Honoring God is a high calling that requires a life of devotion to Him and a genuine love for others.
A practical step that honors God and demonstrates our love for others is to simply live in our strengths without wandering in our weaknesses.
To do this, we must discover who God created us to be by understanding how He created us.
With all the psychological pseudo-science and nonsense out there, it's important that we use a Biblical framework for this, keeping our identity in Jesus alone. Romans 12 gives us this framework.
Paul describes true worship as a life that's sacrificially pursuing God's calling by discovering, and using, our god-given abilities and passions for the benefit of others. I've broken this passage into four areas for reflection: 1) True Worship: We honor God by giving up our interest in the ways of this world to pursue God's ways. 2) Calling: We discover God's will for our lives by letting Him transform the way we think. 3) Ability: We honestly evaluate ourselves to gain a better understanding of our God-given gifts. 4) Passion: We develop godly character by working hard and demonstrating genuine affection and concern for others. 5) People: We eagerly use our gifts to serve and pray for the people God has placed in our life.
Romans 12:1-21 NLT [True Worship] "(1) And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. (2) Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think." [Calling] Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. [Ability] (3) Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. (4) Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, (5) so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.(6) In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. (7) If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. (8) If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly. [Passion] (9) Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. (10) Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. (11) Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. (12) Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. [People] (13) When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality. (14) Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. (15) Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. (16) Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all! (17) Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. (18) Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. (19) Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord. (20) Instead, “If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their
heads.” (21) Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.
Romans 12 affirms that a life of true worship and service to God is as simple as understanding and using our unique strengths and gifts to serve the people God has placed in our path. However, don't be surprised if He chooses to display His power and glory to the world through your weaknesses as well as challenging circumstances. This also honors God.
Are you ready to take a closer look at who God created you to be?
Start The Honors Course - Step 1: Discovery
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