2 Chronicles 9:16 And three hundred shields made he of beaten gold: three hundred shekels of gold went to one shield. And the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.
This passage talks about the gold that King Solomon owned and no other Kingdom on earth was able to challenge the amount of gold he had. As Christians, we need to know God wants to give us gold at the judgment seat of Christ.
But, a true champion Christian will be judged by the quality, not the quantity of work we do for God. The standards of judgment are based upon the quality of our heart when we serve God, instead of the numerical records that we have.
The following are 10 types of service that we may perform that may show in “numerical” quantity but not done with the right heart:
1) Strained service
The first type of service for the Lord which we shall look into is when we are strained or forced to do it. For instance, we stay away from worldly music, games, entertainment, avoiding sinful acts, etc is because our family forces or pressures us to follow them to church and to follow the rules. So, all of these are considered as being strained and not done from the heart.
Philippians 2:17 Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all.
When we’re serving God, it should be done with joy and not misery. Our lives become more defiant, and miserable if we do not act and serve voluntarily but forcefully. This is because when we are forced to serve God, the grumpiness and bitterness will rise even more. Our critical spirits will spiral downward into despair.
We need to realize that the journey or process of serving God involves pain, patience, and suffering. People expect it to be easy and relaxing, which is unrealistic and that explains why they often set themselves up for agitation and frustration. We are encouraged to keep our faith strong in God despite the difficulties, look past that and be thankful for what we have been given by God, which is by his Grace and salvation through faith.
2) Sour service
Ephesians 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
God has His plan for us, and it is going to be far better than our own plans. Lord is in control of both good and bad things in our lives. A strained service can subsequently lead to a sour spirit. For instance, we still obey our parents even if our hearts do not feel like it, but by doing so we will constantly whine and feel sour about it.
We Christians always need to keep in mind to align our will with God’s will. Most often we try to follow what God wants, knowing it is in contrast with our desire. Nevertheless, our goal is to align our will with God’s will, and that’s how we can serve God willingly and joyfully, without compromising.
3) Scared service
It means we serve with fearfulness. Having the fear of the Lord is healthy and spiritual. However, if our repentance and walk are 100% based on fear without any other conviction, love, or sincerity, then it is not spiritual.
Colossians 3:23 And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;
4) Snotty service
Some Christians tend to show off their testimonies or how much they have done for God in the form of a report card with a boastful attitude. Some churches even like to brag about how many souls they win, and how big their church is. God will not be pleased with that.
Matthew 6:2,5 Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are : for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
We should seek rewards and compliments from God, not from men. Men’s’ rewards and feedback will only make us even more proud and snotty.
5) Selfish service
Some people serve God only to meet their selfish needs, e.g. because we want people to like us, and to approve of us.
Some churches even use monetary or materialistic rewards to attract people to go to church. This has obviously defiled people’s conscience to walk in Christ.
We should not use the spiritual excuse of serving God to avoid our responsibilities in taking care of our families and job.
In John 12:3,6, this says that some people claim how much they love Jesus Christ, and do all kinds of spiritual work, but only for their own selfish gain and benefit.
6) Spirit-less service
We do all kinds of work for God but it is done in a robotic and tired manner. These won’t count as well when we face the seat of Judgment.
Psalm 103:2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
7) Society service
If we were motivated to serve God only because of a sense of community and that we have our fellow friends or peers doing it, God will not be pleased with it.
We should be self-motivated to fulfill our responsibilities and duties as a Christian, rather than carrying out church duties for the sake of belonging in a group.
1 Peter 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:
We follow Jesus, not men or people we want to please.
8) Stupid service
Some people will preach hard and rebuke others whom they perceive to be not spiritual. Nonetheless, they do it carelessly, without grace and wisdom. This is usually applicable in soul winning. We are to rebuke sins, but if we only use the hardcore approach, and not trusting God’s wisdom, we burden others instead of winning them over to Christ.
We should not be stubborn in doing things or making decisions without good counsel or advice. This truly takes wisdom, and if we were to be persecuted for the wrong reasons, God will not reward us as well.
We can pray to God for His will, understanding what He wants of us before we go on with the conviction.
9) Specious service
This means the service is a fraud, and incorrect if it’s preached upon wrong doctrines. It does not matter how much zeal they have for God, or how much they love their people, if they follow the wrong guidelines, rather the Bible, then it will not please God at the end of the day.
It is more important to preach God’s truth and controversies than watered-down gospels just to please many people.
Titus 2:7 says that even though we know that we are not perfect, neither the Pastor nor the church itself, yet we are to strive for perfection, to live, or walk a Christian path as sanctified as possible.
10) Serious service
Do we seriously love God? If we do, we will follow what God wants, and set the bible as our final authority in guiding our lives.
The conclusion is, if we serve God with wrong motivation and wrong intentions, we will not inherit any gold from the Lord.
Start to get right with God and set our will straight and right with God.