The Priority of Service

 “Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.””

(‭John 4:34 ESV‬)

Satisfying our basic needs is fundamental to life. The drive to satisfy these needs is instinctual. If these needs are not satisfied, after all, we cannot survive.

What I’m referring to, of course, is our need for nourishment. What I’m referring to is our need to have our thirst satisfied. And what I’m referring to is the need for shelter and warm clothing. 

There are other needs we could discuss, but you get the point. We have certain needs that are fundamental for life. And, unless these needs are met, our life will not be long in this world.

This is what makes the statement of Jesus, seen above, so curious. Jesus had been sitting by a well, while his disciples went into town to buy food. And, as they returned, they found him talking to a Samaritan woman.

As the woman left that she might tell the townspeople about Jesus, his disciples urged him to eat. Jesus, then, responded as we see in verse 34. He told them that his food was to do the will of him who had sent him and to accomplish his work.

As we read this, it’s clear to whom Jesus is referring. He’s referring to God the Father. His food, then, was to do the will of the Father and to accomplish his work.

Jesus was explaining to his disciples, in this way, that doing the will of the Father was needful to him. Accomplishing the work of the Father was necessary for life. Like physical hunger, which has to be satisfied if we’re to survive, this was absolutely essential.

You and I don’t think of our service of God in the same way. While we may think of it as something that’s good to do, we don’t view it as essential. And while we may think of it as important, we don’t think of it as necessary.

It’s for this reason that doing the work of God and accomplishing his will falls lower on our priority list. We feel that we must first ensure that our needs are satisfied. And only then will we consider using our time, energy, and money to serve the Lord.

We certainly don’t earn life or salvation by doing the will of the Father. And we can in no way become deserving of these blessings. They are provided only by the death and resurrection of Jesus and received by faith in him.

This, however, is our purpose. It’s why we’re here. God has made us to be his own that we might accomplish his work. 

As we read in Ephesians 2, starting in verse 8: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

Constant Trust

 "…if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister."

‭‭(Colossians‬ ‭1‬:‭23‬ ‭ESV‬‬)

The gospel offers to us the assurance of salvation. It assures us of our salvation, which was obtained for us by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And it assures of our salvation, which is received by faith in him.

We have a tendency, however, to believe that our salvation cannot be lost. We have a tendency to believe that we remain saved, regardless of our faith and life. As long as we’ve said the prayer, been baptized at the font, or answered an altar call, we believe that we will always remain saved.

Even if we no longer trust in Christ, we believe that our salvation is sure. Even if we no longer believe in him, we believe our salvation is certain. And even if we live only to satisfy our sinful appetites, we believe that we remain saved. 

This mindset, however, is not consistent with the gospel. It’s not consistent with the gospel which tells us that it’s by faith we’re saved. Nor is it consistent with the gospel which tells us that we have been saved from sin.

We see this, in the above passage, as Paul discusses the salvation of God. We were once alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he says. But, in Jesus, God has reconciled all things to himself, making peace by the blood of the cross.

We learn, here, that God is the source of our salvation. It is dependent not upon us, but upon him. And it was provided to us not by our activity, but his own.

This is true of us, we are reconciled, Paul says, if indeed we continue in the faith. It’s true of us if we continue in faith, stable and steadfast. And it’s true of us if we do not shift from the hope of the gospel we’ve heard. 

The faith by which we are saved, you see, is not a one-time event. It’s a constant throughout our life in this world. And it’s by this faith that we receive the promised blessings of God.

Apart from faith in Christ, there is no certainty. Apart from faith in Christ, there is no hope. And apart from faith in Christ, there is no salvation.

Delivered & Redeemed

 "He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

(‭‭Colossians‬ ‭1‬:‭13‬-‭14‬ ‭ESV‬‬)

As we visit with others, and as we search our own heart, we find a belief that is held in common. We generally think of ourselves as good people. And we think of ourselves as a deserving people.

Although we realize our weakness and imperfection, we believe that we’re, by nature, righteous. We believe that our intentions are generally good. And we believe we’re, for this reason, deserving of God's blessings.

We believe that we enter into the world in this state. We believe we enter this world in a state of innocence. We believe we begin this life as children of light. And we believe that, by nature, we are children of God.

This, however, is not the case. And we see this as we look at the passage above. Paul, in this passage, tells us that we were of the domain of darkness.

This, you see, is the state into which we were born. We were born in sin. We were born in a state of condemnation. We entered this world desiring not the things of God, but the pleasures of the flesh. And we naturally pursue not righteousness, but the satisfaction of our cravings and lusts.

As Paul makes plain, it’s from this that God has saved us. He delivered us from the domain of darkness. And he transferred us to the kingdom of his Son.

In Jesus, Paul says, we have redemption. In him we have the forgiveness of sins. And these blessings are found nowhere else. 

This is the work of God, from first to last. Our character and deeds play no role in it whatsoever. It is an undeserved blessing lavished upon us by God.

We, then, must look only to Christ for the salvation that he alone can provide. We must trust only in the salvation he provided for us by his death on the cross and his resurrection from the grave. And we must in no way seek to take even the smallest credit for the blessings we’ve received.

The Exception to the Norm

 “And the Lord said to Moses, “The daughters of Zelophehad are right. You shall give them possession of an inheritance among their father’s brothers and transfer the inheritance of their father to them.”

‭‭Numbers‬ ‭27‬:‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭ESV‬‬

There is often a way that we tend to do things. There is often an established order that is the basis of this tendency. There is, in fact, often a rule that informs it.

However, that being said, there is often an exception to that rule. There is often an exception to that established order. And there is always an exception to the norm.

We, however, tend to dismiss these exceptions. We pretend that they don’t exist. And we do so in an effort to protect or preserve the established order.

But how do we discern God's will in such cases? How do we determine what we’re to do? We receive some guidance as we look at an example in Numbers 27.

In this chapter, inheritance rights were the issue. And, typically, it was the sons of a man who received the inheritance. But we encounter, in this passage, the daughters of a man who had no son.

They came to Moses asking why his name should be taken away from his clan. They asked why it should be taken, simply because he had no son. And they asked to be given a possession among their father’s brothers.

As we look more broadly at the Old Testament, we see that God was concerned for the individual. He was concerned for the name of the individual. We find that he did not want a man’s name blotted out of Israel. Even in exceptional circumstances, like this one, he wanted the man’s name to be preserved.

This was also the basis of God's commands when a man died, leaving no children. His brother was to marry his widow. And the first son was to succeed to the name of his deceased brother. 

Although there was an established order, there would be exceptions to the rule. There would be situations that didn’t fit the rule or the practice. But this was addressed by God's concern that a man’s name should not be blotted out of Israel.

When we, then, encounter exceptions to the norm, this is a good place for us to start. As we pray about the situation, we should look for the underlying principle behind the rule. And this will typically lead us to the answer.

Flipping Tables?

 “Let your reasonableness be known to everyone.”

(Philippians 4:5 ESV)

In the modern Christian Church in America, something of which we’re routinely reminded is that Jesus flipped tables. This, of course, is a reference to his cleaning of the temple. And it’s true that he, indeed, flipped tables.

This, however, is often used as an excuse for our demanding, angry, and unloving behavior. It’s used to excuse the fact that we often behave like complete jerks to the world around us. And this is not an appropriate way to use the example of Jesus.

Looking at the gospel accounts, he likely cleansed the temple on two occasions, one at the beginning of his ministry and the other at the end. But this is not something that characterized his life and ministry. 

While Jesus taught truth, he also loved those who surrounded him. He was kind toward sinners. And, typically, his anger was reserved for the religious authorities, who were misleading the people, denying them the grace of God.

While we must stand firm under the authority of God’s Word, and while we must not compromise truth, we are called to behave in a loving manner toward our neighbor. And we see the attitude that we’re to display in the verse above.

Paul says that we’re to let our reasonableness be known to everyone. The word translated “reasonable” also means gentle, kind, or tolerant. These character traits, then, are to be evident to everyone around us.

Rather than being argumentative and insulting to those who surround us, rather than demeaning them and behaving in a condescending manner, we’re to be loving toward them. And it is possible for us to be loving and faithful to God’s Word at the same time. The two are not mutually exclusive.

There are times when righteous anger may be appropriate. But it’s safe to say that those times will be few. What should be displayed on a regular basis is kindness, gentleness, and reasonableness.

The Blessing of Labor

 "If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me."

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭1‬:‭22‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Labor is something that’s become a dirty word for most of us in modern society. We view work, in any form, as drudgery. We view responsibility as something beneath us. And we want nothing more than to free ourselves from it. We want nothing more than to eliminate it from our lives.

We seek to do so as we gain wealth. As we gain the ability to let go of certain responsibilities, hiring others to do them for us, we take advantage of it. We may hire someone to mow the lawn. We may hire someone to clean our home. We may hire someone to shovel the snow. Or we may hire someone to watch our children.

We also hope and plan to do so, as we grow older and retire. We set money aside throughout our career, investing it, hoping that it sufficiently grows. And when we have enough, however we define that, we plan to stop working.

Our ambition is to have no responsibility whatsoever. Our goal is having the ability to do whatever we want whenever we want. We dream of a life where we are governed not by alarm clocks or schedules, but simply our own desires.

Labor, however, is a good thing. It’s a blessing. And, as we see in the passage above, it is fruitful.

In making this statement, Paul is talking about life and death. And, in doing so, he notes that departing to be with Christ is better by far, when compared to life in this world. But life, he says, means fruitful labor for him.

Life meant that he was able to serve the Lord. It meant that he was able to serve his neighbor. And Paul sought to do so, first and foremost, through the ministry of the gospel.

This, he noted, was necessary for them, his readers. They needed the labor, they needed the ministry, he had to offer. And, for that reason, he was convinced it was not yet his time to die.

Our labor may take a different form from that of Paul. Yet, the same truth remains. Life means fruitful labor for us.

For as long as the Lord provides us with life in this world, we are able to serve him. For as long as he provides us with life in this world, we are able to serve our neighbor. We are enabled by God, in this way, to be a blessing.

And this is something that should never be despised. It’s something from which we should never flee. It’s something of which we should never aspire to rid ourselves.

There will come a day, of course, when we may no longer be able to work as we once did. We may no longer be able to have a career. But even then, in some capacity, we are able to serve and to be a blessing.

The Authoritative Word

 ‬‬

“I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.”

(‭‭Revelation 22:18-19 ESV)

Among those of us who believe in the authority of Scripture, there is a strong emphasis on its inerrancy. There is a strong emphasis on its infallibility. And this is both right and fitting.

Scripture, after all, is God's Word, and not that of man. As God is perfect, so too is his Word. And as God is unchanging, so too is his Word.

Believing as we do, we react strongly when others take from God's Word. We react strongly when people seek to alter his Word. And we react strongly when people seek to strip it of its meaning.

When those of the liberal Church, or those of society, want to deny the clear teaching of Scripture, the hair on our neck bristles. When they argue against the clear teaching of Scripture, our stomach turns. And when they take a position that contradicts Scripture, we find it upsetting.

However, as we see in the passage above, not only is it wrong to take from God's Word. It’s equally wrong to add to it. It’s equally wrong to read into Scripture our own ideas and beliefs.

This is why Jesus reacted so strongly to the religious leaders of his day. Their tendency was not to take from God's Word, but to add to it. And they did so by making their traditions, they did so by making their teachings, as authoritative as Scripture itself.

Their interpretation of God’s Law became as authoritative as God’s Law. It was equated with God’s Law. And therein lies the problem.

This, you see, is the mistake we often make in the conservative Church of our day. We tend to add to the Word of God by way of legalism. We, at times, read into Scripture. And we make our understanding or our interpretation as authoritative as Scripture itself.

If we truly stand under the authority of God’s Word, and if our faith is guided by God’s Word alone, we will do neither. We will not take from it. But neither will we add to it.