This is the WORK of God |
by David A. DePra |
| If there is one question I used to ask God more than any |
| other, this one was it: "Lord, what do you want me to DO?" For |
| years I thought that God was sitting in heaven waiting for me to |
| "do the right thing," or to "believe the right thing," so I would be in |
| the right position to receive what He had for me. But I could |
| never seem to discover exactly what that "right thing" was that |
| He was waiting for. When I would ask God about it, He was |
| always silent. |
| At times, God's silence can be terrifying. Some of us fear that |
| His silence must surely be the result of some awful sin in our |
| hearts. We think God is waiting for us to get rid of it before He'll |
| talk to us. Or perhaps we fear that God will not speak to us until |
| we get rid of some "secret blindness." If only we knew what our |
| problem was, we think. Then we could do something about it |
| and finally be able to walk and talk with God. |
| Of course, focusing on what God wants US to do isn't |
| unusual. Most of us spend years trying to do the things we |
| believe are God's will. We do good works, serve, and keep laws |
| and principles. In fact, some of us develope entire religious |
| systems trying to do "the works of God." We are the legalists. |
| We can hardly live with ourselves unless we are satisfied we |
| have "done the right thing," or have "kept the right Bible |
| principle." |
| Remarkably, in Matthew, we find the answer to my question |
| -- the one many of us would love to ask Jesus Christ: "Lord, |
| what do You want me to do? What works should I be doing to be |
| doing the works of God? |
| "Labor not for the meat which perishes, but for that meat |
| which endures unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man |
| shall give unto you, for Him has God the Father sealed." |
| Then said they unto Him, "What work shall we do, that we |
| might work the works of God?" And Jesus answered them, |
| "This is the work of God: That you believe on Him whom He |
| has sent." (John 6:27-29) |
| Let's repeat Jesus' answer: |
| Jesus said, "This is the work of God: Believe on Him whom |
| God has sent." |
| That answer almost sounds like a riddle. How is the "work" of |
| God done by "believing?" Isn't the "work of God" done by |
| "working?" Isn't the "work of God" done by preaching the gospel, |
| serving others, and by obeying the ten commandments? In fact, |
| the Bible says, "faith without works is dead?" So how can |
| "believing" be the "work of God?" |
| Jesus obviously knew about the need for good works. He |
| talked about obedience to God continually. Yet when asked this |
| simple question, He makes no mention of any works. He |
| by-passes works completely and tells us that the real "work of |
| God" is that we "believe." |
| Jesus was getting at a Truth basic to Christianity. But in order |
| to see it, we have to introduce a few other scriptures which |
| speak of the "work" of God. For example, on the Cross, Jesus |
| said, "It is finished!" But what was finished? The "work" which |
| the Father had given Him -- because another time Jesus said, |
| "I have finished the work which You (the Father) have given Me to |
| do." (Jn. 17:4) |
| What was Jesus' "work?" Primarily, the Redemption. His |
| redemptive work, and all it emcompasses, was the reason He |
| came. The fact that He finished it forms the basis for our |
| Christian faith. |
| Now we can begin to see what Jesus was getting at in His |
| answer to the people. He, Himself, was to finish all the work of |
| God. He would not ascend to heaven leaving any of us to finish |
| it. So when the people asked Him, "What work shall we do, that |
| we might work the works of God," He could not tell them |
| anything to DO. He could only tell them what to believe: They |
| needed to believe and rest in HIS finished work. |
| So what does that leave me to do? Just what Jesus said: |
| Believe. My "work" is to believe and rest in HIS finished work. |
| How simple a thought. So simple we miss it. I am not to trust |
| in my works, but in HIS finished work. I am not to try to "do for |
| God," but to rest in what He has done. I am not to try to "win the |
| victory," but am to rest and stand in HIS completed victory. This |
| is the gospel of grace. |
| Does this mean we don't need to do works? It isn't a matter of |
| a "need" to do. If we are resting in Christ, we WILL do good |
| works. Real faith always results in a life of surrender, |
| obedience, and true holiness. |