Acts 8:21 You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God.
Do you remember the story of the Little Red Hen? She’s supposed to be making a cake and asks all of the other farm animals to help her. All of them are too busy, but when the cake is finished they all want a slice. The Little Red Hen does not give them any cake because they wouldn’t help in the process.
Every church has its share of participants and passengers. Participants like to get involved in the various events, missions, and ministries that their church has to offer. They cheerfully give of their time and talents to make each church project successful. They don’t count the cost because they do it all for Christ.
Passengers on the other hand, just take as much as they can and sadly miss out on the blessings of doing something beautiful for the Lord. They believe that the Church exists to serve their needs and panders to their personal life-style choices. They forget that the Church exists to serve Christ and His work in the world.
When Simon the Magician asks the apostles Peter and John if he can purchase their powers, he does this to advance his career. He’s not really interested in what this power does for the life, work, and growth of Christ’s Church. He only wants more power, influence, and esteem for himself. That’s why the apostles rebuke him and tell him to repent of his ways. If he truly wants to experience the powerful presence of the Holy Spirit then he has to get his heart right with God.
During the summer, most of our churches wind down. It’s a good time o refresh our spirits and review our commitment to our local congregations. Come September, a new Church year will begin. Throughout the summer we all should pray over and ponder about how we can employ our time and talents, skills and resources for Christ’s work in our congregations, communities, and across the world. As the apostles expressed so long ago, getting our hearts right with God is the first step towards living for Christ.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, keep us from becoming passengers and taking the easy path. Help us to seek the places and projects, ministries and missions, teams and talents that can benefit from our cheerful commitment and personal participation. In Your Holy Name, we earnestly pray. Amen.
John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send John an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.
Today’s image is John’s drawing of a Brown Gulf pelican. He calls it “Pelican Sunset.” You can view a larger version online at http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1187/4725476749_f2b6049d71_b.jpg
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