Ephesians 2:8-10 - For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
God made us and saved us to do good works. These works were prepared for us beforehand that we should walk in them.
Do you believe this applies to you? Are you walking in the prepared work of God for your life? Or are you like so many I meet that are still wondering what those works should be? If God prepared the works for you specifically and He prepared them beforehand, why is it so difficult for many to find those works?
The only way to find the prepared works is to follow the God that prepared them for us. Many times we let other things lead us into ministry hoping to find the Eph. 2:10 works. We sit and plan and try to come up with what things are needed in order to do the works we think God wants from us. We plan and budget how much money it will take to do what we think we are made to do. Structure and money should never lead ministry. These things are the other master Jesus refers to when He tells us there are only two masters we can serve.
The thing that often leads people in their search for the 2:10 works is this idea that their likes and passions will guide them to the works. When we search for the works through our filter of what we like and what we are passionate about we are basically following ourselves. This can often lead us to search for the existing thing that we find appealing. What if God has called you to a work that does not yet exist. Can you ever find it in this way?
So how do you find the 2:10 works for your life? Here is how I have found them and how I have led some others to find them.
First you must consecrate your self. Deal with your sin and pursue holiness. No more messing around. Get serious about your faith. Read the Bible from beginning to end. Dedicate yourself to prayer. Begin to learn about and apply fasting in your life. Give up your love for money. Start by giving it away. Prepare to share your faith. Discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness.
Next you must learn to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit. He is here to guide you into the 2:10 works. Without hearing from Him you will never find them. Once you are consecrated and listening it is time to act. Learn to make disciples. Serve other people. These two things are at the heart of God. If you are consecrated and listening, and you start acting in obedience to serve others and make disciples, you will find the 2:10 works. God is ready to lead you there. You just have to follow His way.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Sunday, January 16, 2011
One of the Greatest Lies Ever Told
“We must be like them to win them to Christ.”
It sounds good at first glance. We can use the Apostle Paul’s words to confirm this thought.
“For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I may win more. To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might win Jews; to those who are under the Law, as under the Law though not being myself under the Law, so that I might win those who are under the Law; to those who are without law, as without law, though not being without the law of God but under the law of Christ, so that I might win those who are without law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some. I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it.”
To the Jews I became a Jew – Paul did not embrace again the Law and its requirements. He respected those who did embrace it. He did not approach them with the argument against following the Law but rather the Gospel of Christ, which frees us from the Law.
To those not under the Law – He did not approach the gentiles with the legalism of adhering to something they were not under. He preached the Gospel.
He did not approach the weak in power so as to intimidate them into submission.
What Paul is referring to here is serving every man as a servant in order to win him to the Gospel. When we focus on behavior instead of serving in love, we miss Paul’s message.
If we examine Scripture from beginning to end what we find is a common theme. God wants His people to be set apart and live differently than those who reject Him. When we believe that we must be like those who do not follow God we fall into the same trap that Israel did so many times in the Old Testament.
God’s people are to be a sacred assembly, a peculiar people. Six times in Scripture God refers to His people as a peculiar people or treasure to Him. The Sacred Assembly of God’s people are to live by God’s rules and embrace God’s ways. The design is for us to be as a light on a hill showing in our lives that serving others and following God is preferred over the ways of the nations.
When we embrace the lie that we must in some way be like those who reject God then we lose our brightness and corrupt the assembly. The problem today is that it is easier to be like others than it is to live set apart. God’s design has not failed to reach. God’s people have failed to embrace His design. We see the greatest growth of God’s kingdom in the regions where we see the greatest contrast between the lives of God’s people and the lives of those who do not follow God.
It sounds good at first glance. We can use the Apostle Paul’s words to confirm this thought.
“For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I may win more. To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might win Jews; to those who are under the Law, as under the Law though not being myself under the Law, so that I might win those who are under the Law; to those who are without law, as without law, though not being without the law of God but under the law of Christ, so that I might win those who are without law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some. I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it.”
To the Jews I became a Jew – Paul did not embrace again the Law and its requirements. He respected those who did embrace it. He did not approach them with the argument against following the Law but rather the Gospel of Christ, which frees us from the Law.
To those not under the Law – He did not approach the gentiles with the legalism of adhering to something they were not under. He preached the Gospel.
He did not approach the weak in power so as to intimidate them into submission.
What Paul is referring to here is serving every man as a servant in order to win him to the Gospel. When we focus on behavior instead of serving in love, we miss Paul’s message.
If we examine Scripture from beginning to end what we find is a common theme. God wants His people to be set apart and live differently than those who reject Him. When we believe that we must be like those who do not follow God we fall into the same trap that Israel did so many times in the Old Testament.
God’s people are to be a sacred assembly, a peculiar people. Six times in Scripture God refers to His people as a peculiar people or treasure to Him. The Sacred Assembly of God’s people are to live by God’s rules and embrace God’s ways. The design is for us to be as a light on a hill showing in our lives that serving others and following God is preferred over the ways of the nations.
When we embrace the lie that we must in some way be like those who reject God then we lose our brightness and corrupt the assembly. The problem today is that it is easier to be like others than it is to live set apart. God’s design has not failed to reach. God’s people have failed to embrace His design. We see the greatest growth of God’s kingdom in the regions where we see the greatest contrast between the lives of God’s people and the lives of those who do not follow God.
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