Today we start the next in our series on ‘Connecting Sundays to Mondays …’ We move from ‘The Foundations for the Good Life’ to realizing the importance of being a distinctive disciple in the various places and situations we find ourselves in. Distinctive meaning ‘distinguished, unique and not being the same’. How can we not be the same as everyone else and stand out in the crowd? Should we stand out? If so, why should we stand out? In reality, it is hard to be different, often lonely and sometimes even confronting.
Last Sunday, we considered Jesus’ teaching on the requirement for His disciples to be salt and light to the world. As Christians we are His disciples. We are therefore to add something special to the world we live in, just as salt adds flavor and light provides goodness. All this is meant to lead people to praise God. Jesus says it so well, “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on a stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house”. This is why we need to stand out in the crowd!
Our first distinctive is taken from Colossians 3. It is all about our ‘motivation’. What motivates us to get out of bed each day? Why even bother? What motivates us to do the things we do? Paul takes us to what should be our motivation in this marvelous piece of counsel. He says, “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above … set your minds on things above, not on earthly things …” Our motivation should be ‘heavenly oriented’ with our focus on pleasing the Lord and bringing honor to Him.
Paul goes on to encourage us, “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” And if we do … we will become distinctive disciples! We will truly be salt and light to a world that is ever so needy! And we will bring glory to God.