02/23/2022
As Christians we long to serve the Lord, and to do His will, but we don’t do this out of fear, but rather a loving desire to please Him. God tells us that we are to serve Him, but then we are offered many wonderful blessings for doing so… none of these is more desirable than to experience His pleasure in us.
“And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.””
Matthew 3:16-17 ESV
What a feeling that must have been for Jesus! He had spent His early years, learning, and growing in the knowledge of His Heavenly Father, and now He was receiving His Father’s praise. When we read these verses we can feel that sense of joy and accomplishment too, and we think to ourselves that one day we want to hear those same words spoken about us. We want to be God’s chosen servant, even as Jesus was…
“Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.”
Isaiah 42:1 ESV
We were created, and prepared to serve Him, from the foundations of the world. We are meant to love, serve, and worship God, but there isn’t a lack of joy, or a shortage of pleasure in this for us when we do so. God rewards us daily by blessing us repeatedly.
Like most children I had chores to do while growing up. Oh, I was expected to go to school, to church, and to learn the customs and morals of the land, but I had daily work to do too. When I was at my grandparent’s farm I gathered eggs, slopped hogs, helped my grandmother milk the cow, and performed other farm related jobs, but I was a city boy most of the time. Growing up away from the farm I helped by cleaning up my room, helping my mother and father perform various household tasks, and there was none that I dreaded, or took greater pleasure in, than yard work. mowing the yard on a hot summer day, or gathering up the fallen leaves on a blustery and bitterly cold fall afternoon are not pleasant tasks, but looking back on a beautifully manicured yard when my work was done, and hearing my mother say that the yard looked so beautiful, gave me great joy. It is the same when we serve the Lord. Many spiritual jobs are not fun, but the satisfaction we get from pleasing the Lord makes them worth the doing. There is reward in doing chores wherever they are performed, and scripture reassures us that that there is reward in working for God’s kingdom as well…
“You shall serve the Lord your God, and he will bless your bread and your water, and I will take sickness away from among you.”
Exodus 23:25 ESV
We work, and do all things for the glory of God, but just like we experienced a certain sense of joy when we listen to God speak of His pleasure in Jesus, we also feel a certain amount of pleasure, and a degree of God’s glory, in what we do for Him every day.
“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”
2 Corinthians 3:17-18 ESV
Are we ready to serve? Are we ready to feel the shared joy, and receive the blessing that His pleasure in us brings?
Prayer:
Father, thank you for the heavenly chores that allow us to glorify you, and thank you for pouring out your pleasure and glory upon us as you reward us. Help us to endure the daily hardships that come as we work, and serve you. Send gentle breezes to cool us as we sweat, and a warm sun to make the cold bearable. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God who blesses us in our labor for your kingdom, and expresses your pleasure in us. Praised be your name for every opportunity we have to bring you glory, and for the joy we feel in it. Merciful are you who sees the labor of our faith, and who strengthens and refreshes us as we grow weak. Cleanse us of all sin and evil filth Father using the blood of your Son Jesus, and the living water that flows from Him to purify us. Express your pleasure in us Abba, and call us your children. Seat us at your table, and feed us your Word. Give us eternity to worship you, and sing of your glory Lord, and walk with us round your temple to praise the good work we have done there for you.
“Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.”
Hebrews 13:15-16 ESV
Rich Forbes