Lord of ALL Things.

When we go to the church on Sunday, we worship and praise our God, because we believe God is the Lord over the church gathering. But, do you also believe that God is Lord over all things including the things that are inside as well as outside of the church?

Abraham Kuyper, a former Prime Minister of Netherlands, once said:

"There is not one square inch of the entire creation about which Jesus Christ does not cry out, 'This is mine! This belongs to me!"

Kuyper believed that God is lord over not just the church spheres, but also lord over all creations.

In John 21, we see Peter and his friends spending all night trying to catch fish. But, they caught none. Then, Jesus comes along and says to them, "Try throwing the net to the other side of the boat." Peter and his friends were lifelong fishermen. Yet, because Jesus said so, they obeyed. And to their amazement, they caught a lot of fish. Os Guinness says about this scene:

Jesus is not a "religious leader" but Lord of all life. Responding to his call touches the world of fishing as well as preaching, the depths of the lake, and not just the shore (The Call, 158).

The implication of this truth, "Jesus is Lord of all life," is that what we do and how we do in all areas of our lives matters deeply to God. Works of engineering, teaching, accounting, wiping the floor, washing the dishes and so on all matter to God. God wants us to do our works excellently and faithfully for Him, because He is the Lord of all life.

In 1903, when Abraham Kuyper had a challenge of dealing with railroad strike, he wrote to his daughter:

"My calling is high, my task is glorious. Above my bed hangs a crucifix, and when I look up there it is as if the Lord is asking me each night: 'What is your struggle next to my bitter cup?' His service is so exalting and glorious."

For Kuyper, as a Prime Minister of the land, work of politics was not about making for his name. For him, political work was a sacred calling to bring the nation together in difficult times and radically serve the nation in response to Christ' sacrificial work for him on the Cross. For him, the work of politics was worship and service to his own nation.

Our work is more than a way to earn our living wage. When we do what we do in response to Christ' love and for Him, our work becomes worship and a radical service to the world.