[Revelation: The Comeback] Our Final Exam 預覽

Transparent and Pure

Let us strive to serve the Lord Jesus, but let us strive even more to examine our hearts as we serve Him. A test of fire to examine our works is to look at the intentions of our hearts. Are we serving Him to be seen and recognized by others as ‘good leaders’? Are we serving hard not just to serve our Lord, but to feel good about ourselves or to have a good conscience? Yes, our reward will depend on how much we serve, because a good servant serves much, but whose work we are truly advancing, His our ours, will also matter. Sometimes, after we have served in church for many years, we may feel proud of being so faithful and even feel superior to those we do not see serving at church. But these feelings count as much or even more than our actions.  

Let us examine ourselves and see if we will be able to withstand the test of love. The ultimate measure is love. We may be powerful prophets or philanthropists, or great men and women of faith, but if we have not love, our great deeds will not count. If we are not kind and patient, but are envious, proud, self-seeking, easily angered, and resentful, we may be working and serving in vain. These attitudes will not help us pass our final exam. Let us remember that love never fails; therefore, we can bear all things, hope all things, believe all things, and endure all things!  

King David teaches us a very important prayer in Psalm 51:10. He asks God to create in him a clean heart and to renew a right spirit within him. The word “clean” is a Hebrew word that is difficult to translate; it would mean “unsin me,” though that verb doesn’t exist in English. David is seeking such a complete forgiveness that the whole fact and issue of sin can be cancelled. We should strive to have such a clean heart that sin is no longer traceable. Let us seek the conviction of the Holy Spirit, so that sin hidden in our hearts, or even sins we cannot see, may be cleansed to the point that we can become a pure and transparent cup, one that can be filled to the point of overflow. 

The indwelling of His Holy Spirit has two main purposes: bringing conviction of sin and filling our cup to the very full to experience His pleasures and the fullness of His joy. It is His will and desire for us to exclaim: my cup runneth over! God is not only seeking a heart as pure as a transparent cup; He is seeking to fill it to the maximum with exceeding joy.