DEVOTED

“Being Devoted to God’s Call”
Pastor Doug Heisel – March 17, 2024

Acts 2:42-47 (NLT) – All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer... And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

Mark 8:34-35 (NIV) – Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.

Matthew 6:24 (NIV) – No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

The Passover Meal and Night of the Crucifixion

John 13:12-17 (NIV) – When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.


Ephesians 4:1 (NLT) – Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God.

Jeremiah 1:5 (NCV) – Before I made you in your mother’s womb, I chose you. Before you were born, I set you apart for a special work.

1 Peter 4:10 (NIV) - Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.

What if…

…We all believed we were gifted by God?

…We all believed we are called to use those gifts, not just for our own benefit, but for the benefit of His Church?

…We all understood this “call”, not as a “have to” but as a “get to” – not something we did out of obligation or fear but out of gratitude, joy, and anticipation?

…We all could see ten years into the future, the amazing difference it would make, on our lives and others, whether we responded to this call or not?

Matthew 20:25-28 (NCV) -  Jesus called all the followers together and said, “You know that the rulers of the non-Jewish people love to show their power over the people. And their important leaders love to use all their authority. But it should not be that way among you. Whoever wants to become great among you must serve the rest of you like a servant. Whoever wants to become first among you must serve the rest of you like a slave. In the same way, the Son of Man did not come to be served. He came to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many people.