Rockport Sermon

Saturday, August 9, 2008

In whatever you do...glorify God!

I was reading Joshua Harris' blog and found this great quote from a brother exhorting all of us, as Christians to assume the responsibility of glorifying God in whatever activity we are involved in. Let it be an act of worship and praise back to our Lord. This morning at our Men's breakfast, I kinda jokingly mentioned to the others, anyone would like to wash the dishes joyfully, as an act of worship before the Lord, please feel free to do so. We are, as believers, commanded to understand that there are no inconsequential choices, we should live every moment utterly to the glory of God. Whether we are a Pastor, singer, trash man (waste-management specialist), social worker, teacher, lawyer, doctor, etc., everything should be viewed as a God-ordained opportunity to live utterly and totally to the glory of our maker who gave us gifts, not so that we might boast in them, but that others might boast in Jesus Christ because these gifts were meant to glorify Him and to build one another up!

Here is the quote:

"The Reformation notion of 'the priesthood of all believers' by no means denigrated the pastoral office, as is often assumed... Rather, it taught that the pastoral office is a vocation, a calling from God with its own responsibilities, authority, and blessings. But it also taught that laypeople as well have vocations, callings of their own that entail holy responsibilities, authorities, and blessings of their own. All believers, like the priests of the Old Testament, can come into the presence of God through the blood of the Lamb. All believers can handle holy things (such as the Bible, earlier denied to the laity). All can proclaim the Gospel to those who need its saving message. 'The priesthood of all believers' means that all Christians enjoy the same access to Christ and are spiritually equal before Him. 'The priesthood of all believers' did not make everyone into church workers; rather, it turned every kind of work into a sacred calling... Every kind of work, including what had heretofore been looked down upon - the work of peasants and craftsmen - is an occasion for priesthood, for exercising a holy service to God and to one's neighbor." - Gene Edward Veith, God at Work: Your Christian Vocation in All of Life, page 18-19

2 comments:

Scott said...

Yes, brother. May it be that all we do would be done to the best of our ability, with joy-filled service as unto the Lord. It is our privilege, like Christ, to serve rather than be served. How hard that is when we, like James and John, prefer to look for opportunities to be exalted, rather than willingly choosing to put on the towel and take up the basin of our Lord in order to serve,without seeking thanks, or acknowledgment..but because it is the thing that ought to be done..and done well in a way that brings glory to Him!

Bob said...

Hey Bro. I just read this. thank you so much. This is a wonderful reminder for me in the midst of my preparations for this week. Love ya Bro