I was young the first time I heard a choir sing, “Only What You Do For Christ Will Last.” The song invaded my ambitions; most of which did not include preaching. The prevailing thought among my peers was to make our mark. Tangible success was the goal. The lyric became a roadblock to those ambitious ideas. Being a part of the Kingdom was all that mattered. Not notoriety or position.
Justus did not win the casted lot in Acts chapter 1. Matthias won and it was he who took the seat of Judas Iscariot. History records Justus as a disciple long after the first chapter. Jonathan was credited with defeating a garrison of Philistines, but his unarmed and critical armor bearer was never mentioned by name. The identity of most of the disciples are lost in the annals of time; we do not know their stories or their exploits. Their lives were about the Call and the Kingdom.
There is a picture taken in the mid-1900’s of men in White Way Tabernacle. They were Apostolic intellectual giants. They were young, many still in their mid 30’s and 40’s. Their names are unfamiliar to most of us. I only know a few of them. Their stories are profound and their faith and work still ripple through time. Whispers and shadows is all that is left. Those men established the Apostolic structure used today. So much of our directives have come from them. One hundred years from now we will all be hidden in the same frame. Our names will fade – only what we do for Christ will last.
People spend their lives building homes, careers, businesses, and experiences. We are often consumed with the things of this life. I do not fault us for being temporal; it is the common human flaw. However, I write in pursuit of something beyond inheritances and personal achievements. I write with the Kingdom in mind. Maybe our names will be forgotten; our faces a blur to those who come after us, but I pray that we will leave a sure foundation that the next generation of believers can stand upon. I pray that we would make Kingdom work; Kingdom giving; teaching the Gospel; and prayer our main priorities. And in the end, if the sum of our lives fade into oblivion, so be it… just let Kingdom prevail.
Pastor Jeffrey Harpole