“The Hope of Glory” Part 2 - “Whatsoever Ye Do"

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe… 

"The Hope of Glory"      

Part 2 - "Whatsoever Ye Do"

   

    

   

   God purposes His indwelling presence to have impact in every aspect of our life and being.  Scripture does not categorize the lives of believers into the spiritual and the earthly, but rather calls us to view our Lord as present and involved in all things.

    "Unto the pure all things are pure" (Titus 1:15).

    "Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God" (I Corinthians 10:31).

    The Spirit of Christ inhabits Christians to motivate, lead, and empower us in all we do.  I experienced this the other day when cutting the grass.  A late summer heat wave presently bakes the Gulf Coast of the United States.  Temperatures during the day have soared to the high 90s, along with very high humidity.  We're accustomed to such climate, but this has been an especially long period of heat for this time of year.  I don't mind hot weather, but didn't relish the idea of yard work during the middle of the day.  It was the only time available, however, so I decided to rev up the mower and do the job.  Before heading outside, a thought occurred to me. 

   "Hey, wait a minute.  I'm thinking about cutting the grass with hesitation and maybe even a bit of dread.  Is that how the Lord would have me view this?  And speaking of the Lord, will He be with and within me as I work?  Will it actually be "We" rather than just "me" cutting the grass?"

   I require a lot of reminders regarding the blessed wonder of a life lived in the presence and power of the Lord.  All of life.  "To live is Christ" (Philippians 1:21).  Excepting sin, He serves as the motivating and empowering reality of everything believers do.  We may not realize it, and sometimes we fail to experience it because we forget or ignore "the riches of the glory of this mystery… which is Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27).  Moreover, our Heavenly Father allows us to struggle when we seek to live by our own designs and devices.   He thereby teaches us to "be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might" (Ephesians 6:10).  However, nothing changes the reality of Christ's involved presence in our lives.  To the degree we know and affirm the truth coincides with our experience thereof.

   It was not as hot as I expected while cutting the grass.  A cloud cover and even a gentle breeze really helped.  That which helped most, however, was the remembrance and affirmation that yard work is no less spiritual in God's sight than preaching.  I need the Lord behind the mower no less than behind the pulpit.  This truth applies to every aspect of our lives.  We can act as if alone.  Or we can walk in the Spirit and truth of "I will dwell in them and walk in them" (II Corinthians 6:16).  The choice is ours in all things, at all times, and in "whatsoever ye do."  Today offers pathways whereupon our indwelling Lord will walk in us, and lead us to walk in the truth of "We."  The journey involves every aspect of God's will in our lives, from the seemingly mundane to the obvious working of our Lord in service to Him and others.  Or, as the Apostle Paul commanded regarding a life lived in the grace of Christ's universal presence, involvement, and working…

"Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord" (Colossians 3:23).

"We are laborers together with God."

(I Corinthians 3:9)

Weekly Memory Verse

    "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord."

(II Corinthians 3:18)

  

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