“But I do not
account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my
course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the
gospel of the grace of God.”
(Acts 20:24 ESV)
Paul was on his way to Jerusalem. And it had been made clear to him, by the
Spirit of God, what was to happen to him there.
He knew that afflictions and imprisonment awaited him.
However, in spite of this, Paul made the statement we see
above. He says that he does not account
his life of any value. He doesn’t count
it as precious to himself. His only
desire is that he might finish his course and the ministry entrusted to him by
the Lord.
Paul, you remember, had been called by Jesus to take the
gospel primarily to the Gentiles. And it’s
clear that he was determined to carry out his call no matter what it meant for
him personally. He was willing to endure
all things if only he might faithfully share Christ with the lost.
He had already done so on several occasions. He’d endured beatings. He’d been jailed. Yet, no matter what he faced, he pressed on.
When I look at Paul’s words, it forces me to look at my
own heart. It causes me to ask if the
same is true of me. Am I willing to
endure suffering and imprisonment if only I may finish the course, if only I
may fulfill the calling, God has given me?
No matter how faithful we are in our ministry, the fact
remains that we have a natural tendency to look out for our well-being. We have an ingrained desire to preserve our
life in this world. And, more often than
not, we will do anything we can to do just that.
If preserving our life means compromising our values, we
do it. If preserving our life means putting
on a façade, we do it. Even if we’re
uncomfortable making these choices, we count our life too valuable to discard.
This is true when it comes to our faith and our ministry
as well. We know what Christ has done
for us. And we know that we’ve been
called to share this truth with all mankind.
Yet, if this means putting ourselves at risk, we’re often unwilling to
take that step.
We’re often unwilling to take that step even if our life
isn’t physically threatened in any way.
We’re often unwilling to fulfill our calling if it means our reputation
among men might be tarnished. We’re unwilling
to fulfill our calling if it means that others might think us foolish.
This is an area where I’ve struggled as long as I can
remember. Growth has come, but it has
come slowly. Even though I preach and
teach the Word of God regularly in the church, I’m not as quick to do so on the
outside.
I pray that the Lord will give me the Spirit of Paul. I pray that he will enable me to fulfill my
calling no matter what it might mean for myself personally. I pray that I might be able to say, along
with Paul, that I do not count my life of any value or as precious in
itself. I pray that my only concern will
be carrying out the mission to which I’ve been called.
This is my prayer also for the people of the church. I pray that the Lord will give to each of us
this mindset. And, as he does so, I pray
that more and more people will hear the good news and receive the salvation
that is given through faith in Jesus.
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