God at Work
Friday, February 20, 2004
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My Prayer Today
Dear Jesus, I thank you for the hope that I have in you. I praise you that you are faithful and can be trusted to keep all of your promises. I thank you that you will finish building me into what you want me to be. I ask that you would help me not to waver in your promises, but that I would hold tightly to the hope that I have in you. Help me to follow all of your ways for me. I entrust my life to you because I know you are trustworthy. I ask that you would make me into the kind of person that is faithful with all that you have given me. I pray this in your name. . . Amen.
God's Word Today
Hebrews 10:23
"Without wavering, let us hold tightly to the hope we say we have, for God can be trusted to keep his promise."
Hebrews 12:2
"We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish."
Reflecting on God's Word
According to Hebrews 10:23, what are we to do? What does God do?
According to Hebrews 12:2, how does this verse help us understand what it means to "hold tightly" to the hope we say that we have?
What does keeping our eyes on Jesus mean?
A Deeper Exploration of God's Word
Do both humans and God have a responsibility in the matter of faith?
Is "holding tightly" to the hope we have in Jesus different from simply saying that we have hope in Him? How?
How do we keep our eyes on Jesus?
Understanding God's Purpose for Us
What are some examples of people you know who have kept their eyes on Jesus?
Did they hold to the hope they say they had in Him? How?
What are some ways in which we can keep our eyes on Jesus in our thoughts, attitudes, and actions?
Applying God's Word to Our Purpose
How much time do you spend with Jesus each day? Would this relate to how you are "holding tightly"?
What is one area where you need to keep your eyes on Jesus?
How can you do this?
Thoughts
God finishes what he starts. There is nothing more aggravating that watching someone start a building project and have them not complete it. I can think of several buildings in our area that have started, but for one reason or another, were never completed. God, however, knows how to both start and finish something -- and he knows how to do it right. He never does second hand work, but his work is complete perfection. In Hebrews 10:23 it says that "God can be trusted to keep his promise." Everything that God says he will do, he will complete it. Hebrews 12:2 adds that our faith is totally dependent upon Jesus from start to finish. Without Jesus, faith is useless.
Even though God finishes what he begins, we as humans do have a response to his work. The author of Hebrews says that "without wavering, let us hold tightly to the hope we say we have." This verse implies that it is possible NOT to "hold tightly" and to waver. So we see that God will always keep his promises and finish what he started, but we as humans must keep our eyes on Jesus. If we do this, the work will be perfected. God's activity in our life has been there from the beginning and will continue throughout the rest of our lives, but we must continue to keep our eyes of Jesus. For it is only in his work where the project will be successful.