recognize and reject
man-worship
God worked
through Paul and and empowered him to do some amazing things. Paul's life became a demonstration of the heart expressed in John 3:30-36. How often do you put effort into "promoting yourself"? Fullness of life springs from
relationship with the giver of life, and grows as His life grows in us. Learning how to have "less of me and more of Him" is a lifelong process, but it yields good fruit for others.
The more
Paul and Barnabus walked in the Spirit, the more they reflected the Glory of
God. In this case, the Lyconian people
turned to exalting the men—the tangible representation of something greater—but
the people took them as the something
greater.
They missed
the point: the Spirit of God gives life,
light and power. All men are equal in
their nature and in their need to turn from useless things—God gives witness of
Himself to all people in His good works, the seasons, food, gladness…
But the
Lyconians desired to sacrifice to Paul and Barnabus. Why? Perhaps they thought it would curry favor with unseen forces, and improve their lives
and good fortune. The focus was on a
tangible input and a tangible output, rather than on an eternal nature and an
eternal transformation. Are we sometimes
guilty of the same?
In our modern settings, what might
indicate an engagement in “man worship” as opposed to “God worship”?
· _____________________________________________________________________________
· _____________________________________________________________________________
· _____________________________________________________________________________
· _____________________________________________________________________________
As the Psalms so frequently say, "Come, let us magnify and glorify the Lord!"
Read and Pray: Psalm 95, Psalm 96, Psalm 97
No comments:
Post a Comment