Apostle

DEVOTION
1 THESSALONIANS
APOSTLE
1 Thess 2:6-9
As apostles of Christ we could have been a burden to you, 7 but we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children. 8 We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us. 9 Surely you remember, brothers, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you.
NIV
I certainly am no apostle, yet I am an apostle of Christ as I am an ambassador of the Gospel. I represent the Gospel or Christ to a foreign people, those who are lost and dying because they are not a citizen of heaven. True the modern church has implied all sorts of guidelines as to the qualifications of an apostle such as those 12 who Christ selected. But it is also in the much broader sense used for anyone who has received orders from Christ to go into the entire world and preach the Gospel. I cannot help feel this applies to me as well as to many orders. I do wonder is I love people who do not yet know or refuse to know the Gospel enough as to share my life with them. I think I have been friendly enough and certainly no condemning them in anyway. I think I may not go out of my way enough to be that open. Although I do not stand on the street corner I do share the gospel with whoever God brings into my life. I socialize with non-believers but I do not keep silent about my faith either. They know where I stand, and they do not back away from me so I suppose in some sense I am sharing my life with them. I only wish I could be more outspoken. I wonder if I am afraid of closing them out, causing a breach in our relationship and thus not having an opportunity to see them come to Christ. I don’t think I water down the message, or my faith, in order to keep connects with them. I also wonder if I should develop relationships with more non believers. I only have a few at a time. Is that enough? How long should I stay at it with each one? Is there a time I should dust off my feet or not throw pearls before swine? How do I know? God must tell me when it is time. Now as to this toiling day and night not to be a burden to anyone I am perplexed. The whole of the modern church is based on opposition to this phrase. People spend thousands of dollars making collages rich in order to achieve men’s approval to obtain a salaried position which is nothing more than a burden to some group of people in order to preach to them the good news. I simply cannot understand how that complies with this concept. I know I am not in that position and likely will never be. I do not seek any approval of men to share the Gospel, or my life with others. I am but an ambassador of Christ not of a church. I serve Jesus, not the church; I serve the body of Christ but not the church. I receive no compensation except that of pleasing my Lord. I am his apostle. Am I perfect? Absolutely not nor am I without sin, yet I have been commissioned to go, I am still his apostle.