Real Servants - part 2

Drawing from 1 Timothy 1:12-17 during an installation service, Pastor Gordon argues that the most effective servants in God's kingdom are those who remain astonished that God made them Christians at all, pointing to Paul's thanksgiving for being appointed to ministry despite his past as a blasphemer and persecutor. The heart of all service is a humble recognition of personal unworthiness before God, captured in Paul's present-tense declaration that he is the foremost of sinners, which drives genuine reliance on Christ for strength rather than treating office as mere obligation. Leaders who lose sight of God's sovereign grace toward them will approach their callings as empty duty, while those captivated by that mercy naturally overflow with the faith and love needed to serve God's people well. Church office is not about managing conflicts or finances but about demonstrating the power of God's delivering grace so that others receive the same mercy leaders have been shown. All service in the kingdom flows from and returns to doxology, as Paul breaks into praise to the immortal, invisible King when grace is freshly understood.