God's Direction

People who have received Christ as personal Savior need to build their life on godly principles. To build a life that is godly, one must carefully follow biblical guidelines. God wants the best for each person, so He has made sure that specific instruction is provided to help people live a life that is pleasing to Him. The following bible verses suggest God’s direction for godly living.

Scripture says ⁹“For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.  ¹⁰By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds.  ¹²For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.  ¹²If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, ¹³his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. ¹⁴ If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward.” (1 Corinthians 3:9-14). Godly living involves:

1)  Collaboration with God.  God calls us to work together with Him. Without God’s divine help we cannot live the way He wants us to live. That is why we are called “God’s fellow workers” (1 Corinthians 3:9). We cooperate together with God to develop and maintain godly living.

2)    Establishing a Firm Foundation.  A firm base is necessary for constructing a building that is solid and stable. For an individual the only foundation that is completely stable is that “which is Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 3:11). When we build on Christ, we have an unmovable foundation.

3)    Being careful in How the work is done.  Some people approach life haphazardly, while others spend time making precise plans for living. The scriptural instruction is “be careful how we build” (1 Corinthians 3:10). To be cautious takes much godly wisdom.

4)    Using Quality Materials.  “You get what you pay for” is a saying that applies to a godly life because “the fire will test the quality” (1 Corinthians 3:13). People easily recognize when the highest value is used to build one's life.

5)    Obtaining Results that have Enduring Worth.  A godly life that is built well will stand the test of time. That life will stand secure and continue to make a difference for the cause of Christ by experiencing lasting results. It can then be said, “What he has built survives” (1 Corinthians 3:14).

Will the things that you do to build your life reap benefits for Christ and His kingdom? Will God look at you one day and say, “Well done good and faithful servant?” Let us make sure we are following God’s direction for godly living.

Worth and Dignity

When we hear the words “worth” and “dignity” when applied to people we should remember that everyone has been created by God and made in His image.  That means that each person has intrinsic value and God views them as having great worth.  Since God has such a high view of people, we should view them the same way.  These two concepts should be more than nice-sounding words to us.  They should be backed up by the actions we take that show that people are extremely important.

“Worth” has to do with the great value people have because they are the handiwork of God.  “Dignity” has to do with honor, esteem, and respect.  Both worth and dignity are terms that should be used to emphasize that every individual has an essential right to be highly valued, honorably respected, and sensitively treated.

The Bible affirms the worth and dignity of everyone when it says, “We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).  Notice several aspects of this verse.

1. “God” - The God of the Universe conceived, designed, and formed people exactly the way He wanted them to be.
2. “Workmanship” - God’s craftsmanship has been exhibited with divine skill that indicates his creation is the very best possible work that could ever be done.
3. “In Christ Jesus” - The image in which we have been created is that of Jesus Christ, God's one and only son.
4. “To do good works” - The purpose individuals need is to be involved in excellent good works – the very best that we can possibly do.
5. “Prepared in advance” - The good works we are to accomplish have been planned for us by God Himself and take place though us living a godly life.

The principles of fairness, justice and honorable treatment are meant for everyone.  In scripture, the Apostle Paul reminds us that this principle needs to be broadly applied to each person when he said, “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people.” (Galatians 6:10).  How do you view other people?  Do you see them as individuals having great worth and dignity and worthy of great respect according to God’s standards?  Ephesians 2:10 (see above) should give us the motivation to make worth and dignity top priority as we interact with people.

People are Important

If you look back at the February calendar it will reveal several special days – Lincoln’s Birthday, Washington’s Birthday, Presidents’ Day, and Valentine’s Day.  All of these special days bring people to mind.  People are important – to us, and to God.  In fact, people are so important that God took action.  He created.  “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27).

God not only created but he also loved. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).  Aren’t you glad to know that in God’s sight you are important?  Since God highly values us we ought to have that same value in mind when we think of other people.  Listen to the words of Jesus: “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you” (John 15:12). We need to love.

What greater motivation could there be for us, not only in February but all year long, than to recognize that people are important.  That kind of motivation ought to be a challenge for each of us to express thoughts and acts of kindness towards others.

A Lost Camera Lesson

During a recent trip to the Magic Kingdom at Disney World a camera was lost.  Not only was it lost – it was lost at night shortly before closing.  We prayed, “Lord, help us find the camera.”  With thousands of people in the park, where would a person begin to look?  The best choice was to check where we had been towards the end of the evening.  We retraced our steps, looked around the grounds, asked at the last ride we attended and checked at lost and found.  Nothing was found and our expectations were very low.  However, we were told to call Disney’s Lost and Found the next day with a description of what the camera looked like and approximately where we thought we may have lost it.  This was done, but still nothing.  “Well, that is lost” we said, “And it will probably never be found or was taken by someone else.  This may be an experience that can teach us a life lesson.”  The following day we decided to call lost and found one final time.  A smile appeared on our faces because the camera had been turned in.  It was available for us to retrieve it or they would ship it to us.  We rejoiced and voiced a “thank you” prayer to God.

We didn’t give up searching for that which was lost.  It had some value, but even more valuable was the picture content holding visual memories for years to come.  This reminds me of a parable that Jesus told his hearers about the lost sheep.  He said, “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them.  Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?  And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ (Luke 15:4-6).  Jesus compared this search by God to the salvation that is needed by each individual who turns to Him.  He continues by saying, “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent” (Luke 15:7).  In all of this we can conclude that God feels that each person is valuable in God’s sight and has great worth.  When that individual who is lost is finally found, there is much rejoicing.