Important dinner guests deserve to be served on the best china! At “state dinners” the very best is served on the very best table settings available to impress and honor the guests (see the pic)! My mother had some really nice china and silverware that she reserved for special occasions. It wasn’t for everyday use – it only came out for very special occasions!
As I read II Timothy 2:20-26 this morning during “coffee with the Lord” this thought entered my mind: Followers of Jesus should serve up authentic Christianity on their very best “china.”
Here’s what the passage says…
“Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be A VESSEL FOR HONORABLE USE, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.”
Every person is precious and important in the Lord’s eyes. As Christians, we have a responsibility to seek to influence them to become followers of Jesus! To use the analog of the passage, we should seek to “serve up Christianity on our very best china!” Our lives should be pure and clean and our behavior should be Christlike! We should be “ready for every good work.” This passage identifies several things that should set us apart for maximum influence: Sexual purity, righteousness, faith, love, peace and a pure heart. We should not be cantankerous or argumentative. Instead kindness, patience and gentleness should characterize our lives.
Oh, here is the cry of my heart… “Lord, help me serve up Christianity on my very best china!” I want to make a positive impression on others for “following Jesus” with my life, don’t you?
Coffee With The Lord 