Work and the Life
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meat and drink to do the will of God and to finish His work. Self and
self-interest had no part in His labor.
So those who are the partakers of the grace of Christ will be ready
to make any sacrifice, that others for whom He died may share the
heavenly gift. They will do all they can to make the world better
for their stay in it. This spirit is the sure outgrowth of a soul truly
converted. No sooner does one come to Christ than there is born in
his heart a desire to make known to others what a precious friend he
has found in Jesus; the saving and sanctifying truth cannot be shut up
in his heart. If we are clothed with the righteousness of Christ and
are filled with the joy of His indwelling Spirit, we shall not be able to
hold our peace. If we have tasted and seen that the Lord is good we
shall have something to tell. Like Philip when he found the Saviour,
we shall invite others into His presence. We shall seek to present to
them the attractions of Christ and the unseen realities of the world to
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come. There will be an intensity of desire to follow in the path that
Jesus trod. There will be an earnest longing that those around us may
“behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”
John 1:29
.
And the effort to bless others will react in blessings upon ourselves.
This was the purpose of God in giving us a part to act in the plan of
redemption. He has granted men the privilege of becoming partakers
of the divine nature and, in their turn, of diffusing blessings to their
fellow men. This is the highest honor, the greatest joy, that it is possible
for God to bestow upon men. Those who thus become participants in
labors of love are brought nearest to their Creator.
God might have committed the message of the gospel, and all
the work of loving ministry, to the heavenly angels. He might have
employed other means for accomplishing His purpose. But in His
infinite love He chose to make us co-workers with Himself, with
Christ and the angels, that we might share the blessing, the joy, the
spiritual uplifting, which results from this unselfish ministry.
We are brought into sympathy with Christ through the fellowship
of His sufferings. Every act of self-sacrifice for the good of others
strengthens the spirit of beneficence in the giver’s heart, allying him
more closely to the Redeemer of the world, who “was rich, yet for
your sakes ... became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich.”
2 Corinthians 8:9
. And it is only as we thus fulfill the divine purpose
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