So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
For from him and through him and for him are all things.
To him be the glory for ever! Amen.
Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments,
and his paths beyond tracing out!
‘Who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his counsellor?’
‘Who has ever given to God,
that God should repay them?’
For from him and through him and for him are all things.
To him be the glory for ever! Amen.
~ Romans 11:33-36
for, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’
Romans 10:13
‘Sacrifice thank-offerings to God,
Psalm 50:14-15
fulfil your vows to the Most High,
and call on me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you will honour me.’
11 ‘“These are the regulations for the fellowship offering anyone may present to the Lord:
12 ‘“If they offer it as an expression of thankfulness, then along with this thank-offering they are to offer thick loaves made without yeast and with olive oil mixed in, thin loaves made without yeast and brushed with oil, and thick loaves of the finest flour well-kneaded and with oil mixed in. 13 Along with their fellowship offering of thanksgiving they are to present an offering with thick loaves of bread made with yeast. 14 They are to bring one of each kind as an offering, a contribution to the Lord; it belongs to the priest who splashes the blood of the fellowship offering against the altar. 15 The meat of their fellowship offering of thanksgiving must be eaten on the day it is offered; they must leave none of it till morning.
Leviticus 7:11-15
Under the Law, a man could simply say he was thankful, but if he was really thankful, he also brought a costly thank offering (Leviticus 7:11-15). Today, while God is no longer interested in animal sacrifices, a truly thankful believer will present his body to God as a living sacrifice. This kind of sacrifice costs us our time, our labor and our money, but it is only “reasonable” that we afford Him this service (Romans 12:1) in light of all that He has done for us in Christ.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
Romans 12:1
A sacrifice is something precious, of great value, given out of love and devotion to God. If it costs you nothing, it is no sacrifice. The sacrifice God wants is you… your body, your time, your very life. According to the rest of the chapter (Rom. 12), the sacrifice you offer will be inline with your spiritual gifts. Yet there are so many tasks to be done in the church that anyone can do, and that do not require any special gift at all. Most churches respond by squeezing the 20% of active, hardworking people for even more sacrifices. This is ineffective for the long run, and it means that the other 80% will have little to show their Lord for their lives when the time comes for showing. Offer yourself to Christ, give Him your whole self, and ask, “Lord, am I doing all I can to turn the wheel of the church? Am I fully consecrated to you?” I believe God wants to do great things in your own church. May He do them through the dedicated service of each one of you!
https://bereanbiblesociety.org/joyful-thank-offerings
https://twojourneys.org/articles/detail/2262534/how-to-offer-yourself-as-a-living-sacrifice-to-god
Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.
This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.
Search me, God, and know my heart;
Psalm 139
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
On Saturday 6th January while following my daily reading plan, My wife and I read from Romans 13 (Submission to Governing Authorities) and The Lord spoke to me through the following verses:
“Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgement on themselves.”
Romans 13
Further to this, still during my time with the Lord that evening, while continuing with my daily reading plan (my wife and I read one chapter from the Old and New Testament every day), I also read from Ezekiel 33 (Renewal of Ezekiel’s Call as Watchman)
“Son of man, say to the Israelites, ‘This is what you are saying: “Our offences and sins weigh us down, and we are wasting away because of them. How then can we live?”’ Say to them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, people of Israel?’
Ezekiel 33
Praise God our Loving Father! That night and the following day (Sunday) while at church, I felt in my spirit that I was being chastened by The Lord and thankfully I submitted to Him. I decided not to open for business (the following day) on Monday 8th January.
Please understand that I didn’t and do not want to be a hypocrite by praising the Lord but not obeying Him. Nor do I want to tarnish the name of The Lord or the church by not following His instruction. It was clear to me that I had little option but to close the business and sort out the issues with Caesar.
So I had made my decision and my wife and I had prayed for wisdom and His leadership but I have to admit that I still lacked full conviction, I was going to upset a number of people and this upset me. I had a very busy mind that night and I found sleep (the night of the 7th) hard to come by. All I could think about was that the following morning, I had to let the others who were coming back to work from their Christmas holidays that I had decided to close the business… This news was going to shock them to say the very least!
In an effort to get some sleep that night and to distract myself, I started listening to podcasts; mostly the news… but it didn’t work and I kept feeling in my spirit that I should open a sermon which I had downloaded. Thankfully I took notice and played it… Tim Keller was preaching about gaining wisdom and he was preaching from Proverbs 4. The Lord spoke to me so clearly through this scripture:
Listen, my son, accept what I say,
Proverbs 4
and the years of your life will be many.
I instruct you in the way of wisdom
and lead you along straight paths.
When you walk, your steps will not be hampered;
when you run, you will not stumble.
Hold on to instruction, do not let it go;
guard it well, for it is your life.
Do not set foot on the path of the wicked
or walk in the way of evildoers.
Avoid it, do not travel on it;
turn from it and go on your way.
Wow!! These verses from Proverbs gave me all the wisdom I needed! Our Father is so amazing – I thank You Lord for Your continued love, grace and mercy on my life. This word from The Lord gave me all the conviction I needed to close the business and sort out the tax affairs… which I am now in the process of doing 🙂
I praise God, the Creator of the heavens and the earth. The Author of our eternal salvation. Thank you, thank you, thank you Lord Jesus!