Do you ever feel like you are unimportant? Worthless? That everyone else has a much greater calling than you do? In Acts, we read how the church was growing so large that the apostles could no longer handle everything that needed doing. They ended up having 7 others come alongside them to help them so that they could contribute to studying and preaching. The people who joined them were in charge of making sure things ran smoothly and that everyone was getting their needs met. It could seem like the apostles' job was the most important, but as I read this I realize that wasn't the case. Acts 6:7 starts with the word "so". That tells us that what is coming next is the effect of what happened before. It says, "so God's message continued to spread. The number of believers greatly increased...". We all have a part to play. There is not a single gift that God has given you that is wasted in the body of Christ. You NEED to use your gift to help increase the body of believers. Not to necessarily grow a specific church, but to bring people life through Christ! If God has gifted you to encourage- encourage. If God has gifted you to help- help. If God has given you a passion to pray- pray without ceasing. Every single thing we do should be about bringing people closer to Jesus. We aren't working just to put on a show or feel important. We are doing our part to show people the love of Jesus and that love will draw them to Him.
We read about the parable of a hidden treasure and a pearl of great value. Where the people sold everything they had to buy the treasure. In my study on these parables, I read two different interpretations that I found interesting. The most common interpretation discussed is that these parables do not mean that we can buy our way into heaven. It is that the treasure is the Kingdom of Heaven and the value is so great that it is worth more than any earthly thing. Everything else that we could have fades in comparison to that treasure and we should be willing to give up everything for the Kingdom of Heaven. The second interpretation was that we are the treasure. Jesus sees us and our value and He gave up everything He had to save us and purchase us with His blood. He gave up everything even to the point of His own life because he found us valuable and worthy. Both are very thought-provoking! To think of ourselves as a treasure worth Jesus giving His life for. It causes me to pause ...
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