Purpose

Reading Me

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I don’t remember when I first heard this refrain but I think it was in junior high or high school. From my experience, it’s popular in youth groups and Christian camp circles as a reminder for young people that how they conduct their lives will influence the witness that they have for Christ. It’s one thing to tell someone the Good News; it’s another thing entirely to live in such a way that the reality of the Gospel is evident in your life.

While I’ve been aware of this phrase for years, it’s only recently that I’ve contemplated an underlying truth of this statement. If I could in fact be “the only Bible someone reads” then it is important that I know what the Bible says. After all, it’s not just my actions that determine people’s perceptions of Christ. It’s the words I say, the attitudes I convey, and the treasures I value that will also be a representation of Him. If I don’t know what His Word says, if I don’t make it a regular practice to not only read, but study Scripture, then there is no way that I can be an accurate representation of His Word to those who may otherwise never pick up a Bible.

Another way to think of it is this – when an ambassador is sent out to represent a government, they are given instructions for how they are to live and interact with the people that they are sent to. These instructions form the basis for their time spent in a foreign land. In a similar way, Scripture contains the instructions for how we are to represent Christ to those who don’t know Him. If we don’t know what the instructions say, when people “read” us, they will not have an accurate representation of our King. They won’t know what is important to Him, what He expects, and what having a relationship with Him really means.

When the Israelites were sent out of Egypt and given the commandments by which they were to live, God told them that not only should His Word be in their hearts, but it should surround them in such a way that wherever they went, they would remember His instructions (Deut 6:6-9). If we are to be the a representation of His Word to others, we would do well to do the same.

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Purpose

What Won’t Be Taken Away

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The story of Mary and Martha is one that most Christians are familiar with (Lk. 10:38-42). Perhaps it’s because of the fast-paced nature of our society and our proclivity to “multi-task” but there seems to be a special resonance with that story among people with whom I regularly interact. It’s not surprising. There are a lot of things to do, and just like Martha in the midst of getting things done, we can forget the most important things.

While I’ve written about this incident before, I want to focus on a particular part of the story today. In reminding Martha that Mary has chosen the “necessary” thing, Christ also says that what Mary has chosen “will not be taken from her.” Although the contrast isn’t made explicit, it does seem rather obvious. What Mary has chosen will remain; what Martha has chosen will not.

It’s easy to look at the exchange with Martha and Jesus and see it merely as a reminder that we need to purpose to spend time with Jesus. That’s a good reminder, and just like for Mary, it is a “necessary” thing for all that follow Him. However, it should also be an admonition to focus on the things that won’t be taken away. In other words, to focus on that which has eternal significance and not merely earthly import. To not, as Matthew 6:19-20 puts it, “lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal” but instead to “lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.”

What does this mean practically? 

  • It means that cleaning the house is probably not as important as the attitude that we express while we are doing it.
  • It means that getting things crossed off our to-do list, is not as important as whether  we are working unto the Lord (Col. 3:23).
  • It means that spending time at Jesus’ feet matters because it should effect how we do everything else throughout the day.

Our focus shouldn’t only be on eternity during our quiet time, but in each and every thing we do. 

In other words, we need to ask ourselves whether we are concerned with that which will not be taken away or whether we spending our time on lesser, and not necessary, things.

 

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