Have you ever had an appliance such as a refrigerator, stove, washer, dryer, or even a microwave that faithfully served you for 10, 15, 20, 25 years of service; never complaining, always ready to serve in the capacity they were designed to perform? Over the years we have had such; one refrigerator that lasted 25 years with only one service call (we never had to worry about it not performing its duty of keeping the food cold / frozen, respectively); one microwave that lasted 20 years; a washer and dryer that lasted 20 years. Unfortunately, today even the “best” appliances that are on the market are not expected to last with any longevity of service as their predecessors (though we purchase them with that desire). In fact, the washer and dryer that we currently own have both had major repairs and they did so under 15 years of use.
And let it be understood here that not only were we very thankful unto the Lord that our appliances lasted as long as they did – we were just as thankful that He provided the means whereby we could replace them.
But for a moment, let us now consider how faithful [we] have been unto the Lord over the past year, 5 years, 10 years, 25 years, or even 50 years. Have we been faithful servants unto that which we were designed for?
Ephesians 2:10 states,
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”
Here we see that as children of God, we have been created in Christ Jesus to perform the Lord’s good works. One of our first duties unto the Lord is to keep our bodies pure.
1 Peter 1:13-16 states,
“Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”
As a refrigerator needs electricity to keep it properly functioning, and from time to time a thorough cleansing to keep the food fresh, we too need our own type of current and cleansing (that is, we need to stay charged up through prayer, study and meditation upon God’s Word and the leadership of the Holy Spirit – so that we can keep God’s Word vibrant in our hearts). Note the following verses.
2 Timothy 2:15,
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
2 Timothy 3:16-17,
“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.”
John 16:13,
“Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.”
1 John 1:9,
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
As we draw strength from our Lord and His Word – we are then enabled to perform the Lord’s good works. Jesus stated in Matthew 5:13-16 that we are to be the salt and the light unto this sin sick and spiritually darkened world. For this world truly needs to hear the good news of Jesus Christ –
as the apostle Paul stated in Romans 1:16,
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”
Again, reflecting over the past 40 years, we are very grateful unto the Lord for the service that our appliances provided. The question now rests upon us, “Can the Lord say the same about us?” Do we live our lives in need of constant maintenance and repair; always having to be monitored for neglecting our duties? Do we grieve the Lord because of our lack of service? Or can the Lord say to us, “Well done thou good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many.”
