• 2 Timothy 2:14
  A Worker Approved by God
  Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers.
• James 1:22
  But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

When you meet people for the first, beyond just a name, what do you ask of them or even better what do they ask you?

What do you do? Common enough which implies that this person is employed. I am retired, so I do not have a paying occupation, but that does not mean I am not occupied. My answer to that question isn’t as simple as I am retired.

Tell me about yourself. Now that opens up the door to anything a person is willing to share with a stranger. This is the opening moment of a relationship, to discover similar interests, things to converse about, agreements and differences.

We choose what we share based on our personality. Not all of us are open. Some of the things we have been through are not exactly opening lines. We wait until the relationship gets deeper before we “spill our guts”, if ever.

I’ve chosen these opening verses to begin with because they are meaningful to me as they relate to my being human. I am often misunderstood in my expressions and it sounds like I am quarreling over words. The second verse is to remind myself that being a Christian is much more than simply reading the bible and going to church.

There is what I did and what I do and those two things are vastly different. I lived the better part of my life being human but I live the best part of my life as a child of God. I won’t deny what I was nor shall I brag about it. I do not deny who I am now and I will not brag about it.

The difference between the two is the difference between shame and humility. I did what I did while being human, I own it. As a child of God I strive to please my Father in Heaven by obedience of faith. Strive is the proper word as it indicates life is a day by day experience, struggle, and opportunity. It is my form of doing, not merely hearing.

How are you doing? That is another common probing question.

1 Corinthians 11:1

Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.

As a followup to yesterday’s tupos, allow me to share my problem with English translations. To me the word imitate implies we are not being real and we should be real.

Focus on Paul’s term, “I am of Christ.” He was the Paul expressed image of Christ. How he expressed Christ was through obedience of faith, to do what he was called to do as instructed by the Holy Spirit.

2 Corinthians 3:3

And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

Ephesians 2:7

so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Playing our part in obedience of faith is not an act, we are merely expressing the love of God that abides in us in every measurable way to be who we are in Christ. We do not try to be Paul, or Peter, or John, or James, we are the [place you name here] expressed image of Christ.

Yes we are fallible but so were all of those who came before us and that fact did not hinder the Holy Spirit from doing His job. Shining the light through us.

Matthew 5:14

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.

John 8:12

I Am the Light of the World

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Jesus is the light, Jesus is the life and His abiding presence wants to be seen through us.

Remember the image in the mirror we spoke of recently? Cleaning the mirror, wiping off the filth, allows us to see our image more clearly but does nothing to change the image in the mirror.

Obedience of faith is the only thing that will change the image in the mirror.