A CHARGE TO KEEP

I Was Just Thinking About - - - 

Last evening, my wife and I had the privilege of attending an Installation of a Pastor in his new pastorate. He and his family are getting settled and will have the opportunity of working in a church that is eager to serve the Lord. Although the service was well-planned and executed masterfully, a Hymn that could have been used as A Prayer of Dedication and Challenge was written by Charles Wesley in 1762. The lyrics are based on Matthew Henry’s Com­ment­a­ry on Le­vit­i­cus: “We have every one of us a charge to keep, an eternal God to glor­i­fy, an im­mor­tal soul to provide for, needful duty to be done, our gen­er­a­tion to serve; and it must be our daily care to keep this charge, for it is the charge of the Lord our Master, who will shortly call us account about it, and it is our utmost peril if we neglect it. Keep it “that ye die not”; it is death, eternal death, to betray the trust that we are charged with; by the con­sid­er­a­tion of this we must be kept in awe.” This dynamic and powerful statement led to the writing of the Hymn:

A charge to keep I have, A God to glorify,

A never-dying soul to save, And fit it for the sky.

To serve the present age, My calling to fulfill:

O may it all my powers engage To do my Master’s will!

Arm me with jealous care, As in Thy sight to live;

And O Thy servant, Lord, prepare - A strict account to give!

Help me to watch and pray, And on Thyself rely,

Assured, if I my trust betray, I shall for ever die.

The Sermon suitable for the occasion was based upon II Timothy 4:1-4. The words are precise and dynamic as it states the role of a Pastor and the scope of ministry. In the MSG, it is rendered: “I can’t impress this on you too strongly. God is looking over your shoulder. Christ himself is the Judge, with the final say on everyone, living and dead. He is about to break into the open with his rule, so proclaim the Message with intensity; keep on your watch. Challenge, warn, and urge your people. Don’t ever quit. Just keep it simple. you’re going to find that there will be times when people will have no stomach for solid teaching, but will fill up on spiritual junk food—catchy opinions that tickle their fancy. They’ll turn their backs on truth and chase mirages. But you—keep your eye on what you’re doing; accept the hard times along with the good; keep the Message alive; do a thorough job as God’s servant.” Just imagine the difference it would make if each Pastor assuming a solemn church duty and calling would implement this passage of God’s Word. Rather than many churches moving sideways and downward, they would be on the pathway of revitalization and recovery.

The sad truth is that too many churches try to adapt to the culture and feel a greater subservience to the US Supreme Court’s incorrect view of human sexuality and relationships than they do to adherence to the Word of God that must be embraced free of compromise and accommodation. Paul emphasized with Timothy (II Timothy 4:4-5) that there will be a day when people in the church will find it necessary under cultural pressures that: “…they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.” As or when that occurs, what should the faithful servant of God do? What should his behavior and ministry be? Paul continues: “But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” The operative words are - watchful, endure, work, fulfill. It is no easy task to be a Pastor serving in total obedience to the Lord. The Pastor who orders his life so that he is realizing the presence of God consistently in his life will reflect that reality to others both inside and outside of the Church. Does that mean he will be accepted by everyone? No! However, he can rest assured that he is accepted by the Lord he has vowed to serve. Consider these things with me!