A long time ago, I wrote a post entitled “Two Question Christianity,” where I suggested that Christians need to explore scripture with two questions in mind: 1) What does this say about God? and 2) If this is who God says He is in His word, how should I respond to Him?
However, I did not explore or demonstrate what this would look like in practice. So, today I wanted to provide a devotional for you that helps you apply the principle in that article. Obviously, there are more than two questions below; however, the two questions in that article frame the rest of the questions here. They are intentionally broad questions to help encourage thinking and develop a closer relationship with God. If you would like space to write down your answers to these questions, you may download a copy to your computer as either a .docx file where you can enter your answers or as a .pdf file that you can print out to write down your answers.
If you find this helpful and would like more devotionals like this, please let me know in the comments.
Also, I welcome any insights you would like to share with me from your meditation on these questions.
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”
John 15:1-5 (ESV)
MEDITATION:
1. What does this passage say about who Jesus is? Who the Father is?
2. Taking these two things together what does this say about God?
3. Since this is who He is, how does the Bible instruct us to respond to Him?
4. The Greek word translated “abide” means “to stay, to be in a state that begins and continues, to remain as one, not to become different from one another.” How do you daily stay in Christ?
5. What evidence in your life points to the conclusion that, although you are your own self, you remain one with Him?
6. What evidence in your life shows you have drifted from Christ and have become different from Him?
7. What would you need to add or remove from your life so that you may continuously “abide” in Him?
8. Every life produces some type of result from their actions. What would you say is the result of your life’s actions so far?
9. Where do you receive the life for this fruit? The world? Social Media? Politics? Philosophy? Or Jesus? Take some time to identify the effects your life has produced and then identify the source that feeds these actions.
10. Jesus describes two types of branches: one does not bear fruit and is taken away, the other abides in Christ and suffers seasons of pruning that it may bear more fruit. Which one are you? Why do you think that?
11. When Jesus says “apart from me you can do nothing” is he referring to practical actions such as eating lunch, driving to work, or changing a diaper? Or is he referring to something more? What other characteristic of Himself could he be alluding to besides being the life-giving vine?
12. How does this passage, and especially verse 5, relate to 1st Corinthians 10:31, which says: “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”?
PRAY:
Take time to reflect on who God has revealed Himself to be to you through this passage.
Start your prayer by addressing God with that characteristic. For example, “God, you are ____” or “I come to my holy ____”.
Praise Him for being this in general and in your own life.
Look back at question #6 and ask God to forgive you for the things you listed.
Ask Him, in accordance with who He is, to make you like Himself and to abide daily in Him.
Humble yourself and tell God why you want this and why you need this.
Commit to Him to stay in Him but also ask Him for the strength to do so.
“If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”
Heavenly Father, my heart is breaking for this country. Our nation has become a people who have embraced the rewards of wealth over the rewards of righteousness. We have elevated choice above truth and have found an infinite number of creative and clever ways to repeat the sin of pride so that we might justify our pleasures and redefine evil as good and good as evil.
Rote prayers. We all have them. Sometimes they are the perfunctory words we use before eating a meal:
“Dear God, thank you for this food we are about to eat, and thank you for all that you have given to us. Help to go through each day knowing and doing your will. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Sometimes they are a meaningless combination of words or phrases that provide neither clarity nor intimacy in our communion with God:
“Lord, lead, guide, and direct us.” (if God is leading us, He is guiding us. If He is guiding us, He is directing us. Why do we need all three words, when one will do?)
And sometimes our rote prayers have emptied themselves of both potency and urgency due to years of repetition and an undercurrent of hopelessness.
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. 3 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— 4 that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.
5 Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
Colossians 4:2-6 ESV
The wrapping paper flew off in a rush of anticipation that only childhood can provide and floated to the ground. The colorful box was about the size of my torso and balanced on my tiny lap. Two bright words beckoned me to a world of boyish adventure, implanting visions of secret experiments, startling discoveries, and minor explosions within the bowels of my house. And for weeks these visions fueled my persistent play with the tiny vials in my brand-new chemistry set.
But as the days continued, my enthusiasm waned. Most of the experiments in the manual seemed either too simple or too complicated and none of them taught me how to explode stuff, which, if I am honest, is what my 11-year-old self really wanted.
So, I did what any child would do. I kept the manual for reference but put it to the side and began to gradually mix a combination of the chemicals to see what I could make. Surely it couldn’t be that hard. I had seen science shows on TV and most seemed to easily result in at least some sort of harmless bang. But regardless of what chemicals I combined, I could not even produce a smidge of smoke. All my experiments resulted in either green or yellow solids, stuck stubbornly at the base of a limited supply of test tubes.
“This stuff doesn’t work,” I finally concluded.
Many of my chemicals were gone. No startling discoveries had been made. And all I could produce was ruined test tubes.
In despair I made sure all the vials were in their correctly labeled space, laid the unused manual on top, softly slid the box top over the bottom, and buried my chemistry set on a shelf, never to be touched again.
But failure is a bell that never rings only once. Its echoes hoard disappointment, sadness, and shame. These resounded so often throughout my schooling that a hard, stubborn bias formed at the base of my unguarded soul against science. It was too hard. I was less Louis Pasteur and more Larry, Mo, and Curly. And no matter how hard I tried it was always easier to blame the repeated failures on the science than it was to blame myself (the scientist).
The reality, of course, is that I struggled with science because there was something wrong with my assumptions, methodology, logic, or understanding that prevented me from being successful in this field. It was not the science that was flawed. It was me. To hold any other position would be irrational.
Interestingly, the experience I had with science often parallels the experience others have had with prayer.
The gift that God has given us to boldly “draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:16) and the promise of “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Matt. 7:7) fill our uninitiated souls with visions of victories, blessings, and pain-free lives.
But then we are told, or we experience, that God is not our personal genie. We look at His manual, the Bible, for guidance and instruction in this incredible gift. Some of it seems relatively easy and straightforward. Other parts are hard and complicated. And if we are truly honest, what we want the most is an immediate alleviation or extinction of our pain, not a lesson in theology.
So, we put the manual aside and begin to experiment as best we can with the gift He has given. We include elements of other faiths or worldviews to help us understand how to use prayer effectively. We embrace concepts that are not taught in scripture, but because they sound like truth and are used by millions of people across the world, we mix them in our test tubes of prayers and hope to a harmless bang in our answers. Instead, all we receive is a hardened green or yellow rock as the result of our experiment. Nothing has changed. Anxieties and stressors and suffering seem to come and go of their own accord until one day we survey the landscape of our prayerful experiments and exclaim “This stuff doesn’t work!”
So, when Paul writes in Colossians 4:2 “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving” people who believe that prayer does not work dismiss the comment outright.
But is this being fair? Is it truly a problem with God or prayer? Or does the problem reside in the assumptions, methodology, logic, or understanding of the one who is praying?
The only rational position is that prayer works, but it is impeded in several ways. It does not work when we try to fulfill our selfish motives (James 4:3). And it is hindered through our preponderance of doubt (James 1:6-7) and pride (Job 35:12-13). Our unwillingness to obey God’s law (Pr. 28:9), to disenfranchise the poor (Pr. 21:13), to cover our hands with blood (Isa. 1:15), to fill the land with violence and to provoke God repeatedly (Eze. 8:17-18), to refuse to listen to God’s call and to ignore His hand of discipline (Pr. 1:24-25), to turn a stubborn shoulder and stop our ears from hearing; to make our hearts like flint so that we cannot hear His law or His words (Zech. 7:11-13)…these are the things that hinder our prayers.
It is not prayer that is flawed. It is us.
As a man whom Jesus healed from blindness once said:
“We know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is God-fearing and does His will, He hears him.”
John 9:31
Therefore, it is only right that our leaders and pastors call for and encourage prayer during a national crisis where stores are being looted and burned due to generations of unchecked racial injustice, and a pandemic has forced us to consider and protect our mortality.
God promises terrible things to His people if they will not obey Him, and we may be witnessing the bud of God’s justice beginning to open.
But God is not a god of judgment only. He is also a god of redemption and peace. A god of healing, not hatred. And ultimately a god of love, salvation and eternal life.
Therefore, God has promised that when He sends pestilence on the land or allows it to be devoured that “if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (2 Chron. 7:14)
We must understand.
This is not a call to prayer only.
This is a call to repentance.
Isaiah 1:16-19 says:
Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause.
Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
The first step in this repentance is humility. God wants His people to humble themselves. “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” (Ps. 51:17) We Christians must bow down, weep and intercede before our Lord on behalf of our country. We must boldly admit any implicit or explicit culpability we hold as individuals or as the corporate body of Christ for God’s judgment upon this nation and turn from our wicked ways. It is not enough to be outraged at injustice or depravity. We must be bold witnesses who engage the culture with the transforming power that the Gospel and discipleship in Jesus Christ can bring. Therefore, humble yourself.
Second, we must pray. But how?
Center your prayer not around your will or your wants or your selfish desires. Center your prayer around God’s will both for us and for this nation. “And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.” (1 Jn. 5:14).
Do not trust in your power or man’s ability or any earthly strength. But ask God to exercise His strength and to exhibit His power for the glorification of His name.
“Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!” (1 Chron. 16:11)
“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” (Ps. 20:7)
“Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.” (Zech. 4:6)
Pray in the Spirit, not in yourself. And make prayer a continuous practice, regardless of the occasion. You do not have to wait for a crisis to pray. But be alert. God’s people need continuous prayer. We can fall into sin just as easily as anyone else.
“Pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17)
“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” (Eph. 6:18 NIV)
“I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.” (Jn. 17:15)
“Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Mt. 26:41)
Renew your mind every day with scripture. Let this be the filter through which you engage the world and discern God’s will, so that God is glorified among the unrighteous. The world looks at life through a competitive lens of “us vs. them,” which invariably leads to increased aggression, pain, and suffering. Do not fall into this trap.
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Rom. 12:2)
“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel.” (Php. 1:27)
“In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” (Mt. 5:16)
Don’t give up. Don’t lose heart.
“And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? 8 I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Luke 18:7-8)
“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)
Third, “seek God’s face.” This is where one’s Christian life becomes less of a intermittent activity and more of a continual pursuit of His presence.
“Seek His face continually!” (Ps. 105:4)
“Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world” (James 4:8 NLT)
The fourth and final step in repentance is to turn from your wicked ways. Godly, humble, contrite, repentant prayer is not only a passive action one does on his knees; it is also an active public expression of faith he takes among his people.
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so thatthey may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. (Matt. 5:16)
Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” (Acts 3:6)
For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. (2 Cor. 7:10)
Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy. (Pr. 28:13)
Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10 For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit;11 let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” 13 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, 16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. 17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil. (1 Pet. 3:8-17)
Come, let us not be children, playing with prayer as if it some chemistry set. But may we get ourselves right with God. Then we can work together to lift our nation, our cities, our leaders and our enemies up to the Lord with prayers that conform to His will and cannot be hindered. Then we will see healing come to our land.
“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. (James 5:16 NIV)
“But we will not boast beyond limits, but will boast only with regard to the area of influence God assigned to us, to reach even to you. 14 For we are not overextending ourselves, as though we did not reach you. For we were the first to come all the way to you with the gospel of Christ.15 We do not boast beyond limit in the labors of others. But our hope is that as your faith increases, our area of influence among you may be greatly enlarged, 16 so that we may preach the gospel in lands beyond you, without boasting of work already done in another’s area of influence. 17 “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” 18 For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.” (2 Cor. 10:13-18)
A few weeks ago we looked at this same verse and examined what it meant to be “assigned an area of influence by God.” (v.13) We looked at how each of us has an area of influence, and how our job is to help increase the faith of those we influence.
But what does it mean to “increase someone’s faith?” How do we know what we’re looking for in the lives of those whom we disciple?
Fortunately, Paul answered this question for us in his letter to the Ephesians. In the third chapter of that letter he says that he prays for the following characteristics to manifest themselves in the lives of his disciples (see bold/underlined below, enumerations are mine):
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father,15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named,16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you 1)to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being,17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being 2)rooted and grounded in love,18 may have 3)strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth,19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be 4)filled with all the fullness of God.
But Paul does not leave it at that. He does not just pray for the people he disciples and leave the rest to God. He realizes that there is a responsibility that one has towards those he disciples in order to increase their faith. Therefore, he spends the entire chapter outlining for us how he, as an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, went about this task. The prayer quoted above is only a piece of what he did. But as you can see in the table below, the discipler increases his disciples’ faith through much, much more than merely bowing before God for the people in his area of influence. He takes an active role in their faith journey, both when he is with them and when he is away.
Here is an outline of chapter 3 to help us understand how to apply these same efforts for the people we influence.
Verse
Responsibility
v.1 – For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles
Know that when you invest your life in increasing the faith of others, your sufferings will no longer be about you alone but will also be on behalf of those you are influencing. Therefore, you must remember your disciples, encouraging them and enduring your suffering on their behalf.
v. 2-3 – assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3 how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly.
You are to be a faithful/good steward of the grace of God. This means that you must not only correctly handle the word of truth but must also work to not defame God’s grace by your choices or lifestyle. Your example is a powerful, visible reminder to others of not only whatyou are teaching but also howit practically expresses itself and makes a difference in a person’s life. (2 Tim. 2:15)
v. 4-5 – When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.
Let others perceive your insight into the mystery of Christ as you teach to them the truth.
Rely only on God for revelation into this mystery. Your talent or intellect or abilities are nothing when used in the service of yourself. But when you use them in the service of God, others can see Him and understand the truth as He defines it.
v. 7 – Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace, which was given me by the working of his power.
Keep this idea foremost in your mind: you are a minister to this person/these people according to the gift of God’s grace and that this was given you by the working of His power. You did not conjure this up on your own. And you do not sustain it on your own. It is all of God, from God, and for God.
v. 8a – To me, though I am the very least of all the saints,
Be humble — view yourself as the least of the saints.
v. 8b-10 – this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in[b] God, who created all things, 10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.
Focus your teachings on two overarching emphases: 1) the unsearchable riches of Christ and 2) to bring light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery of the ages. This will allow the church to be the vehicle through which the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. (Meaning, we are not only witnessing these truths to those whom we can see but also to those whom we cannot see)
v. 11-13 – This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him. 13 So I ask you not to lose heart over what I am suffering for you, which is your glory.
Receive the boldness you have in Christ and access Him with the confidence you have through faith in Him.
Exemplify this boldness in your own sufferings so those you are influencing can see how to not lose heart in trials and can learn from your example of how to stand firm (Eph. 6:10-20)
v. 14-17a – For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family[c] in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith
Pray diligently to God that He may strengthen your disciples with power through His Spirit in your inner being according to the riches of his glory SO THAT Christ may dwell in their hearts through faith.
v. 17b-19 – that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Pray that they will be 1) rooted and grounded in love, 2) have strength to comprehend the breadth and length and height and depth of this love, and 3) to know that the love of Christ surpasses knowledge, i.e. that they may be filled with the fullness of God. Do not pray for only one of these characteristics. Pray for all of these things. For without all of them in your disciples, your disciples lack the fullness of God and will make poor ambassadors for Christ to the world and to those whom they eventually disciple as well.
v. 20-21 – Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Pray that God’s incomprehensible purposes will be accomplished according to the power at work within your disciples FOR THE GLORY OF GOD.
Pray that these things will occur both in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout ALL generations. Do not pray for these to occur in your disciples only. Have a long-term view in mind. Pray for the generations coming after them as well, for your area(s) of influence do not end at the people you know. They only begin there. There are myriads of people who will follow the example you established in your disciples. And they will pass this example onto other generations as well. Pray as broadly and boldly as you can, exploring the depth and breadth of all you can ask or imagine, but leave the work of accomplishing these prayers to the One who is able and can do far more, according to the power at work in us. May He receive the glory, not us, both in the church and in Christ throughout all generations, so that it may never be said: “They forgot the LORD their God.” (1 Sam. 12:9)
Now, go. Be His witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria, making disciples of all nations, “baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,teaching them to observe all that [He has] commanded you.” And behold, He will be with you always, even to the end of the age. (Acts 1:8; Mt. 28:18-20)
Ever had one of those days when you read the Bible and your meditations on the Word lead to random connections that you never saw before? I have had this occur so many times, I have come to realize that this experience transcends mere free association or brainstorming. It is the Holy Spirit revealing His ideas and truth to me in a way that helps me understand God, my relationship with Him, and His Word better.
Some days are, admittedly, ho-hum. But today is not one of those days.
Although it is only 8:30 a.m. at the time of this writing here is a journey through my mind this morning. Continue reading →
“But we will not boast beyond limits, but will boast only with regard to the area of influence God assigned to us, to reach even to you. 14 For we are not overextending ourselves, as though we did not reach you. For we were the first to come all the way to you with the gospel of Christ.15 We do not boast beyond limit in the labors of others. But our hope is that as your faith increases, our area of influence among you may be greatly enlarged, 16 so that we may preach the gospel in lands beyond you, without boasting of work already done in another’s area of influence. 17 “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” 18 For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.” (2 Cor. 10:13-18)
Every one of us Christians is in ministry. Without exception. We may not all be formally ordained or have a huge following of some kind, but God does not define ministry in this way. First, He gives you Christ. Second, He assigns an area of influence to you, and third, He asks that you use your influence to increase the faith of those in your area so that your area of influence may grow and others’ faith may be increased as well. This is what Jesus meant when he talked about us going to Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and even to the end of the earth (Acts 1:8). We begin in one area of influence and as the faith of the people there increases, our area of influence is greatly enlarged “so that we may preach the gospel in lands beyond [them].” (v. 16)
So, look around you. What are the areas of influence that God has assigned to you?
…Wait. You don’t have one?
Are you sure?
Do you have a family?
A job?
A blog?
A church?
A community?
How about a Facebook account?
Or a little league baseball team that you coach?
Maybe you have a business partner, a client list, or employees?
Perhaps your area of influence is a neighbor, a best friend, or the hobo you always see on the street corner.
The list could go on and on.
The point is: we are all in ministry. And the areas of influence that God has assigned to us are plural, not singular, in nature.
We are called to be a gospel people in each of these areas, teaching all that Christ commanded us so that the faith of others grows, our territory expands (1 Chron. 4:10) and we make disciples of all nations.
Such a perspective may be a different way of looking at your life and admittedly there are traps along the way. Therefore it is helpful to use the above passage as a helpful model in praying for your ministry, whatever your area(s) of influence may be.
1) Focus on the area of influence God has assigned to you
2) Ask that God will prevent you from overextending yourself or boasting as though you reached those you have not reached with the Gospel.
3) Ask that God will greatly enlarge the people’s faith so that your area of influence may also expand, so that you may be able to preach the gospel in other lands beyond the original people or group God assigned to you.
4) Pray that as you grow you will be humble, not taking credit for the work others have already done in those lands but boasting in only what the Lord does through you in those new places.
5) Earnestly pray that your only boast will be boasting in the Lord, both for the willing and the doing of the work.
6) Ask that you will not be approved because you commend yourself (i.e., clever marketing or prideful boasting in how you have used your talents) but because God commands you. Let the whole work, the spreading of the Gospel, the preaching, the expansion, and the approval be God-centric. “For it is God who works in you, BOTH to will AND to work for his good pleasure.” (Php. 2:13)
Amen
Remember, God gives you authority in the areas of influence He has assigned to you in order to build up, not tear down, someone’s faith (2 Cor. 13:10). Now go, asking God to answer this one question through you: How can I build up someone’s faith in my areas of influence today?
I was recently walking through a Half-Price Books when I saw a title in the religious section that grabbed my eye: “The Power of I Am.”
Hmm. That sounds interesting, I thought, imagining the different theological approaches someone could take by focusing on the name of God. Ignoring the author, I flipped the book over to read the description on the back cover. I quickly discovered that I had not only picked up a Joel Osteen bestseller but I had also stumbled upon a blatant theft of God’s precious name in the service of the prosperity gospel. Since I didn’t buy the book, here is the description according to Amazon.com:
Whatever follows the words “I am” will always come looking for you.
So, when you go through the day saying: “I am blessed”…blessings pursue you. “I am talented”…talent follows you. “I am healthy”…health heads your way. “I am strong”…strength tracks you down.
Joel Osteen reveals how THE POWER OF I AM can help you discover your unique abilities and advantages to lead a more productive and happier life. His insights and encouragement are illustrated with many amazing stories of people who turned their lives around by focusing on the positive power of this principle. You can choose to rise to a new level and invite God’s goodness by focusing on these two words: I AM!
It shocked me that a pastor would blatantly encourage me to adopt God’s name as my own personal mantra to self-improvement, but then I wondered how many stars reviewers gave this book. Wanna guess? Out of 1,491 reviews, the average rating (on a 1-5 scale) was…
4.27 stars!
I would assume these ratings are by people who consider themselves Christian and/or spiritual. But one has to wonder how representative are these readers of the Christian community? And do they understand this principle is not even biblical?
To understand why, let’s take a quick look at 2 Cor. 4:5:
“For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.” (2 Cor. 4:5)
WHAT WE PROCLAIM IS NOT OURSELVES
Paul centers his sights directly on the pride of man. He knows that it is an easy criticism for others to say that he is only doing what he is doing for himself. When a person receives attention, fame, wealth, power, or any other of the myriad of earthly pleasures, no one cares what vehicle they used to acquire these things. They only care about replicating the same success for themselves. They assume that these rewards are the result of Paul creating a successful brand centered around himself. So, Paul counters this argument and insists “what we proclaim is not ourselves.”
Notice, he does not deny that he is proclaiming something. Nor does he deny that it is for someone’s glory and fame. His point is that their proclamation is not for his own benefit but for Christ’s. It is to make Jesus known as Lord.
The tragedy is that so many people, including Christians, get this confused today. They place all their focus on the gifts God has given them and forget all about proclaiming the Giver as Lord. In other words, they make the gifts the object of their worship, and an unbelieving, cynical world looks on, scratching its head and saying, “There’s no difference between you and me. You want the same things I want. You value the same things I value. You just tack ‘God’ on the end of it and I don’t.” Such a proclamation is not winning anyone to Christ and is failing to make Jesus known as Lord.
BUT JESUS CHRIST AS LORD
So, how do you keep from falling into this trap? How do you demonstrate to a lost and unregenerate generation that there is more than just a difference in belief (i.e., theistic vs. atheistic) that separates you from them? You must live in such a way that the undeniable conclusion others come to is that your life proclaims one truth: Jesus is Lord. You cannot serve two masters. You will either love one and hate the other or you will hate the one and love the other. But you cannot be a “both-and” believer. This is an “either-or” choice. Either you pursue money, recognition, approval, ease, and comfort to make much of yourself, or you deny yourself, pursue the approval of God, and exert all your energies into making it known that Jesus Christ is Lord.
Be honest. Who do you seek to exalt? Whom does your heart desire to receive all the glory? You or Christ? You cannot have it both ways, for God is very clear on this point: “My glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.” (Isa. 42:8) Therefore, if your attempts at self-exaltation are doomed to fail, if God will not relinquish one ounce of His glory to share with you, if your pride always precedes a fall, then give up this inexorable effort and proclaim not yourself, but Jesus Christ as Lord.
WITH OURSELVES AS YOUR SERVANTS
Paul continues to extrapolate the point that he did not proclaim himself by reminding them that he became their servant. Servants do not lead. They follow. They minister to the needs of those they serve. They make themselves humble. They put themselves in the place of others and are committed to their growth. They do not seek exaltation. They do not desire power. They are meek, longsuffering, good stewards, and practice restraint.
But perhaps the most definitive, yet challenging, quality of a servant is their selflessness.
To refuse to put one’s needs and desires above the person he serves is one of the most difficult things to do. But when a person is the servant of another this characteristic must exist in order to be called a servant. We cannot look to ourselves. We cannot proclaim ourselves. We cannot place ourselves above others. Instead, we must follow the instruction of Philippians 2:3-4, which says “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.”
So, when Paul says that he was the servant of others, he is reinforcing the idea that he did nothing out of selfish ambition.
FOR JESUS’ SAKE
But then Paul goes one step farther when he says that he was their servant for Jesus’ sake. This is how we all ought to serve. We are servants to others only for the sake of Christ. We are not servants to others for THEIR sake. That would mistake the missional work of the Church for a man-centric work, whereby we focus on the short-term physical needs of people. Nor are we servants for OUR sake. That would mistake the work of the Church for a man-exalting work, whereby we are more about self-promotion than the eternal glory of Christ. We serve, yes. But we serve others FOR THE SAKE OF CHRIST. We serve to set forth Christ as supremely valuable, so that all other pursuits may be exposed as transient and insignificant in comparison to Him. It is for this reason that Paul says, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Cor. 10:31)
We do not serve to alleviate a human ill, but to elevate a glorious God. Alleviating the need may be a byproduct of our God-glorifying action, but it is not the reason for the action. When the focus of missions is on making the beauty and the perfections of God public and not on the temporary needs of man, the Gospel can be preached effectively, and many can come to a saving faith in Him. Suddenly they will no longer see the Church as another helping institution but will see God working through His people in His power by His instruction and for His glory.
Such behavior will transform “receiving Christ” from holding one’s self as supremely valuable and using God and His grace as the means of honoring or protecting that value. Rather, it will hold Christ as supremely valuable, over and above ourselves and anything else in this world. For, any prize that I cling to above Christ does not reflect a new nature but only the same old carnal, man-exalting nature I have always had. But when I proclaim not myself, but Jesus as Lord, when I become your servant for the sake of Christ, I demonstrate more than a difference in belief. I demonstrate a change has occurred. I have not taken an old thing, clothed it in new garments, and sprinkled it with glitter. My nature and everything I live for has been changed from the inside out.
I was excited and intrigued the other day when you sent me a text message that stated you were feeling God’s call to be a theologian. I think this is exciting and wonderful and a glorious thing and would love to talk to you more about it in detail. But first I have some preliminary things I want to say.
First, please be aware that we are all theologians. From the most strident atheist to the most devout moralist to the most humble evangelist, all of us humans participate in the study and analysis of God, His attributes, and His relationship with the universe.
The atheist does this through denial. He examines the evidence to the best of his ability, analyzes God, the premises established regarding God’s character, and how God is to relate to the universe (particularly on an individual level), and he denies the existence of a supreme being. For him, something else is more valuable in this universe than any proposed god, particularly a Christian one. For some that is the universe itself. For some it is science. For others it is hedonism. But whatever it is that they decide to attribute supreme value to, then that thing becomes the object of their study and analysis and the defining framework for their lives. In other words, it becomes their god.
The moralist is only slightly different. Like the atheist, moralists have examined the evidence and done some analysis as well but they have concluded that there is a supreme being; however, they may or may not agree that this god is the Christian god. The moralist’s approach this supreme being, though, through the lens of works, not denial. They believe that it is the accumulation of good deeds that gains the favor of the supreme being, so they spend the majority of their lives performing good works in an attempt to outweigh all the bad that they have also done. Moralists, it must be pointed out, can be avid students (or followers) of other religions or they can be non-religious altogether. It doesn’t really matter, because their god is not the supreme being that they acknowledge. It is themselves and the good works that they can accomplish. And they spend their lives organizing their lives around this central ideal.
The last category of theologian, I would argue, is the Christian. This is the most difficult position to maintain, not because there is no evidence to support their position but because they are called to do everything in their lives in such a way as to make Christ appear more valuable than anything else. Christians are called to live their lives defiantly. To organize their lives around the central principle of “whether through my life or through my death, I will endeavor to display Christ as not only supremely valuable to me but to also make His value and His perfections publicly seen and experienced so clearly through ALL that I do, that He is recognized as supremely valuable over all.” (Php. 1:20-21; 1 Cor. 10:31) Such a calling is both convicting and conforming at the same time. For as we seek through our lives to make others see and experience the supreme value, worth, and desirability of God, we find ourselves constantly being challenged to release the selfish ambitions of moralism and the intellectual conceit of atheism so that we may, in humility, put on the mind of Christ and conform more and more to His image (Php. 2:3-8).
We Christians are theologians of a different stripe. We are not called to love ourselves. We are called to love the Lord with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Because we are self-centered people we do love ourselves, as is pointed out in “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But this is not a command to love yourself. It is a command to love your neighbor. It works off of the assumption that you do and you will love yourself and that this selfish, self-centered action can teach you how you ought to act towards others. Indeed, Jesus paraphrased this command in the famous Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” (Matt. 7:12)
“Christians,” He seems to be saying, “as you study and analyze the attributes and character of God, as you make Him the center of your life (and not yourself) love God so passionately that your love for Him overflows into your love for others…Remember, you are God’s representative on this earth and He makes His appeal to the lost through you.” (2 Cor. 5:20)
Therefore, my dear friend, I would ask you to please consider what you mean when you say, “God is calling me to be a theologian.” If you imagine a theologian to be a deep thinker about God or a seminarian or even a pastor/priest of some kind, that’s all well and good, but please do not fall into the trap of being so intellectually or morally invested in Christianity that you fail to actually apply or live out the truth of the Gospel among the lost. Good theologians are not only good students or good citizens. They are people of defiant faith. The ones who stand up against the tide of a post-truth culture and create a fixed reference point for all those seeking land in a fluid-truth society.
Good theologians are not ashamed. They are full of courage so that Christ is always honored in their body, whether by life or by death (Php. 1:20). They hear the edict, know the consequences of honoring God, and say, “I am trusting in God, and regardless of whether I die or not, I will only worship and serve Him.” (Daniel 3:17-18) Such faith can be found throughout both the Old and New Testaments as well as in modern examples, such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who faced down the Nazi regime and its horrible atrocities with a steely will and the Word of God.
Make no mistake, my friend, if God is calling you to be a theologian, He is calling you to action. He is calling you to take the Word and show the world how it is not only an efficacious and viable option for life but how it is the supreme framework for living. The absolute truth among many choices. Be aware that such living comes prepackaged with danger and suffering as well as with rewards and the eternal echo of “Well done, my good and faithful servant.”
God may be calling you to learn more. He may be calling to live better. But please, be the theologian who also “plays the man,” (2 Sa. 10:12) facing down the evil within this world, and making the value and the glory of God shine brightly within the encroaching darkness, whether it be by your life or your death.
Yesterday we prayed that God would remove the spirit of slothfulness within us. That we would use the days He has given us well and that He would help us live an unwasted life.
But let me ask you: How did you follow up on this today?
Did the love of God overflow into actions for God? Did you look at your Sunday and postpone what should have been done so that you could take a nap? Or watch Netflix? Or play a video game?
Did you think about the prayer we prayed yesterday, consider the time you have left, and ask, “What can I do today? How can I spend today for God’s glory?”
I don’t ask this because I want you to feel guilty.
I ask this because, personally, I failed.
I went to church today. I read my Bible. I prayed. But when I looked at my backyard, I thought, “I’ll get my son to do that later.” And when I realized that he wouldn’t have time, I thought, “Well, it can be postponed at least one more week.”
Umm. No, it can’t.
And when I considered the letter I got from my HOA a week ago about alleged mildew on the side of my chimney, did I go buy the Spray and Forget like I knew I should?
No. I didn’t.
You know what I did instead?
I read a few pages out of Eric Metaxas’ book Martin Luther, told myself I should finish writing a new blog post on the marriage blog I have, and then…
I turned on my computer, logged into the website of my favorite baseball team “just to see what the score was” and wound up watching the last few innings of what turned out to be an incredible ballgame.
By the time that was done, it was almost supper time. I knew my wife had been feeling ill all day and that I would most likely be in charge of cooking, but it was late now and I had NO idea how to make a chicken pot pie.
I mean, I could try.
I’m smart.
I could’ve probably done it, had I bothered looking for the recipe. Instead, I ordered pizza for the family, watched an episode of Seinfeld, and used a piece of key lime pie “to erase that thirsty feeling pepperoni makes in your mouth.” (No, really.)
And that’s when I finally slowed down my procrastinating long enough to hear a still, small voice remind me about yesterday’s post, specifically about how I had typed the following words as a sincere prayer to my Lord: “Kill the spirit of slothfulness that has strapped itself to my soul.”
I wanted to say, “Hey. That’s not fair, God. Using my words against me?”
But I knew He’d just shrug and say, “You prayed for this.”
And He’d be right. Because that’s the way it is with prayer.
Prayer is not only a problem I lay at God’s feet to resolve but also an invitation He lays at my feet to become more involved in His work. Prayer is not a package I drop off at God’s post office. It is a process of God shaping my heart so that I may publicly demonstrate His goodness and perfection to others.
It is not a singular event I engage in for five minutes every morning. It is an unceasing, persistent pleading, an intentional listening to the Spirit’s urgings, and a fearless obedience to follow Him wherever He may lead.
But, prayer is also failing.
It is staying in the boat while others walk on water. It is being lazy when we should be at war. It is loving ourselves more than we love God. It is exchanging infinite joy for finite pleasures, water for dirt, holidays for prison, and it is fueled by rationalization, justification, intellectualization, and good ol’ procrastination.
Yet, God still looks at us and says, “You wanted this change…So, let’s change.”
Prayer is confession. It is repentance, an intentional turning away from all that has trapped us in sin. It is working out our own salvation with fear and trembling. In short, prayer is a daily battle.
So, if you’re like me, and you failed today at what you prayed for yesterday, look at your calendar for tomorrow. Look at your wants and your needs. Pull up in your mind who you will be meeting with at work and the deadlines you have to meet.
Spread your day and your fears and the tauntings in your mind out before the Lord like Hezekiah, begging God to take your day and use it for His glory (2 Kings 19:14-19). To incline your heart to His testimonies, not for selfish gain. (Ps. 119:36) For there will be many enemies to fight, the most cunning of which is ourselves, but although the day will be a battle, “the victory belongs to the Lord.” (Pr. 21:31)
living in the tent 