Are you under orders?

I appreciate that ‘under orders’ is a military term, with which those who are civilians might not readily identify.  But then, we find that military analogies are not uncommon within scripture – see 2 Timothy 2:3,4.  If we are committed to Jesus’ lordship in our lives, then we most certainly should count ourselves as being under his orders.  

Authority

This morning, I read a section of John 5, beginning at verse 30, where we have the words of Jesus:        

“I can do nothing on my own initiative or authority.  Just as I hear, I judge; and my judgment is just, because I do not seek my own will, but only the will of him who sent me.” (Amplified)

When I came to the end of the chapter, I looked back at the previous section of the text in order to remind myself of the context.  I began at verse 19, only to find that it has the same meaning as verse 30: 

“…..  the Son can do nothing of himself [of his own accord], unless it is something he sees the Father doing; for whatever things the Father does, the Son [in his turn] also does in the same way.”

Jesus clearly understood that he was to minister under the authority of the Father, following his example and instruction. 

Superman?

When reading the gospel accounts and noting all of the miracles that Jesus performed, we might start to think of him as some sort of Superman.  Yes, he had deep insight into people and circumstances (John 4:16-19), he healed every kind of disease and sickness (Matthew 4:23), even raising the dead, and he commanded the elements to be stilled, but we must appreciate that he was acting under authority.  He was fully human, just as you and I are – he laid aside his divine power when he took on human form (Philippians 2:6-8).  But he was empowered by the Holy Spirit who came upon him following his submission to baptism in the Jordan by John.  That was similar to when the Spirit of God first came upon the disciples at Pentecost, to enable them, and subsequently us, to do the works of God, not based upon any ability of our own, but through the power that he rests upon his servants; upon those who are under orders.

Obedience

Let’s go back to Jesus words: “I can do nothing on my own initiative or authority”.  Four things come to mind from these words.  Firstly, if we want to do spiritual work, then we must do this under orders.  If a soldier goes off to do his own thing, then he is unlikely to fulfil the requirement of his commanding officer; he won’t fit into the battle plan.  Worse, he will be missing from his proper function and role within the unit – he won’t be fulfilling the responsibility that has been assigned to him.  We may be spiritually gifted, just as a soldier may be a sharpshooter, but that is only half of the picture; being under orders is the other.  As Christians, we face the temptation to shun God’s direction, going off on our own as we see fit.  But we know where temptation originates from, and we need to resist this.  God’s way for us is the only way that has validity.

Pleasing God

Secondly, if we do our own thing, then no matter how effective we might appear to be, we won’t please God; we won’t be working out of obedience.  The church might esteem us, congratulating us upon apparent successes.  We might feel encouraged to continue on our chosen path, but we need to pause and check with God whether we are being obedient to what he actually wants us to do.  How sad if we exert all our energies only to hear from God at the end that we weren’t fulfilling his intended purpose for us.

Spiritual work

Thirdly, we need to have in the front of our minds that we can do nothing effective without his direction and power – we cannot perform spiritual work through natural abilities.  Of course, our ministry can appear to be compelling, to be thriving in whatever sphere, but for spiritual ministry to be truly effective, it requires the empowering of the Holy Spirit – this is not optional but essential, fundamental.

Recognition

Lastly, if we recognise our dependence upon God’s direction and his empowering, then there is little no room for pride or congratulation.  We may gain satisfaction from being used by God; from his allowing and enabling us to serve in whatever ministry he has gifted and called us to fulfil, but we may not take credit for the work of God performed through the power of God.  Such achievement is to his credit alone.  We are merely faithful servants, soldiers who have followed through on our orders and have done our duty.  We find something parallel to this being taught by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6:1-6, where he tells us that those who have gained credit from man cannot expect to then receive it from God too – I know whom I would prefer to receive it from!