Works - Part 4 of 4

I really think that our life in Christ is a life that doesn't look like what many Christians today see it as. For many, it's a life that revolves around "church." Many of the works that Christians are exhorted to do seem to be centered around church programs, ministries, outreaches, etc. Not that any of them are necessarily bad in and of themselves, but how often do Christians get wrapped up in those things and don't really live out the life of the person God has truly made them to be.

I personally had the guilt laid on me (perhaps mostly self-inflicted) because I quit working all the works I was expected to work in "the church," including but not limited to joining in on all the church activities and outreaches. None of them seemed to be appealing to my heart, and I felt guilty because I felt as if I was neglecting the "doing" of some very good things, including things that many people felt "needed" to be done. But I had come to the conclusion that all I was really doing was going through the motions with a lot of the stuff. The good news was that, since I'd come to have a strong foundation of who I am in Christ, I had an understanding within myself that I actually was a "doer" in so many other ways that simply didn't have the appearance of "church activity," but were really a result of walking in who I am in Christ. I've all too often found that what I'm called to do isn't what everyone else expects of me! It's been a struggle to truly discover that, but I think I'm finally free in that respect.

The "instructions" I had received implied that the work I needed to be involved in centered around Church Activity A, B and C, and then I was to sacrifice myself some more and also be involved in Activities D, E and F as well! But I discovered that God has many different "members" in Christ's body. We are all unique, and we walk in the works that God created for us to walk in, individually and as a body. Sometimes those works may indeed be "church activities," but so much of life is lived apart from the assembling of the saints - far away from whatever building we may have met in - and we walk as who we are wherever we are!

Look at the good works (the works of faith) that the saints mentioned in Hebrews 11 walked in. How much of it was forced or contrived? How much of it was "church work?" How much of it was based upon biblical instructions??? Heck, look at the work Paul and the apostles did! Look at what the people of the early church did. They didn't have "New Testament instructions" to follow. Wasn't it as simple as walking in the new life they'd been given, and encouraging one another and spurring one another on toward love and good deeds? There's plenty of room for instructing and correcting one another, but is that really the basis of the Christian life?