done, thou good and faithful ser vant"? It is dangerous to live a careless existence so that when you stand in His presence the only thing you will hear will be rebuke. What will be your stewardship when you appear before Him at His coming? Cod grant that your hands may be full of gifts to pre sent as jewels for His diadem. FO LLOW ME Paul made an interesting com ment and exhortation to the church at Corinth when he told the world ly believers there, "Be a follower of me even as r am of Christ." That is quite a testimony to live up to (I Corinthians 11:1). Do you know what it means to be a "follower"? It is not just the idea of falling in behind another person. In English we might suggest the term "mim ic" or "imitator." We sometimes get the feeling that we are to be absolutely noth ing. As a result, generally we are. This is a false view of humility. Our Lord Jesus did not save us so that we would be nothing. He saved us so that we could be like Him. In asking the believers of Corinth to follow him, Paul was not being ar rogant or proud. The servant of the Lord is, in a sense, to be Christ incarnate. In this way others may more clearly see the Saviour. We are to be "stand-ins" for our blessed Lord until He returns. This is why the Holy Spirit dwells with in our bodies. As the world observes you they note every area of your existence: socially, economically, domesti cally, academically, and religiously. Do they see you with the garment of God's righteousness from every conceivable angle and advantage?
We ought to be so robed in the garment of Cod's righteousness that no matter where we are seen we are a credit to Him who loved us and gave Himself for us. Paul knew what it meant to suf fer for Christ. Reading his biogra phy in the book of Acts we know first hand of the persecutions, ston- ings, whippings, and mistreatments without cause on every hand. In fact even some of the brethren in Christ tried to destroy him (Philip- pians 1:14-18). Paul did not allow this to disturb him (I Tessalonians 1:6). The joy of the ever-present Holy Spirit was their portion. Paul was not so much interested in how many people were following him as he was in how they were mimick ing Christ. Every sincere preacher and teacher wants to bring people to a saving knowledge of the Lord. One of the most effective ways of doing this is to become Cod's pic ture window so that others may see Him through us. This is our concerned and concerted prayer, that you may truly follow Christ in every aspect of your daily existence.
Biola and Talbot Day of Prayer November 8
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