The main text for today is from Mark 16:15-20"And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned. These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed."
In this passage we are shown some of the gifts that Jesus gave to the apostles before the went out into the world to preach the gospel. First on the list is salvation. Now, in this passage the salvation is referring to those who would accept the preaching of the apostles, believe in Christ and be immersed, but it can be assumed that (and shown from other texts) that the apostles did have the gift of salvation. Next we see that He gave the some very special gifts: the ability to cast out demons, to be able to speak in foreign languages, to pick up serpents, to drink deadly poison and to heal the sick. These were all miraculous gifts and their primary reason was to confirm the word that they were speaking (vs 20). Notice how the in account Christ sends the apostles out and gives them these gifts and the very next thing we read is their obedience. Upon receiving the gifts they went out and did as they were told! They gave back, in a sense, to Christ with obedience out of love.
Have you given back to Christ in obedience? I know that today these miraculous gifts are still not in existence, but we have many other gifts that we have been given. If you are a Christian, the primary gift you have is your salvation. In addition to this, we have the gift of the Lord's Day, the Lord's Supper, prayer, songs of praise etc... Have you given back to Christ in these areas? Do you regularly attend Sunday worship services, participate in communion, pray, sing along while in the worship service and at other times throughout the week? Are you following Christ in obedience out of love? I know that our "works" do not save us, but a saving faith is one that is obedient, a living faith is one that works. (See James 2:14-24 for a beautiful illustration of this principle.)
How about in the areas of your abilities? Perhaps you're a good speaker, a good teacher, a patient person, a wealthy person, one who has abilities in relational areas, able to talk with ease to others? Maybe you have a skill such as carpentry, plumbing, or electrical? Maybe you have talent in the musical area, or writing? How about with art or maybe computers? Whatever ability you may have been blessed with, are you following Christ in obedience with it? Are you using it to strengthen, edify and build up His Kingdom?
Here's one... What about the area of biblical knowledge? Have you taken time to read and study God's word? This is a very important question to consider. There are many teachings going around, many of them are false and plainly contradict the bible, but how do you know if you're not studying for yourself? Timothy was instructed by Paul to "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth." (2 Tim 2:15) The "word of truth" is the gospel message and the subsequent teachings. Of course Timothy would have not had in his possession the complete New Testament, but he would have had the Old Testament as well as what Paul had taught him. Are we being diligent in our studies?
Hope these thoughts got you thinking!
Have a great week and remember it takes time and consistent dedication to follow Christ in obedience. I know sometimes, many times, we fall short and fall down and fall back, but we must "press on toward the goal for the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:14)
