Ephesians 4:28 “Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need.”
Pastor Herk continues: It seems that much of the work that we engage in depends much on why and how we do our work, more than what our job title is. Examine yourself and consider what you do. Does it honor and glorify God? Does it honestly and caringly meet the needs of others, mutually profitable and beneficial to them as much as it is for you.
In writing, “working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need”, the Apostle Paul separates the Followers of Christ from the rest of the “living for the day” secular culture. We are to put in an honest day of work to provide for our legitimate needs and the needs of our families. 1 Timothy 5:8 states, “if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” In a culture today that is all about “me, myself and I”. This principle fo giving something to those in need runs counter to today’s “don’t take a slice of my pie” social order; sharing with others means “less for me”. Rather than being encouraged to work so that we have something to share with others, we’re told that we need to work so that we can get more for ourselves. That is the fallen world mentality and message.
In Luke 12:15-22 Jesus said, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear.”
Studies show that Americans give on average just 2% of their after-tax income to charity. But, the same studies show that the percentage of giving goes down as the income amounts go up. Generosity is a godly virtue. Are we working to meet the needs of others? Happiness is not so much in “having”, but in “sharing” We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give. The body of Christ is an interconnected and unified church we the same vision and purpose to live godly lives, holy and righteous in the eyes of the Lord, with Christ as our head. We are here on earth form a divine reason of growing into the likeness of Christ, ministering to others with the love of Christ, advancing the kingdom of Jesus Christ by going and making disciples of all nations with the Gospel message of Salvation, forgiveness and eternal life, living for Christ and bring glory to God … enjoying every part of this amazing journey.
Character counts. 1 Peter 1:15 “But like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves in all your conduct [be set apart from the world by your godly character and moral courage].” To be holy means “Hallowed”; consecrated or set apart to a sacred use, or to the service or worship of God; Proceeding from pious principles, or directed to pious purposes. As we learned earlier in Ephesians 4:1-2 “live a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called [that is, to live a life that exhibits godly character, moral courage, personal integrity, and mature behavior—a life that expresses gratitude to God for your salvation], with all humility [forsaking self-righteousness], and gentleness [maintaining self-control], with patience, bearing with one another in [unselfish] love. That is the Christian work ethic.
Acts 20:24 “But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God [which saves our soul, makes us free of the guilt of sin and grants us eternal life].”
In Christ, Brian
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