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Committing to the Lord - 1.7.2024 Bulletin
Committing to the Lord
The Christian life is one of constant self-assessment. The new year provides a good opportunity for disciples of Christ look at our spiritual lives to see what needs to be improved. One area we must evaluate daily is our commitment to the Lord. Are we fully dedicated to taking up our cross and following Jesus (Matthew 16.24)? Proverbs 16.3 says “Commit thy works unto Jehovah, and thy purposes shall be established” (ASV). How can we make sure we are staying committed to Lord each day.
Commit time to Bible study. Our commitment to God starts with being committed to studying God’s word daily. “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you (Psalm 119.11 ESV). The idea of “storing up” is to reserve, collect, or accumulate something until the right time to use it. Here in Florida “hurricane season” comes around the same time every year. It’s important to have the necessary essentials on hand, and ready just in case one comes. The time to “store up” for a hurricane is not the day before it arrives. Our spiritual lives are no different. Bible study is how we “store up” God’s word in our hearts and mind. If we are going to commit to God, our minds must be filled with what He expects of us, and how to please Him. Bible study must be a daily commitment so our spiritual pantries always remain full, we can’t let them become empty.
Commit time to Prayer. Prayer is the disciples’ open line of communication with God. Prayer and Bible study must complement one another. The more time we spend in a study of God’s word, the stronger our faith grows. There are no shortcuts to a stronger faith, only constant exposure to God’s word will bring about the desire result (Romans 10.17). As our faith grows, our prayer grows as well. The more our prayer grows, the more we trust in God. Proper prayer focuses on our dependance upon God and takes the emphasis off ourselves. God wants to hear from us. 1 Peter 5.7 says, “casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you.” If we want to be more committed to Jehovah, we must be more committed to prayer. If our prayers are in accordance with God’s word, there is nothing we can’t go to Him in prayer about. As disciples, prayer must fill our lives (Ephesians 6.18).
Commit time to doing things for others. It has been said if you are ever feeling down, the best way to cheer yourself up is by doing something for someone else. It brings us joy to bring someone else joy, the smile, or laugh, the gratitude, is priceless. This concept is rooted in the teaching of Christ who said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20.35 ESV). To be committed to the Lord is to be generous with our time, always looking for opportunities to help others, especially ways to help fellow brethren. “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith (Galatians 6.10 ESV). We are to do good works to bring glory to God and to show the light of Christ to other people. To do good for others is to show the love of Christ in us.
Commit to looking forward and not back. Living in the past is dangerous, it can bog us down, cripple us, and prevent us from moving forward. The past is where Satan wants us to live, haunted by our mistakes to the point where we don’t want to change, living in complacency. Jesus even said, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9.62 ESV). If we are going to commit to Jesus, there is no looking back, including looking back at our past. We can’t walk a straight path while looking behind us. We all have a past, we all have made mistakes, we all have regrets, but we can’t do anything about those things now. What we can do is change the future. Paul wrote, “forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way” (Philippians 3.13b-15a ESV). Disciples are to live today to prepare for the future. Our mindset must be “what can I do today to prepare for eternity.”
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