Tag: God’s work

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John Devotionals

That God’s work might be seen in us

As he was passing by, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

“Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” Jesus answered. “This came about so that God’s works might be displayed in him. (John 9:1-3)

Sometimes bad things happen in life, and we wonder if God is punishing us. But there are two truths we must always keep in mind.

First, while our sin can cause us all kinds of suffering and pain, sometimes our suffering comes simply from the fact that we live in a broken world filled with broken people.

And our suffering is a reminder to us that this world is not our home. We are just passing through, looking for a better country, a heavenly one. (Hebrews 11:16)

But second, God sometimes allows our suffering so that his marvelous works might be seen in us.

If that’s going to happen, though, we need to do the two things this blind man did: put our faith in Jesus and obey him. (John 9:7, 37-38)

What trials and struggles are you going through now? Will you fall down and worship him, trusting that he is still good? That he loves you? That he wants your best?

And will you obey him?

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John Devotionals

Entering into the Father’s work

John

This is the famous story of Jesus encountering the Samaritan woman.

At that time, Jesus told the disciples,

My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. (John 4:34)

Jesus then called them to join in the work that the Father started. He noted that other people had already been participating in the Father’s work, and then he told his disciples,

Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor. (38, ESV)

Those words struck me as I read them.

The Father has been doing his work for thousands of years. Millions of people have already labored doing his work. Now we are called to enter that labor too.

How do we do that? Through our testimony (39). And through sharing the words of our Lord (41).

So let us lift up our eyes, see the harvest, and join in with our Father’s work.

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Philippians

What God is doing in us

Paul in prison

This letter that Paul wrote to the Philippians is one that is filled with joy, despite all the trials Paul was going through.

Paul was writing this in prison, probably from Rome, and yet time and again, you see the words “rejoice” and “joy” in this letter.

And one thing that gave him great joy was what God was doing in the lives of the Philippians. The church in Philippi was the first ever to be started in Europe.

It started when Paul met a wealthy woman named Lydia who feared God, but didn’t really know anything about Jesus. But when Paul preached the gospel to her, she and her family were saved.  (Acts 16:11-15).

Paul did have some problems there, however, getting thrown into prison. But even there, Paul made an impact, as through him, his jailer and the jailer’s family also became Christians.  (Acts 16:16-40)

That was the beginning of the church in Philippi. And that church became one of his main supporters in ministry.

And in their partnership with him in the gospel, he saw the good work God was doing in them. And so he wrote,

In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.  (Philipians 1:4-6)

One of the amazing things of the gospel of Christ is that it starts with grace and it ends with grace.

It is God who reached out to us to save us at a time when we had no thought of him. Through his grace, he pulled us out of filth of our sin and washed us clean by the blood of Jesus shed on the cross.

But God doesn’t stop there. He doesn’t just say to us, “Well, I cleaned you up. Now you’re on your own.”

Rather, Paul says that God continues to work in us even now, and will never stop working in us until we are made complete on the day that Jesus returns for us.

In what way is God working in us? Paul tells us through his prayer for the Philippians, saying,

And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ–to the glory and praise of God.  (9-11)

Paul prays here that the fruit of love, love for God and love for others, would abound more and more in our lives.

How does it grow? It grows as we come to know God better. As we understand more deeply how great his love is, it causes our own love to blossom, not only for God, but for those around us.

And as that happens, we start to understand just how God intends us to live. We start to make not only good choices, but the best choices. And as we do that, all of God’s fruit of righteousness starts to blossom in our lives.

But note what Paul says here:  this fruit of righteousness comes not from our own efforts to change. Rather, it comes as we are joined to him. Like Jesus said, he is the vine, we are the branches. Apart from him, we can do nothing.  (John 15:5)

So what do we get from this? Two things.

First, don’t get discouraged by the sin you still see in your life. God started a good work in you. It started at the cross. It continued as he called you and you responded to him. And God will continue working in you until you are complete.

Second, stay plugged in to Jesus. That is the key to change in your life. Not mere self-discipline or effort. But Jesus living his life in you.

And as he does, you will see more and more what God is doing in you to his glory…and to your joy.

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Exodus

Chosen and filled to do God’s work

I love what God said about Bezalel in this passage. He said,

I have chosen Bezalel…and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability, and knowledge… (Exodus 31:2–3).

God had specifically chosen him to make things for the tabernacle and had also chosen other people to help him as well.

But not only did he choose him and tell him what to do, he filled him with his Spirit to give him the wisdom and strength he needed, and he gave him the skill, ability, and knowledge to do everything that needed to be done.

God says the same thing of all of us who follow him.

He has given us his Spirit, and his Spirit has imparted to us different gifts.

Paul wrote,

Now to each [Christian] the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. (1 Corinthians 12:7)

He then lists a number of the gifts that God gives to us: wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, etc.

Then Paul says,

All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines. (1 Corinthians 12:11)

Three things should be noted here.

First, God gives each Christian gifts.

He doesn’t give only some Christians gifts and leave others without. Each one has a gift.

Second, the gifts are not meant to serve yourself. Rather, they’re for the common good.

In other words, we are meant to serve others with those gifts.

Third, each person has a different gift or gifts, and they’re given out as the Spirit decides.

Don’t worry about the gifts you haven’t been given.

Don’t be jealous about what gifts others have been given.

God in his wisdom gave you the gifts you have, so be content with them and use them.

I’m not saying that we shouldn’t pray for more spiritual gifts. I think God is always happy to hear our requests, and he may indeed grant your requests.

But if God chooses not to give you a gift that someone else has, don’t waste your time living in jealousy of others. Serve with what gifts God has given you.

The question we need to be asking ourselves is what are we doing with what God has given us?

Just as God gave Bezalel a task to accomplish, God has given you a task to accomplish.

Just as God filled Bezalel with his Spirit, he has filled you with that same Spirit.

Just as God gave him all the skill, ability, and knowledge he needed to do God’s work, so he has given all these things to you.

Are you using what God has given you?

You may have gifts in music. You may have gifts in teaching. You may have gifts in encouraging. You may have gifts in hospitality.

Whatever your gift may be, God says we are to use it. He said,

If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.

If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully. (Romans 12:6–8)

God has chosen you. He has filled you with his Spirit. He has given you all the things you need to do his work.

So as the Psalmist wrote, let us “serve the Lord with gladness.” (Psalm 100:2, NASB)