Memorise: Be ye followers of me,
even as I also am of Christ. 1st Corinthians 11:1
There are certain spiritual pacesetters in the Church who
when a conscientious Christian takes time to emulate, heaven would be his
limit. It is unfortunate, however, that these spiritual pace setters are very
few nowadays unlike in the days of old when an apostle wrote:
“And ye become followers of us, and
of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy
Ghost. So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and
Achaia.” 1st Thessalonians 1:6-7
When were the outstanding Christian living standards that the
early disciples lived by? Some could be deduced in the above quoted scripture:
Firstly, they received the Word with joy despite the fact that it was hard.
Today, Christianity has become a ‘bread and butter’ affair. Any New Testament
injunction that brings about a slight affliction is thrown away as it comes
from the pulpit. This has made many post-modern preachers not to bother about
preaching the hard truth any more. They see it as an exercise in futility, so
you hear them say, “don’t preach such things; they won’t accept that from you!”
At the beginning of this apostasy, it was the modern day Christians who picked
and chose what they would accept, while they threw the rest back at the
preacher. These days, it is the preachers who ‘carefully’ select the message
that will be ‘offensive’ to their congregation. These are no spiritual pace
setters. I will like to warn a preacher using this devotional with the Words of
the Lord in Ezekiel 33:7-8
“So thou, O son of man, I have set
thee a watchman unto the house of Israel ; therefore thou shalt hear
the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. When I say unto the wicked, O
wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked
from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I
required at thine hand.”
Apart from warning the evil-doers and sinners against
wickedness by word of mouth, a spiritual pace setter must practice what he
preaches. A Christian, and particularly a preacher, must live as a light in
this world. The Bible says:” … of all that Jesus began both to do and teach”
(Acts 1:1). This exactly was the pattern of life of the early apostles; the
reason they were able to admonish brethren to be followers of them as they were
of Christ. In transparent faithfulness, Christians should set the pace for the
unbelievers. In godliness, believers in Christ must be spiritual pacesetters
and perfect examples of their generation. Jesus Christ said: “Let your light so shine before men, that
they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” Matthew
5:16
Prayer Point: Father, please make
me a spiritual pacesetter so that millions may come to Your Kingdom through me.
Bible in one year: 1st Samuel
18:17-20:42, Proverbs 6:28-7:9
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