Have you ever wondered what God actually requires of us? Oh, I know that some people may think God wants them to be kind to others, to speak well, never get into trouble, be on their best behavior, do good and charitable deeds, go to church, keep a smile on their faces, all to earn their way into His favor.
But, God really doesn't have those things as His first priority for us. Why? The truth: we can't earn God's favor. Our sin always gets in the way. That's why God sent His precious son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to die on Calvary's cruel cross. It's the blood of Jesus that covers our sins. He has paid the penalty for every sin we have ever committed and every sin we will yet commit.
Once we accept Jesus as our Savior and Lord, God really only requires one thing of us: obedience. And, that, of course, is the hardest thing of all.
So, how do we do that? How do we obediently fulfill the two great purposes God has for us on this earth as recorded in Mark 12:28-31: to love God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength; and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.
In these next few posts, I want to help us to “listen in” on a written conversation between the Apostle Paul and his son in the faith, Timothy. It’s the kind of conversation that comes from a wiser older man—who has labored long and hard at a task—and now takes the time to share with a younger man. And, not just any younger man, but a younger man who he believes may well have to, some day soon, take his place.
Paul, you see, was currently in Macedonia. Very soon he would find himself under arrest and on his way to Rome. As a Roman citizen, a very rare status for someone of Paul’s heritage, Paul would exercise the right to request a hearing in Rome to answer the charges brought against him.
Some folks of significance would accuse Paul of promoting anti-government ideas. Actually, Paul was simply urging people to become citizens of Christ’s Kingdom. Some thought this was most inappropriate. The best way to silence Paul: have him arrested.
Of course, in hindsight, we can look on these events as they unfolded and see the Hand of God taking charge of the situation. God would use this seemingly dire occurrence to move Paul to Rome at the government’s expense. This would then allow Paul to minister to the growing church there. Out of that experience, the exponential growth of the numbers of people who would place their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ would eventually cause Christianity to propagate throughout the then known world.
So, Paul writes to Timothy, who he has left in Ephesus, a city on the western coast of the land we now call Turkey. He gives this young man instruction in how to devote himself effectively to the cause of serving the Lord Jesus Christ.
You may wonder what in the world such instructions might have to do with you. “After all,” you may say, “I have quite enough to do right now just trying to make my way through this troubled world. Why I have hassles at work; hassles at home; and even hassles at my church. At least whenever I try to accomplish something that I believe God has laid on my heart, it seems way harder than it ought to be.”
But you see, dear one, that’s exactly the point.
When you heard the soft whispering—or the loud shouting—of the Holy Spirit that penetrated your mind and heart, and when you responded by receiving God’s gift of eternal life through the transforming power of the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, you joined the “Jesus Gang.” You became a part of Christ’s Kingdom, not in the “sweet by and by,” but in the here and now.
That sets the stage.
In the next post, I will share more from what Paul says to Timothy. Let's see if together we can learn some helpful tips on how to become obedient servants of God. Okay?
Copyright © 2009 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.
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