Is There Such a Thing as a Selfless Deed?

As an avid watcher of the show Friends, a particular episode came to mind as I, Anneka, was in the process of brainstorming ideas for this piece. In this episode, Joey Tribbiani made a profound statement: “There is no such thing as a selfless deed.” During this episode, Joey’s friend, Phoebe Buffay was searching for a good, selfless deed but failed time after time due to her sense of accomplishment and thanks from recipients of the good deed. While this show is intended to be light-hearted, casual, and in no way profound, this statement made by Tribbiani can speak to the lives and experiences of many and help us discern our motives for serving.

Sometimes, genuine people, even those who are devoted to the Lord, can get it wrong. I am speaking about myself here as well. It is in our human nature to desire self-praise, recognition, and the like. The chapter “What’s the Problem,” in Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert’s book, When Helping Hurts, sheds light on what is happening in our Christian circles that is creating this dissonance when it comes to understanding what true service is about. They promote the idea that because the fall happened, our relationships have become distorted, including our relationship with God. Since we are fallen, sinful creatures, we struggle with grasping the true meaning of helping and service in regard to our relationships with others.

Corbett and Fikkert also touch on our Western thought and how that plays into our serving. We tend to view people in need as a project, something to be accomplished, and in a very physical way. Physical needs are important, but we may be missing the mark that humans are also “spiritual, social, psychological, and physical beings.” Campus Pastor, Sam Ashmore, put it this way: “Before we can have compassion on the ‘least of these,’ we must slow down to be able to see them – to see anyone. That’s why outreach or service is so vital for the Christian life. It forces us to slow down and lift our eyes from ourselves to others.” This poses these questions: are we truly seeing people for who they are? Are we truly identifying their needs? And ultimately, what is our motivation for helping those who we might consider “the least of these?” This last question specifically is on my heart as I fulfill the role of Community Outreach Coordinator at Dordt University.

In order to truly serve the needs of others, we must develop and promote true altruism. Altruism is the disinterest in self-acclamation, self-promotion, and benefit in response to helping others. It is a complete laying down of oneself and desires in order to lift another up. As the Community Outreach Coordinator at Dordt, I have seen a shift in the numbers and the attitudes of our student volunteers. When I entered the role in 2021, our record number of volunteers was around twenty, but this past fall, we had a record number of 60+ for our Fall Service Day. Not only did the numbers grow, but positive attitudes did as well. I have witnessed students eager to serve, to be a part of something bigger than themself, and to give up their precious time (and sleep), to be the hands and feet of Jesus. It’s a thrill to see God’s work in the hearts of our campus community to lead us deeper into His true motivations for serving.

But from what motivation does our service emanate? In Phil. 2:5-7, Paul compels us to look beyond ourselves when it comes to serving others and take on the attitude of Christ: “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant…” Jesus, himself, is the perfect example of what true, altruistic service entails and what should motivate our service to God and others. Furthermore, Donald Whitney, in his book Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, shares several sources of motivation that lead to selfless service. When aligned with God’s true intent, our service is:

1. Motivated by obedience-- Deuteronomy 13:4 says, “It is the Lord your God you must follow and Him you must revere. Keep His commands and obey him; serve Him and hold fast to Him.” Thus, it is sinful not to serve. We have been given much in order to share those gifts with others, much in the same way Abraham was blessed to be a blessing to all people (Gen. 12:3-4). The call to Abraham is the same call to the Body of Christ today. We are blessed to be a blessing. Not doing so is akin to taking our talent and burying it—A choice that Jesus vehemently condemned (Matthew 25:28-30).
2. Motivated by gratitude and gladness—Serving out of a sense of obedience is only part of what motivates us, however, and can lead to viewing service as a burden if not balanced with a sense of gratitude for all that God has done. I Samuel 12:24 instructs us to “fear the Lord and serve Him faithfully, consider what great things He has done for you.” Coupled with an attitude of gratitude, we are reminded in Psalm 100:2 to “Serve the Lord with gladness.” This is the life of obedience that every Christian is called to live. We are not to serve God and others grudgingly, but gladly; it is a privilege to serve, and we are reminded in II Cor. 9:7 that “God loves a cheerful giver.” A person who serves God only out of obligation, duty, or human expectation does not serve with gladness. We should always serve others from a place of intrinsic motivation, driven by the joy within us. Whether we’re at church, work, or engaging in our community, our service should flow from our genuine gladness. Many teachers have shared that they don't teach for the money, but because something deeper drives them. In Dordt’s Education Department, we have an unofficial motto: “We get to do this!” This mindset should guide us all as we embrace a life of service.
3. Motivated by humility—Because of our fallen, sinful nature, there is often a part of us that thinks, “If I’m going to serve, I want to get something for it—a reward, recognition, a tax-deduction, a good reputation in the community, etc. I’ll give the impression of humility and serve as long as somehow I can turn it to my advantage." But this isn’t Christ-like service. This is hypocrisy and precisely what Jesus reprimanded the Pharisees for in Matthew 23. Richard Foster calls it, “self-righteous service” and defines it this way: “Self-righteous service requires external rewards. It needs to know that people see and appreciate the effort. It seeks human applause—with proper religious modesty, of course… Self-righteous service is highly concerned about results. It eagerly wants to see if the person served will reciprocate in kind…” Again, referring to Christ’s example of servanthood described in Phil. 2:8, “being made in human likeness, and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death even death on a cross.” We can see that a humble posture is the source from which God-honoring service flows.
4. Motivated by love—Finally, true altruistic service emanates from love… for God and for our neighbors. “You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love” (Gal. 5:15). There is no better fuel for service that burns longer and provides more energy than love. The more we love God, the more we will live for Him and serve Him and the more we love others, the more we will serve them, which is why these two loves are connected in the “greatest commandment” summarized in Matthew 22: 37-39: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your mind…Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Cultivating Christ-like service in our lives requires that we develop and promote true altruism which is the example of servanthood that Jesus modeled throughout life here on earth. In order to display the character of Christ through our service to others we must check our motives to ensure that our service flows from a source of obedience, gratitude, gladness, humility and love for God and others. Only from this source can our good deeds be carried out in selfless ways and we, along with John the Baptist (John 3:30), can proclaim that “He must increase, and I must decrease.” We share these thoughts about true altruistic service, not because we’ve mastered it in any way, shape, or form. It is a goal yet to be attained with the ultimate reward of bringing glory to God and making his love known to our neighbors far and near.

References:

Steve Corbett & Brian Fikkert, When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty without Hurting the Poor and Yourself, Moody Publishers, 2012.

Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth, Harper Collins Publishers, 1998.

Donald Whitney, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, NavPress, 1991.