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What Have We Set Aside?
Devotional Thought for the day:
3 So what makes us think we can escape if we ignore this great salvation that was first announced by the Lord Jesus himself and then delivered to us by those who heard him speak? 4 And God confirmed the message by giving signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit whenever he chose. Hebrews 2:3-4 (NLT2)
4 “So he sent other servants to tell them, ‘The feast has been prepared. The bulls and fattened cattle have been killed, and everything is ready. Come to the banquet!’ 5 But the guests he had invited ignored them and went their own way, one to his farm, another to his business. 6 Others seized his messengers and insulted them and killed them. 7 “The king was furious, and he sent out his army to destroy the murderers and burn their town. Matthew 22:4-7 (NLT2)
4 You often ask yourself why souls who have had the great fortune of knowing the true Jesus ever since their childhood, hesitate so much in responding with the best they have: their life, their family, their ideals. Look: you are bound to show yourself very grateful to the Lord, precisely because you have received ‘everything’ in one go. Just as it would strike a blind man if he suddenly recovered his sight, while it does not even occur to others to give thanks because they see. But that is not enough. You have to help those around you, daily, to behave with gratitude for their being sons of God. If you don’t, don’t tell me you are grateful.
When some Christians think of neglecting salvation, they think of the people they know who once attended church, yet now only show up for “special events.” The people that may go to a Christian Concert, or listen to Christian music, but aren’t involved in a community of believers.
Like the ones in the story, invited by the King to share in His son’s wedding feast, who dismiss or are violent to the King’s servants. Some who do neglect God’s delivering us from the power of sin do so by finding other priorities over church, other priorities over studying the scriptures and praying with others.
But we also neglect such a great blessing as salvation is when we do nothing with it. When we go through the motions at church, when we soak in all the Bible Studies when we reduce our life to “attendance”. It may be because we’ve simply got comfortable in our routine, that we’ve reduced walking thru life with God to just showing up once in a while. We can become the people that always have been able to see, that don’t appreciate it. Or who have received God’s mercy for so long we take it for granted and think every one we know also is going to be saved.
Neglecting salvation begins not with passivity, but in not realizing the profound difference it makes in our lives, and the difference it could make in the lives of those around us. And knowing that difference, helping them to see it. (Not forcing it one them, but revealing and encouraging them to believe in the promises.
We need to be grateful for this greatest gift in our lives.
A gift that all can receive.
The problem is that many of will read this and respond (or at least commit to respond out of guilt and obligation. Instead, we should respond naturally, in awe and joy, in gratitude for the life that has been given to us.
This amazing gift of freedom from sin, of knowing we have life eternal, of knowing that we walk with God, because He wants to walk with us,,, He wants to be with us,. He wants us to know that He, God our Creator and Redeemer loves us.
Think about that love… dwell in it.. and live in it.
May God’s richest blessings that He gives you, be recognized and hold the greatest attention in our lives!
The question of the Day: What distracts you from God’s love, what causes you to neglect it?
Escriva, Josemaria. Furrow (Kindle Locations 253-260). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Serving God where ever He calls you to service
Francesco Albani’s The Baptism of Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Devotional Thought of the Day:
14 “At that time the Kingdom of heaven will be like this. Once there was a man who was about to leave home on a trip; he called his servants and put them in charge of his property. 15 He gave to each one according to his ability: to one he gave five thousand gold coins, to another he gave two thousand, and to another he gave one thousand. Then he left on his trip. 16 The servant who had received five thousand coins went at once and invested his money and earned another five thousand. 17 In the same way the servant who had received two thousand coins earned another two thousand. 18 But the servant who had received one thousand coins went off, dug a hole in the ground, and hid his master’s money. 19 “After a long time the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them. 20 The servant who had received five thousand coins came in and handed over the other five thousand. ‘You gave me five thousand coins, sir,’ he said. ‘Look! Here are another five thousand that I have earned.’ 21 ‘Well done, you good and faithful servant!’ said his master. ‘You have been faithful in managing small amounts, so I will put you in charge of large amounts. Come on in and share my happiness!’ 22 Then the servant who had been given two thousand coins came in and said, ‘You gave me two thousand coins, sir. Look! Here are another two thousand that I have earned.’ 23 ‘Well done, you good and faithful servant!’ said his master. ‘You have been faithful in managing small amounts, so I will put you in charge of large amounts. Come on in and share my happiness!’ Matthew 25:14-23 (TEV)
I dream—and the dream has come true—of multitudes of God’s children, sanctifying themselves as ordinary citizens, sharing the ambitions and endeavors of their colleagues and friends. I want to shout to them about this divine truth: if you are there in the middle of ordinary life, it doesn’t mean Christ has forgotten about you or hasn’t called you. He has invited you to stay among the activities and concerns of the world. He wants you to know that your human vocation, your profession, your talents, are not omitted from his divine plans. He has sanctified them and made them a most acceptable offering to his Father. (1)
As a Lutheran pastor, one of the doctrines that we count on is in regards to the Office of Holy Ministry, the interesting balance of those who serve the priesthood of all believers. A vocation that is never about authority, but can only be about responsibility – we are responsible to care for souls – using God’s word and the Sacraments as our primary tools. But the Office of Holy Ministy, (or Public Minsitry) does not free the laity from their responsibilities as priests of God. Just the opposite, the Office of Holy Ministry serves them and assists them in their ministry.
Each of us is in ministry, in the strictest sense – being a diakonos – whether clergy or laity, or someway in between. But the challenge is seeing our work, our homes, our errands as that of ministering in the stead on by the commissioning of God (i prefer commissioning to command) That is true where ever we go, whatever we are doing. We re being sent there by God – to represent Him, to tell of His love with our words and our lives. It is not our work as much as the work of Jesus. This means more often than not we die to self – we get the heck out of the way, our priorities, our lives are set aside, and His replace them.
This is seen in the quote by St. Josemaria as he says at the beginning that we sanctify our lives – by setting them apart – sanctifying themselves – but then at the end – we realize it is Jesus that sanctifies them and makes them acceptable to the Father. That this is the role of “ordinary” people – (we in the clergy are of the opposite of “usual” 🙂 . It happens whenever and where ever Christ has placed you, planned for you to be.
So there is your holy vocation…. let Him guide and empower your service there.
Godspeed!
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2010-11-02). Christ is Passing By (Kindle Locations 823-827). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Related articles
- The Pantheon, An Example of Redemption and Transformation and Vocation (justifiedandsinner.com)
- It’s Not About Calling the Qualified, or Even Qualifying the Called… it’s about revealing Christ. (justifiedandsinner.com)
- Is Teaching People That They Must Go to Church Right? (justifiedandsinner.com)
- Dissatisfied? Discontent? Frustrated? Try losing yourself! (justifiedandsinner.com)
