This was the one great object of His
life. Everything else was secondary and subservient. It was His
meat and drink to do the will of God and to finish His work. Self
and self-interest had no part in His labor. To Serve, Not be Served
God is the source of life and light and joy to the universe. Like rays of light from the sun, like the streams of water bursting from a living spring, blessings flow out from Him to all His creatures. And wherever the life of God is in the hearts of men, it will flow out to others in love and blessing.
The Saviour's joy was in the uplifting and redemption of fallen men such as I. For this He counted not His life dear unto Himself, but endured the cross, ignoring the shame. So to angels are ever engaged in working for the happiness of others. This is their joy. That which selfish hearts would regard as humiliating service, ministering to those who are wretched and in every way inferior in character and rank, is the work of sinless angels. The spirit of Jesus' self-sacrificing love is the spirit that pervades heaven and is the very essence of its bliss. This is the spirit that I as one of Jesus' followers will possess, the work that I will do.
When the love of Jesus is enshrined in my heart, like sweet fragrance it cannot be hidden. Its holy influence will be felt by all with whom I come in contact. The spirit of Jesus in the heart is like a spring in the desert, flowing to refresh all and making those who are ready to perish, eager to drink of the water of life.
My love of Jesus will be manifested in a desire to work as He worked for the blessing and uplifting of humanity. It will lead me to love, tenderness, and sympathy toward all the creatures in my heavenly Father's care.
The Saviour's life on earth was not a life of
ease and devotion to Himself, but He toiled with persistent,
earnest, untiring effort for the salvation of lost mankind. From
the manger to Calvary He followed the path of self-denial and
sought not to be released from arduous tasks, painful travels and
exhausting care and labor. He said, "The Son of Man did
not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a
ransom for many." This was the one great object of His
life. Everything else was secondary and subservient. It was His
meat and drink to do the will of God and to finish His work. Self
and self-interest had no part in His labor.
As a partaker of the grace of Christ I will be
ready to make any sacrifice, that others for whom He died may
share the heavenly gift. I will do all I can to make the world
better for my stay in it. This spirit is the sure outgrowth of a
soul truly converted. No sooner do I come to Jesus than there is
born in my heart a desire to make known to others what a precious
friend I have found in Jesus; the saving and sanctifying truth
cannot be shut up in my heart. If I am clothed with the
righteousness of Christ and am filled with the joy of His
indwelling Spirit, I shall not be able to hold my peace. If I
have tasted and seen that the Lord is good I shall have something
to tell. Like Philip when he found the Saviour, I shall invite
others into His presence. WI shall seek to present to them the
attractions of Jesus and the unseen realities of the world to
come. There will be an intensity of desire for me to follow in
the path that Jesus trod. There will be in me an earnest longing
that those around me may see "the Lamb of God, who takes
away the sin of the world!"
And the effort to bless others will react in blessings upon myself. This was the purpose of God in giving me a part to play in the plan of redemption. He has granted me the privilege of becoming partakers of the divine nature and, in my turn, of diffusing blessings to my fellow men. This is the highest honor, the greatest joy, that it is possible for God to bestow upon me. When I thus become a participant in labors of love I am brought nearest to my Creator.
God might have committed the message of the gospel, and all the work of loving ministry, to the heavenly angels. He might have employed other means for accomplishing His purpose. But in His infinite love He chose to make me a co-worker with Himself, with Jesus and the angels, that I might share the blessing, the joy, the spiritual uplifting, which results from this unselfish ministry.
I am brought into sympathy with Jesus through
the fellowship of His sufferings. Every act of self-sacrifice for
the good of others strengthens the spirit of beneficence in my
heart, allying me more closely to the Redeemer of the world, who "was
rich, yet for [my] sake he became poor, so that [I]
through his poverty might become rich." And it is only as I thus fulfill the
divine purpose in my creation that life can be a blessing to me.
If I will go to work as Jesus designs that I shall, and win souls for Him, I will feel the need of a deeper experience and a greater knowledge in divine things, and will hunger and thirst after righteousness. I will plead with God, and my faith will be strengthened, and my soul will drink deeper drafts at the well of salvation. Encountering opposition and trials will drive me to the Bible and prayer. I will grow in grace and the knowledge of Jesus, and will develop a rich experience.
The spirit of unselfish labor for others gives depth, stability, and Christlike loveliness to my character, and brings me peace and happiness. My aspirations are elevated. There is no room for sloth or selfishness. As I thus exercise the Christian graces, I will grow and will become strong to work for God. I will have clear spiritual perceptions, a steady, growing faith, and an increased power in prayer. The Spirit of God, moving upon my spirit, calls forth the sacred harmonies of my soul in answer to the divine touch. As I thus devote myself to unselfish effort for the good of others I am most surely working out my own salvation.
The only way to grow in grace is to be disinterestedly doing the very work which Jesus has enjoined upon me -- to engage, to the extent of my ability, in helping and blessing those who need the help I can give them. Strength comes by exercise; activity is the very condition of life. When I endeavor to maintain Christian life by passively accepting the blessings that come through the means of grace, and doing nothing for Christ, I am simply trying to live by eating without working. And in the spiritual as in the natural world, this always results in degeneration and decay. If I would refuse to exercise my limbs I would soon lose all power to use them. If I will not exercise my God-given powers I will not only fail to grow up into Jesus, but I lose the strength that I already had.
The church of Jesus is God's appointed agency for the salvation of men. Its mission is to carry the gospel to the world. And the obligation rests upon all Christians. I, to the extent of my talent and opportunity, am to fulfill the Saviour's commission. The love of Jesus, revealed to me, makes me a debtor to all who know Him not. God has given me light, not for myself alone, but to shed upon them.
If I were awake to my duty, there would be one more where there is only a few today proclaiming the gospel in heathen lands. And If I could not personally engage in the work, I could yet sustain it with my means, my sympathy, and my prayers. And I could engage in far more earnest labor for souls in Christian countries.
I need not go to heathen lands, or even leave the narrow circle of my home, if it is there that my duty lies, in order to work for Jesus. I can do this in the home circle, in the church, among those with whom I associate, and with whom I do business.
The greater part of my Saviour's life on earth was spent in patient toil in the carpenter's shop at Nazareth. Ministering angels attended the Lord of life as He walked side by side with peasants and laborers, unrecognized and unhonored. He was as faithfully fulfilling His mission while working at His humble trade as when He healed the sick or walked upon the storm-tossed waves of Galilee. So in the humblest duties and lowliest positions of life, I may walk and work with Jesus.
The apostle says, "each man, as
responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him
to." I may conduct my business in a way that
will glorify my Master because of my fidelity. If I am a true
follower of Jesus I will carry my religion into everything that
is done and reveal to men the spirit of Jesus. Perhaps as a
mechanic I may be a diligent and faithful representative of Him
who toiled in the lowly walks of life among the hills of Galilee.
I should so work that others, by seeing my good works, may be led
to glorify their Creator and Redeemer.
Have I excused myself from rendering my gifts to the service of Jesus because others were possessed of superior endowments and advantages? The opinion has prevailed that only those who are especially talented are required to consecrate their abilities to the service of God. It has come to be understood by many that talents are given to only a certain favored class to the exclusion of others who of course are not called upon to share in the toils or the rewards. But it is not so represented in the parable. When the master of the house called his servants, he gave to every man his work.
With a loving spirit I may perform life's
humblest duties "as working for the Lord." If the love of God is in my heart, it
will be manifested in my life. The sweet savor of Christ will
surround ume, and my influence will elevate and bless.
I am not to wait for great occasions or to expect extraordinary abilities before I go to work for God. I need not have a thought of what the world will think of me. If my daily life is a testimony to the purity and sincerity of my faith, and others are convinced that I desire to benefit them, my efforts will not be wholly lost.
The humblest and poorest of the disciples of Jesus can be a blessing to others. I may not realize that I am doing any special good, but by my unconscious influence I may start waves of blessing that will widen and deepen, and the blessed results I may never know until the day of final reward. I do not feel or know that I am doing anything great. I am not required to weary myself with anxiety about success. I have only to go forward quietly, doing faithfully the work that God's providence assigns, and my life will not be in vain. My own soul will be growing more and more into the likeness of Jesus; I am a worker together with God in this life and am thus fitting for the higher work and the unshadowed joy of the life to come.