CEB - Living Our Theology

Living Our Theology

If we were building our thelogoy from the ground up and we started with page one, chapter one, verse one of the Bible, what's the first thing we would learn about God? When we begin at Genesis 1:1, we find that there are no humans, animals or plants.

There is no earth, sea or sky. There is no matter, energy, space or time. There is no material present that is necessary for our existence. It is amid this overwhelming nothingness we find, "In the beginning God..." Our God does not rely on anything for His existence. He is the only being that can truly and fully be described as independent.

It is remarkably humbling to realize that we have nothing to offer God on which He depends. Paul expresses this sentiment in Romans 11:35, 36, "Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen," Any offering we make, any act of service we perform, any time we give, it all originated from God, given to us by God and sustained by God and are under our stewardship for the glory of God. As the elders proclaim in Revelation 4:11, "Thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created."

This truth is key to finding peace and joy in our ministries. In so many areas of our lives, we are taught to evaluate ourselves by our capability and our productivity. We face questions like, "Do we have the required talents, skills and knowledge?" and "Are we meeting our expected output goals?" When we fall short, we find we must either improve or be replaced with someone who can do the job. Evaluating ministry this way will inevitably produce anxiety. We will always find areas where we are lacking expectations that were not met that could have been accomplished. This is not worship.

Understanding the independence of God is realizing that God does not depend on your work — He delights in it. You do not have to fear failling short of producing the desired results because you are not the one who provides the results in the first place. You may plant. You may water. But God provides the increase (1 Corinthians 3:6-7).

Our sphere of control begins and ends with our will. Worship is the humble act of willingly offering back to God all the gifts He has blessed us with so He may delight in them. If you can do that, whatever capabilities you may have and whatever the outcome may be, your ministy is sufficeint to God. You can find peace and joy knowing that God is pleased.

T.J. Blankinship graduated from Emmanus Baptist College with a Bachelors in Theology and a Bachelors in Elementary Education. While pursuing his degrees and following his graduation, T.J. served as youth pastor at Riverview Heights Missionary Baptist Church for nine years, during which he was ordained. In 2021, he moved to Flint, MI where he presently serves as pastor of Friendship Missionary Baptist Church. He is blessed to serve the Lord alongside his wonderful wife Leah and (soon to be joined by) his daughter Aletheia.