Tag Archives: Serve

Freedom From Cannibalism

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Biting One Another

In the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Church of Galatia, he wrote: “But if you bite and devour one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another” (Gal. 5:15). In the context of this letter, Paul’s main theme is “freedom.” The genuine follower of Jesus Christ is set free from their previous bondage to the flesh! We are free from the slavery of capitulating to the demands of our broken and depraved natures. No longer does sin have power over us! Jesus, upon His ascension to the Father, sent the Holy Spirit to indwell us and empower us with the ability to say “no” to sin’s demands!

Called To Be Free

So Paul the Apostle tells this church: “Christ has liberated us to be free. Stand firm, then, and don’t submit again to a yoke of slavery… For you were called to be free, brothers; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love. For the entire law is fulfilled in one statement: Love your neighbor as yourself” (Gal. 5:1, 13–14). The essence of Paul’s words is this—the Gospel of Jesus Christ sets us free from Christian cannibalism! It is only Jesus’ Gospel that empowers us to love others like this! When our love for others grows in this way, it’s a powerful endorsement of the validity of our words when we share our faith. Conversely, it is a blatant and ugly contradiction of Jesus’ Gospel when we “…bite and devour one another…” (v. 15).

Preying Like Cannibals

When we prey on one another like cannibals, we sabotage the glory of Jesus’ cross! We cover up the beauty of Christ, who gave Himself up in payment for our self-centeredness! I saw the ugliness of Christian cannibalism played out as a Bible college student, when half the church I was attending walked out on the other half over the color choice of the ladies’ restroom during a building program. Their testimony in that rural community was ruined! I saw it happen! Oh, how we need the Spirit’s help to learn how to deal with conflict in a way that’s redemptive rather than destructive! A church that does not serve one another in love like Jesus will cannibalize itself! We can only love like Jesus if we’ve been set free by the power of His Gospel! God can and does deliver churches from Christian cannibalism!

Overcoming The Past

Only the Gospel of Christ can deliver our churches from such ungodly behavior! Some of you have experienced a church that devoured itself. You still struggle with the pain. It’s still raw. And you are broken at the thought that some unbelievers will never come to faith in Jesus Christ because of the relational damage they’ve seen inflicted on others by so-called Christians. And don’t forget to praise God if you’re part of a community of faith that truly loves, honors, and respects one another! That is truly a work of God! Be encouraged and pray regularly for continued peace and harmony in your church. Pray daily for spiritual renewal and revival. And remember that it’s the Gospel of Christ that frees us to be Jesus to everyone we meet!
 

Free To Serve Others

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A Dog Eat Dog World

In the world, it’s “dog-eat-dog.” If you want to climb up the corporate ladder, you have to be a relational piranha—taking advantage of the brokenness and inconsistencies of your co-workers to gain a personal advantage! That’s not Jesus’ way! He was known as the “friend of sinners.” He healed the wounded! He forgave even those who nailed Him to the cross! The Gospel frees us to serve—even those with whom we may be in competition for that promotion! And it’s all because we can trust a sovereign God’s plan!

Our Freedom And Our Calling

In the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Galatian church, he says that our call to freedom and our call to serve are synonymous! In other words, we actually lose our freedom when we fail to serve! We were saved from slavery to sin and self; so when we fail to serve—and even expect to be served—we fall back into the old slavery to the flesh! He says we, “…submit again to a yoke of slavery…” (Galatians 5:1). Don’t surrender the freedom you have in Christ—who satisfies your every need—for the fleshly desires of the world: to be served or to be promoted! When we serve others instead of using them, we testify to the world that Jesus truly is enough! He is all we need!

Jesus Served Us

We don’t need to fill any emptiness inside us with the need to be served! Jesus served us, and that’s enough! It’s the Gospel of Christ that frees us to love others…even strangers! More than service, the Gospel actually gives us a heart of love for those we serve—“For the entire law is fulfilled in one statement: Love your neighbor as yourself” (Galatians 5:14). Paul is quoting Jesus’ answer when He was asked, “What is the greatest commandment?” And Jesus said, “To love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your might! And the second is like it (or second only in importance!): Love your neighbor in the same way you love yourself” (Matthew 22:34–40). Then Jesus illustrated that with His parable about the Good Samaritan, who acted as a neighbor to someone he didn’t even know! That’s why a “neighbor” can actually be anyone we have the opportunity to serve—even someone who’s a stranger! “And love them,” He said, “in the same way that you love yourself.”

Gospel Freedom

Only the Gospel sets me free to want to feed someone who’s hungry just as much as I want to feed myself when I get hungry! Only the Gospel sets me free to want to help my neighbor find a job just as much as I want to find a job—or to want a raise or a promotion for my co-worker just as much as I want that raise or promotion for myself! And to care about what happens to that guy down the street—that you don’t even know—just as much as you care about what happens to you! That’s powerful! And only Jesus’ Gospel empowers us to love that way! And when we grow in our love for others like that, it’s an incredible endorsement of the validity of the words we share with others about our faith! It makes us real! Genuine!

Don’t Eat Each Other

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Leaving For Vacation; Next Post February 4th

Not All Cannibals Are Alike

Did you know that not all cannibals are alike? An “exo-cannibal” eats only those outside his immediate social circle (i.e., his “enemies”), while an “endo-cannibal” eats those within his immediate social circle (i.e., his “friends”). But a “pan-cannibal” is indiscriminate and will eat anyone! Bet you didn’t know that! You probably thought that all cannibals were alike! Let me share a true story with you. The world’s most infamous cannibal was the legendary Fijian chieftain, Ratu Udre Udre.

A Guinness World Record

Listen to this—he actually holds the Guinness World Record for eating the most people! I was personally surprised to discover that Guinness actually kept such a record! Ratu Udre Udre ate between 872 and 999 people, according to his son—whom he did not eat! (Guess that made him a “good father.”) Ratu Udre Udre kept a stone for each body he ate. Now, unfortunately, many Christians have more in common with Udre Udre than you might think because many Christians “eat” their own. You might say they’re “church cannibals,” and Paul’s letter to the church of Galatia bears that out. His fifth chapter begins like this: “Christ has liberated us to be free. Stand firm, then, and don’t submit again to a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1). That’s the “good news” of the Gospel! We’re born into this world with a yoke of slavery around our necks, and we can try with all our might to get out from under our sin; but we’re incapable. Jesus liberates us by His atonement for sin on the cross. He liberates us from the penalty and power of sin over our lives.

Don’t Devour One Another

So “stand firm,” Paul says, “don’t submit to that old yoke of slavery again!” Continuing in that context, he speaks to the Gospel’s power to affect our relationships with people. We’re no longer enslaved to the world’s way of “devouring” one another—or hating one another and holding grudges. That’s what Paul says a little later in the same chapter: “For you were called to be free, brothers; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love. For the entire law is fulfilled in one statement: Love your neighbor as yourself. But if you bite and devour one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another” (Gal. 5:13–15).

Are You Drinking Poison?

Someone has accurately stated that “unforgiveness is the poison you drink, hoping it will kill someone else!” In this Scripture, Paul is reminding this local church that the Gospel sets us free from those kinds of toxic relationships. The Gospel of Christ frees us to be Jesus to everyone we meet! When we truly humble ourselves before God and submit to Him, Jesus moves us—by the power of His Holy Spirit—and radically begins to transform us in every way, including our relationships. When humanity sinned in Adam, it resulted in a complete breakdown of our ability to “image” God, the Father and our Creator. We’re broken! We’re all born into this world with an inability to love like God loves because of our inherited fallen nature. Only a conversion to Christ can change us! We’ll pick it up there at our next post!
 

What Jesus Calls Great

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Wouldn’t You Like To Know?

Have you ever given thought to what it would have been like to be one of Jesus’ disciples and just walk through life with Him? To literally walk through life with Jesus—because that was the most common method of transportation in that day! And to hear Him speak God’s wisdom into every situation they encountered! Mark, who wrote the Gospel of Mark, tells us about a time when Jesus and His disciples were on the road, going up to Jerusalem. Jesus gets real serious with them and begins to tell them that the chief priests and the religious leaders would condemn Him to death—that He would be mocked, spit on, flogged, and killed! And it was weird—like they didn’t even hear what He was saying—but two of the disciples, James and John, who were brothers, approached Jesus immediately after He dropped that “bomb” on them and asked if they could sit on each side of His throne in glory!

Great, to Jesus, is Service

That really ticked off the other ten disciples! Mark records it like this: “Jesus called them over and said to them, ‘You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles dominate them, and their men of high positions exercise power over them. But it must not be like that among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be a slave to all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life—a ransom for many.’” Mark 10:42–45. In so many words, Jesus was teaching them that if you’re great in God’s Kingdom, this world probably won’t even notice you!

Jesus’ Leadership Model

What Jesus calls “great” and what the world says is “great” are generally two entirely different things. Jesus calls you great when you reject the world’s leadership style (v. 42). Those who lead in this world dominate or lord it over anyone in a “subordinate” role, Jesus says. Having a position of power is of great significance—but that’s not the case in Jesus’ Kingdom! If we follow Jesus’ leadership model, we have to reject the world’s style of leadership. Instead, Jesus calls you great when your ministry is measured by the people you serve (v. 43). “…it must not be like the world’s leadership style…” among believers, He says!

Do You Want A Title

In the ministry of the church, Jesus says it’s not about having a “title.” Do you want a title? If you’re an elder, you serve! If you’re a deacon, you serve! If you’re a Sunday School teacher, a small group leader, an AWANA or nursery worker, you serve! If you’re a worship team member—it’s not a show! Jesus doesn’t care about your title. He cares about your service! You want to be great? You want a title? Take the title of “servant,” Jesus says! And then Jesus calls you great when you humble yourself and become the world’s slave (v. 44). Some versions render the word “servant,” but that’s not right! The word is doulos in the original Greek language, and the only correct way to translate it is “slave.” Jesus meant for us to take on the humility of a slave when it comes to our ministry and service to others!
 

Give Up Your Life

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Great In God’s Kingdom

In my last post, we talked about the kind of life that Jesus called great! We picked up on His conversation with the disciples after two of them—James and John—asked if they could sit in seats of power next to Jesus in His kingdom. “Jesus called them over and said to them, ‘You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles dominate them, and their men of high positions exercise power over them. But it must not be like that among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be a slave to all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many’” (Mark 10:42–45). In so many words, Jesus was teaching them that if you’re great in God’s kingdom, this world probably won’t even notice you!

Slave or Servant?

Jesus calls you great when you reject the world’s leadership style (v. 42). He also calls you great when your ministry is measured by the people you serve (v. 43). But there are two more points I’d like to draw out from this text related to what Jesus calls great. He also calls you great when you humble yourself and become the world’s slave (v. 44). We touched briefly on this point in our last post. The word is doulos in the original Greek language, and it can only be translated accurately as “slave” in English. So while the Holman version actually translates it “slave,” many translations choose to use the word “servant.” While they can be credited with sensitivity for choosing to translate the word as “servant” because the history of slavery in America is so repulsive and offensive, we probably ought not to change the word Jesus used.

The Humility of a Slave

He meant for us to take on the humility of a “slave” when it comes to our ministry and service. In this way, we actually serve like Jesus did: “Make your own attitude that of Christ Jesus,” the Apostle Paul wrote, “who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be used for His own advantage. Instead, He emptied Himself by assuming the form of a slave” (Philippians 2:5–11). In other words, Jesus didn’t use His title—God—as a big stick! In His incarnation, He took the form of a slave!

Suffering For Others

Finally, from Jesus’ words here, we discern that He calls you great when you give up your life to suffer for others (v. 45). Even Jesus suffered for others willingly, all the way to the cross! He served till it hurt—till it killed Him! And you image Jesus when you live your life similarly! That’s probably not going to get you a fancy title or the corner office in a big corporation, but it will get you a “Well done, good and faithful servant” from Jesus! You may have noticed that the focus in this post was not on spiritual gifts. The reason is that the greater emphasis in Scripture is on heart attitude toward ministry rather than giftedness or knowledge. Jesus emphasizes humility over giftedness, and power is never said to be in our gifts but in the Holy Spirit. So, how will you respond to the needs around you?

Prayer Is Not Counseling God

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We Don’t Know What’s Best

I’m afraid that many people treat prayer as their opportunity to counsel God on certain matters. We ought never to pray like we’re trying to convince God that we know what’s best—as if the eternal, all-wise God, who knows the end from the beginning and everything in between, needs our advice for anything! His eternal plans for creation were already laid out before the world began. The writer of Acts reminds us: “The God who made the world and everything in it—He is Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in shrines made by hands. Neither is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives everyone life and breath and all things.” —Acts 17:24–27

God Doesn’t Need Our Counsel

When it comes to prayer, let’s get one thing straight: GOD DOESN’T NEED ANYTHING… INCLUDING OUR COUNSEL! He didn’t create us because of some deficiency, hoping that we could fix Him. There’s a clear, underlying message in Jesus’ response to His disciples’ question: “Lord, teach us to pray.” God doesn’t need us—we need Him! According to Jesus’ response in Matthew 6, prayer is to be GOD-CENTERED. “Pray like this,” He says, and He begins with the “Father,” not with us. By the way, He didn’t tell them to memorize it and repeat it mindlessly—“Our Father, who art in heaven…blah, blah, blah.” He said, “…pray like this.” This is how we’re supposed to pray—it’s Jesus’ model prayer.

Don’t Try Twisting God’s Arm

Rather than making prayer our attempt to twist God’s arm over something we want Him to do, prayer should begin with a focus on God the Father. Start your conversation with the Creator of the universe by honoring Him for His character. Praise Him for who He is! Don’t rush into His presence like your schedule is what matters—“Here’s my grocery list of needs, God! Will You go shopping for me?” Show Him reverence when you pray. You’re entering the throne room of Heaven! God transcends far above anything on your agenda. There’s an order here: Your kingdom first, Father! Our greatest desire should be that God’s name is hallowed, admired, and cherished. And He’s “our” Father too, Jesus says. Never get over that great doctrine of adoption—that God has birthed us into His family!

We Become His Children

Though we were born children of wrath because of our sin, He adopts us into His family in Christ. We’re FAMILY! Depend on Him like He’s family—because He is! We’re brothers, sisters, and joint-heirs with Jesus Himself. Then Jesus models prayer by moving from the Father’s character to His KINGDOM: “Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” —Matthew 6:10 So, pray like this, Jesus says—pray for the Father’s KINGDOM and for His WILL. If we’re praying like Jesus taught us to pray, our primary concern will be for the Father’s glory and the advancement of His kingdom. Our prayers will be GOD-CENTERED. Take note of the things you pray for. Are your prayers motivated by your dreams and goals, or by God’s eternal kingdom, His will, and His plans? Mature believers pray for God’s will above their own.

When Good Sex Goes Bad

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When It Happens Outside Of Marriage

According to God—who, by the way, created sex—healthy sex only happens within a marriage between a man and a woman. The Word of God warns us about the consequences of sexual conduct outside the safety of marriage. All other sexual activities are spiritually unhealthy because they involve disobedience to God and His Word. Additionally, they can also lead to physical and emotional harm. The effects often create a ripple effect, negatively impacting families and future generations.

Messing Up People’s Lives

When your sex life doesn’t align with Scripture, it can impact not just you but many others as well. Here’s something to consider, especially if you feel like you’ve already made too many mistakes—that you’re beyond hope. Maybe you grew up in a worldly environment and were never taught these biblical truths. Or perhaps you heard them but believed you were clever enough to outsmart ‘the system,’ so you experimented with sex and are now facing the consequences. The good news is that, thanks to Jesus’ work on the cross, you are not beyond redemption! 

Good News For Those Who Messed Up

The Gospel is good news for every sinner, regardless of the sin! We serve a God who brings beauty from ashes. Through the cross, there is forgiveness and restoration. So, don’t hide behind your sin any longer—confess it so you may be healed (James 5:16). From this day forward, stand firmly on the foundation of God’s Word when it comes to your sexual purity. God’s Word alone provides the flawless counsel needed to build healthy marriages. In 1 Corinthians, the Apostle Paul shares several truths about sexuality as directed by God: “It is good for a man not to have relations with a woman. But because sexual immorality is so common, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband… I say the following as a concession, not as a command. I wish that all people were just like me. But each has his own gift from God—one person in this way and another in that way. I say to the unmarried and to widows: It is good for them if they remain as I am.” (1 Corinthians 7:1, 6-8)

Is Celibacy A Gift?

What Paul is advocating here is celibacy. He appears to suggest that celibacy is a gift from God given to certain individuals. So, if the idea of living a celibate life seems impossible for you, it likely means that you do not have that particular gift. I intentionally use the word celibacy instead of singleness because celibacy more accurately describes what Paul is referring to—complete abstinence from all sexual relations. In contrast, our modern culture tends to favor the term singleness, often associating it with a lack of relational or sexual boundaries. It’s seen as a lifestyle of ‘Sex and the City’ or ‘friends with benefits,’ making it a poor reflection of what Paul is actually addressing. When Paul says, ‘It is good for a man not to have relations with a woman‘ (v.1), he is using it as a euphemism for sexual intercourse—which is confirmed by the context of verse 2. Therefore, celibacy is not only a legitimate option but a good and honorable gift from God.
 

Leaders Are Servants

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The Providence Of God

No doubt, some in this world would consider William Borden a fool! Born into one of the wealthiest families in America, he grew up as the heir to a family fortune earned through real estate and the Borden Dairy Company. How many of you remember “Elsie,” the Borden Dairy cow? Raised with the best of everything, Borden’s father rewarded him with a trip around the world after completing high school. And by God’s providence, he found himself on a ship with several missionaries bound for Asia.

On The Subject of Missions

Moved by their zeal to take the Gospel to the lost, he wrote home: “Although I’ve never thought seriously about being a missionary… I think this trip is going to show me things in a new light.” Upon his return from the trip, he enrolled in college at Yale University. Hearing about a student convention in Nashville, he attended and heard missionaries from 26 different countries speak on the subject of missions. One, in particular, captured his interest with an appeal for Muslim evangelism. He returned to Yale with a passion to reach Muslims with the Gospel. After graduating from Yale, he finished seminary with his sights set on ministry to Asia. First, he would do language studies in Egypt. But within weeks of his arrival in Cairo, he contracted meningitis and died! Bill Borden was only 25 years old. He left behind millions of dollars! Some considered him a fool.

No Reserve! No Retreat! No Regrets!

But under his pillow was found a note in his handwriting that read: “NO RESERVE! NO RETREAT! NO REGRETS!” He died fulfilling the Law of Christ—he died serving others! He carried the burden of those lost without Christ! If we were honest, the majority of us would choose the wealth and fame of this world over the toil of ministering in obscurity to a foreign country that might be hostile toward our faith. It takes the special work of the indwelling Holy Spirit to open our eyes to the true riches: “NO RESERVE! NO RETREAT! NO REGRETS!” Bill Borden was infinitely more wealthy after choosing to be a servant to others than he ever would have been had he lived out the American Dream! If he had lived for the riches of this world, he would have left it all behind at death! 

Living For Eternal Wealth

But because Bill Borden lived for eternal riches, obtained through faithful service to God and others, he gained all of heaven’s riches as a joint heir with Jesus! Pretty radical, right? I mean, that would be the opinion shared by most people in this world, wouldn’t it? But is it? To trade away riches that you can’t take with you for eternal riches you can never lose! Jim Elliot, who died a martyr’s death at the hands of the Auca Indians in Ecuador, made a similar statement to Borden’s: “He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” If that’s radical, then let’s get radical! God, deliver the church from the grip of the American Dream! Deliver us from the idolatry of consumerism and covetousness that it births in the heart, and its unholy spirit that drives us to serve ourselves!
 

Our Gifts Aren’t For Us

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Given To You By God

It’s our default setting to use all gifts, talents, and abilities for personal gain and advancement in this world! But God didn’t gift us for our own personal benefit! Your gifts, your talents, your personality and charm, and your intellect were given to you by God to manage or steward over in a way that brings Him greater glory! Are you leveraging all those things for the glory of God? Here’s what the Apostle Peter said about it: “Based on the gift each one has received, use it to serve others, as good managers of the varied grace of God. If anyone speaks, it should be as one who speaks God’s words; if anyone serves, it should be from the strength God provides, so that God may be glorified through Jesus Christ in everything. To Him belong the glory and the power forever and ever.” 1 Peter 4:10-11. 

The Purpose of Your Gift

Did you notice the end of v.11? The purpose of your giftedness is, “…so that GOD MAY BE GLORIFIED through Jesus Christ IN EVERYTHING. To HIM BELONG THE GLORY…” Don’t compartmentalize your life— this is CHURCH; that’s God’s part. But, this is my WORK; that’s ABOUT ME! We can compartmentalize God right out of our life! No! God has gifted us to bring Himself glory IN EVERYTHING! In ALL of life! There is no area of your life where God does not intend to bring Himself glory! So, what motivates you? Are you motivated to live your life for God’s glory, or for your own? 

Gifts Empowered By The Spirit

God’s method is to empower our gifts by His Spirit so that He receives all the glory! This is how the exercising of your gifts, talents, and intellect brings glory to God! The only way we bring Him glory in all of life’s activities is when we exercise them under the power and control of God’s Holy Spirit! When our dependence—in the doing and the living of life—is not in ourselves or our giftedness, but on God’s Spirit! If you’re ‘speaking’ (v.11) or ‘serving’— “…it should be from the strength that God provides…” Don’t miss this crucial point in exercising your gifts in a way that brings God glory! You cannot depend on your giftedness when you speak or when you serve—or God is not glorified!

When We Fail To Bring Him Glory

You can be a gifted speaker, even speak ‘on God’s behalf,’ but if it’s not ‘…from the words God provides…,’ then God is neither blessed nor glorified by them! They are words— even ‘good words’— but they are spoken in the power of the flesh! You can serve— teach Sunday School, sing or play on the Worship Team, help kids learn Scripture in AWANA— but if your service is not done by ‘…the strength that God provides…,’ then God is neither blessed nor glorified by your service! They are deeds—even ‘good deeds’—but they are done in the flesh! I still believe that the Holy Spirit remains the greatest untapped power of the Church! It’s a power untapped because we so rarely lean on God’s Holy Spirit! We lean on our gifts more than we do the Creator and the Giver of those gifts! This has to change, Church!
 

How Do We Bring God Glory?

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The Gift Each One Has

We often talk about living a life that glorifies God, but what does that look like? How do we flesh that out? According to the Apostle Peter, we bring glory to God by yielding to His Spirit’s work to transform us into Christ’s likeness. He says: “Based on the gift each one has received, use it to serve others as good stewards of God’s varied grace. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks God’s words; if anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that God may be glorified through Jesus Christ in everything. To Him belong the glory and the power forever and ever.” (1 Peter 4:10-11)

3 Points About God’s Glory

Peter seems to make three points about bringing God glory. First, God’s purpose for “gifting” us is to bring glory to Himself. Second, our motive, as we use our gifts, should be to glorify God with them. Finally, God’s method is to empower our gifts by His Spirit, so He gets the ultimate glory as they are being used. It’s ultimately God’s purpose to bring glory to Himself as we use the gifts He has given us! While the immediate interpretation of the “gifts” here is related to the “gifts of the Spirit,” in the broader context, it could be argued that Peter means for us to include our talents, abilities, and anything else that makes us uniquely “us.” God has given you everything that makes you you—all your gifts, talents, abilities, personality, outward appearance, etc. And, what Peter seems to be saying is that He’s given you all that for Him! For His Glory!

The Varied Grace of God

None of these things that are unique to us as individuals are to be used selfishly, nor do we have any reason to be arrogant or prideful about any of it, since it’s all been given to us by our gracious God! Everyone has been gifted by God— some more, some less— “according to the varied grace of God.” Then he offers two examples—of speaking and serving—and how these gifts are to be used only in such a way “that God may be glorified… to Him belong the glory and the power” (v. 11). God has purposely and intentionally given us all the “stuff” that makes us who we are so that we would bring Him glory as we use them, not for our own glory! Glory belongs to God alone, Peter says!

We Are Tools In God’s Hands

I’m not much of a handyman, but I have a great deal of appreciation for those men and women who are! I’ve found that most handy people have specialized tools for certain repairs. There’s a specific tool for everything! That’s how God purposes to use us. He’s made us all different with our unique gifts, personalities, and talents. We’re each a special tool in God’s tool chest, and He intends to use us in each specific instance to bring Himself greater glory. But God is only glorified when we use our gifts out of a motivation to see Him glorified— “use it,” Peter says, “as good managers of the varied grace of God” (v. 10). There’s an expectation of intentionality. Don’t just float through life, living off all the good gifts God has blessed you with. Manage well, so as to bring God glory in everything you do!