STEPPING UP TO OUR CALL

                Do you see your faith as an integral component of every part of your life or as a separate compartment of your life, distinct from other compartments, such as work, home, leisure, etc.? I raise this question because our culture today fosters the later and discourages the former. We live in a culture that increasingly marginalizes and compartmentalizes faith. It is OK for you to be a follower of Jesus, as long as it is a private experience, and does not intrude on other aspects of life.

                The Bible gives us a very different view of what it means to be a follower of Christ. Our faith in Christ is intended to permeate, infiltrate and transform every aspect of our lives. It becomes the standard upon which we measure success, fulfillment, purpose and meaning. Our faith is not to be a hobby we indulge in our free time. It is to be the foundation upon which we build all of life.

                In Paul’s letters to both the Colossians and the Ephesians, he challenges them to step up to what it means to be a follower of Jesus. He calls them to live a life worthy of their faith in Christ. Paul did not just set before them a theoretical ideal. He gave them some solid guidelines of what living a life worthy of Christ looks like.

                 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:9-14

                Let us unpack this passage and see if we can discover some practical steps we can take to step up to our call as followers of Jesus.

- Seek to understand God’s will for you.

                Paul prayed that the Colossians would know God’s will through spiritual wisdom and understanding. We have turned “God’s will” into something complicated and very specific. We tend to think of God’s will in terms of what job should I take? Where should I live? Who should I marry? These are not unimportant questions, but they miss the point. Jesus summarized God’s will for all of us in two straight forward commands: Love God with everything you have and love your neighbor as yourself. We need wisdom and understanding to know how to do this. God’s will is not primarily about being in the right place at the right time. It is primarily having the right attitude wherever you are.

- Strive to live a life worthy of Christ.

                Decades ago it was popular for Christians to wear a WWJD bracelet. It stood for “what would Jesus do?” It quickly became a meaningless cliché. But the idea behind it was correct. As we live our lives, we should try to see things through Jesus’ eyes. How would you act, in a particular situation, if Jesus was physically standing beside you? Then act that way. We honor or dishonor Christ by the way we live out our daily lives.

- Bear fruit through good works.

                What Paul is saying here is that we need to strive to be productive in all that we do. We honor God by bearing good fruit. That fruit takes many forms, but it is most commonly seen in how we interact with others. So in Galatians 5:22-23, Paul defines what Christ-like, good fruit looks like. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

- Get to know God better.

                The way that we build a significant relationship with another person is by truly getting to know them. We have to move beyond a superficial knowledge to a more intimate knowledge. This is accomplished through spending time with that person, sharing experiences, and doing life together. So it is with God. If we are truly going to step up to our calling in Christ, we need to cultivate a deep relationship with God through Bible study, prayer, worship and service.

- Learn to persevere.

                Perseverance is the ability to keep going when the going gets rough. It is the quality to sets marathon runners apart from sprinters. The Christian life is a spiritual marathon, yet we often approach it as a sprint. If we are going to step up to our calling in Christ, we need to learn to keep pushing forward and not give up the race. Our faith is refined through godly perseverance in the face of trials. Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4    

- Cultivate a thankful spirit.

                In our self-absorbed culture, genuine gratitude is in low supply. When we think that we deserve the best in life, we are not thankful for what we receive. We either complain that it isn’t enough, or we take it as something we are owed. Paul challenges us to remember that we were slaves to sin and death, until Christ rescued us. All of life is a gift from his hand. He owes us nothing, yet he has given us everything. We of all people should be overflowing with gratitude.

                Most of us are guilty of stepping aside and allowing the prevailing culture to lead the way; to shape our lives. It is time for us to step up to our calling in Christ. It is time to take control of our lives and live lives worthy of our calling in Christ Jesus.