John 15:14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. 15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. 16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
Everyone wants a promotion. In the job sphere, it means getting what you feel you have worked for and what you deserve. It means greater responsibility and a bigger paycheck.
In some spheres, promotion has nothing to do with money. For instance, in a church or another volunteer organization, there is no paycheck. Promotion means a greater amount of influence and satisfaction in results, as well as a lot more work.
But the promotion we talk about today is one of relationship. We have the opportunity to move from lost sinners, to sinners, saved by grace, the children of the King, to humble servants of the most high God, to friends of Jesus and finally, to kings and priests in the coming kingdom of the reigning King.
The promotion from children of the King to friends of the Prince comes about directly as a result of our obedience to His commands.
The command given in this instance is to love the brethren even to the point of laying down our lives for one another.
Pragmatically, this occurs by us simply putting others first. Paul told us to have the mind of Christ, Who laid aside His glory to come to this earth to give His life for us. We are to look primarily on the needs of others, not on the things we want.
As our walk brings us closer to the Lord, we will become more sensitive to the needs of others. We will sense their hurts and privations and minister to their needs.
Does our present ministry qualify us for a promotion to friendship with Jesus?
No comments:
Post a Comment