“ARE YOU SPIRITUALLY EMPLOYED?”

By Temeka Atkinson

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD…” (Isaiah 61:1-2a)

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10)

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.“ (Romans 8:28-29)

Hello fellow servants of Christ. I want to share some things that God has been placing on my heart regarding what ‘spiritual employment’ in the earth looks like from a Christian Kingdom perspective.

Normally, when we read or hear about employment or being employed, we generally think about the natural meaning of the word which according to the Cambridge dictionary is “having a job working for a company or another person.” If we do think of it in a spiritual sense, our minds usually only go to our responsibilities to attend and serve in our local churches. We usually refer to First Corinthians Chapter 12 in our Bibles as our guideline on the spiritual gifts God gave to His human kids. It gives wisdom in how the gifts should be used to serve God and each other for God’s purposes in the earth.

However, God’s Holy word also speaks to specific responsibilities and assignments given to each of His children in the earth as it relates to the advancement of His Kingdom outside of the proverbial ‘four walls‘ of the church. In other words, God has an expectation that we will become ’employed’ for His Kingdom, which is a spiritual domain, that can be affected by natural actions. God has predestined us for certain purposes in the earth.

Brothers and Sisters, let us be careful not to view the assignments given to us by our God as burdensome requests. Let us consider all God has done for us. Matter of fact, as the elders used to say, “You can’t beat God giving, even if you tried.” We should look to Jesus’ life and ministry for our example of what spiritual ’employment’ or working for God’s purposes in the earth looks like. Even as early as 12 years old, His mother Mary and earthly father Joseph found Him in the Temple in Jerusalem sitting in the midst of the teachers, listening and asking questions. The teachers marveled at His level of understanding of the Scriptures, but His parents questioned Him as to why he had stayed in Jerusalem instead of joining them and the company of other travelers in returning home after the Feast of the Passover had ended. He told them they should have expected that He would be about His Heavenly Father’s business.

Jesus spent His three and a half years of official earthly ministry teaching; mentoring disciples; proclaiming the good news of salvation; teaching people of God’s love and redemption; healing the sick, giving hope to the hopeless, uplifting the downtrodden, advocating for orphans, widows and the foreigner. He was in constant obedience to the assignment God gave Him in the earth. Scripture tells us that Jesus came to do the will of His Father who is also our Father.

• Employment: natural or spiritual requires work. Are you prepared to work for God’s Kingdom? If not, why not?

Jesus was fully man and fully God in the earth. He had to take on the weaknesses of human flesh to be able to be a Mediator between man and God the Father. Even though He was surrendered in the flesh and willing to be obedient to God the Father in all things, His humanity caused Him to experience turmoil, dread, and emotional pain before His very specific assignment of giving His life as a ransom for many. In the Garden of Gethsemane where He was praying before His predestined appointment with the Crucifixion, He agonized, wept tears that turned to blood and beseeched the Father if there was any other way that the redemption of humankind could be accomplished without Him having to go through the pain, suffering, and humiliation of the Cross. The Father sent angels to strengthen the Son in the assignment; just as He does for us. He helps us in our areas of weakness. When we are weak, it allows Him to show His strength on our behalf. That night Jesus was strengthened and resolute in His obedience when He told the Father, “…nevertheless not My will, but Yours be done.” (Luke 22:42)

Truth is, God loved us first. He gave us His all first. The Bible bears this account of our brother in the faith, the Prophet Isaiah, answering God’s call in the Book of Isaiah with such conviction and assuredness in the following scripture, “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

• Can God find this same level of surrender in the earth now?
• Who among us can say with certainty that they are ready to ‘go’ for God without knowing the ‘game-plan’ or itinerary, or accommodation levels of where you are exactly being sent, or for the length of the assignment or commitment?
• Real talk, the answer may vary by season or day-by-day for some of us or most of us.

As believers we know that we should have a desire to be of service to the LORD because of who He is and all He has done for us. But,…I know, I know—there are many reasons or all the reasons why we don’t want to commit. Unfortunately, sometimes our thoughts immediately default to things such as, “I won’t be good at it, or somebody else would be better suited for this assignment.” Maybe you feel like you don’t have the resources, education, intelligence, looks, etc. Society calls this type of thinking ‘imposter syndrome.’ In spirit realms, these excuses are what the Bible describes as ‘high’ things that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God. Because the truth of God’s Word clearly tells us that we are more than conquerors, and He has given us the power to overcome all things. We are loved and chosen, and He will strengthen us and equip us for every good work. In other words, if God has called us to it, He will help us accomplish it.

Our Omniscient God already knows our make-up, design, proclivities, likes/dislikes, and that is why we should seek His face regarding what He has prepared for us to do. It could start out as something as simple as greeting your coworkers (all of them, even that one) with a smile every workday, or having a conversation with the other patrons that are also unfortunately stuck in the same slow line at a store or restaurant. You may never know what one small act of kindness might mean to someone. It could very well be the only act of kindness they receive that whole day. It pleases God when He realizes that He can trust us with His purposes, even the small ones.

The Bible has many scriptures regarding the work that is set before us in the earth as Christians. Some of the spiritual ‘jobs’ according to the Bible are—

• Proclaiming the good news of the gospel (Evangelism)
• Helping other believers learn how to be holy in their everyday lives (Discipleship)
• Praying for others (Intercession)
• Helping those who are burdened with poverty, homelessness, hunger (Benevolence)
• Fighting for the least of these in society such as orphans, elderly, disabled (Advocacy)
• Contributing to the well-being of our families, communities and our spheres of influence by exhibiting the Fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control)

We may never know why God gives us certain assignments, or how our obedience can change situations, people, etc. That’s why obedience is so important in our walk with God. It’s amazing to realize that He chooses to use us to meet needs in the earth. However, He is seeking willing, yielded vessels. He desires to use you, ‘child of God.’ Yeah you… and me also.

Hey, I’ll be the first to admit that I am guilty of not always being obedient to the first request or second…maybe more. You know, I have ‘all‘ the excuses, or the one ‘good‘ one. However, I know that God says in His Word that obedience is better than sacrifice. I also know that delayed obedience is essentially the same as disobedience. I’m trying with God’s help to be quicker to respond, quicker to yield my will to His in all things. I don’t want to grieve God or miss the divine appointments/assignments that He has entrusted to me.

Full transparency, God gave me the assignment to start this blog two years ago. I actually even wrote a first draft for the blog. Unfortunately, my esteem issues got the better of me, and I never posted it. I disqualified myself from the assignment believing I was not the right one for the ‘job’. How did I really believe that our all knowing God got it wrong when He chose me? I admit it was FEAR, a wicked tool used by the enemy which delayed my obedience. I’m so grateful that our Father was merciful to me during my two years of disobedience, and that He did not permanently disqualify me from this specific assignment. Thanks be to God that He understands our weaknesses and is merciful and just to forgive us of our sins once we repent. He is a good, good Father who wants us to succeed and ‘finish our race’ strong.

Let us look towards Jesus, our Kinsman Redeemer and the Author and Finisher of our faith, for inspiration and encouragement.

• God the Father finished the work of creation in six days.
• God the Son was manifested to destroy the works of the devil and to bring many sons to glory through His death on the cross.
• God the Holy Spirit is leading, comforting, and guiding us through every moment of our lives.
• God is always at work in our lives and society. He is at work regenerating the believer, shaping our thoughts and actions to look more like His Son. He is completing a great work in our lives…BUT, it is not for us alone.
• It is for the unbelievers who are still living in darkness and on the course the enemy has placed them on.
• It is for believers who have also been translated to the Kingdom of His love, but have not learned to lean and depend on God as their only ‘true’ Source.
• The Bible reminds us that Jesus came so that we may have life and have it more abundantly as believers. He didn’t promise that we wouldn’t have hardships, but He did promise that He would deliver us from them all.
  

Remember, our God is faithful and willing to help us in every area of need. He says that if we lack wisdom to just ask, and He will supply it liberally. If we lack strength and admit it to Him, we allow Him to step in and be strong for us. He is after all our Strong Tower. He tells us to knock, and He will answer. He asks us to call out to Him, and He will hear us and answer us. He is not far from us. We can never be far enough that He can’t reach us. We can’t escape His love or cause Him to cast us away. He is the Potter and we are His clay. We are in His hands and are constantly being molded into acceptable vessels for His good pleasure.

Fellow servants, let’s all lean into trusting God wholeheartedly. Let’s be quick to submit to Him. Let’s be obedient to Him in faith. Let’s marvel at what He can do with faith the size of a mustard seed as we go forth ‘to work’ for His Kingdom in the earth.

Brothers and Sisters, let us all endeavor to run the race God has set for us, one obedient step at a time.

Scriptures for Reflection

Genesis 2:7

I John 4:19

John 3:16

Matthew 20:28

I Corinthians 15:20

Galatians 5:22-23

Luke 2:41-49

Dear Reader—

I pray this blog has been encouraging. Please know that the intention of this blog is to encourage you as we walk out our Christian faith together. It is not intended to replace God’s Holy Word, neither could it ever do so. The Bible is the inspired Word of God lovingly given to us to teach, convict, correct, and instruct us in righteousness. God’s Word is living, active, and powerful. It will never pass away.

As your sister in Christ, I pray God’s continued blessings and covering over you and your family. May He strengthen you and give you peace as you journey.

Always His,

Temeka