Romans 1:9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son… We all serve something or someone, self, passion, prejudice, sin, business, ambition, etc., and we find the service pleasant enough. But the only service worth entering upon is that of Christ. I. THE CLAIMS WHICH GOD HAS UPON OUR SERVICE. These are — 1. Self-interest. God is a good Master. 2. Gratitude. A child that turns his back on a kind parent, a servant who repays affection by insult, a rebel who plots against a munificent king — all these is the man who forgets God. II. THE PRINCIPLES WHICH SHOULD DIRECT AND GOVERN OUR SERVICE TO GOD. "Whom I serve with my spirit," implies — 1. Voluntariness. We are not so much influenced by the command which addresses the ear, or the threatening which alarms the conscience, as by love. 2. Sincerity. The "spirit" is that which commands the whole of man. Often we see the affections dormant and the will persevering. How much of God's worship is performed outwardly when it is inwardly disliked. The body without the spirit is dead; service without love is hypocrisy. 3. Universality. It had respect to every precept of God's Word. The carnal mind will only obey such commands as seem pleasing to us. 4. Perpetuity. Not in prosperity only nor in adversity only. It is only by continuousness that perfection is arrived at. III. THE RULE BY WHICH THE SERVICE SHOULD BE GOVERNED. The gospel is not only the means of salvation, but it is the rule which regulates our life. To serve God in the gospel is to — 1. Serve God in light. The gospel is the light which shows the Christian's safety and danger. 2. To serve God in faith. The whole principle of the gospel is faith, the principle of life, thought, and action. 3. To serve God in love. Love is the great rule of life and sanctification. 4. To be rewarded by God according to the gospel. (J. J. S. Bird, B. A.) Parallel Verses KJV: For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers; |
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