Wednesday, November 15, 2023
How we thank God for you! Because of you we have great joy as we enter God’s presence. Night and day we pray earnestly for you, asking God to let us see you again to fill the gaps in your faith. May God our Father and our Lord Jesus bring us to you very soon. And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows.
Sharing our great hope in Jesus
Christ with others is the main thrust of what we commonly call The Great
Commission. This was the job description
Jesus gave to his followers on the day he ascended back to his Father in
Heaven:
Jesus came and told his
disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore,
go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these
new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always,
even to the end of the age.” Matthew
28:18-20
The “work” is really a privilege and
joy. In his letter to the Thessalonian
believers Paul outlined that work in four “pillars” that hold our witness
together:
Rejoicing
Apostle Paul said he thanked God for
his relationship with the church at Thessalonica, and his joy was great because
of their faith growing stronger.
When the genuine joy of knowing
Christ courses through your veins, sharing that blessed hope of Christ does not
have to be manufactured with a memorized speech, or pamphlets; it speaks
volumes of winsomeness.
Praying
Paul’s prayer life was night
and day for the presence of God to grow strong in those with whom he had
shared God’s love. When you’ve taken the
bold and vulnerable step of sharing the love of Christ with others, they will
not slip from your mind. You are vested
in what God will do with them in His kingdom.
Hanging-out
Because of the interest in filling-in
the gaps of faith many new believers might experience, you want
to be with them to nurture faith at whatever point they are challenged. Hanging-out with believers increases faith; growing
joy is the wonderful result of that fellowship.
Blessing
Paul wasn’t reproducing “Paul” in
these people; he was seeing the mystery of Christ in you, the hope of
glory[1]
manifested in those who had accepted Christ by faith, and were living under His
Lordship. His fatherly blessing was an
act of love and prophetic hope…he was passing-along the faith once
delivered to the saints[2].
For You Today
Throughout my life many saints have
poured-in strength and help as I’ve lived and grown. Jesus said:
to whom much is given, much will be required.[3] This speaks of our responsibility to pass along
the joy with our prayers, presence, and always being a blessing – never an
adversary – to those who need to know Christ.
There are about 2,600 devotional posts and 400 sermons
in the Rocky Road library.
Today’s title Image from Pixabay.com
Images without citation are in public domain or cited
via weblinks.
Unless noted, Scripture quoted from NLT©
