What’s The Endgame?

God’s will is always accomplished, but He mostly uses people to carry it out, like the many people who work for a team’s head coach. We can see this in what the Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus:

“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” Ephesians 4:11-13 NIV

That Person

These ministers live to help all of us become who God sees us to be, not who we presently are. It may seem impossible to us that we can be holy (set apart to God) and be wholly dedicated to God’s purpose for us. But that is God’s will, and he has provided all we need to “be that person.”; for you to be how God sees you.

This can be a rather frightening realization: we must die to our own will. But this is God’s desire for you. I have a friend who is a missionary. When my family and I moved to Romania, she left behind her whole life and came with us. Later, she moved from Romania to Zambia to minister there! She is no longer in foreign missions, but she is “that person.” You can be too!

It Takes Faith

Consider this: it takes more trust in God that we will be resurrected into eternal life than it does for us to die to ourselves now and fulfill God’s call on our lives.

Whoa! First, are there really “amounts” of faith? Yes. In Matthew 8:10, Jesus speaks of the “great faith” a Roman centurian had. In Matthew 8:26, Jesus says to His disciples, “You of little faith…” and in Acts 6:5, Stephen, the martyr, is called “a man full of faith.”

Second, how can faith for our resurrection be compared to our faith required to daily die to ourselves and live wholly committed lives for Jesus? Well, in 1 John 4:20, the Apostle John wrote: If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see?”

So we understand that it takes more faith to obey what we don’t see than to obey what we do see.

The Endgame

When Jesus speaks of faith, He is referring to belief in God that is put into action. Belief itself doesn’t mean anything. James wrote, “You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe—and shudder.” When we put our faith in God, at that moment we die to ourselves. This is the symbol and reality of water baptism. We die, are washed clean, and rise into eternal life.

God’s endgame is the establishment of a people who gave up their lives, as His Son gave up His life, in obedience to Him. For these people, God has created a paradise, even greater than the Garden of Eden. And we will live with Him forever. This has been established by the life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, our Lord, Brother, and Friend.

Live for Jesus. That’s what matters.