John 6:28-29
“Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?” Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”“ John 6:28-29 NIV
We often think of the work of God as something we do, such as attending church, ministry work, missions trips, etc. While these actions are important, Jesus tells us that the primary work of God is to believe in Him.
What does God want us to do? What is the work that endures to eternal life? What matters most in the scope of all other things? A belief that God sent Jesus to be our Savior.
Have you ever had someone ask you what your life's work is, or what type of work you would like to spend the rest of your life doing? That can be a difficult question, especially today, when the average worker will have had 10-14 jobs in their lifetime.
We quickly move from task to task, even job to job, and often times there is little sense of continuity.
Jesus gives us some great insight on what our answer should be while we are here on the earth. His answer to the question, what must we do to be doing the works of God, is still the same in this age of rapid change, believe in Him. So the primary, overarching work of our life is believing in Jesus Christ, and walking as He walked. That is our daily agenda.
So no matter what job you find yourself in, you still have your life's work at hand, believing in Him Who was sent. We define each other in large measure by the work we do. God however, defines us by His grace.
The work God has for us, the way He wants us to make our living, so to speak, is by fully trusting in Jesus. This is the orientation point for each of our lives. As believers we have the life of Christ within us and the good works that God has prepared for us to do, are to be accomplished in our new Christ-life and through the power of the Holy Spirit.
The works God has prepared for us to do cannot be achieved through the power we exert from our old self-life. As believers we have to trust Him to work the works of God in us. We are to believe that God will accomplish His works in us so that He gets the praise for the works that we do and not us.
We must not only believe in Him Whom God has sent for Salvation but we have also to believe in Him Whom God has sent day by day, to do His good works, in us.
These verses remind us that God’s work, and thus by extension our work as believers, is to come to know God and Jesus. And follow their teachings, and what should naturally follow is a deep, genuine life of faith. As we seek to live out this understanding of the work of God, we can trust that God will continue to work in and through us to bring about his purposes in the world.
So, let’s keep it simple. Let’s just scoot over to the passenger side and give Him the wheel. Let’s give up our doing and rest in what He has already done!!!
Father, thank you for this day and for waking us up and setting us on our journey. Lord, open the windows of heaven and shine down Your abundant blessings upon my friend and family today. Lord, we have trusted You as our Savior, help us to continue trusting You for every step that we take in our life. Help us to believe in You who the Father sent, for it is only through the power of Your Spirit that we can do the works that God has prepared for us to do. Lord, use us to share the gospel of Your saving grace to those You set before us.
Father, we love you. Amen !
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