Usefulness or Relationship?

August 30th, 2011 by Dave Leave a reply »

Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven —Luke 10:20

Jesus Christ is saying here, “Don’t rejoice in your successful service for Me, but rejoice because of your right relationship with Me.” The trap you may fall into in Christian work is to rejoice in successful service— rejoicing in the fact that God has used you. Yet you will never be able to measure fully what God will do through you if you have a right-standing relationship with Jesus Christ. If you keep your relationship right with Him, then regardless of your circumstances or whoever you encounter each day, He will continue to pour “rivers of living water” through you (John 7:38). And it is actually by His mercy that He does not let you know it. Once you have the right relationship with God through salvation and sanctification, remember that whatever your circumstances may be, you have been placed in them by God. And God uses the reaction of your life to your circumstances to fulfill His purpose, as long as you continue to “walk in the light as He is in the light” (1 John 1:7).

Our tendency today is to put the emphasis on service. Beware of the people who make their request for help on the basis of someone’s usefulness. If you make usefulness the test, then Jesus Christ was the greatest failure who ever lived. For the saint, direction and guidance come from God Himself, not some measure of that saint’s usefulness. It is the work that God does through us that counts, not what we do for Him. All that our Lord gives His attention to in a person’s life is that person’s relationship with God— something of great value to His Father. Jesus is “bringing many sons to glory . . .” (Hebrews 2:10).

Aug 30 2011   Journal  DJR

Good Morning Lord

It’s become so clear to me that my righteousness is as filthy rags … and that all that is good in me is You.   Oswald’s last line … that all that you give attention to in my life is our relationship … seems right but I have a question.   What about all the places where you say a man’s works and fruits will be judged?   Isn’t it important what I do and produce in your kingdom and in the world?

Yes, it is important and of value but I dont focus on it and you shouldn’t either.  It would be putting the cart before the horse.   If you produce “results” by setting goals for the results and pushing forward toward those goals (the way of the world) … then you will achieve some results.   But our relationship will get left behind.   That is not what I want and I dont value those type of results.

What I want is relationship and then the vision and goalsetting can come out of that … as a result of the relationship.   So the relationship is primary, not an add-on or an afterthought.   So it is what I focus on.   You should too.  It’s more efficient.  You take fewer laps around the mountain and thru the desert that way.

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