A LONG OBEDIENCE IN THE SAME DIRECTION!

Wednesday, April 29, 2020

A NOTE: Yes, this is a “classic” written during the time when church attendance was not forbidden. It is interesting how our value of things changes when they are taken from us. RA

A LONG OBEDIENCE IN THE SAME DIRECTION!

1 Cor 4:2

2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.

           Eugene Petersen wrote a book called A Long Obedience in the Same Direction – discipleship in an instant society. The question in my mind is “Why are so many ‘good’ Christians unfaithful?” Well, of course, that is a judgmental question, but one born of observation.

           I have observed the elderly, usually widows, who are as faithful as a heartbeat despite painful arthritis and an empty bank account. Yet they manage to hobble to church and contribute to the offering. I have also observed the healthy and wealthy who can’t manage to do either. What makes a man or a woman FAITHFUL? It is a continued pattern of doing the right things.

           I once had an old 1964 Volkswagen beetle. It was that ugly green so familiar to many. It had no air conditioner and no radio, but it was faithful. It managed to climb a snowy hill when other cars were stalled on the side of the road. It didn’t ask for much either. It was stingy with gasoline. It did, however, develop a problem. There were times when it simply would not start. I would have to let it coast backward down the driveway and then “pop the clutch” to start it. At other times it would crank just fine. It was not dependable in that regard.

           Some Christians are like my old Volkswagen. They are constantly in need of a shove, yet they think of themselves as faithful. They faithfully attend worship once or twice per month. Their lives are plagued with sin and sin’s consequences, but they talk of how much they love God. They can’t understand why, since they love God, life is so hard.

A steward is a servant who manages everything for his master, but who himself owns nothing. The responsibility of the steward is to be faithful to his master. A steward may not please the members of the household; he may not even please some of the other servants; but if he pleases his own master, he is a good steward.

2 Tim 2:4

4 No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

Master, in many ways I am an unfaithful steward. Help me to develop a long obedience in the same direction. AMEN