With the heart of a son

As Christians, as we walk this path of faith, we have many ministries to work in, many things to do. The motive of doing the work is very important. What was the driving force, the motive of Jesus who taught, preached and healed, who worked throughout His life? The answer lies in John 5:19 – Jesus gave them this answer: "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does," John 4:34 – "My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work," and Galatians 4:7 – So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.

Jesus never lost His identity as the Son of God, as the Son of Father above. Having the identity of a son is very important. Whatever the Father does, the Son does. Even in the place of abandonment in Gethsemane, in the place of being crucified on the Cross, Jesus did not lose the identity of a Son, He did not lose the consistency of the heart of a Son.

Unlike a son, a servant works out of duty, expecting a reward. A son works by faith, with the motive of love. God does not need excellent or brilliant people to work in His Vineyard. He needs people who can go together with Him, with one heart of love, those who can walk this narrow path with the heart of sons.

As we walk this path of faith, we stand at the place of Christ, as co–heirs of Christ, as the sons of God. This is a very precious identity, a precious commission in itself.

See Matthew 11:11 – I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. What does it mean? Through the birth of Jesus, the life of Jesus, a new era had opened up – the era of Son. Before Jesus, no other could dare to think of oneself as son of God. Before Jesus came, there was the era of servant. No matter how big or important was John the Baptist, his was the position of a servant of God. No matter how big or important is a servant, it can never be compared to the position of a son. The two are fundamentally different. Through Jesus, the place of son was opened up, recovered, the place that was lost by Adam.

We, as co–heirs of Christ, must never forget our identity, our commission, our position as children of God. No matter what hardship we face, we should not forget our identities as sons of God. As true sons of Father above, we must go with Him together with the same heart and share in His sufferings just as we will share in His glory. The sadness of Father is my sadness, His concern is my concern, His joy is my joy – having this heart, we should walk.

When we have the same heart as that of Father God, we will not grow weary or tired. Our food will be to do His will. Through Christ, our lives have already turned from water to wine. But as we walk this path of faith, there may be times when we face hardship and sufferings; there may be times when wine may get diluted with water; there may be times when the son loses the motive of love, forgets his identity. When this crisis of identity occurs, one may fail to understand why one is walking this path of faith, why one is suffering.

Let us be the ones who can overcome such periods of crises in our lives, always remembering our precious identity, living and walking with the heart of sons of God, the heart of love, walking as one, together with our Father.