“For I can testify that they gave not only what they could afford, but far more. And they did it of their own free will. They begged us again and again for the privilege of sharing in the gift for the believers in Jerusalem. They even did more than we had hoped, for their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do.”
2 Corinthians 8:3-5 NLT
The first Adam was created by God “in His image”, but what does that mean? We don’t see God walking around in human form today – well, I don’t think we do, although He came to this world as a man two thousand or so years ago in the form of Jesus. Genesis 1:26a has few words with enormous implications: “Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us …”. Apart from the obvious plurality of God (“us”), there is this question mark over what it means to be like God. In three persons, the Trinity, God is a family. A loving family. The perfect family. And human families share the same bonds, sadly corrupted by sin, but they are there. And as we read on in the Genesis account, we see how God created the family, adding Eve to make this happen. But there was potential for things to go wrong, because one attribute of God is the ability to think and choose. Mankind has “free will”. Such a characteristic is fine for a perfect being, but for a human being corrupted by sin, it is a recipe for disaster. In Genesis 3 we find that the ability to choose can be subverted by evil, initially in the form of a serpent. Using their free will, Adam and Eve specifically went against God’s instructions, and human beings have been using their free will for sinful purposes ever since.
The power to choose has both good and bad potential. We know the good, as we live our lives God’s way. This does not mean never leaving our church buildings, spending our time there in continual prayer and praise. It means living our lives as Adam was instructed. Genesis 1:28, “Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground”. Adam had work to do, tending God’s creation. Just in this verse, we see that families were to be created, societies were to be governed, and the world was to be looked after. All good in a sinless environment, but as we can see, it all went horribly wrong after Genesis 3. That was the bad outcome from being like God with free will. Mankind has chosen to sin, and that has enslaved and corrupted them in a way that must break God’s heart. The Bible is a Book that has a theme running through it – God’s love for His creation. Jesus was the main part of His plan to reconcile sinful men to Him, restoring the relationship that depended on free will.
Moses set out before the Israelites a series of instructions designed to ultimately restore them to God. One significant verse is Deuteronomy 30:19, “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!” Can we hear God’s heart in that appeal? A consequence of choosing life is just that – eternal life with God in His presence, just as He had ordained in His act of creation. It gives God no pleasure to see that so many people are going to spend eternity without Him. In John 1:4, we read, “The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone”. A few verses on, we read, “But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God”.
Today, the society around us is largely secular, though growing pockets of churches and fellowships have chosen life through Jesus. People there have exercised their God-given created gift of free will to make the right choice and follow Jesus. But in our own small way, have we too made that right choice? We are living stones engaged in building a house fit for Jesus. 1 Peter 2:5, “And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple. What’s more, you are his holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God”. With our free will, that is what we desire – pleasing God. There may be a scarcity of “stones” around us, but nevertheless, God sees us and is pleased.
“But as for me and my family,
we will serve the Lord“
In our verses today, Paul commends the Corinthians for their sacrificial giving of resources to help the believers living in poverty in Jerusalem. It was an act of their free will, Paul said. They didn’t have to do it, but by so doing, they were living their lives God’s way. Are we pilgrims aware that we are made in God’s image with the freedom to choose? Joshua knew it. We read, “But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 25:15).
What choices today are we pilgrims making that will have eternal consequences? We have a commodity called “free will” that we can use to ensure our choices are the right ones. Moses wrote this, “If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world. You will experience all these blessings if you obey the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 28:1-2). There then follows a list of blessings all tied to obedience to God. Further down the chapter, we read, “But if you refuse to listen to the Lord your God and do not obey all the commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come and overwhelm you” (Deuteronomy 28:15). The ensuing list of curses does not make for comfortable reading because they come as a result to disobeying God. Wth our “free will” we can make the right choice, to obey God in all we do.
Dear Father God. We thank You for Your many blessings, none of which we deserve. We choose today to follow You forevermore. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 