Today I am contemplating one of the longer sentences in the Bible. It gives us instruction on how to conduct ourselves as Christians and ministers of the gospel, and if you ever have a question regarding good spiritual behavior then you can probably find it listed in this sentence. But, what would it take to live these attributes to the full pleasure of God? How much interaction with the Holy Spirit will it require to achieve this level of sanctity?
We don't choose our calling, but we do choose to be obey it. This is our concentration today, and should be one of our greatest fears in following Jesus, and obeying God’s will. In answering a call will we find joy and purpose in serving Him, or will that calling supplant Jesus as the focus of our lives? If we are called out, or away, and given a new direction will we recognize His voice, and be able to let go of what we have allowed to become our life’s mission, and the purpose in it?
Are we being busy for Jesus, so busy that we never stop long enough to hear what He is really calling us to do? I worry about this often. I fill my life with the things that I know are similar to those things which Jesus did, or has told us in scripture to do, but are these really things that He is asking of me right now? Today? Every day is new, and the Lord's mercies and compassions are new as well. So how is it that I feel inclined to latch onto a single thing that the Lord has told me to do and revisit it every day?
We have looked at John 21:17 to explore the love and equipping of Peter as Jesus questioned him, but this morning let's look at what He was being told to do when Jesus said "Feed my sheep." I find it interesting that when Jesus questioned Peter and told him to "Feed his sheep" that all the apostles (including Peter) had already received the Holy Spirit and directions, but here Peter was being given more. Let's review what happened and what they were told when the Holy Spirit was breathed onto them...
This morning let’s explore why Peter was grieved when Jesus asked him three times if he loved Him. I am also considering Peter's response; "Lord, thou knowest all things." This is a powerful moment and fuels Peter's ability to answer his calling. Is it a moment which fuels our own?
Do we love Jesus without wavering? Do we love Him as much as He would like for us to? This is what I am mulling over in my mind this morning. I am asking myself if my faith is sufficient, and if my love for Jesus Christ is deep enough. I am also contemplating how I could possibly face failure if the answer to either of these questions was no, and if Jesus would, or could, still love me if that were so.
We say that we believe in Jesus Christ. This is what I am contemplating this morning... do we simply acknowledge Him, or do we really believe in Him for who He is? This sounds like a dangerous question, but it is one that Jesus Himself asked His apostles when they told Him that they believed. Did the apostles really know who He was? Could they possibly understand what it meant to be the Son of God? How about us? Do we now believe? Listen to their words and the answer Jesus gave them... Then let’s each answer Jesus’ question ourselves.
Yesterday we visited John 4:11 during our morning contemplation, and today we are going to return there as we dwell on the almighty nature of God and Jesus. I read a statement made by Oswald Chambers in which he wrote "The reason some of us are such poor specimens of Christianity is because we have no Almighty Christ." I looked at myself and asked if I was included in such an observation… are you wondering the same thing right now?
This morning, I would like us to deal with the worry that we might have at times, or in some manner or circumstance in which we have doubted that Jesus could help us when we have called out to Him or done some other thing that has exhibited little faith. Haven’t we on occasion dealt with a nagging fear that we might have stood at the well with Him and said... "Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep." Haven’t we told ourselves that we trust Jesus completely but then in a bad situation questioned His ability, and wondered if we were trusting in Him enough?
When we are called by God do we respond with reservation in our voices? Do we tremble as we step hesitantly forward? Or does our fear prohibit us from stepping forward at all? These are the things we will contemplate this morning. In order to gauge our own willingness to serve God with total confidence in His provision, we only need to look at the life of Jesus. He chose to live a pauper’s life of little and thus had nothing as He hung dying on the cross… not even His clothes. Yet throughout His life God provided for Him... He sent the Magi with gifts that might sustain Him in His youth, and this was only the beginning of God's providing for Him. Jesus received only those things He needed, when He needed them, and He endured this poverty and suffering so that we too might receive riches in glory.
My wife often says that I could easily have become a hermit. I have to admit that over the years I have been tempted on occasion to withdraw to a place where all I needed to survive would be food, shelter, and God. But is a monastic life the reason God called me, or sent Jesus to die for us? After much thought I concluded that I didn’t think so. Interestingly, the definitions of the words Hermit and Holy both include a separation from the world… hermits often separating themselves for religious purposes, and holy men being separated unto God for His purposes.
On this day in 2017 I gave a speech before my company on humility, service, and being a servant manager and employee. What better day to contemplate our servant role in faith, and the lessons that Jesus taught us in this regard than to do so right now. In fact it is always the perfect day and time to contemplate and speak about being humble, and serving others because this isn’t something we should do every so often, but in every moment of every day. Let's listen to the words Jesus spoke on this subject:
I was reading my devotional this morning and came upon something that set me back. As I thought about it, I realized that it was true... what I read was a statement regarding man's greatest fear which is that Jesus might fail. Pastor Oswald Chambers explained it in this way:
I am wondering about my displays of love for God this morning. Have I ever thrown caution to the wind and done something totally outlandish and bold for Him... not out of reason but just because? Have I left behind my more stoic religious faith and loved Him completely from my heart? Have I loved Him with reckless abandon?
This morning I am thinking about procrastination and the lack of motion after God has called us to action in dreams and visions. Pastor Oswald Chambers wrote about dreaming and divided them into two different types... healthy dreams that bring inspiration and creativity, and unhealthy dreams that replace activity and accomplishment with inaction. Jesus spoke on a healthy dream as he prepared to take action on His calling: