Full-Service God - Martin Wiles

He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfied every need there is. Acts 17:25 NLT

We called them filling stations, and for good reason.

When I was young, filling stations were places where everyone went to fill their vehicles with fuel. But they were quite different than today. They were full-service stations. When a customer pulled up to the pump, an attendant came out, asked how much fuel the person wanted, and then filled the tank for the customer. While the tank was filling, the attendant checked the oil level, cleaned the front windshield, and checked the tire pressure.

Later, convenience stores with gas pumps became popular, but they weren’t full-service stations. Customers pumped their own gas—self-service, we called it—which made prices cheaper. But we lost that one-on-one interaction, and we drove around in vehicles with dirty vehicles, low oil, and low tire pressure. To compete, full-service stations had to add self-service pumps. Gradually, full-service stations moved toward extinction. I can still remember when the last one in my area closed.   

As Paul walked the streets of philosophical Athens, he noticed a plethora of gods. One was even entitled “To the Unknown God,” just in case they missed one. Paul told them about a “full-service” God. He was the one they didn’t have a name for.

Self-service is the name of the game these days, and there’s certainly nothing wrong with doing something ourselves if we can and if it saves money. We can probably Google it or find directions on YouTube if we don't know how.

Some things, however, require full service. On these occasions, we need the full-service God Paul preached about. Salvation is one of those things. We can’t save ourselves, be good enough, or work hard enough to meet God’s standards. He must apply his grace and forgiveness to our lives.

As God fully serves us, he also wants us to serve others fully. This implies serving with the right motives on every occasion he gives the opportunity. Wrong motives will creep in if we don’t depend on his direction and strength as we serve. We may even gravitate to thinking we no longer need him—or that we can create service opportunities without his input.

Don’t become your own god. Depend on a full-service God.

Father, may I always recognize my dependence on you. 

Tweetable: Do you serve a full-service God? 

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