-Here we behold the magnificent ultimate motivation and inspiration for all our endeavors. Whatever we do - as we study for an exam or do our homework or clean our room or do the dishes or fold the laundry or mop the floor or punch a keypad or sit in a meeting or make a transaction or as we practice or perform or work in any capacity, and as we interact with others in the process, there is One Who sees and is watching and Who knows our heart. He is the Beginning and the End, He is the Author and the Final Evaluator of all our endeavors. All things whatever we do - they are all from Him and are ultimately for Him. Whatever we do, we do for Him. And we do all these things through Him - through the gifts and skills and experience and wisdom and power that He provides. With these combined divine resources and inspiration, we can and should realize even greater results than one might otherwise expect. which is part of the point (cf John 14.12).
-This plays out for slaves, for anyone including us who is asked to do anything by someone in authority. Again, we are not considering anything that God would never ask us to do. But our response should be in whatever manner we would respond to God if He Himself were doing the asking. Yes sir. There are no ifs, ands, or buts. No whatifs. Yes Lord. And not like moses - ‘Who am I?’ (Exodus 3.11), ‘What will I say?’ (Exodus 3.13), ‘What if...?’ (Exodus 4.1), ‘I have never...’ (Exodus 4.10), ‘Please Lord not me’ (Exodus 4.13). And of course the human agents of God’s authority on earth don’t really inspire the same awe or respect, whether absent or in person, but therein lies the problem. Because we don’t even see a gilded throne surrounded by angels or a burning bush or the mountain and the lightning and the cloud, because we fail to see the connection between our Supreme Authority and this flawed, finite person (or agency), because we ourselves are flawed and prone to want to be the final arbiter of all things that concern us, and because we are "Americans" who are convinced that anything is doable and who want what we want when we want it and don’t want what we don’t want - we resist. We question. We bow up. We grumble and complain (of course Israel did this too - it is a universal condition). We begrudgingly comply and then goof off when they’re not around. We push the limits. We challenge. We disrespect. We disrespect our spouses. Our teachers. Our bosses. Our pastors. Our elders. Our leaders. We disrespect and dishonor the king and in doing so we disrespect and dishonor the Lord. Which one of us if God were the One making the decision or request would dare to question or hesitate? Who among us if the Lord were physically present among us would dilly dally or or deviate in any way? Why should it be any different with someone whom He has put in place as His appointed agent in our lives? Why should it be any different? It should not. We SO need the Lord to help us carefully watch our responses and our attitudes when we are relating to those in authority and as we submit and obey to them.
-You and I don’t like hearing this stuff because we are the stuff of rebels. We don’t even want to admit it, but it is true. And we need to confess it. Because this is the heart of the problem. We have a heart condition, preconditioned and predisposed towards rebellion. Even obedience can be carried out with an insincere heart, a rebellious attitude, a casual disregard, a half-hearted effort. We may think our heart towards God is just fine while all the while we are disrespecting one of His agents. We may not even make the connection.
-Those who God has put in authority do not need to earn our respect. Nor do they need to be perfect. They are not all bad when they make a mistake or a decision with which we disagree. We need to get past them and look past and above them at the One Who is looking at us and is watching to see our hearts. What He cares about is our heart towards Him. And we desperately need to learn to make respect and submission to authority on earth a matter of sincere and reverent, whole-hearted, full-out obedience to Him. Because in the end, we are slaves of Jesus. We ought to live like it...
-And in the end, a promise. There is a reward waiting for us, an inheritance. One we will receive from the hand of God, from the Lord Himself. Paul doesn’t give us details here, but we know from elsewhere that this reward, this inheritance is one we actually share with Jesus (Romans 8.15-17). It is eternal glory. Pure unending unadulterated breathtaking goodness which can never fade, tarnish, or be damaged in any way (1Peter 1.4). Yes, it will take our breath away more than any glimpse of glory we ever got in this life. Moses got a brief glimpse of the backside of this glory and he was done. He stayed there in that place, 40 days without food or water, basking in the Presence. He got such a glow on his face that he freaked people out and had to cover his face. Imagine what a long-term full frontal glimpse of glory will be like. Try to imagine it if you can. This is what awaits those who serve the Lord. This is why we do our best in every situation, whatever is asked of us.
No comments:
Post a Comment