Divine Partnership
Acts 13:47 “For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”
Acts 13:52 “And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”
Acts 14:7 “And there they continued to preach the gospel.”
Acts 14:27 “And when they arrived and gathered the church together, they declared all that God had done with them, and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles.”
God is God. He is Holy, Righteous, Just, Good, and Perfect. He is over all and above all. He is Creator and Sustainer. He rules and reigns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords for all eternity. God does not need us. Yet, He loves us beyond measure, enough that He came to be our Immanuel and dwell among us.
He went to a cross to die a sinner’s death in our place and He raises us to new life. He sent the Holy Spirit to indwell us as our Advocate, Teacher, Helper, and Guide. He partners with us in a wonderful divine partnership that transforms us from the inside out. And He invites us into the work of the Kingdom to introduce others to Him.
No, God doesn’t need us, but He chooses to call us out of the mundane into the extraordinary work of the Gospel.
You can see this in the above verses of Acts. It’s a pattern God repeats over and over. He calls. He fills. He empowers. And He works mightily.
He does these things. It’s all for Him and it’s all through Him. But He invites us to be a part of what He’s doing in this world. Not because He has to but because He chooses to.
Look again at Acts 13:52. “And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”
Why? If you’d read the verses ahead of these, you’d see they were just reviled and run out of town. Joy doesn’t really seem like an appropriate response. In fact, over and over again in Acts 13-14, the disciples face hardship, persecution, attacks, and threats. Ye joy, perseverance, and hope was their response.
Again, why? Because entering into this divine partnership with God is the most fulfilling, purposeful, joy-filled place we could ever be. It’s what we’re created for. It’s a gift from God and it’s a joy to our Spirit and our soul, regardless of the situations and circumstances in our life.
This divine partnership is offered to each of us. We are where we are in our lives, families, marriages, cities, churches, and jobs because God has allowed it for a purpose. He has a good plan for us, even if we can’t always see it. We are kingdom people called to bring that kingdom here by loving God with our whole selves and loving our neighbor.
And sister, it is the most joyous, fulfilling thing we could ever do with our lives.
God,
We love you. Thank you for the way that you invite us into a divine partnership with the Trinity. You give us the beautiful responsibility of joining with you to do your kingdom work here on this earth. God, show us how walking out our calling as believers is meant not to be a chore but is meant to fulfill us, bring us joy, and give us purpose. Thank you for the invitation to work alongside you to share your love with the world around us. Amen