The purpose statement of Woolsey Baptist Church says: We exists to follow Jesus as we worship God, connect with others, serve the church, and go make disciples. Many of us are faithful to gather on Sundays and worship the Lord together. Many of us are consistent to join with one another in our Connect Groups. But what about the third piece of why we exist—to serve the church?
Fundamentally, service is a mindset. Every human being is born with an innate inward focus. From the beginning of civilization to today, people have been focused on their own survival and livelihood. How can we preserve our tribe and how can I advance my career? We are self-centered people by nature.
The first child ever born in all of humanity, Cain, is one example of a self-centered man. You may recall the story: Cain, and his younger brother Abel, were children of Adam and Eve. Cain worked the ground and Abel kept the livestock. God was more pleased with Abel’s offering, presumably one in which blood was shed (Gen 4:4), than Cain’s offering. Jealousy set in and Cain’s uncontrolled emotions led him to do the unthinkable: murder his brother. When God confronted Cain about his actions, he infamously replied, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Gen 4:9).
As Christians, we are our brother’s keeper in at least two ways. First, as fellow human beings made in the image of God, we are not allowed to mistreat one another. 2 Corinthians 12:20 states, “For I fear that perhaps when I come I may find you not as I wish, and that you may find me not as you wish—that perhaps there may be quarreling, jealousy, anger, hostility, slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder.” Second, as our brother’s keeper, as GotQuestions.org notes, “We are to exhibit brotherly love toward our brothers and sisters in Christ with a tender heart and a humble mind (1 Peter 3:8). In this way, we ‘keep’ those for whom Christ gave His life.”
The greatest example of exhibiting a mindset of service towards one another is Jesus Christ. Philippians 2:3-7 exhorts and explains, “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.”
As we consider how to apply this mindset serving and being our brother’s keeper in the life and context of our church, I encourage you to consider serving the next generation on Sundays or Wednesdays at Woolsey Baptist. There are five ministries that require a total of 63 volunteers to ensure excellence for the children: B4Connect, B4Zone, K1Bridge, K5Connect, and Roots. You can learn more about them on our church’s website (https://woolseybaptist.org/preschool and https://woolseybaptist.org/children).
For now, though, will you go here and complete this interest form to take a small step towards being your “little” brother’s keeper?