Go Beyond

Each of us are stewards of our own generation — essentially a narrow slice of time in which to serve God’s purposes. After that, we die and return to dust. However, what we do in our generation does not have to die with us if we will own and responsibly serve God’s purposes while we have opportunity.

In a sermon that Paul preached on his first missionary journey, he said, “”Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed.” (Acts 13:36). But, what David did in his generation impacted the course of redemptive history because he served the purpose of God.

In order to serve the purposes of God, we must know His purposes and make them a priority in our lives. As we find ourselves on the cusp of a new year, every Christ-follower should seek to know and understand the purposes of God. Here are three to consider:

First, we must love God and love others. This is known as the Great Commandment (Matt. 22:37-40). Like Jesus, if we will live lives “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14), then we will find favor with God and man (Prov. 3:3-4). Grace often opens the door for the truth.

Second, we must share the good news about Jesus with the entire world. This is known as the Great Commission (Matt. 28:19-20). God never intended that we keep this good news to ourselves. Those of us who know Christ do, in fact, owe Christ to all who do not know Him (Rom. 1:14).

Third, we must champion the rights of the oppressed, express kindness to others, and walk in dependence upon God. This is known as the Great Requirement (Micah 6:8). Not a day goes by that we do not read or hear about terrible injustices in our world. Christ-followers must be on the front lines of the war against injustice, exploitation, and oppression.

As we venture ahead into the new year, we must embrace and faithfully live out these purposes. Our walk and our talk must match. The world will never see the gospel as good news if the messenger is bad news.

In order to serve the purposes of God in our generation, we must also understand our generation. In 1 Chronicles 12:32 we read that the men of Issachar “understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” 

We too, must understand the times in which we live in order to know how to serve God’s purposes, extend His kingdom, and bring glory to His name.

We live in the best of times and the worst of times that present us with both great opportunities and intimidating obstacles that can only be faced by those with the requisite courage and audacity to fulfill the purposes of God. May we live each day of this new year in such a way that it will be said of us that we faithfully served the purposes of God in our generation. Best wishes for a blessed New Year.