Useful To The Master

by Chris Simmons

Paul wrote in II Timothy 2:21, “Therefore, if a man cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.” We have no right to expect that we can become beneficiaries of the grace of God, recipients of His forgiveness and heirs of “the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints” (Ephesians 1:18) without exercising all diligence to make ourselves useful to God in His service. Unless we have focused on being useful to the Master, it can be rightfully said that we are of no use to the Master. There are many ways in which we can render ourselves of no use to our Father in heaven.

First, unrepentant sin and worldliness can render us useless to the Master. As noted above in II Timothy 2:21, the useful servant is the one who continues to keep himself cleansed of wickedness and the lusts of the flesh (consider the entire context of II Timothy chapter 2). Until we make things right with God, we will not be used by God for His good. Consider the prophet Isaiah, who upon seeing a vision of the glory of God sitting upon His throne, came to realize his own sinful and “undone” condition. We then read in Isaiah 6:7 that Isaiah was forgiven of his sins and when God asked in verse 8 “whom shall I send, and who will go up for us?”, Isaiah was able to confidently reply, “Here am I, send me!” God desperately needs those who are willing to sanctify themselves (be set apart) from the world to do His work today (cf II Corinthians 6:17-7:1).

Indifference and apathy will also render us useless to the Lord. God has no fellowship with, or any use for, a Christian who is “lukewarm.” For example, the brethren in Laodicea are described as being “lukewarm” and the Lord said to them, “I will spit you out of my mouth.” There isn’t anything more distasteful to God than someone He has forgiven being indifferent about his service to God. Only repentance and a renewed zeal for good works will save the apathetic soul and enable him to be useful in His kingdom (cf Revelation 3:19; Titus 2:14). “Whatever is commanded by the God of heaven, let it be done with zeal” (Ezra 7:23).

An unwillingness to use our talents and abilities for the Lord is another reason that can make us useless to God. We all have varying degrees of talents and abilities that we use in our work life, social life and family life on a daily basis. There are many in the Lord’s church who are unwilling to use those same talents and abilities to the benefit of the Lord’s church and in particular the congregation of which they are a part. In Matthew 25:14-30, we read of those who were blessed with varying amounts of talents and of one in particular who did not use what he was blessed with. To that man God said, “‘You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I scattered no seed. Then you ought to have put my money in the bank, and on my arrival I would have received my money back with interest. Therefore take away the talent from him, and give it to the one who has the ten talents.’ For to everyone who has shall more be given, and he shall have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away. And cast out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 25:26-30).

Misplaced priorities are another reason that many are found to be useless in God’s service. We are of no use to the Lord and to His church when other matters of life come before God. In Luke 14:16-24, we read of the excuses of three who were invited to the big dinner. One prioritized his new oxen, another his property, and the third his family. Though none of the reasons were sinful in and of themselves, they all reflected other priorities in their lives and are intended to teach us how such ordinary matters of life can come between us and God. For many Christians today, recreation, entertainment, professional achievement and such like come before their service to God both in terms of how they spend their time as well as how they spend their financial blessings. These are the “encumbrances” which keep us from running the Christian race to best of our capability (Hebrews 12:1-2). When the things of this world are prioritized above serving God, Jesus said that we will not be able to be useful to God. “And the seed which fell among the thorns, these are the ones who have heard, and as they go on their way they are choked with worries and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to maturity” (Luke 8:14).

Ignorance will also prevent us from being useful to God. When we fail to put in the work to know what God’s word says, we are not equipped to defend the truth of God’s word and help anyone else be strengthened in the power of the gospel (cf Jude 3; II Peter 3:17; Acts 20:32). We certainly can’t teach that which we do not know. We can look to Ezra who first “set his heart to study the law of the LORD” before he then “practice(d) it” and then made himself useful to the Lord by “teach(ing) His statutes and ordinances in Israel” (Ezra 7:10).

Perhaps the most difficult challenge to overcome (and recognize) in making ourselves useful to the Lord is selfishness. Until we can say as Paul said in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me,” we can never be useful to Him in His service. We can not be His disciples and we are not worthy of Him if we will not take up our cross and follow after Him (Luke 14:27; Matthew 10:38; 16:24-25).

We have no other choice if we seek an eternal home with God in heaven than to make ourselves useful to our Father in heaven.