Matthew 25:31-46; Numbers 32-34; Job 2
How do I please God? By helping everyone, even those who do not seem important. It is not that service that earns salvation, but the acts of service are an outpouring of a surrendered and changed heart.
The tribes of Rueben and Gad didn’t want to enter the promised land. I don’t know if that was a good move or not, but whatever it was, they decided not to complete the journey as promised. However, God would hold them to their promise anyway. They were needed to give support to the rest of Israel, and so they had to postpone their personal plans in order to help their family for a bit longer. Is that what God wants? For someone to choose economic prosperity over the promised land? I’m fairly certain the answer would be ‘no.’ But The Lord does want us to help our family and friends, often times before we help ourselves.
Sin is not to be messed with or compromised with. Sin is sin and it is evil. Those that choose sinful lifestyles and make no attempt to serve the Lord, will always cause trouble for the believers who choose to live in close proximity to them. It is not easy to resist temptation all the time, and it is frustrating to watch people destroy themselves through sin. God wants us to rid ourselves and our lives of the sin that separates us from him. Completely, no compromise.
What is interesting is that God takes responsibility for Job’s problems, even though it was probably Satan’s hand at work. God gives permission to for anything to happen, nothing is outside of his control. And in the midst of disaster, Job didn’t once blame God or sin against him—he realized that life and God will give both blessings and hardships. God never promises that life will be easy. While the “yoke may be easy and the burden light,” his expectations of his people are simple. The Lord wants us to follow him with all my heart and love others, and that is it. It is going to be difficult, however, because not only are we fighting against our nature of sin, but also against Satan’s hand and plans to destroy. I pray that we would have faith in the hard times and for such a faith as Job’s who trusted in God's divine power no matter what.
No comments:
Post a Comment