. He is the full and final revelation of what God is like. By looking at Jesus, you can tell exactly what God is like. The Bible says that ‘Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son he created the universe. The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven” (Hebrews 1:1-3).

Jesus is not just an amazing person; He is the Son of God—and God’s free gift to us. Jesus is the one who has come to reveal the Father. He is also the perfect representation of the Father’s nature.

We’ve been invited to know Jesus and, by extension, our Father God. Jesus confirmed, “My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him” (Matthew 11:27). The connection is so strong when the Pharisees asked Jesus about the Father, He sharply answered, “…Since you don’t know who I am, you don’t know who my Father is. If you knew me, you would also know my Father” (John 8:19).

It is the Father’s intention that we know Him. That is a major reason He sent Jesus to earth. In 1 John 5:20 we are told: “And we know that the Son of God has come, and he has given us understanding so that we can know the true God. And now we live in fellowship with the true God because we live in fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only true God, and he is eternal life.”

To know Christ is to know the Father. Christ came so that we might understand who the Father is.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Jesus is God’s Son and reveals God to us. Would you put that first in your list of fundamental beliefs surrounding Christianity? If not why not?
  2. How do we hang on to that truth each week?