Don't Become Vain If God Uses You in His Work

We just celebratedd Pentecost, and as with all the feasts and holy days, God uses it to teach us lessons.

Pentecost teaches us about the starting of the New Testament church and the gift of the Holy Spirit.  It teaches us the lesson of first fruits, that the Church of God is a small, early spiritual harvest compared to the greater harvest to come after the return of Jesus Christ to rule the earth.

But Pentecost is also a reminder of the work of the Church in preaching the gospel.  One of the first things Peter and the other apostles did after receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit was to preach the gospel to the crowd, and about 3,000 people were added to the Church that same day (Acts 2:1-41).

God's way of life is the give way of life.  God teaches us the give way of life to prepare us for eternity in His kingdom as His children.  He teaches the give way of life through His law, through the example of Jesus Christ, through His word, the whole Bible, through His Holy Spirit working in us, through the Church and the instruction of the ministry, and through circumstances.  We learn not only by instruction, but by doing.  We learn to give and love our neighbors by practicing the give way of life.

God is doing a work in the Church and the world to prepare for His kingdom, and He gives us the opportunity to participate in that work.  That is one way we learn by practicing the give way of life.  There are many parts to God's work, and God gives different gifts and opportunities to different members in the Church.  All of us can participate in God's work through our prayers.  Most can contribute tithes and offerings.  Some have the opportunity to help feed the flock through sermons and sermonettes.  Some serve the needs of other members.  Some are able to write articles for the Church or for the work of the gospel.  Some are pastors and can serve by speakng, counseling, and baptizing.

God can use each of us in a small way or a large way.  But however God uses us, all credit goes to Him.  He provides the gifts we need to do any kind of work, and He provides the opportunities.

No matter what kind of gifts or opportunities God gives us, and no matter how greatly He may use us in His work, we must never become vain, proud, and puffed up about the work we do.

If God uses any of us in a powerful way, that does not mean we are righteous!

If God uses a person in a powerful way, can that person still lose out on salvation?

Yes!

Doing a powerful work, doing God's work, does not guarantee a place in His kingdom if we do not develop God's holy righteous character - if we do not really practice the way of faith and love.

Consider this passage, which I will quote at length, though most readers are probably familiar with it.  "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.' Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?' And the King will answer and say to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.' Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.' Then they also will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You? Then He will answer them, saying, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.' And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life" (Matthew 25:31-46).

Note that those who were rejected because they did not really put love towards their neighbors into practice protested that they did great works in Christ's name.  But their works did not save them.

God gave gifts to many Old Testament Israelites in the wilderness after they came out of Egypt.  Notice these examples.

"See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, to design artistic works, to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, in cutting jewels for setting, in carving wood, and to work in all manner of workmanship. And I, indeed I, have appointed with him Aholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and I have put wisdom in the hearts of all the gifted artisans, that they may make all that I have commanded you" (Exodus 31:2-6).  God inspired and used these men to build the tabernacle.

" 'I am not able to bear all these people alone, because the burden is too heavy for me. If You treat me like this, please kill me here and now - if I have found favor in Your sight - and do not let me see my wretchedness!' So the Lord said to Moses: 'Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tabernacle of meeting, that they may stand there with you. Then I will come down and talk with you there. I will take of the Spirit that is upon you and will put the same upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone" (Numbers 11:14-17).  Later, these seventy men prophesied (Numbers 11:25).

But though God gave spiritual and mental gifts to these men, gifts of skill and ability, then used them to do a work, God did not bring them into the promised land.  They died in the wilderness.  God only brought Joshua and Caleb into the promised land because of their faithfulness (Numbers 14:29-30).

"But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness" (1 Corinthians 10:5).  Who does that include?  It includes Bezalel and Aholiab and other gifted artisans who built the tabernacle in the wilderness (Exodus 31:2-6).  It includes the many whose spirit God stirred up to contribute to and do the work of the tabernacle (Exodus 35:4-35, 36:1-7).  It included the seventy elders who prophesied (Numbers 11:25).  God used them to do the work, but in the end they were not faithful, and God was not pleased with them.  They died in the wilderness.

Look at Solomon.  God loved him (2 Samuel 12:24-25).  God gave him wisdom (1 Kings 3:5-14).  God used him to build the temple and to write books of the Bible (much or most of Proverbs, all of Song of Solomon and Ecclesiastes).  Yet, Solomon did not remain faithful "Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David" (1 Kings 11:6).

Consider king Saul.  God selected him and used him, yet he was not faithful and God later rejected him (1 Samuel 9:15-17, 1 Samuel 10:1, 23-24, 1 Samuel 15:10-34, 1 Samuel 16:1).

Joab fought battles for king David and helped David in a number of ways (2 Samuel 12:26-30), but he was a murderer and was executed for his crimes (1 Kings 2:5-6, 28-35).

Or consider Judas.  He was one of the original twelve apostles.  He served Christ and God.  He went out along with the other apostles, and healed the sick, cast out demons, and preached the gospel (Matthew 10:1-15).  He probably baptized (John 4:1-3).

Did God not perform miracles by the hand of Judas?  Judas must have been as successful in doing God's work, in general, as the other apostles, for when Jesus said that one of the twelve would betray Him, the other apostles did not know who He was talking about (John 13:21-30).

Here was a man who served Christ by helping to do the work, probably performing miracles and helping to bring the truth to others, yet Christ said he would have been better off if he had never been born (Matthew 26:23-25)!

If God gives any of us the gifts and opportunities to do a powerful work, let us not become puffed up in pride and vanity, thinking the work we do makes us righteous.  We have to make sure our hearts are really right with God.  And we have to be humble, giving all credit to God for any good work He does through us.