Potted or Planted: Serve

Will you pray with me, God? Right now we just declare that your way is better.

Your way is better. Teach us today through your word. Please use me as your mouthpiece.

Lord, give us a vision and a longing for the people and the church that you want us to be, to glorify you so that heaven is more full, so that others come to know you. In Jesus name. Amen.

Well, today we are three weeks into this potted or Planted series. We've been confronting ourselves with this question in the context of this local gathered church. Am I potted or planted? Are my roots in the soil intertwined with others staying rooted, or am I showing up and putting my pot on top of the soil, never really all in, willing to take my pot and go home when I don't like what's happening, never really thriving in community. And if you missed week one, please go back and listen to that.

It's so foundational for the shared language as we move forward into the future that God has in mind for Whitewater. Last week we talked about what it looks like to be planted rather than potted when it comes to financial giving. And it's a topic that makes people uncomfortable that some think I should never be talking about. But Jesus makes it so clear that where our treasure is, there, our heart will, will be also. And so he says this matters.

Ultimately. How we view our money shows us what's in our heart. And we read in scripture, we're reminded that God wants more for us than he wants from us. This week we're looking at serving and asking ourselves in the context of this local gathered church, what does it look like for us to be planted rather than potted when it comes to serving? Actually, more specifically, what does the Bible say about serving in the local church?

Now there's a whole other sermon to be preached about having this servanthood mindset in every aspect of our lives and us as we go as ambassadors of Christ everywhere we are. And I'll certainly preach that sermon in the future, but today we're really honing in on this local gathered church. And to lay the biblical groundwork for this, I actually want to zoom all the way back out to the garden. In the beginning, God creates the heavens and the earth and everything is good, he says. And after all of the other things are created and good, he creates one last thing that's distinctly different from everything else.

Us. Mankind. And what makes mankind different from everything else? Well, we read this in Genesis 1, starting in verse 26. Then God said, let us.

That's the Trinity, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground. So God created mankind in his own image. In the image of God. He created them.

Male and female. He created them. Notice here that we are not just part of creation, we are the primacy of creation. We're the crown jewel of creation. No other thing in creation is like us.

And what makes us unique to the rest of creation, we're made in his image. We are the part of creation that shows his glory and his likeness. Above all the rest of creation. We look more like him than anything. We reveal his qualities and his glory.

Better than a sunrise, better than the Grand Canyon, better than the ocean, better than a blooming flower. Have you considered this before? Interestingly, because we're all made in his likeness, whether we're in Christ or not. Even if we're not trying to. We look like Him.

We look like him, but not completely like Him. Only in part. Each one of us looks like him in part. And from our conception, God has placed little bits of his likeness into our lives, into our bodies, so that each person has these different bits, combinations of bits in our DNA, that are his likeness. So what are those things?

His image? Well, certainly there are things like our capacity for love and relationship, well beyond procreation or our ability and desire to create. We don't just create things for survival. We create whole civilizations. We write music and literature and produce art.

We can rationalize. We have complex language and can comprehend complex and abstract thoughts. And as wonderful as plants and animals are, they simply cannot operate like this. But beyond these things, the likeness that God has sprinkled into each of us in varying measure and kind are what the Bible calls charisma gifts. And that word, charisma, it's all throughout the New Testament.

It literally means a gift of grace, a gracious bestowal or a divine enablement freely given by God. It's. It's not earned or merited. It is a gift by God's grace. What are these gifts?

The Bible has several incomplete lists. And I say they're incomplete because none of them claim to be a full list. And they overlap a little bit, but they're all different. And so we got to conclude that there are at least these lists, but probably many more. So what are they?

Well, these are some of them that the New Testament lists, apostleship, prophecy, evangelism, leadership, shepherding or pastoring, teaching, wisdom, knowledge, music, craftsmanship, faith, discernment, distinguishing spirits, healing, miracles or miraculous powers, tongues in different languages, the interpretation of tongues, service, ministry or helping, generosity in giving, administration, guidance, encouragement, exhortation, acts of mercy, preaching and declaring truth. Now, inevitably, I mentioned the gifts of the Spirit. Our more charismatic friends are getting pretty excited because they think that I'm gonna hone in on these more exciting gifts like speaking in tongues, miraculous healing. That's also another message for another day. We'll get there someday, but today, today we're gonna hone in on what the this New Testament list of a lot of varying gifts.

That's the whole point is there are many varying gifts. Like we said, all of us, God's image bearers, have these gifts, these bits of his likeness. And for some reason, even though they were intended for an entirely different purpose, God gives us the free will choose to use these gifts for ourselves rather than for Him. From the time that I was little, words and communication and quick wit and persuasion have been gifts that God has given me. Combine that with boldness and gregariousness and being an extreme introvert.

Especially when I was a kid and very early on, I learned how to use all of these gifts to get attention and to get what I wanted. My mom tells me that when I was five years old, we lived in South Carolina, and I left one day because I was bored and I went door to door, knocking on the doors. And whoever came to the door, I asked him, do you have kids to play with? And apparently some lady came to the door, she had a laundry basket in her hands, and she said, no, I don't have kids to play with. And I said, well, well, can I help you with laundry?

And so my mom came looking for me and found me bent over in the dryer, pulling clothes out of the dryer for this lady. Now that's all cute. But it played out in not so good ways too. See, in elementary school, I learned pretty quickly that even though I wasn't very big, my sharp tongue and quick wit could knock someone down twice my size and just as easily as a punch. And it felt good, man, it felt good.

And so I did it a lot at home. As a teenager, I'd argue my mom into a corner to the point of exhaustion so that she'd just give up and give in to what I wanted at school. It played out on both sides. I loved to be the center of attention. I loved making people laugh.

But teachers, that got in the way of that agenda of mine. They became the target of my giftedness. I was a master at riding that line, just this side of getting sent to the office, and especially now that I've been married to a teacher for the last 24 years. Honestly, I'm ashamed. I'm ashamed and it breaks my heart that I was likely the name that came out of the mouth of exhausted, defeated and discouraged teachers.

I used my gifts in whatever way would build up my own kingdom. But over time, by the power of the Holy Spirit, God has disciplined me and taught me and provided opportunities for me to use these same exact gifts to defend the weak, to build people up, to speak words of life, to proclaim the gospel, to draw people in and connect them to God and to other people, to speak bold words of truth in sermons or to a friend who needs to hear them, and to be a part of expanding God's kingdom here on earth. The same gifts and I'll never forget, man. Early on when I started preaching, someone came to me and expressed just how much what I had to say that day encouraged their spirit and challenged them and emboldened them in their faith. And they walked away.

And I was wept.

I wept because I knew that God had so miraculously flipped those nasty things on their head and he had turned them into something that was a holy good offering for him and his kingdom. See, these bits of God's likeness we've been given can be used for building up our own little kingdom. But the New Testament says that they're actually on purpose with another purpose, that they've been placed in us for a distinct reason. First Corinthians 12 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.

There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone, it is the same God at work. Now, to each one, the manifestation of the Spirit is given. For let's read this together. The common good. Each one has been given gifts for the common good.

Quite literally, this translates the common good for the benefit of others. That's what that literally means. When these gifts have been empowered by the Holy Spirit, they're activated not for the benefit of ourselves, not for the micro kingdom of Josh, but for the benefit of others. Eugene Peterson, in the message paraphrased, puts it this way. He says, God's various gifts are handed out everywhere, but they all originate in God's Spirit.

God's various ministries are carried out everywhere, but they all originate in God's Spirit. God's various expressions of Power are in action everywhere. But God himself is behind it all. Each person is given something to do that shows who God is. Everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits.

All kinds of things are handed out by the Spirit and to all kinds of people. So what does this idea look like in action? Well, we skip ahead to verse 12, and Paul describes this to us in one of his favorite metaphors, the body. The body. First Corinthians 12:12.

Just as a body, though, one has many parts. But all its many parts form one body. So it is with Christ. Even so, the body is not made up of one part, but of many. Now, if the foot should say, because I'm not a hand, I don't belong to the body, it would not, for that reason stop being part of the body.

And if the ear should say, because I'm not an eye, I don't belong to the body, it would not, for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, or where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact, God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be?

As it is, there are many parts but one body. Now, let's put this into the potted or planted language. Imagine a body made up of potted parts, all disconnected. A foot over here in a pot. An eye over there in a pot.

A hand sitting in a pot on top of the soil. Never connected. Each part might be alive in its own container, but disconnected from the rest, never contributing to the health or the growth of the body. That's what it looks like when we stay potted in the church. Present but not planted.

Showing up but not intertwined. Having gifts but never really offering them. But when those same parts are connected, planted in the body, rooted in the same soil, everything changes. The foot isn't just sitting in a pot. It's connected to a leg, which allows it to move the body forward.

The eye doesn't just stay in a pot off to the side, observing from a distance. It gives sight and direction to the whole. The hand isn't just in the soil of its own pot. It's working and building and blessing because it's tied to the arm and the life of the body. See, when we're planted, our gifts aren't isolated.

They become channels of life, strengthening the whole church, the whole body. Paul's point is clear. God has given all of us gifts Therefore, you have a part, you have a place here. The spirit has given you something that the rest of us need. Let me say that again.

The spirit has given you, not some of us, you, gifts that the rest of us need. And if you stay potted, the body actually suffers because your gift goes unused. But if you get planted, if you share your gifts with the body, the whole church thrives, the whole body thrives and God is glorified. I want to show you an example of what this looks like when we share our gifts together as one body.

Back here on the drums, this is Noah. Noah started playing piano and ukulele. He taught himself when he's in seventh grade. His freshman year of high school, he started playing bass at church and eventually started playing the drums too. And so from high school graduation to college and marriage, now Noah has been a planted participant here for the last seven years.

Back here on base, this is John. John's been playing music since he can remember. He started playing piano at age 4 in elementary school. He played percussion at church, and then later he picked up the bass in junior high and started serving with that gift too. John is truly one of the nicest guys you will ever meet in your life.

And he has, he's almost always smiling and laughing and I love watching him play back here. He has so much fun while he's playing. He and his beautiful family have been a part of Whitewater for a little under 18 months and he has been a pod or a planted participant in the worship team for almost a year. That's John.

Back over here is Jeff on the keys. He discovered his music, his love for music. At 13, when piano went from lessons he had to go to to a passion that was in his life. And not long after that, he and a friend of his were writing music and sharing in the church. Jeff and his family have been at Whitewater for about 11 years now.

And almost that whole time he has been a planted participant here at Whitewater. And not only all of that for him, he loves to share his gift with others too. And he teaches young people how to play piano and worship as well.

And you all know Laura. This is Laura. She grew up begrudgingly taking piano lessons. But that early start laid the foundation for her future. In high school, she fell in love with the drums.

She played the sousaphone and marching band. And God turned those gifts into a life calling to full time ministry. And Laura's been on staff here for more than 12 years. She's helping lead us in worship every week, sharing her gift with us and developing others in their giftedness too. That's Laura.

And here on my right, this is Tristan. Tristan's musical journey started with him beating on and tapping on anything he could get his hands on until his dad figured this might actually be music. So by age 9, he was playing drums at church for the first time. He's been a planted participant on the worship team here for the last seven years, playing drums, guitar and singing. And fun fact, he taught Noah how to play the drums.

That's Tristan church. This is one small picture of one small group of people who are pouring out their gifts, pouring out their time, their lives, to build up the body and the bride of Christ. As planted participants see, by themselves, they can play music, they can do something that's beautiful. But together, man, together, they can do something that while they bring their unique roles together, that is infinitely more complex, complex and beautiful than anything that they could have done on their own. So let's show them how much we appreciate them this morning.

Ephesians 2:10 says, for we are God's handiwork. That word is poem. We are God's poetry. We're his beautiful poetry, created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do so. What gift or gifts has God given you that he has prepared in advance for you to pour out for the body of Christ?

Now, I know what some of you are thinking, some of you are thinking, but I don't have any gifts like them. I don't have gifts like up front on the platform gifts. I can't preach or sing or play music. I could never get up on the stage and do something like that. But don't miss this.

Don't miss this. Throughout history, the kingdom of God has not been built up and moved forward and grown on the giftedness of a few incredibly talented individuals. It's not. It has overcome the world, expanded light into the darkness through the ordinary, everyday gifts of saints, millions of saints, most of whom we will never know their names. We will get to heaven, and the greatest in heaven will be people we've never even heard of.

First Peter 4:10 says, each of you should use whatever gift you've received to serve others as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.

You've heard me ask these questions so many times when what if God is who he says he is? What if he has actually done what he says he has actually done? And what if we are who he says that we are?

Whatever gifts he's given you, they're gifts that he intends to use through you for his glory in the expansion of his kingdom and the building up of his church. As a parent, there is truly, there's little more that just kind of fills my heart than to watch my kids discover and develop and use a gift that God has put into them. It's a beautiful thing to watch. And I think God feels that way about us, too. These bits of his likeness put into us.

And so if you know the gift that you've been given, maybe you used to serve in a particular way, maybe you used to share that gift. But in this season, maybe it's been a while, maybe you've always known, maybe you've always had that feeling in your chest. You know, you should be sharing your gift, but you've just never done it for whatever reason. Maybe it's time to step up. Maybe it's time to be a planted participant, to be a part of the body and not just a severed hand in a pot somewhere.

Maybe it's time to participate. In just a few minutes, I'll tell you how you can do that. But what if you don't know the gifts or the gift that God has given you? You've never felt that sense of clarity? Or maybe you've wondered, do I even have a gift, anything to offer?

Let me assure you, you do. I believe that the word is honest and true when it says that all of us have been given these gifts. But don't forget the words from First Corinthians. Now, to each of you, the manifestation of the spirit is given for the common good. That means all of us have been entrusted with something from him that this body needs.

Sometimes we figure out what our gifts are through prayer and discernment. Sometimes they're revealed through encouragement from others. The gifts that they speak out into us and see and I can't encourage you enough if you see a gift in someone around you to speak that gift to them. It's so empowering. I'd encourage you to ask the people closest to you what gifts they see in you.

And often we discover our gifts actually simply by stepping in to serve, just showing up. We try, we show up. We give ourselves. And along the way, God makes it clear what he's uniquely wired us with. Being a planted Participant can start with saying, I'm available and trusting that God will uncover and grow the gifts he's placed in us.

Now, let me add this, too. Serving, excuse me, isn't only about finding the place that matches my specific gift. Sometimes being part of a family means stepping in where there's simply a need. I don't think I have the spiritual gift of taking out the garbage, but I often do that in my home. I don't think I have the spiritual gift of picking up things off the floor that need to be picked up.

Paul reminds us in Philippians 2, 3, 4. He says, do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, rather in humility. Value others above yourselves. Not looking to your own interests, but each of you to the interests of the others. And the beauty is in the kingdom economy.

When you're doing that, and I'm doing that, everyone's blessed. Everyone's blessed. That means, yes, use your gifts. But also if the church needs chairs stacked or floors swept or kids cared for, sometimes we serve not because it's our sweet spot, but because it's what love requires. That's what being a planted participant, being planted people, that's what we do.

We don't just ask, what do I want to do? We ask, what does the body need right now? How can I help? And when we show up with that posture of availability, God never wastes it. Sometimes he uses it to meet an immediate need.

Thanks. This is a servant right here. Thank you. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. Wayne.

Thank you.

When we show up with that posture of availability, God never wastes it. Sometimes he uses it to meet an immediate need. Other times, to our surprise, he uses it to uncover a gift that he's actually planted in us that we didn't know existed. Either way, there's always a place for us in the body. And when you serve, you're not just filling a slot.

You are not filling a schedule. You are helping the whole church flourish. If you have the gift of hospitality, maybe you'd be perfect to host a discipling group at your home or greet people at the doors or help at kids check in. If you have the gift of creativity or technology or. Or music or photography, maybe you'd be perfect on our production team or our worship team.

If you have the gift of encouragement or you love to write cards to people or you want to visit others in the hospital, maybe you'd be perfect for our pastoral care team. If you have the gift of leadership or administration or organization, or the gift of time and availability if you have a passion for kids or for those with special needs, if you've been delivered from an addiction and you want to help walk others through that as well. If you love to pray with people or you just love to make coffee, there is a place for you in this body of believers and God has prepared in advance good works for you to do. I was just talking with someone a couple weeks ago on our Guest Experience team. She was saying that she was here at Whitewater for about five years, never serving, and she always felt disconnected.

She didn't feel like she knew people. And the moment she stepped in to serve, it totally surprised her because immediately she was in community with other people. By pouring herself out, she was getting filled back up. And so now we are a blessing to her and she is a blessing to us because she's one of the smiling faces that we get to see at the front door every week. This is the economy of the kingdom.

All of us serving one another, planted participants producing fruit for the primary benefit of others. I love this definition of serving. To serve is to empty ourselves for the good of others. To serve is to empty ourselves for the good of others. But why?

Why would we do this? I mean, I like the church, you guys are nice. I want you to be flourishing and happy and all those things. But why would we empty ourselves for the good of others? Well, it goes well beyond need.

It goes well beyond mutual benefit. It goes well beyond feeling fulfilled. Truly, it's because Christ served us first. Christ served us first. All through the book of Romans up to chapter 12, Paul has laid out this beautiful gospel, this beautiful gospel of what Christ has done for us.

And then he gets to Romans 12:12 1 and he says, Therefore, all of that. Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. This is your true and proper worship. Everything we do for the kingdom is in view of God's mercy. That's the lens we view everything else through.

In view of God's mercy. We serve because Christ has already served us. The cross is the ultimate picture of self emptying love. In view of God's mercy, Paul says, offer your whole selves back to him as a living sacrifice. That means every gift, every moment, every act of service is worship.

It's worship. It's declaring gratitude and praise back to the one who served us first. We serve one another and when we do, ultimately we're serving Christ himself. So here's what we're asking of you today. If you know your gift, if you are ready to step up and step towards serving here at Whitewater or you need some help figuring out what your gift might be, then the best next step is to register for our upcoming volunteer orientation.

We'll have a QR code on the screen here that you can scan. It's super simple. Here's what you're not doing. You are not signing up yet to serve. You have not joined a team yet.

This is not a life sentence. We're not going to come to your house and take your car because you did not serve. Okay? All this is, is a willingness to step into a volunteer orientation to hear about what it looks like to serve here at Whitewater and for us to help you find your gifts. You can also register on our website.

Website whitewatercrossing.org events. It's there as well. And we just want you to connect. If you. The next one is October 5th at 9:00am during the 9:00am service.

So your kids can go to Whitewater. Kids, as you go there. If you can't make that one, we've got two more coming up. And if you can't make any of those, stop by the information desk and say, hey, I can't make these. But I still, I heard the message today.

I want to step up. I want to be a connected, thriving, planted participant.

Will you do that today? Will you step in and be an active participant, a planted participant in this body of believers here?

I said that the reason that we serve is because Christ first served us. Jesus went first. He always goes first. That's what Jesus does. He always goes first.

And that's what we celebrate every single week. Not just at Communion. Yes, at Communion. But the only reason we gather at all is because Christ, he went first. He served us first.

He took off all of the glory of heaven. He became obedient as a servant. Obedient to death, even death on a cross, the most gruesome, terrible death that humans have been able to come up with all throughout history.

And he says that we're all worth it. He served us first. So if you didn't get a communion cup on your way in, would you raise your hand? Our team would be glad to bring you one. I would appreciate if they would bring me one, actually.

Thank you.

I'm not going to make a habit of being served water and Communion every Sunday.

Christ went first.

Knowing exactly what it was going to cost. He went first.

Ultimately, we say this all the time. At the end of the day, being a Christian, it's all about Becoming more and more and more and more and more like Jesus. That's it. That's what life on this planet is all about. It's all about become more, more, more, more like Jesus.

And the night before he was crucified, he shared a meal with his friends. He knew what was coming and he broke bread and he gave it to them. And he said, this is my body given for you. Take and eat. Eat.

And when you do, remember what I've done for you.

In the same way he took the cup, this cup representing his blood poured out for us. He was a willing participant. His blood poured out for us the blood of the new covenant. And he says, drink this and remember what I've done for you.

Heavenly Father, we are constantly and ever and desperately in need of your grace.

Thank you. Thank you for the cross and thank you for the empty tomb.

Lord, we trust that you are who you say you are, that you have done what you say you have done, and that we are who you say we are.

We offer ourselves in view of your mercy as living sacrifices and ask that you will help make us holy and pleasing to you. The One, the almighty, Creator of the universe, the one who has overcome this world. In Jesus name, amen.