Deeply ponder the following two questions: Would you serve Christ if you were the only individual on the planet seeking to please Him? Why do you serve Christ today?
Truly, your motivation matters far more than anything else, because from that heart motivation flows your every action.
In this post, we’ll begin by describing a church that lost its why. Next, we’ll unmask three flawed motivations for intentional Christian living. Last, we’ll uncover the right reason for serving Christ and the power of one life lived in such a way.
The Example of the Ephesians
In Revelation 2, Christ reserved some commendable words for the Ephesian Church. The Ephesians were laboring diligently for the Lord and trying false apostles. Additionally, they hated the deeds of the Nicolaitans had not fainted (Revelation 2:1-6).
Yet somehow, in the midst of all their effort, they became so busy serving Christ that they forgot why. They lost their first love.
It had not always been this way. In fact, Acts 19 tells us that these Ephesians listened to Paul’s teaching for two years. These new converts were so passionate about following Christ that they confessed their evil deeds and burned their magical books.
Some fifteen to thirty years before the writing of Revelation, Paul, concluded Ephesians with these words, “Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity” (Ephesians 6:24). Now that love had fled, replaced by an empty, mechanical form of religiosity.
To this church that was doing all the right things for the wrong reasons, Christ issued this clarion threefold call coupled with a somber warning: “Remember… repent… and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent” (Revelation 2:6).
Three Wrong Reasons for Intentional Christian Living
1. Fear of man and praise of man
“The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe” (Proverbs 19:25).
“Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God” (John 12:42-43).
2. Outward conformity
The outward is meaningless if the heart is not right. The outside of a Christian should simply be a reflection of what is on the inside. As Christ said, “Ye shall know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:16).
Outwardly, the tree of a Christians life should bear fruit that glorifies Christ, yet this outward fruit is only made possible in the life of a Christian who is planted, like a tree, by the rivers of water (Psalm 1). In the end, focusing only on conforming to a spiritual checklist of externals apart from the right heart motivation is like polishing up the outside of a tree trunk that is rotten and hollow within.
The fear of man, the praise of man, and the desire for conformity lead us to follow unbiblical traditions to please others rather than God. These sinful motivations cause us to replace the authority of God’s Word with the wisdom of men in every area of our lives.
3. Salvation by works
Matthew 6:22 utters this somber warning, “Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess not them, I never knew you, depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”
A life of service to Christ will not save a soul; only the grace of God will.
The Right Reason for Intentional Christian Living
Many do the wrong things for the wrong reasons; some do the right things for the wrong reasons; few do the right things for the right reasons. In life, the key is to do the right thing for the right reason in the right way at the right time.
What should the reason be for the intentional Christian behind everything that he or she does? We should faithfully obey and glorify Christ because we both fear Him and love Him passionately.
Why do we love Him? “We love Him, because he first loved us” (I John 4:19). We love Him, because He, Divine God, the most holy, died on Calvary for mere mortal man, the most wretched and unholy. We love Him, because to us that repent and believe on Him, he has “raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6).
“And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood. And hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” (Revelation 1:5-6).
D.L. Moody once stated, “Faith makes all things possible: love makes all things easy.”
Love and Obedience
Perhaps the most important and overlooked part of the Ten Commandments is the reason God gives for obeying Him: “And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage” (Exodus 20:1-2).”
Essentially, God desired the Israelites to serve Him out of gratitude to Him for delivering them from Egypt. Similarly, because God has spiritually redeemed us from Egypt, we gratefully obey His Word. This connection between love and obedience in found in the New Testament as well.
“For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous” (I John 5:3). “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15).
“He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him” (John 14:21).
“Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me” (John 14:23-24).
Loving God (the right reason) leads to obeying God (the right action). Those who claim they love God but despise His commands only demonstrate their hatred for Him (I John 4:20).
The Power of One Life Motivated by the Right Reasons
A grateful love for God combined with a healthy fear of the Lord motivates us to live all of life to the glory of God. Our intense love for Jesus prompts us to say with Job, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him, but I will maintain mine own ways before Him,” with S. Sundar Singh, “Though none go with me, still I will follow. No turning back,” and with Athanasius, “Athanasius contra mundum,” or “Athanaisus against the world.”
This grateful love will drive us to say, with CT Studd,
“Should such men as we fear? Before the whole world, aye, before the sleepy, lukewarm, faithless, namby-pamby Christian world, we will dare to trust our God, we will venture our all for Him, we will live and we will die for Him, and we will do it with His joy unspeakable singing aloud in our hearts. We will a thousand times sooner die trusting only in our God, than live trusting in man.”
May our unquenchable love for Jesus motivate us to instantly obey His Word while the world mocks on. Let us live to please Him alone. May our priority be the kingdom of God, our power the strength of God, and our purpose the glory of God (Matthew 6:13).
Only when the Church recovers the essence of true love will we once see the dynamic power unleashed that turned the world upside down two thousand years ago (Acts 17:6).
Question: Why do you serve Christ? How should the love and fear of God transform the way we live every aspect of our lives?
10 Comments
Ann · October 17, 2018 at 11:27 am
Very well written! What you have highlighted here is the widespread issue of a lack of thought; when there is action without consideration or context to explain ‘why?’, there is no consideration for consequence. A demonstrable lack of awareness of the consequences of our actions is the very definition of a lack of intentionality.
You have brought to mind John 34-35:-
“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
If we are to live our lives for Christ, we should start by following the right example…His example.
Brooklyn · October 16, 2018 at 2:28 pm
Thank you for such a thought-provoking article! Well-written and inspiring. God bless your family!
Joshua Bontrager · October 16, 2018 at 5:24 pm
Brooklyn,
Thank-you! I hope the post challenged you to remember the right reason for everything you do!
Chad · October 16, 2018 at 9:31 am
As you implied, God is looking at the motivating force in our hearts. He looks at the inward not the outward. So our fault is that we don’t look at our inward enough. Strike that, maybe looking at the intentions and inward workings of our hearts should be the primary thing that we are looking at first and foremost with every thought we have before it becomes an outward manifestation. Why are we thinking about doing what we are thinking about doing? What am I looking to get out of the deal? To be seen by others? To be recognized? Patted on the back? To be people pleasers? To feel good about myself? To think that I am something? For money? For something physical or emotional in return? Am I trying to sway or manipulate future outcomes into going my way? We have look at ourselves and ask these types of things to see if we are acting purely out of love.
Joshua Bontrager · October 16, 2018 at 5:39 pm
Chad,
We must seek above all else to be like Daniel, who lived for an audience of one.
Chad · October 16, 2018 at 9:17 am
Really really good Josh. Big broad topic! Love is #1 biggest power. As far as fear of God, surely we are talking about a healthy fear of God. I prefer to bring in the aspect of extreme reverence into the concept of fearing God, because even the devil and his demons fear God although it does bring about love or willful obedience on their parts. Love, I believe can even bring about a greater healthy fear and reference for God. Love can give us an even higher and exalted view of God. Big love=Big reference. Our God is amazing! Love=sacrifice and service. We only need to look at the cross, where God sacrificed His own life for us. There is no greater act of love than to lay down your life for another. God Himself is the foremost example of sacrifice out of love. God did the most ultimate and perfect thing that could ever be done for us. Furthermore, Jesus’s life was the greatest act of service out of love. So we have the most perfect examples of love through sacrifice and service. I know it! But how do I get this love that I see right in front of me into my own heart to be my motivating force forevermore. Only by God’s grace can it be. Ask for it, pray for it with all your heart. Only He can place this perfect gift within you.
Joshua Bontrager · October 16, 2018 at 5:36 pm
Chad,
Proverbs 14:26 puts it this way, “In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge.” Yes, the fear of the Lord is a comfort to God’s children and a terror to Satan and his demons.
The fear of God begins with realizing how great He is. That fear should absolutely terrify the unbeliever. However, once we know Him as Savior, our fear is like the fear of child who knows that his father will chastise him for disobedience and reward him for obedience, but who most of all wants to serve because he loves his father. The child knows that although there will be consequences for disobedience, his father’s love will always be unconditional. He will always be his father’s child.
The Christian life should be lived in the fear of God (realizing who God actually is, that He is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient, and that He will hold us accountable for all that He entrusted to our stewardship).
The Christian life must also be lived by the love of God. We should love Him so much that we would fully follow Him even if we knew there would be no consequences for disobedience.
Yes, pray for love, and as you pray, gratefully remember all God has given you and done for you. Then that love will certainly translate into daring words and deeds for the Lord Jesus Christ.
Chad · October 16, 2018 at 7:41 pm
Do you think that someone who does not believe in God fears God?
Like an atheist?
Joshua Bontrager · October 16, 2018 at 8:42 pm
Chad,
Your question brought to mind Romans 3:18, which in referring to the wicked, states, “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
The wicked either attempt to explain away God’s existence, harden their own conscience, or create an all-loving God of mercy with no judgment that does not exist.
An atheist does not truly fear God, or he would not be an atheist. However, there must come a point before someone is saved at which they realize who God truly is.
Chad · October 16, 2018 at 8:58 pm
Agree.