Bible Studies

Part Four

 

 The Army of God is an all-volunteer outfit consisting of advancing disciples.

“No soldier (advancing disciple) in active service (executing the post salvation spiritual life) entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him (2Tim. 2: 4 NASB2020 parentheses mine).”

Granted, we all have legal, moral, and secular obligations and responsibilities that require our daily attention and involvement, but an indication that one has become 2Tim. 2: 4 “entangled” is when the disqualifying warning of Luke 14: 26 applies to the one that we face in the mirror.

“If anyone comes to Me (is born-again) and (then) does not hate (love less) his own father, mother, wife (husband), children, brothers, sisters, yes, even his own (plans for his) life, he CANNOT be My disciple (Luke 14: 26 NASB2020 parentheses mine).”

Jesus was NOT promoting “hatred” among one’s family members. He was talking about putting God and the things of God at the top of our list of priorities. Our relationship with Him, and the execution of His plan for us, is given priority over our relationships with people and the plans that we might otherwise have for ourselves, or the plans that other people have in mind for us. Failing to do so disqualifies us from the life of discipleship, here on Earth, and the accompanying rewards and privileges in Heaven.

When Jonah ran away from the plan that God had in mind, he literally ended up in a storm at sea, was tossed overboard, and spend three days in the belly of a large fish (Jonah 1: 17).  

If He so desires, God can arrange for “a large fish” to get us back in the plan that God has in mind. For an advancing disciple, it shouldn’t take such extreme measures, as an advancing disciple living outside of the plan of God, will feel like a fish out of water, and will have a desire to return to the fold.

Over the years, I have considered many different areas of ministry, but God has always brought me (or returned me) to an environment of solitude where I can study and teach (by way of written communication) the Word of God, primarily focused on the unadulterated Gospel Message and Church Age doctrine.  

Granted, being a hermit is not the norm, but it is my niche in the spiritual realm, and where God has placed me on the spiritual battlefield of the Church Age. Identifying one’s spiritual gift and accompanying ministry (area of service) that God has in mind for each individual, born-again believer, is a key, but often neglected, part of the post salvation spiritual life of discipleship. See 1Cor. 12 for details.

Too often, we make the mistake of choosing an area of service that we want to pursue, and pray (and expect) to receive God’s blessings, instead of identifying the spiritual gift and accompanying ministry that God has in mind. God created you to be you, not someone else.

God acknowledges the desire, but we are not here to do the work that God has assigned to someone else. The classic example of this principle was David’s desire to build a temple for God, but this was to be accomplished by Solomon (2Sam. 7).

We are all on the same team. We are all called to be evangelists and to edify the people we interact with in our personal periphery, as we go about our daily lives. God, for example, is just as interested in the souls of the people working at the local fast-food establishment , where He has placed His advancing disciple(s), as He is in the souls of people anywhere else.

One’s assigned “mission field” is wherever he or she finds himself or herself, 24/7, be it at home, work, school, recreation, or socialization.

The contribution of the ones working behind the scenes is just as important to the overall accomplishment of any given ministry as the one who gets all the attention. 

 For example, I knew of a police officer (not me) who had the spiritual gift of giving and support. He worked directing traffic through construction sites on his day off, and donated the money he earned there in support of his local assembly who was very much involved with promoting the Great Commission. None of the motorists passing through the area had a clue that his directing of traffic was an overt example of one exercising his spiritual gift.

The pastor-teacher’s wife, and in the case of larger ministries, the secretaries, clerks, treasurers, deacons, musicians, ushers, trustees, maintenance, janitors, cross-walk monitors, parking lot attendants, Internet, radio, and communication technicians, librarians, and needless to say, the financial support of the congregation or virtual audience, ALL contribute to the environment and productivity of the local assembly, providing the pastor teacher with the time and space he needs to study and teach the Word of God.

End of Part Four