To Protect and to Serve

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?

– James 2:14

To Protect and to Serve is the familiar slogan that once appeared in one for or another on law enforcement vehicles across America. According to LAPD Online, the Los Angeles Police Department conducted a contest back in 1955 for the police academy’s motto. The rules stipulated that entries should “in a few words … express some or all the ideals to which the Los Angeles police service is dedicated. It is possible that the winning motto might someday be adopted as the official motto of the Department." Eight years later, the credo began appearing next to the city seal on the city's patrol cars.

Service is also an ideal for Christ-followers. Indeed, we’re called to serve as

Jesus’ hands and feet on earth while we wait for his return — or at least until that day when he calls us back home. Until then, God wants us to help prepare his kingdom by making the most of the gifts and talents he’s given us. What’s more, we’re to serve as a beacon amidst the darkness of today’s so-called progressive enlightened society.

“Make your light shine, so that others will see the good that you do and will praise you Father in heaven.”

That’s how Jesus puts it in Matthew’s gospel. But what sort of light is he talking about? It’s really that spark or inner power that God grants each Christ-follower for demonstrating his goodness through their words and deeds. For example, we can shine a light and serve by running a much-needed errand for an elderly neighbor. We can help clean up a neglected school or a community park — or even work in a food pantry or visit the residents of a local assisted living community. There’s no shortage of options.

Why is this principle of service so important for Christ-followers?

“In the same way, the Son of Man did not come to be served,” Jesus explains. “He came to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many people.” Our Master — Jesus — embodied a service-focused life during his ministry. So as his modern-day disciples, we should turn our faith into actions of service by accepting his invitation to shine a light of hope and truth amidst the darkness of the world.