SCRIP-BITS

2 Corinthians 5:9.     Wherefore we labour (make it our aim), that whether we be present or absent, we may be accepted of (well pleasing to) him. 

Welcome Saturday! We’re surely glad to see you, for it is ever so nice to have a break from the drudgery of the work week. Oh, we do need the work week, but you know too much of anything is no good, (smile) and we all need some rest time to rejuvenate ourselves, so that we can go back out and do good work for Christ again next week…. 

Oh friends, sorry for that break there of about ten minutes. (smile) It was hard, but I finally dragged myself away from some sweet reggae worship music I was listening to, featuring Vincentian Evangelist Bridget Blucher live at the Barbados Gospel Fest in 2005. It was the perfect way to spend a Saturday morning, but yuh know, even when you are doing something that’s good, the enemy can be influencing you to be disobedient, because you are not doing what the Lord wants you to do at that particular time. (smile) And I was trying to run away from writing the Bit, from getting my head around the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week. 

Ohhh… it’s so much better to listen to sweet praise and worship music! And hopefully the music lifted my spirits so that I can write a good Bit now. And, by the way, if you ever get a chance to check out the Barbados Gospel Fest held on the island every year, please do so, because it’s said to be one of the best gospel festivals held anywhere in the world. I don’t know what’s happening in these pandemic times, but if life ever straightens out, I am definitely putting it on my calendar. Got to remember to tell the duchess that. I’m sure she won’t say no to some vacation time in B/dos. 

Enough disobedience though, the quotes, they are a-calling. And the first one tells us: ‘If you limit your choices only to what seems possible or reasonable, you disconnect yourself from what you truly want, and all that is left is a compromise.’ And that does have a ring of truth to it, especially if you are a believer in Christ Jesus, for in His economy, nothing’s impossible, and He expects His followers to dream big dreams, and ask Him for big, seemingly impossible stuff, so that He can show forth His power and glory to an unbelieving world. 

Wow! The music certainly got me going! And above all else, our God does not want us to compromise our standards and beliefs. Remember we are only in the world, but not of the world. So let’s not limit ourselves, because of fear of failure, of rejection, or just basic anxiety, or even laziness, because if our choice is in line with the will of God, then He will make it come true. And this quote segues nicely into the next one. ‘It is very dangerous to go into eternity with possibilities which one has oneself prevented from becoming realities. A possibility is a hint from God. One must follow it.’ 

Now, not all possibilities are hints from God, but many are, and we must take the time to evaluate them based on His word and will, and if they are indeed hints from him, then we ought to get up off our butts and do them. Why you ask? Because when we stand at the judgment seat of God, and we all will one day, to answer why we didn’t make use of the opportunities He provided us, we won’t be able to say, ‘Oh Lord, I didn’t know it was an opportunity from You.’ 

Now this judgement isn’t whether we go to hell or heaven, in fact we are already in heaven, but it’s to see what rewards we are due, for the work we have done on earth. We won’t be thrown out down to hell, but we will certainly lose possible rewards if we didn’t take advantage of the opportunities we had here on earth. 

Bruh Paul puts it thus to the Corinthians. ‘We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. Wherefore we labour (make it our aim), that whether we be present or absent, we may be accepted of (well pleasing to) him. For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.’ (2 Cor. 5:8-10) Our works shall be tested by fire to see our motives and what our works were built upon. 

Bruh Paul said it this way in his first epistle to the church at Corinth. ‘For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble (straw); Every man’s work shall be made manifest (become evident): for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try (test) every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide (endures) which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by (through) fire.’ (1 Cor. 3:11-15) 

That means my fellow believers, the work, the service we perform for Christ on this here earth is absolutely important. And it must be done with right motives and built on a Christian foundation, with strong building materials to withstand the fire of testing at the judgement seat. And I believe the conclusion of this article from the Grace to You website on the purpose of the Judgment Seat of Christ, ought to motivate us. 

It says: ‘The greatest consequence of unfaithfulness here on earth is that it disappoints Christ. First John 2:28 says, “And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.” That is a sobering thought–we could be ashamed as we stand before the Lord. At the same time, it should encourage us with the prospect of receiving His lavish rewards if we serve Him faithfully during our time here on earth.’ 

That brings us to this next quote: ‘Dissatisfaction and discouragement are not caused by the absence of things but the absence of vision.’ Now that’s often true, since many times we have most of the things we desire or want, yet we are still discouraged and dissatisfied. And that’s most likely because we are not looking ahead, we are not seeing clearly where we want to go, or more importantly, where the Lord desires us to go. Vision, or the lack thereof, is very important to our sense of satisfaction. That means it’s quite possible to be lacking things, but still be satisfied in our souls because we know we are headed in the right direction, and it’s only a matter of time before things turn out right. 

But it all takes hope, faith and true belief in Christ Jesus! And the last quote tells us that: ‘Life is never made unbearable by circumstances, but only by lack of meaning and purpose.’ Ah mih people, I don’t know if that is totally true nuh, because there are some circumstances that make life totally unbearable! But then, on the other hand, if we have a purpose and a meaning, like in living for Christ Jesus, we can put up with some terrible circumstances. It’s not easy, and depends so much on our maturity in Christ. 

And we’ll close with a couple of wonderful and encouraging promises of Jesus. The first one says: ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:27) And this last one ought to fill us with confidence, as Jesus tell the disciples: ‘and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt. 28:20b) 

Yes friends, Jesus is always with us through the presence of His Holy Spirit, so we don’t have to be anxious or afraid of anything, for what can man do to us eh? Absolutely nothing! And if God be for us, who can be against us? Nobody! Not a single soul! Let’s hear it and believe it nuh, so we can walk with courage! Much LOVE!

…for we walk by faith…not by sight… (2 Cor. 5:7)                                                                                                                          

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