Wednesday, October 20, 2021
First, Live Worthy
In first and second Thessalonians we find another letter Paul has written to a church, this one in Thessalonica. Again, he is writing to them about living worthy as well as some other things. In the verses above he was talking to them about their Christian walk, warning them that if their walk was not right, their witness would suffer.
The first thing we have to do as Christians is to make sure that our relationship to God is right and our walk is on target with His commands. If we don’t have our hearts right and our walk straight, then our witness for Him will not be very effective.
God does want us to make disciples, but He wants us to get our heart right first. He cares about us and wants to know our hearts are only for Him. Being entrusted with the gospel is an honor and priviledge. Paul used the word “approved” because at that time, missionaries were tested before they were commissioned as God’s messeners. We may not be tested, but there is a level of responsibility that goes with representing God, His word, and His kingdom.
He approves us to be entrusted with His gospel story so we speak for Him – for His glory, not to please people. And just as we have been entrusted with the gospel, we have been called to live worthy of this gospel – which has to happen before we can share it with others.
We speak not to please people but to please God, who sees our hearts. Whatever we think we can make the world believe about us, God sees right into our hearts. The world will begin to see it after time as well. Our true motives will eventually shine through. We can use lots of flattery speech on social media, but what backs it up? What you say is not as important as what God sees in your heart. Flattery can cover up bitterness, anger, and all kinds of sin. So we need to be careful with our speech to make sure that it is not empty words, but filled with truth, and not everyone will like the truth of what God’s word says. It is not our job to make them comfortable, but to please God.
We can get sucked into trying to please the world - or even think for a minute that we want to please the world. It can happen before we even realize it. But everything the world promises is empty and delivers nothing but a void in our hearts. God deserves all the glory, from everything we do or say. As Christians seeking to go and make disciples, it is important that our walk is right and all the glory goes to Him.
