Service, Love, and the Mission of the Church
9 November 2025*This article is part of “Dialogues,” where real questions from people are answered by AI and then reviewed by theologians for clarity, accuracy, and faithfulness to Christian teaching.
Question
“What are the most important biblical concepts of Service and Ministry, and how does Scripture show the relationship between preaching the gospel, serving others in love, and the mission of the Church in the world?”
Answer
Scripture gives a unified vision: God desires that all people return to Him, and He uses the community of Jesus’ disciples—the Church—as His instrument. Service and ministry are not extras for a few; they are the normal shape of Christian life. The Lord Jesus Christ, after His resurrection and before His ascension, defined the central mission of His followers: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:18–20). In another account He commands, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” (Mark 16:15). God’s goal is that all hear the gospel and turn to Him; His chosen means is the community of believers.
God’s Mission and the Calling of the Church
These closing words of Jesus show that mission is not one activity among many but the primary purpose of the Church on earth: to make disciples, baptize, and teach people to live according to His commands. From the beginning of His ministry, Jesus involved His disciples in this mission. He did not simply gather them around Him; He sent them out. Luke summarizes this when he writes that Jesus “sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.” (Luke 9:2). Proclaiming the kingdom therefore includes more than speaking; healing and practical help themselves serve the gospel by opening hearts and displaying God’s care.
Ministry as Word and Deed
Ministry that focuses only on preaching while neglecting practical love, or only on good works without pointing to Christ, misses the fullness of Jesus’ pattern. The good news is meant to be both heard and seen: forgiveness and new life announced in words, mercy and restoration embodied in actions. Jesus shows this union of word and deed in a striking way in John 13, where He takes the role of a servant and washes His disciples’ feet. This simple act becomes a living parable of love in action. Afterward He tells them that He has given them an example to follow. Servanthood is not an occasional gesture; it becomes part of the identity of those who belong to Him.
Servanthood as the Shape of Discipleship
The apostles understood themselves in this light. Paul introduces himself as a “servant of Christ Jesus” (Romans 1:1). To confess Christ as Lord is to accept a servant’s posture—humble, available, and ready even for hidden tasks. Jesus turns the world’s idea of greatness upside down: the greatest in His kingdom is the one who serves. This attitude is not only inward but reveals itself in very concrete acts of love.
Service of Love in Everyday Life
Jesus deepens His teaching about service in the parable of the King in Matthew 25. He speaks of being hungry and receiving food, thirsty and receiving drink, a stranger and being welcomed, naked and being clothed, in prison and being visited. When the righteous are surprised, He explains: “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40). Scripture here gives very concrete examples of the “service of love”; these acts are recognized by Christ Himself as service to Him and are closely linked to final judgment. We are allowed to say that such service is not optional but an essential way in which the gospel and the kingdom of heaven are made visible.
The parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25–37) reinforces this truth from another angle. A wounded man is ignored by religious figures but helped by a Samaritan, who crosses social and religious boundaries to care for him. Jesus ends with a simple command: “Go and do likewise.” Real ministry costs time and resources, pushes us beyond comfort, and makes God’s mercy visible to those who cannot repay it. When believers live this way, their service becomes a powerful form of witness.
Love, Gifts, and Faithful Stewardship
All ministry flows from the double commandment of love. Jesus summarizes the Law with the words: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” and “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37–39). Without love, preaching and service lose their true meaning. Jesus also says that everyone will recognize His disciples by their love for one another (John 13:35). The Church’s message becomes credible when its common life reflects the love it proclaims.
The New Testament also teaches that God equips His people for this mission through spiritual gifts. In 1 Corinthians 12 and Romans 12, the Church is described as a body with many members, each with different gifts such as teaching, encouraging, giving, leading, or showing mercy. No one has all the gifts, and none is unnecessary. Every believer has a place in God’s service. In the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14–30), Jesus reminds us that everything we have—time, abilities, resources, influence—is a trust from God. He is the owner; we are stewards. Faithfulness, not comparison, is what matters.
Conclusion
Taken together, these biblical themes show a single calling. God wants all people to come to Him, and He sends His people to witness to Christ in word and deed, in love and in the Spirit. Servanthood, practical love, bold proclamation, and faithful use of our gifts all belong together. To follow Jesus is to let His love shape both our words and our works, so that through them “the least of these” and all nations may come to know Him.