Are you worthy of the world, or are you too heavenly minded to be of any earthly good? Do you get up and head off to work most of the days of the week, performing all the tasks that have been set before you there each day diligently, obediently obeying the orders of your superiors, and maintaining a healthy and good work habit while you are there, employing all of you energies and thinking of nothing else? Do you join in the conversations that your fellow employees enjoy, remembering to be polite and kind, asking about their weekend plans and listening intently as they banter and jest with each other, joining in and feeling right at home with them? Do you bring the news of your day back to your home, relating the stories and jokes that you heard that day with your spouse, asking questions about her day and your own plans for the weekend or upcoming holiday celebrations? Are your children asked of their day, what they learned in school perhaps, or the sporting events that are upcoming, are statements of what their friends are doing listened to by you as you sit down to your evening meals, of those from your wife about the news of the neighborhood and the plans of your friends and neighbors.
Do you seek out those in your community for conversation and friendship, enjoying your times together and conversations of things to come, of vacations, business trips, even the programming on the television that each of you enjoy. Do you spend time with the local merchants, chatting about the weather, the local community news, the business of today, of their family and friends and the commonalities that we all share? If this is you my friend, then congratulations, you are indeed worthy of the world, and have no need to be concerned that you are too heavenly minded to be of any earthly good. Your attention is focused right where the thoughts of most of the individuals on this planet are, the things of this world. The amount in your bank account, the bills that are due, what time you are to be at work tomorrow and the duties you must perform at it, what you need to pick up from the local market to keep the pantry full, even the conversations that might ensue from those you may meet that day, you are a bona fide representative of the world.
Now, let’s try this again shall we, and this time let us start with Hebrews 11:38 “Of whom the world was not worthy.” You called your employer up for the second day in a row to tell him that you would not be coming in again because not only is your wife down with the flu, but two of your children are now also, for that is what a man does who “loves his wife as Christ loved the church, ” (Eph. 5:25) and it did not bother you one bit when he hung up in anger at your call. At work you walk away from the others when a dirty joke begins, for you are to be holy (1 Peter 1:16), and their thoughts of you at these times mean absolutely nothing to you. You listen when others at work speak with you, which is rare, because you truly care about the salvation of their souls, and your replies show it, almost everything you say relates to the truths of the Word of God in one way or another, never preaching or being facetious though, your hope is simply to let them know that the Savior died for them also.
Your words at home are like a honeycomb, overflowing with heartfelt gratitude and love for those that God has given you, but they are always sprinkled with firm truth, allowing no one in the home to dishonor the Lord you all strive to serve. Conversations around the dinner table are not always filled with mirth and happiness, but they are always encapsulated with a love that knows no end. Forgiveness is in your nature, His will be done are words of truth that you live by, and all that is done in your home is tempered by the love that Christ has for you. Those in your neighborhood not only know you as a good man, but a man of faith, a man of God, one who is prepared to sacrifice his life for those he loves, and does so every day, he loves the good and hates the evil.
He is a man of standards and quality and will freely admit that they are not in him, but come from the Holy Spirit of God, the God that he willingly obeys each day of his life. He freely admits his faults and asks forgiveness from those he has inadvertently harmed, hoping that the continued relationship will either lead that one to repentance, or to further assist his brother in the path that the Lord has placed him on. He gives to those in need, but always in prayer and wisdom, for it is the Lord’s money in his bank account, he knows no debt, for the Lord has promised to supply all his family’s needs, and he has seen by his faithful stewardship that many of their wants have also been provided for by His loving grace and mercy. He tithes each week, for he believes and has been shown that Mal. 3:10 is a faithful and true promise, and the Lord has not only blessed his household with all manner of good things, but allowed him to give to others in need more abundantly then he ever thought possible.
He rejoices in the hurtful words he knows are spoken in the community behind his back by some, but feels a deep sorrow for these, for he knows their end if they do not repent, he is a man of deep emotions, but he does not allow them to control him. Out of weakness he has been made strong.
Those who are heavenly minded are the only ones who are of any earthly good, my friends, for they bring the hope of the eternal to a lost world, they live the good news that is Jesus Christ with every step.
