Faithbase

Yesterday, we talked about God's design for the world and the way that he created human beings to rule and reign over it. This is great. This is wonderful news. God called it very good, except that two chapters later, Adam and Eve kind of go their own way. They decide they want to do things their own way and not God's way, and this results in the fall of not just humanity, but all of creation. And so now we, every human being since then, have suffered through this sinful state of being. It's not just the acts that we commit, although it is those, it is the state of life and the world. So ruling and reigning looks pretty messed up, and I'm sure maybe that was the first thing that comes to your mind. It's messed up in three ways, and I want us to really think through these today. The first is when we decide just not to do it. When we decide we don't want to engage, we get lazy. We decide we don't want to react to the ways that the world needs help, and we want to do our own thing. The second is this. When we decide not to advance the flourishing of the world, instead we want to advance our own selfish desires. This means that we put the world, the people, the communities around us on the side burner, and we look out for number one, and that's me, right? When we choose to pursue or create chaos or disorder or anything that goes against the way God designed this world, which was for flourishing, then we go against God's design, and it doesn't really work out the way it's intended to. The third way is that when we don't do this for God's glory, maybe people even do pursue things that are for the flourishing of this world, but it's not for God's glory. It's for their own glory. It's for maybe the good of their community, and that's all fine, but when we do things for God's glory, it's a totally different shift. I want you to just kind of sit with this. Where does this hit you in your life? Do you find yourself leaning towards not engaging in the ways that God has called us to engage in a life after ruling and reigning over this world and activating his call to govern it? Is it not for the flourishing of this world? Do you add to the chaos? Do you do things for your own selfish gain, or do you do it to glorify yourself? Instead of glorifying God, are you even inviting God into that process? Asking God how you can glorify him in it, whatever it is that you do, your occupation, your family life, your community work, whatever that might look like. I want you to wrestle with this, because every one of us are affected by this brokenness. Even in the midst of the good news of Jesus Christ, we still have to work out our salvation with fear and trembling, right, as Paul puts it. So God bless you, friends. I hope that as you pray and reflect that the Lord is gentle and gracious and guides you in this journey. Peace.