Standing Firm in Faith
“And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15)
Eyes are amazing. They will adjust to darkness, light and they work together. For years I wore contacts, and one contact was for close vision and the other for far away. My two eyes worked together. We could all learn a great lesson from eyes that choose to complement one another.
Recently I was on a medication that caused me to have double vision. I saw two of everything. After stopping the medication, the double vision has left me, but my two eyes are not working together as they once did. My right eye is clear in the distant and my left eye is doing great close up, but for me to use one or the other I have to close the other eye. I am praying this is a temporary condition.
We are told in Scripture that as believers in Jesus we will be given spiritual gifts. These gifts are given to us to complement one another for the building of the Kingdom.
“Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.”
1 Corinthians 12:7
When believers, and churches began to compete with one another instead of working together we do not have a clear vision of God’s perfect will.
One area that I have seen a lot of togetherness is in Christian music. Christian musicians coming together on tours and singing songs together, complementing each other while building the Kingdom of God.
Each gift the Lord has placed on us belongs to Him, for His glory not ours. It is a delicate thing for each of us to keep our hearts focused on Him and our focus to be for His glory.
We who are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ live in a fallen world. A world that has a lot of beautiful things. Things the Lord has given us to enjoy, but this fallen world also has a lot of things that we are to speak out against.
How do we live in these fallen bodies with the living Christ in us?
Recently, a strong believer in Jesus Christ, Charlie Kirk, was shot and killed in front of thousands of people because he was walking in truth and speaking truth, with a love for those who disagreed with him. His life was not one way on Sunday and another way Monday through Saturday.
He was authentic and unafraid to be who Christ made him to be. He chose to serve the Lord, with the attitude that others needed to decide what they believed. Many believers in Jesus are not equipped to defend the reason for their faith. This prevents them from being an influence in the world where they live. It is time for us to cooperate with one another as believers and live in freedom without fear. And to openly express our stand for the gospel.
The time has come to decide who we will serve, and it will take us putting all competition aside and serving the Lord together with all the gifts He has given to us.
Here are a few questions to ponder:
Do you know why you believe what you believe?
Are you willing to dig into God’s Word to strengthen your faith?
What spiritual gift has the Lord given you and how are you using those gifts?
Pray with me
Dear Jesus,
We honor You for You are the King of kings and the Lord of lords. You have given us all we need to serve and build Your kingdom. Holy Spirit how we need Your wisdom, passion and love to serve our God. Father, help us in our weakness and show us how to live this life in freedom and love. Our life matters and how we live is to help others find their way to You. We love You. In Jesus’ name, amen.
For encouragement read 1 Corinthians 12.