WILLING Christians

by Larry R. Ping II

The idea of willingness is carried through Scripture. God expects His people to be willing. Here is some evidence.

"Take ye from among you an offering unto the LORD: whosoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it…" - Exodus 35:5

"And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the LORD'S offering to the work of the tabernacle…" - Exodus 35:21

"And they came, both men and women, as many as were willing hearted…" - Exodus 35:22

"…serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind…" - I Chronicles 28:9

"If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land." - Isaiah 1:19

"For if there be first a willing mind…" - II Corinthians 8:12

This is just a small sampling of verses indicating that God wants His people to be willing, to be enthusiastic, to be passionate and to be zealous. Anything less is not acceptable.

If there are Christians who think that coming to the church building and "putting in the time" is enough to gain salvation, then there are sad, eternally damaging mistakes being made.

There is more to the Christian's life, such as bearing fruit. "Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit" (John 15:2). Many Christians today are lukewarm, and are headed for the same result as the Laodiceans, being "spued" (vomited) out from Christ (Revelation 3:14-16).

Isn't it time that you start putting God first and have it show? The Christians life must consume you no matter where you are at. We must let our light shine (Matthew 5:16) in a willing way. This one thing is for sure: If we are not "willing" to do God's work, then Jesus will not be "willing" to save us in the end!