“See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri…and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability, and knowledge…I have appointed Oholiab son of Ahisamach…to help him. Also I have given skill to all the craftsmen to make everything I have commanded you.”
I always find it interesting how some people get named in scripture, and others do not. Bezalel and Oholiab get named and the others are “just” craftsmen. Does that make them any less important? What if some of these craftsmen, whom God had endowed with ability and called to serve, decided to sit among the crowd and not participate? Certainly, the work would be slowed; some tasks may not have been done, but something much deeper – a greater consequence – would rear its ugly head. And the New Testament church sees it happen every week.
It is easy to presume that church attendance is indicative of salvation, but it is not. There are some who, like these craftsmen, are equipped with gifts, talents, and abilities; who are called by God to serve in and through the body of Christ, and who remain inactive, ineffective, and immature. We are not called to church attendance. We are called to know God and make God known through our service to others. Some in the church get their name in the bulletin: the pastor, youth pastor, deacons, maybe the elder board. Others, like those who vacuum the rugs, take out the trash, teach the children, hand out the bulletins, dish out food, or give rides to the doctor may go unnamed, but are absolutely no less significant. In fact, they are essential.
The reason believers disconnect and do not serve, often, is because they do not want to miss out on what they deem important. They don’t want to miss Sunday service…but what makes it “service” if you just sit there and receive the fruit of the labor of others? How do you know what you are gaining (if anything) if you never apply it? Others don’t want to lose time or resources…but what good are these if you die with them unused? When we look to our own interests over that of others, we buy into the “me-first” sin mentality. We separate ourselves from our Lord by essentially telling him “no,” and we keep distance between us and those who we claim as brothers and sisters in Christ. “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.”
No one ever made the highlight reel sitting on the sideline warming the bench…or the pew. Our motivation should never be to gain recognition; to glorify ourselves. Quiet service is recognized, received, and rewarded by God. It pleases him because it reflects his heart, and is an act of obedience. Your service pleases God, grows your faith, and fosters a healthy body that can change the world as people see that true significance is found within the Kingdom of God.
Weekly Devotional: August 22, 2010
Words to Grow On
“O Lord, have mercy on me; heal me, for I have sinned against you.”
God does not call certain things sin because he doesn’t want us to have any fun. The things he has called sin are those things which are physically, spiritually, emotionally, and socially harmful to ourselves, or others. When we sin against God and go our own way, we damage our heart, and hurt others in the process. Your sin never only affects you.
In the wake of our self-centered decisions, our sin, there is casualty. “The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy.” We choose our own way and then become determined to make it work, even at the cost of hurting others…or of our own heart. “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Though our actions have naturally and logically separated us from holy God, God is merciful – he withholds the judgment we deserve; he spares us the second death. Yet it is not enough to simply forgive because the wounds we sustained in our rebellion will continue to weaken us.
God offers both forgiveness and healing. Whether you have been wounded by the sins of someone else or are suffering the consequences of your own sin, Jesus came “to bind up the brokenhearted and proclaim freedom for the captives.” Like treatment for any injury or illness, the healing process for your soul can also be painful. The Enemy would seek to simply accuse you for the purpose of stealing your joy, killing your heart, and destroying your relationship with God. In an effort to save and restore your heart, God will convict you of your sin, lead you confession and repentance – which is often painful – and then will revive your heart. There is no sin that God cannot forgive, and no hurt that he cannot heal. “Where sin increased, grace increased all the more.” As mercy is withholding the punishment we deserve, grace is the granting of favor we can never earn.
The church is like a hospital for those wounded by sin and its consequences. The people are nurses, orderlies, administrators, and therapists. Yet all of them are patients themselves first. Some have recovered; others are in the process, but God is the Great Physician who meets with you when you come to him. “Come to me all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart.” Will you confess what God already knows and receive the healing he offers, or will you choose to embrace the wounds and promote the agenda of the Enemy?
Weekly Devotional: August 15, 2010
Words to Grow On
“He has sent me to bind up the broken hearted…for the display of his splendor.”
Your hurts matter to God. He never has, and does not now take any pleasure in your suffering. Though suffering can serve a purpose far greater than a single life, the joy is in the victory, not the struggle. God cares so deeply about you and your hurts that he sent his only Son to live within the limitations of our lives, to suffer the same hurts and experience the same temptations and pain that you have. There is no trial you have suffered that is foreign to Jesus. He did this so that he could heal you.
It is one thing to listen to someone tell you how to overcome you hurts when they have never suffered themselves. It is quite another when you know that they know your pain. Jesus knows intimately the pain of rejection, betrayal and abuse. He knows what it is like to be denied his rights and entitlements, to be let down by those you most care about, and to be the target of scandals and rumors. Why did he allow himself to endure all this? For you. "The joy set before him" was you. You were created in the image of God – distinct from the rest of the animal kingdom – so that you could relate to and connect with God. In Jesus, God takes yet another step toward you as he takes on our image and suffers through our life.
You can trust Christ because he knows you and knows your hurts as well as you do. You can trust him because he has secured victory over temporal suffering and offers a full and eternal life that begins now. He has proven his love and his commitment at the cross, which stands forever as God’s declaration of unfailing love. Why does he care so deeply about you? Because you, created in his image, are precious to him as any work of art to its artist; because through you, he can prove himself to others who are equally precious.
Your wounds are not the end of the story; they do not have the final say; they do not define you. There is a road that leads to healing and wholeness. It is the journey of faith. When we trust God and follow Christ – heeding the directions of the Great Physician – we begin to discover the beauty of our own scars…much the way that through confession and repentance we discover the beauty; the glory and splendor of Jesus’ scars.
About two years ago, I had a little accident. I was at the end of a remodel project and was finishing up the baseboard when my left forearm made contact with the blade of my chop saw. The bottom line was that I was less than careful, in a hurry, and not paying attention to what I was doing. The blade cut through seven tendons and about an eighth of an inch into the bone. In the emergency room they cleaned the wound and stitched me back up. Two weeks later, I had surgery to reconnect the tendons which meant they would have to re-open that wound. From the outside, the suture had been healing nicely; why ruin that? For the same reason God often reopens our wounds.
Either from our own actions, or those of others, we all find ourselves with emotional wounds – wounds of the heart. These are seldom healed properly and will adversely affect our perception of God, of life, and of ourselves. These perceptions, thoughts, and ideas will influence our decisions and actions and hinder our relationship with God and with others. God knows, that if you are to be healed and made whole, he will have to reopen and readdress those areas of your life.
The tool God uses to strengthen us is called conviction. The enemy uses a weapon called accusation that merely points out your weaknesses and deficiencies. Conviction will graciously reveal what is wrong in order to heal and strengthen. Conviction is meant to lead us to confession where we acknowledge and agree with God about our guilt, our brokenness, our need. Confession prepares the way for us to receive from God what we cannot obtain on our own. Like a skilled surgeon, God reaches in and sets right our hurts, our brokenness, and our failure and rebellion. But before God can reach in to bring healing, we must trust him and open ourselves up to his analysis.
As with any doctor, God’s diagnosis of the condition of our heart can be very hard to hear. The beauty of it is that God does not deem us sick and cast us out. Instead, he draws us close and comforts us, for he is “the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles.” When we are made whole, we can then minister to others who have need. God loves you, and his love goes far beyond you. If you are wrestling with guilt and shame, or hurt and hopelessness, you can look to those around you who have found healing, hope, and purpose in Christ. They are God’s resume and evidence that you can trust him.
Weekly Devotional: August 1, 2010
Words to Grow On
“If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.”
It is often said that the end justifies the means; that an action in itself determines good or bad. The reality is, however, people can do some very good things for very selfish, even evil reasons. We give money to the guy on the corner because it is easy, doesn’t really cost much, relieves our guilt, and makes us look like a swell guy. What would our actions look like if we really cared about that person and their future? If we loved them?
When we approach faith in Christ like fire insurance – being good in order to avoid bad – then faithfulness becomes a duty and an obligation. We will give a tithe, perhaps more; serve with our every spare moment, we’ll be generous and nice, only to come to exhaustion. We will go through religious motions, dutifully and without any joy, with very little effect, and completely missing the point of the Christian life. “Small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
In his letter to the church in Jerusalem, James wrote that “faith without deeds is dead.” In other words, what we believe about God must affect our actions and attitudes or it is not saving faith. In the same way, the apostle Paul wrote the church in Corinth – who prided themselves on their deeds – that deeds, absent of love, are worthless. Unless we are filled by the love of God, we will not have what it takes to fulfill God’s call on our lives. Without a mutual, intimate relationship with our Heavenly Father we will never be able to discern what that calling is…and is not. Without a love for God, we will never be able to persevere in our calling and see the power and presence of God in our lives.
The very heart of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is not religion, it is relationship. Foremost is our relationship with God himself. Jesus put it this way, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. This is the first and greatest commandment.” God has already demonstrated his love for you. You must grow in your love for God. That can only be done as we intentionally take – even make – time to be with him; to read his Word, to pray and listen, to “be still and know that he is God.” Only when we nurture our relationship with our Father can we know him, hear him, and witness his power at work in, through, and around us.
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