“Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you.” [1]
Throughout the Word of God are admonitions that caution us against wilful sin. God is quite specific as we are warned against committing any of a number of sins, especially sins that God has identified as “sins that cry out to heaven.” While all sin is dreadful, some sins are singled out as especially heinous. These sins are spoken of as “sins that cry out to heaven.” It is indicative that God takes special note of some sins. Such sins invite even more severe punishment from God who is Holy.
James, the brother of our Lord, warns of a sin in which the cries of those who are aggrieved reach the ears of the Lord of hosts. When those who are wronged cry out and the Living God hears them, we should be deeply concerned. If we who follow the Risen Saviour are merely observers of those who sin, we should be concerned for those who will be judged, pleading with them to do right. If we witness the innocent being victimised, because we have the Spirit of Christ living within, we should be prepared to intervene, demanding justice for their cause. If, however, we who name the Name of the Son of God are the ones perpetuating this particular sin, we must prepare to meet God. God will not ignore our sin while that particular sin is crying out to heaven.
The sin before us in the message this day is the particular sin in which the labourer has been defrauded. What is perhaps unexpected is that the Lord God hears when they present their case. This is not a sin such as socialists imagine in which the wealthy are judged because they possess wealth—there is no sin in earning a good wage or even in utilising one’s own wealth for whatever purpose one chooses to use his own moneys. Deliberately cheating those whom you owe for their labour is sinful. When you thus cheat them, they cannot fulfil their own financial commitments.
THE SIN OF CHEATING THE LABOURER — “Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you” [JAMES 5:4-6].
In the text, James actually pronounces the divine judgement before speaking of the reason for that judgement. The manner in which this is done makes perfect sense when we read what the brother of our Lord wrote. However, in order to understand why God would judge people at any time, it seems eminently reasonable to define the sin before considering what the Lord does concerning those who commit that particular sin. In light of this, join me in focusing on the FOURTH through the SIXTH VERSES.
The sin, as James details it, appears multi-faceted. At the heart of the sin is an attitude of entitlement. This is evident when James charges, “You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.” He pictures landowners who hire labourers to tend their crops. However, these landowners think only of their own comfort, their own luxury. Because they are focused on their own desires, they defraud those who work for them, keeping from them the wages which the workers rightfully earned through their labour. James charges that this cheating is nothing less than fraud. He charges that the fraudulent landowners have condemned and murdered the righteous through their actions. The condemnation and murder was the result of depriving labourers of their rightful wages. Because they did not receive what was owed them, they were unable to provide for themselves or for their families. Therefore, they were compelled to do without the necessities of life. Moreover, those who are defrauded did not resist the cheating—they are powerless!
Under the Law, one could not withhold the wages of a labourer. Moses charged, “You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. The wages of a hired worker shall not remain with you all night until the morning” [LEVITICUS 19:13]. Those who laboured were closely related to what we might identify as day labourers in this day. They didn’t work for a weekly or a bi-weekly wage. They contracted to work for a day, expecting that they would be paid for their labourer at the conclusion of the day.
We see this standard at work when Jesus told one of His parables. You may recall this particular parable as recorded in Matthew’s Gospel. “The kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’ And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius. And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house, saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’ So the last will be first, and the first last” [MATTHEW 20:1-16].
I caution you not to focus on what may appear to you to be superficially a surprise twist in this parable; rather, for the purpose of understanding the thrust of this particular message, focus on the fact that the landowner understood that he was responsible to pay the agreed wage at the conclusion of each day. I cite this particular parable in order to illustrate the standard that prevailed for payment of wages even in that far away day. “The labourer deserves his wages” [1 TIMOTHY 6:2, citing Jesus as quoted in LUKE 10:7].
In the parable that Jesus told, none of the labourers were cheated—each was paid in timely fashion and each worker received the amount agreed upon for a day of labour. The amount each received was generous and what was expected for anyone working for a day. However, those who had worked the longest felt cheated because they witnessed those who had worked for a shorter period receiving the wage they anticipated. Naturally, they imagined they would receive a wage commensurate with their hourly labour—they imagined that they would receive more. They were actually grieved at the landowner’s generosity! They had no grievance with the fairness of what they received for their work.
Each of the workers received the identical wage, and that is what created the tension displayed by the parable. Those who worked longer “felt” cheated because they assumed a standard that was never agreed upon; nevertheless, they each received what they had agreed to receive—each one received a day’s wage. None of the workers had contracted for an hourly wage, but rather the agreement was for a daily wage as was the standard in those earlier times. Those who went to work later had only an implied contract, a contract that was dependent upon the landowner’s generosity, for he had promised, “Whatever is right I will give you” [MATTHEW 20:4b]. The assumption of the labourer is not the agreement; the agreement is what is agreed to mutually. The labourer is not the one who determines what the landowner will give.
The purpose of focusing on this particular parable is not to discuss wages per se; rather, my purpose for drawing attention to this parable is to emphasise that when someone works, they rightfully expect to receive a wage. Their labour, or their expertise, or their skill, is exchanged for a wage. The exchange of labour and capital fulfils a contract. Though there may not necessarily have been a signed agreement, the very fact that labour was expended implies that the one receiving the benefit of the labour implicitly owes for the labour provided by the worker. This is the basis for the landowner’s response to the grousing. “Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity” [MATTHEW 20:13-15]?
More particularly, for those who follow the Master, I must stress that the greater lesson from this parable is that God is generous. Just so, each of us should be generous, especially toward those who are brothers and sisters in this holy Faith. If we reflect the character of the Father, we will be generous. Underscore that concept for your own life, failure to be generous definitely does not reflect the character of our Heavenly Father, but being penurious is not necessarily cheating the labourer. Cheating the labourer presents the situation of actually withholding what is due for the labour expended.
Scripture instructs the one who follows Christ as Master over life, “Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.
“Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.” [ROMANS 13:7-8].
Clearly, from what Paul has written it becomes evident that cheating extends well beyond an issue concerning mere money. We may feel oppressed by the burden of taxation—it is difficult to imagine that any of us enjoy paying taxes. We may be disgusted with the way government squanders the moneys seized from citizens in the form of taxes and fees. However, as followers of Christ, we are prepared to pay our taxes. If duties or tolls are owed, we pay without quibbling. This carries through to the business of respect and honour. If the Prime Minister should come into our presence, we will be courteous, not because we like him or approve of his decisions; rather, we will show respect toward him and we will honour the office because we are convinced that, “There is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God” [ROMANS 13:1b].
Because we are convinced that we must not treat people according to caste or class, we must not withhold honour from anyone. We will treat all people with courtesy, we shall maintain the dignity of all people, refusing to demean anyone by speaking ill of them or by treating them with disdain. We will invite all to share our services, telling them of the Risen Saviour who gives life to all people. In fact, if we fail to warn sinners of the coming judgement, we cheat them of the opportunity to know Christ, and we cheat Christ of His glory because we fail to reveal the transformative power that is taking place in our lives. If we fail to point people to the love of Christ, we are discriminating against those who need to hear of the love of God.
Isn’t this precisely the danger James has pointed out when he writes, “My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, ‘You sit here in a good place, while you say to the poor man, ‘You stand over there,’ or, ‘Sit down at my feet,’ have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court? Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called?
“If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself,’ you are doing well. But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors” [JAMES 2:1-9]. Each person joining us in our worship is to be treated with dignity as Christ Himself received us when we came to Him. Each person is to be received as worthy of the love of Christ the Lord.
Here is the sum of teaching from the Word of God on this issue—followers of the Christ are to be scrupulously generous in their relationship with all people. We are taught in the Word, “Your love must be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to each other with mutual affection. Excel at showing respect for each other. Never be lazy in showing such devotion. Be on fire with the Spirit. Serve the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in trouble, and persistent in prayer. Supply the needs of the saints. Extend hospitality to strangers” [ROMANS 12:9-13 ISV].
We who follow the Risen Saviour must be generous in showing love for others. We Christians must decisively flee from evil. We who are the redeemed of the Lord must be generous in showering our fellow believers with affection—not that syrupy, saccharine treacle that the world considers affection, but genuine love that dares accept one another and that dares treat one another with respect. You see, we must be generous in expressing respect for one another as fellow worshippers of the True and Living God. We must be generous in our devotion to all who share this Faith. We must be generous in our willingness to be used by the Spirit of God. We must be generous in our service before the Lord. We must be generous in sharing joy, hope, patience, and prayer. We must be generous in meeting the needs of the saints. We must be generous in extending hospitality to strangers. We who are Christians are to live in such a way that generosity characterizes our lives. In short, Christians are to be known as generous people!
JUDGEMENT FOR CHEATING THE LABOURER — “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days” [JAMES 5:1-3]. The serious nature of the sin of cheating the labourer is demonstrated when James begins the warning he has delivered by pointing to the judgements that are coming. Know that when we cheat others, especially those whom we owe, God takes note!
James points to an event that is yet future, an event defined by unimaginable miseries, but an event that each of us must anticipate. In this instance, James warns that the precious metals that are so highly valued by mankind will be corroded. Worse yet, the corrosion will serve as evidence against those who had amassed wealth. Hoarded wealth would reveal that those doing so held to a value system that is distorted, a system of value that God calls unrighteous, a system that values things more than relationships. Amassing wealth without thought of using what is entrusted to your oversight as an administrator of the grace of God is condemned by God. To gather wealth is not of itself evil; to gather wealth for no reason other than gathering wealth is evil.
On yet another occasion, Jesus spoke of our obligation to those who cannot repay our kindness. You may recall how Jesus told a Pharisee, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just” [LUKE 14:12-14].
When we read what the Brother of our Lord has written, it would appear that James was fully aware of these admonitions delivered by his half-brother, Jesus. Now, James was urging followers of the Saviour to put into practise what Jesus taught. Again, you may recall that Jesus taught His followers, “Make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings” [LUKE 16:9]. Treat what you have as a responsibility rather than a right.
Elsewhere, we know that the Son of God instructed His followers, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” [MATTHEW 6:19-21].
Therefore, gathering wealth, accumulating goods for no reason other than to amass such goods, dishonours God. It is right to provide for our family. It is proper to care for our obligations. Motive is everything, in this instance. Surely, the Word of God is challenging us to take inventory of what we are doing and the reason for doing what we do. We are being challenged to think, and to bring our actions into line with the will of God as revealed in His Word.
Shortly after coming to Dawson Creek, I was blessed to make the friendship of a family that was somewhat unusual because of their determination to live a life that can only be described as simple. They had a car, though it was nor a luxury automobile by any means. They lived in a comfortable house, though it was by no means ostentatious. They had well-mannered children who displayed courtesy toward others. Courtney and I shared many days afield, hunting for bears and moose. He owned one rifle, and I helped load ammunition for that rifle. Owning but one firearm was unusual for many living here in the north. Unlike so many of those whom he knew, Courtney made no effort to accumulate firearms or assorted accoutrements associated with shooting. He had a good job that paid a good salary; he worked as an agent managing timber acquisitions for a large timber harvesting firm. He was generous with the wages he earned, supporting his church, and demonstrating consideration for those who were less fortunate.
We talked one day about why he chose to live without the accumulation of goods as was more common among his peers. He said that he and his wife had determined soon after marriage that they would live on what they had, avoiding the accumulation of “things.” They wanted to be able to demonstrate generosity toward those in need and to honour God. Their position was unusual, but firmly within the bounds of biblical propriety. They had grasped the essence of what is taught in the Word of God concerning goods and wealth. I suspect that this couple made many uncomfortable by their determination to renounce the standard of this world by pursuing Christ.
Perhaps you imagine that we don’t really have the problem of cheating the labourer. Perhaps you imagine that it is the owner of a business that might cheat the labourer, or perhaps it is a government institution that changes the rules at some point by imposing a tax or implementing a new fee for a service. However, we who are ourselves wage earners may cheat in such a way that we cheat the labourer.
Some cheat by avoiding paying taxes, sequestering a portion of what has been earned in order to avoid paying the taxes demanded by government. Christians realize that this should not be because we are taught, “One must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed” [ROMANS 13:5-7].
James is focused on fraudulent acts that have an impact on those to whom we should be known as generous. The brother of our Lord is especially focused on those who cheat labourers of the wage they have earned. In that day, the concept of day labour was common. An individual would work in the fields or in the vineyards of a landowner, and at the end of each day of work, the landowner would pay the ones who worked for him the wage they had mutually agreed upon. The usual wage paid to a day labourer was a denarius. This would be enough money to provide for the meals required for one day with a small amount left over for incidental expenses.
As I’ve studied what is written in this letter James wrote, it becomes obvious to me that James is challenging his readers to practise stewardship of life. James is challenging all who follow Jesus as the Lord of Life to see that whatever has been entrusted to their oversight, whatever they may have gained through their own labour, whatever influence they may have, they are responsible to honour God with that.
I’ve often referred to what is taught concerning the responsibility we have in the employment of the spiritual gifts that the Spirit of God has entrusted to us. You will no doubt remember that Paul teaches, “The one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation” [1 CORINTHIANS 14:3]. Of course, the Apostle is holding the Corinthian congregation accountable for their misuse of one particular gift, the gift of tongues. Paul makes specific application of the rule of accountability when he writes, “The one who speaks in a tongue builds up himself, but the one who prophesies builds up the church” [1 CORINTHIANS 14:4]. There is the appropriate test, then.
If this is obvious for spiritual gifts, then shouldn’t it be equally apparent that the principle applies in the realm of the fiscal? Or of the relational? Or in any other facet of life. If we are responsible before the Lord for the administration of the spiritual gifts He entrusts to our oversight, then why would we think that He was unconcerned if we use whatever possessions we hold, whatever equipping we may have received for our sole benefit? Why would we ever imagine that the Master did not care for how we use, or how we misuse, the influence He has entrusted to us? Surely, God wants us to build up others, to encourage others, to console others; and we fulfil this principle through reviewing the impact of our stewardship of life, ensuring that He receives glory.
Within our families, do we not have responsibility to one another? Think of the numerous times we are instructed to treat one another with respect as husband and wife. For instance, the Apostle to the Gentiles has instructed married couples, “Because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control” [1 CORINTHIANS 7:2-5].
Elsewhere, Paul has admonished husbands and wives, “Let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband” [EPHESIANS 5:33].
Peter provides similar instructions when he writes, “Wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, when they see your respectful and pure conduct. Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious. For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening.
“Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered” [1 PETER 3:1-7].
This is nothing less than a stewardship of life applied to your relationship with your spouse. And similar stewardship principles apply to guiding our children. Remember, Paul instructs us, “Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged” [COLOSSIANS 3:20-21]. These instructions echo what has been written in the Ephesian encyclical. There, Paul has written, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother’ (this is the first commandment with a promise), ‘that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.’ Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” [EPHESIANS 6:1-4]. Again, this is stewardship of life with particular application to guiding our children during the formative years and the responsibility of children to honour their parents. You are responsible for how you use your influence, the position God has assigned within your home, to build one another, to encourage one another, and to console one another.
In a similar sense, you are to use your influence and your Christian training to build relationships in other facets of life. You are to encourage the lost to look to Christ. You are to represent the Saviour to those who grieve, to those who struggle under the heavy hand of sin, to those who are burdened with life. You are an ambassador for Christ to those who are lost. You have been given a stewardship to use the presence of Christ and the opportunities He has entrusted to you to point others to Him and to His life.
I know that none of us are bondservants, but many of us are wage earners. We exchange our labour for a paycheque. Our employers provide a wage, and we provide them with our strength or with our intellect. Surely, the teaching provided in the Word of God speaks of our responsibility to be administrators of the grace of God to those for whom we work. Do you recall these words which the Apostle has provided to us as followers of the Lord? “Bondservants, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ, not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he is a bondservant or is free” [EPHESIANS 6:5-8].
Then, Paul turned attention to those for whom the bondservants worked. In doing this, he surely has provided instructions for those who employ others to practise righteous stewardship. “Masters, do the same to them, and stop your threatening, knowing that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and that there is no partiality with him” [EPHESIANS 6:9].
What was written to the Ephesians was echoed in the Letter to the saints in Colossae. There, we read, “Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. For the wrongdoer will be paid back for the wrong he has done, and there is no partiality” [COLOSSIANS 3:22-25].
Then, Paul follows that thought with a pointed admonition to employers. “Masters, treat your bondservants justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven” [COLOSSIANS 4:1].
The point is simply this—in every facet of life, you have received the grace of God. Because you are a beneficiary of God’s grace touching every facet of your life, you are responsible to wisely administer what God has entrusted to you to glorify His Name. You are responsible to use your influence to touch others with the message of life in Christ the Lord. You are accountable before the Living God to raise godly children who are trained to honour God and to serve Him with their whole being. Husbands are responsible to love their wives, esteeming them as God’s gracious gift to enrich their lives in every way. Wives are responsible to respect their husbands. All who work for a wage are responsible to use their strength and their talents to provide service to those who employ them. Employers are accountable to ensure that they provide safe working conditions and to ensure that they provide a just wage for the work given in their behalf. We who are counted as being among the faithful are each responsible before God to use the spiritual gifts God has entrusted to us to build one another in this Holy Faith, to encourage one another during those inevitable times of discouragement, and to console one another when life comes crashing down. We must recognize that each individual holds a stewardship of life for God’s glory and for the benefit of all mankind. Christians, especially, must accept individual responsibility to honour God and to bless others.
APPLICATIONS FOR CHRISTIANS — I’m not suggesting that Christians deliberately cheat those who labour for them, but it is certain that we need to be conscientious to care for those who supply us with their labour. Because we follow the Saviour, we should be generous to all whom we meet. We must seek opportunity to share the message of life with everyone, fulfilling the admonition we received from the Master who taught us, “Freely you received, freely give” [MATTHEW 10:8b CSB].
See your life as a stewardship. See yourself as an administrator of God’s grace. Recognize that everything over which you have a measure of authority is entrusted to you so that you may glorify God Who gives generously and Who has given you everything. Whatever abilities you may have were entrusted to your oversight so that you could honour the Lord GOD. Whatever goods you hold are given so that you will have opportunity to serve the Lord GOD who gives to all generously. Whatever knowledge you may have acquired was God’s gift entrusted to your oversight so that you can bless others and honour the Lord who enabled you to learn and to employ what you have learned.
Are you able to read with great comprehension of what has been read? That ability must be offered to the glory of God. Perhaps you can peruse theological texts in order to understand complex issues and teach others in terms that are understandable to all. Are you one who is gifted with the ability to earn moneys? Then use your ability to provide for those who are less fortunate or those who are advancing the Kingdom of God.
Surely, this is the intent of Peter’s words recorded in his first letter. “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ” [1 PETER 4:10-11a].
Recognize every interaction as an opportunity to glorify God. We each have multiple interactions on a daily basis. Each of these interactions provides opportunity to glorify God. There are opportunities to tell others of Christ, and your witness is far more powerful than you might ever imagine. Do use some judgement, but do speak to others.
I’m reminded of a barber who was convicted that he should be more vocal about his witness to those coming into his shop. He had attended a training seminar designed to equip Christians to evangelize. Because of the training, this barber really wanted to tell some of his customers about his faith; he wanted to invite them to Christ. On the first workday following the training, he was nervous but determined. Despite his hesitation, he worked up his courage, determined to speak to his customers. The first man to sit in his chair would be challenged to consider putting faith in the Son of God.
Soon after opening that day, a man came in and said he wanted a shave. The nervous barber got the man into the chair, wrapped his face with a hot cloth, after which he lathered up the man’s face in preparation for the shave. Leaning the chair back, the barber held the razor before the man’s eyes, placed his hand on the forehead of his customer in order to expose the neck before he asked the man, “If you died tonight, would you go to Heaven?” Yeah, the barber might have given that a bit more thought.
We do interact with people every day. I understand the caution that restrains us from throwing our pearls before pigs [see MATTHEW 7:6], but I also know that we are charged, “In your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect” [1 PETER 3:15]. There are people checking us out at grocery stores, greeting us as we enter movie theatres, serving us at fast food restaurants, and taking our money at gas stations. Many of these have never heard the Gospel. Perhaps you are just the one who will make an impact on one of these precious souls. We share tea with a neighbour, and we exchange pleasantries with them over the backyard fence. Have your neighbours heard the message of life? Perhaps you are God’s instrument of grace to point a neighbour to life in the Beloved Son.
Realize every person is someone to be encouraged, someone to be built up, someone to be blessed. We live in a world that is hurting far more than we may realize. During the recent pandemic, it was jarring to note the number of suicides committed by people who were in the helping professions. EMT attendants, nurses, physicians, police, and firemen overwhelmed by the demands they felt were driven to despair. Add to the demands of the pandemic the pressure from politicians demanding that people sacrifice more time, more income, more convenience, and the stress for some becomes overwhelming. Even within the faith community we witnessed a surprising number of pastors who decided to end their lives. What is this but hopelessness seizing control of the lives of people?
I urge the people of God to seek to be instruments of grace to reach out to a dying world. With the Apostle to the Jews, I urge each of us to “Continue to live such upright lives among the gentiles that, when they slander you as practicers of evil, they may see your good actions and glorify God when he visits them” [1 PETER 2:12 ISV]. Let the love of Christ break through the shell of your life so that He is honoured through you in this dark world. Amen.
[1] Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
