WORDS

Fulfill your part

Remove the rocks, surrender and fulfill the promises and be victorious

04/04/2018

By: Bishop Amaury de Farias

In Ecclesiastes 5:4 says that, when you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. Fulfill the vow that you made. When you don’t do your part, it’s you who doesn’t receive what God has prepared for you. It is like when Jesus came before Lazarus’ tomb and asked the others to remove the rock before Lazarus was resurrected. If no one removed the rock, He wouldn’t act. Jesus is at the door knocking, that’s what the Bible says. He knocks instead of just coming in because He waits for you to open the door of your heart. He is not an intruder and He doesn’t push, He knocks. If someone opens, He continues His work, comes in, stays, enjoys a feast with the person and blesses. He doesn’t open the door because the one who needs to open it is you. This specific door, which gives God the right to act in your life, is you. Jesus won’t baptize you, only you can decide to be baptized and surrender to God. I can spend months saying things that Jesus won’t do because is the obligation of each one of us. What is easier: Fulfilling your vow or changing your history doing impossible things? Without a doubt, giving what is of God’s right. You have to separate what is for God. Some of the things that we need to do are: Removing the rock, taking action and removing from our lives the obstacles against God’s work in our lives. Zacchaeus was a complicated person with a similar job of a tax auditor. He controlled and administrated the money of all taxes collected. Zacchaeus was a corrupt person and an infractor. He deceived many people. One day Jesus was passing by and saw Zacchaeus hanging on a tree and called him, knowing that he was interested — Because when you are interested in God, He is interested in you —and called him to continue the work. He asked to have dinner at Zacchaeus’ house and he accepted it.

This way Zacchaeus gave Him the right and Jesus kept the work. If Zacchaeus didn’t give the permission, He wouldn’t complete His work. In your life, who allows God in it is you.

Zacchaeus stood up and said by his own will that from that day on, he would give half of his belongings and would pay back 4 times more to whom he has deceived. This action only he could take. From that moment, Jesus started what He wanted to do, that was bringing salvation to Zacchaeus’ house and recognizing him as Abraham’s descendant. That’s how it is with us, from the moment you remove the rock, God starts doing His work. Jesus tried the same thing with the rich young man and even suggested to him to do the same as Zacchaeus, to take the same decision, probably because the Bible says that Jesus, by seeing that boy, loved him. Unlike Zacchaeus, that young man didn’t remove the rock so Jesus couldn’t work on him. That man left awkwardly and sad with Jesus, with grief in His voice He said: It is easier to a camel go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich enter the kingdom of God. Jesus wanted to start working on the young man’s life but he didn’t remove the rock and Jesus doesn’t push, He enters in the life of the ones who open the door for Him. Removing the rock is complicated. The decision that Zacchaeus made affected many people and himself first than anybody. Removing the rock breaks taboos and takes you out of your comfort zone. Like everybody else, you prefer to stay in the safety of your comfort zone but, when you head to new horizons you start to break the routine and it affects everyone around. To start the work in your life, you surely will break taboos and fell bothered. The person who wants a peaceful life, no scandals, no troubles, no bothering, should die. The Christian life is a life which you break taboos, which you feel constantly bothered and release yourself from what ties you, what suppress you, the rocks. To follow Jesus, of course if you want, bother yourself. Removing the rock is painful, it hurts but if you don’t remove the rock, God won’t continue His work. Don’t keep waiting on God to remove the rock, that’s your job. Everyone get their hidden dreams and happiness and show to God. Every step of your life and your spiritual growth will only happen while you keep removing the rocks. There will be a moment where you find your biggest dream and the rocks must be removed but that will only happen if you break the taboos. The more you grow more rocks will appear. For every great work in your life you will have the remove a rock and, only when it’s removed, God will start working on your life. Whoever has ears, listens, go on and take part. Who plant will sow. Remove the rocks.