"Resources Available"

Victory Can Be Yours!

Article #69 – “Resources Available”

               Three things have been pointed to for us to keep in our hearts and minds as we do our best to serve the living God.   The past two weeks we have covered the first, you must be convinced of the reality of God, and the second, you must know that you are His representative.  The third point to remember is that, you must be convinced of the resources available to you.  Where do these resources come from?

The resources available to us for serving God come from only one source and that is God.  Paul wrote to the Ephesian Christians, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.”  (Eph. 1:3)  God has given us everything that is needed to minister on His behalf.  He has given us examples of how we should live through the life and teachings of His only Son Jesus Christ.  He has given us His Holy Bible to instruct us.  He has given us gifts for every occasion.  And, He has given us the Holy Spirit to guide us to all truth.

               He has given us examples through Jesus in how He humbled Himself and gave Himself for us.  He has given us examples through all of the people of the Bible, such as; Abraham and his faith and obedience to God.  Through the lives and accounts of such people as Noah, who found favor in the eyes of God; through Daniel and his life, faith, and prayer-life.  He gave us examples through others, such as; Moses, Samuel, King David, Daniel, and many New Testament people such as the Apostles who all but one died horrible deaths for presenting and defending the gospel of Jesus Christ.

               God has given us the resource of His Word to guide and direct us and instruct us on how we should conduct ourselves.  The Bible is like an owner’s manual for your vehicle in that it instructs you on the different parts and pieces that it takes to make it run and what you must do to get the best possible performance with the least amount of trouble.  It tell you some things that you must do and some things that it would be best to do to cause your vehicle to have the most trouble free life so that you may enjoy that life to the fullest.  The Bible does the same thing.  It tells you how you got here and what it takes to make the most out of it and how to prepare for the best possible eternal destiny.  It is the owner’s manual for an abundant life filled with faith, hope, love, and joy now and forever more.

               God has given us gifts as described in 1 Corinthians chapter 12.  “Now there are a variety of gifts, but the same Spirit.  And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord.  There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons.  But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.” (I Cor. 12:4-7) There is no shortage of resources from God to enhance our abilities to serve God by serving others.  That should be obvious to us from the example God has given us through Elijah.  This is such an interesting accounting of a man with a nature like ours who served God beyond human abilities simply because he allowed himself to be used by God.  God, also, reveals the weakness of Elijah but still took him to heaven in a flaming chariot (2 Kings 2:11) at the end of his ministry.

               You, too, can have victory in Jesus!  More next week.

Lowell Parrish