Making the most of the opportunity

Colossians 3:18-4 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. ¹⁹ Husbands, love your wives and do not become bitter against them. ²⁰ Children, obey your parents in everything, for this is pleasing to the Lord. ²¹ Fathers, do not antagonize your children, so that they will not become discouraged.

²² Slaves, obey those who are your human masters in everything, not with eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. ²³ Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord and not for people, ²⁴ knowing that it is from the Lord that you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. ²⁵ For the one who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality.

4 Masters, grant your slaves justice and fairness, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.

² Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; ³ praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; ⁴ that I may make it clear in the way that I ought to proclaim it.

⁵ Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. ⁶ Your speech must always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.

⁷ As to all my affairs, Tychicus, our beloved brother and faithful servant and fellow bond-servant in the Lord, will bring you information. ⁸ For I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know about our circumstances and that he may encourage your hearts; ⁹ and with him is Onesimus, our faithful and beloved brother, who is one of your own. They will inform you about the whole situation here.

¹⁰ Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, sends you his greetings; and also Barnabas’ cousin Mark (about whom you received instructions; if he comes to you, welcome him); ¹¹ and also Jesus who is called Justus; these are the only fellow workers for the kingdom of God who are from the circumcision, and they have proved to be an encouragement to me. ¹² Epaphras, who is one of your own, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, sends you his greetings, always striving earnestly for you in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God. ¹³ For I testify for him that he has a deep concern for you and for those who are in Laodicea and Hierapolis. ¹⁴ Luke, the beloved physician, sends you his greetings, and Demas does also. ¹⁵ Greet the brothers and sisters who are in Laodicea and also Nympha and the church that is in her house. ¹⁶ When this letter is read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans; and you, for your part, read my letter that is coming from Laodicea. ¹⁷ Tell Archippus, “See to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, so that you may fulfill it.”

¹⁸ I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. Remember my imprisonment. Grace be with you.

Today’s text says: Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and do not become bitter against them. Children, obey your parents in everything, for this is pleasing to the Lord. Fathers, do not antagonize your children, so that they will not become discouraged.  It is important that we recognize that wives are subject to, not subjects of their husbands. For husbands then it is not a position of power over their wives, but rather a matter of great responsibility. Ephesians 5:23 says: The husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body.  It is not that the husband is the wife’s savior, only Christ can save, but if the husband, being the head, is out of order it will affect the wife. Jesus taught us to pray saying: Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. The family is to be an earthly model of the heavenly kingdom. Far too often though people have a poor image of God because of dysfunctional family relationships. We all, no matter what our role in the family, should continue to work and pray that our family would truly be, on earth as it is in heaven.

Today’s text says: Slaves, obey those who are your human masters in everything, not with eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord and not for people, knowing that it is from the Lord that you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. For the one who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality. Masters, grant your slaves justice and fairness, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven. Of course, this translates to employee and employer or boss, but the key is that whatever we do and whatever we are whether boss or employee, we should do our work heartily, as for the Lord and not for people, knowing that it is from the Lord that we will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.

The text says: Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Your speech must always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.  The opportunity that we have with others is not to see how we can benefit from the meeting. It is not the opportunity for our profit that we should make the most of. It is the opportunity to fulfill the prayer that Jesus taught us. We need wisdom to know how to respond to each person so that we might bring the realities of the kingdom of heaven into the situations and circumstances of their lives. In Matthew 5:13-16 Jesus says: “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by people. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ and precious Holy Spirit, as 1 John 4:19 says, we love because You first loved us. May all that I do be built upon that foundation of love. Whatever I do in thought, word or deed, may it be as unto You, for Your glory. May Your kingdom come and Your will be done, in and through my life. Amen.