 Our Heavenly Father invites us to work on earth. If done correctly, the work would serve as light of the world, shining before others. Then they may see the good deeds and glorify our Father in heaven. Matthew5:14-16.
God could do everything by Himself. Instead, He chooses to get us involved. He may want work to give us dignity, responsibility, or a sense of significance, or to let us make a difference on earth. We could see good work throughout history. Examples include the disciples forming the first century church; founding fathers of democracy in the 18th century; the generation fighting the Nazi-led genocide; the civil rights leaders fighting racism; parents in every generation building up stable families; and creators of technologies liberating many. Another example is to help release slaves from bondage. According to some studies, we still could have more than 40 million people held illegally in slavery. They are forced to work by terrors and violence. There are kids forced to roll cigarettes 12 to 14 hours a day, and 5 to 10 year old sold to pedophiles. We need people to raise their voices to identify the culprit. We need people to stand up, using law enforcement and survivor services, to stop such practices. Having said that, we have to be careful to identify the right types of work. For example, during the 12th Century, fighting in the Crusades probably was considered good work, the type God wanted the people during that time to do. In the story about Martha and Mary, Martha thought she did a lot of work for Christ. But Christ reminded her it was much more important to quietly listen to Him. Luke 10:38-42. Developing Christian characters takes precedence over work. Having the right characters would help us pick the right types of work. By doing such work, we are helping God at His side. This allows us to get a glimpse of His Kingdom on earth. May our work be good deeds, shining before others, so they may glorify our Father in heaven. Summary of a sermon by Gary Haugen at https://www.crosspreach.com/sermons/listall/25/page:9 With excerpts from a Tim Keller sermon http://www.gospelinlife.com/free-sermon-resource http://www.gospelinlife.com/discovering-your-spiritual-gifts-29 世界之光 天父邀请我们工作。为什么？祂可以不依赖我们自己做一切的事。然而，祂选择让我们参与其中。祂可能希望工作带给我们尊严, 责任感，或生命的意义。 纵观历史, 我们可以看到不小人做善工的例子, 包括第一世纪的门徒组成基督教会； 18世纪民主开国元勋；与纳粹党种族灭绝奋斗的一代；民權運動领袖与种族歧视斗争；每一代的父母建立稳定的家园；和解放了许多人的技术革命创造者。 另一个例子是那些帮助奴隶摆脱奴役的。根据一些研究，我们仍然有超过4千万人被非法奴役。孩子被迫每天卷烟14小时，和10岁下的孩子被卖给恋童癖者。恐怖和暴力强迫他们工作。我们需要有人伸张正义识别这些罪魁祸首。 我们需要人站出来使用执法和幸存者保护服务来制止这种活动。 如果基督徒做善工，这些工作可以成为世界的光，照在人们面前，使他们可以看到善举，并荣耀我们天上的父 （马太福音5：14-16）。 话虽如此，我们必须谨慎选择正确的工作。 例如，十字军东征的战争, 在十二世纪时可能被认为是为上帝而做正确的事工. 在马大和马利亚的故事中，马大认为她为基督做了很多事。 但基督提醒她更为重要的是安静地聆听祂的话 （路加福音10：38-42）。 与上帝建立良好关系并培养基督徒品格优先于工作。 有这样的关系和品格，可帮助我们选择做正确的事。 通过这样的工作，我们在跟随神，在神身边帮助祂。我们也可以瞥见祂的国度。 愿我们做好事，照在人前，叫他們看見，便將榮耀歸給天父。 Comments are closed.
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