Are you preparing to do what the Lord wants you to do, or are you doing what you have been prepared to do? I fear that far too many who call Christ Lord are always preparing, waiting for a sign, holding out until they’re sure that it’s the Holy Spirit who is telling them what to do, they are contemplating perhaps, but for the most part, they just sit and wait.
Sitting in the pew each Sunday is a good thing, if you are there to glorify God, if you are being taught by men who fear God, by men who would rather be struck dumb, unable to speak, than to say even one word that would dishonor the Lord, or speak a false doctrine, but what about Monday, or Thursday, what of those days in-between that hour or so on Sunday morning.
Those who are always in a state of preparedness, yet never act upon it, are not living a life of obedience or faith, they are living a lie. “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:15) Five minutes after you were saved you were prepared, not in the doctrine of election, not in the knowledge of justification, sanctification and glorification, but you had the ability to turn to someone and say to them, “Jesus loves you.” You knew at that moment that you had been prepared to give your testimony, this is who I was, and this is the One that saved me from my sins, His name is Jesus, and here is how I met Him.
But most who call Christ Lord will not even do that, instead they will not see themselves as doing even this smallest of things for His glory. “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Cor. 10:31) These individuals remind me of people who will go to the store and look for a birthday card for a child that reads on the front cover, “You’re Five!” and when opened it says, “Have a Great Birthday!” Wouldn’t a piece of paper and a pen not only have been less expensive, but more intimate for the moment?
These individuals will not step out in faith, the Word of God is clear to them, the commandments of the Scriptures have no concern with your emotional state, one cannot “feel” anything about a commandment, they can either be obeyed or disobeyed. Stepping out in faith is the way of the man or woman of God, not knowing 100% of the time of what we are to do but doing it for the glory of God is called faith. “Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (2 Tim. 3:7)
There are theologians out there that practically have the Scriptures content memorized that do not witness to others, there are pastors that tell their congregation, “Just bring them to church,” there are people who have been sitting in those pews for years, sometimes decades, that are always preparing, always waiting on the Holy Spirit, at least that’s their excuse, those who have never taken that step of faith. The reasons are easy to explain, and if pressed on the matter, they would deny each of them, they are embarrassed, ashamed, they have not been called directly to act upon their faith towards others, especially with their words, it’s not their responsibility, that is the pastor, elders and deacon’s job.
I would ask you to ponder this statement, especially if you see yourself in this letter, anyone who is not obedient to the Word of God is not saved. “Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.” (Matt. 7:20) “And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.” (Rev. 20:12) If you are constantly preparing to do something, and never do it, lazy is not the word that fits into the context here, disobedient is the word that applies to you. Are you a disobedient child of God, or a disobedient sinner, still lost?
