Don’t Be Stopped!
"I have glorified You on the earth.
I have finished the work which
You have given Me to do."
John 17: 4
An employer takes a trip out of town and leaves her assistant with
a list of tasks to accomplish in her absence. If the employer returns
and finds tasks partially complete, or completed in an unacceptable
way, what does that mean? It means the assistant had little respect
(fear, honor, awe) for the employer. The employer was not glorified
by the assistant’s performance.
But what if the tasks are completed above and beyond the employer’s
expectations? The employer is glorified (honored) by the way assistant
valued the employer’s assignment. The assistant may not have agreed
with or enjoyed the tasks. But in order to honor the employer, the tasks
were completed.
Jesus acted like the faithful assistant. When He was on earth,
He accomplished the work that the Father had given Him to do.
He “set [His] face like a flint” (Isaiah 50:7), letting nothing keep
Him from glorifying the Father.
He “steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem”
(Luke 9:51) and die for the sins of the world.
Whatever tasks the Father has given you—spouse,
parent, employee, friend—let nothing stop you
from accomplishing them to God’s glory.
"Perseverance is the ability to
progress in spite of adversity."
Jerry Bridges
