Bible in One Year:
Monday, December  20, 2010
(Jer 33 - Jer 36)


Memorise: "Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work" (John 4:34)

Read: Matthew 3:16-17

There are categories of sonship in the Kingdom of God. Jesus Christ is the Only Begotten of the Father (John 1:14) while the rest of us that are saved fall under the class of adopted sons. Under this class are golden, silver, wooden and earthen sons. Also, there are repentant and reliable as well as deceitful and unreliable sons. What kind of son are you? "And lo, a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matt 3:17). Today's reading talks of another set of sons in God's Kingdom. Although God loves all His sons since He is love personified, yet not all of them please Him equally. While the unrepentant displease the Lord, the repentant please Him and the reliable please Him well. John 4:34 says, "Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work". It is not easy to please God. You must be ready to pay a costly price. Anyone who wants to please God must be ready to get into trouble with the flesh. You can be classed as an enemy by those you love if you step out to please God. Usually, pleasing God can make you displease yourself. Are you prepared to pay the price of a son who pleases the Father? 

Jesus paid that price. He dumped His personal desires and aspiration for that of His Father. His food - what He enjoyed doing the most was making God very happy. Even when the task at hand involved giving His life, He obliged. At the Garden of Gethsemane, when His will crossed God's, He gave up His (Matt 26:39-42). Some people are ready to please God only when the price is affordable or cheap. For instance, while the unrepentant and unreliable son will struggle with paying his tithe, the repentant son will always pay his; yet, the one who wants to please his Heavenly Father the more would go beyond 10 percent to 20, 30 or more percent of his earnings. Some pastors do not mind becoming full time pastors if only they would be allowed to stay where they prefer. But the moment they are sent to a remote place, they begin to reconsider if that full time ministerial job is worth it after all; just because they cannot pay the price of pleasing God! 

ACTION POINT:
God may not announce you to the world if you are not prepared to pay the price of pleasing Him.