Editor's note: Enjoy this devotion from The Gift of Jesus by Charles Stanley.
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He said to him, “Follow Me.” And he left everything behind, and got up and began to follow Him. — Luke 5:27–28
We often talk about God as the Gift-giver and Jesus as the greatest Gift ever given — and it is right for us to do so. But a frequently overlooked ministry is that which belongs to the Holy Spirit, who is the awesome Gift-maker. He has a very special role in our lives because He conforms us to the character of Christ and molds us into a blessing for others.
In fact, 1 Corinthians 12:7 teaches,
To each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
Or as the New Living Translation puts it,
A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.
In other words, God has given you tools that He will work through to impact others. He desires for you to reflect His nature — that you might represent Him on this earth, doing the work that He desires to accomplish. And when you allow His Holy Spirit to work through your personality and giftedness, you become a vessel of His love in action — His hands and feet in a world that desperately needs to know Him.
Naturally there will be some reading this who are skeptical. You may think, I probably couldn’t do much good — I can’t even really get my own life straight. Or, You don’t know my past — I doubt the Lord wants me representing Him. But nothing could be further from the truth. Consider the immense things the Lord did through Abraham and Jacob, even though both were guilty of dishonesty (Genesis 20; 27). Remember how powerfully God used Moses and David though both had committed murder (Exodus 2:11–14; 2 Samuel 12:9). And think about how much He worked through the apostle Paul even though he mercilessly persecuted Christians before he met Jesus. The Lord redeems lives.
He delights to work through whomever will trust in Him — regardless of their past.
Consider Levi, a man who made his living as a tax collector. Of course, none of us like it much when the government takes part of our paychecks. But in Jesus’ day, tax collectors were among the most despised individuals in Jewish society. They were viewed as traitors and treated as social outcasts because they were Jews recruited by the Roman government to collect duties from other Jews. In other words, they served the enemy in order to get rich themselves.
You see, any monies they gathered above what Rome required, they could keep. So they became wealthy by extorting their fellow countrymen. Further, their constant contact with Gentiles and failure to worship and sacrifice in the temple made them even more undesirable to other Jews. To many, Levi was just a greedy sellout and thief. Levi likely experienced what it felt like to be judged, rejected, shamed, inadequate, and unworthy. He probably never imagined God would single him out for service. It is doubtful those who knew him would have either.
Yet Scripture tells us,
As [Jesus] passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting in the tax booth, and He said to him, ‘Follow Me!’ And he got up and followed Him. — Mark 2:14
Jesus knew the truth about Levi, just as He does about each one of us. He recognized Levi’s private struggles — his heartaches, faults, failings, and insecurities. He was aware of the times Levi wrestled with feelings of worthlessness, fear, and loneliness. He also understood the tears Levi cried when no one else was near, and He discerned the hidden longing of Levi’s heart — to be loved and accepted by God. Jesus also realized that His decision to add Levi to His band of disciples would be criticized. But Jesus still chose him.
Why? Because
- Jesus knows how His indwelling Holy Spirit can absolutely transform a soul.
So in calling Levi, the Lord did something that He had done before — He changed Levi’s name. No one knows when this occurred, but we can imagine it came quickly as a result of his obedient response to Jesus’ invitation. After all, the decision to leave the things that were familiar and comfortable must have been difficult for Levi, but it was necessary. It likely isolated him even more from family, and now he would also have to face the rejection of the few friends he had gained among the Roman publicans. The income he made collecting taxes was substantial and probably provided a comfortable existence. But as he no doubt learned, money cannot buy dignity, worth, or joy. And it certainly cannot purchase the peace that comes from being in a right relationship with God. So Scripture makes it clear that Levi got up and left his former occupation without so much as a backward glance.
Luke 5:28 states,
He left everything behind, and got up and began to follow Him.
Levi left everything immediately. Jesus was worth it. Christ was unlike anyone Levi had ever met. The Son of God had touched his life with truth, hope, and promise, and it was enough for Levi to make a complete change of course.
So Jesus chose a new name for His disciple — Matthew, which means “the gift of God.” As Levi, he was a person characterized by taking, but as Matthew, he would give his life away so others could know Christ and take hold of eternal life. He truly became a blessing to others. He traveled with Jesus, recorded the events of Christ’s life, and later assembled the information he had gathered into what we know today as the Gospel of Matthew. His account bridges the Old and New Testaments with overwhelming evidence that Jesus Christ is the Jewish Messiah fulfilling the prophesies of old. Matthew also spread the good news of salvation through Jesus to Parthia and Ethiopia, where he was eventually martyred for his faith.
Christ made Matthew into a gift for others, and He can do so for you too.
As a believer, you are specially chosen, called, endowed, and empowered by God to love and serve Him. And, like Matthew, the Holy Spirit can work through you to be a witness of His love and forgiveness to a lost and a dying world. The Holy Spirit does so through the spiritual gifts He gives you, such as proclaiming the truth, giving, shepherding, showing mercy, serving, organization, teaching, and exhortation. But He also makes you a blessing by the fruit He produces through you:
love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, [and] self-control. — Galatians 5:22–23
You begin to reflect Jesus’ compassion, love, and mercy to others, and they catch a glimpse of the Savior their souls long for. You lead others to Jesus and, in doing so, bring Him credit, honor, and glory.
Proverbs 11:25 promises,
The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed. — NLT
There is reward and fulfillment in serving God that simply cannot be experienced any other way because the Lord is working through you to impact eternity. Indeed, the most important thing you can do outside of accepting Christ as your Savior is to give your life to Him and allow Him to lead you each day. So make the choice and open yourself to the possibility of being God’s gift to those around you. You will be astounded at the great things He does in and through your life.
A Moment of Reflection
Have you ever had your spiritual gifts assessed? Do you know what your special talents and abilities are? Write them down as well as the strengths God has given you.
Have you ever asked God to make you a gift and blessing to others? Spend time today asking Him to open your eyes to the opportunities for service He has for you.
Look back at your initial list of gifts, talents, and strengths. Are there any the Lord highlighted during your prayer time? If so, offer them to Him for His use.
A Gift for Today
No matter how you view yourself, when God looks at you, He sees all the potential He packed into you and all the good He wants to do through you.
Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee
God of glory, Lord of love
Hearts unfold like flow’rs before Thee
Op’ning to the Sun above
Melt the clouds of sin and sadness
drive the dark of doubt away
Giver of immortal gladness
fill us with the light of day...
Mortals join the mighty chorus
which the morning stars began
Father-love is reigning o’er us
brother-love binds man to man.
Ever singing, march we onward
victors in the midst of strife
joyful music lifts us sunward
in the triumph song of life.
~“The Hymn of Joy” by Henry van Dyke1
1. Henry Van Dyke, “The Hymn of Joy,” in The Poems of Henry Van Dyke (New York: Scribner's Sons, 1912), 332, https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Poems_of_Henry_Van_Dyke/w0xAAQAAMAAJ.
Excerpted with permission from The Gift of Jesus by Charles F. Stanley, copyright Charles F. Stanley.
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Your Turn
Did you know that you’re a gift? You reflect God’s glory. You have gifts, talents, and character that impact the world around you. You are specially made by God, the Gift-Maker, to do good in this world, so be yourself — a gift! ~ Devotionals Daily
