We simply must understand what Jesus is currently doing in heaven. If we don’t understand what role He is currently playing in heaven, we’ll never understand what role we must currently play on earth. So what’s Jesus doing in heaven?
Second, He’s leading his priests in doing God’s work (1 Peter 2:9).
In the Old Testament the high priest would coordinate all the other priests in doing God’s work. Some would take care of the sacrifices, some would help with counseling, some with teaching God’s word, some with leading worship, some with collecting tithes and others with maintaining the Temple.
In the same way, Jesus (as our High Priest) leads us in doing God’s work. You see, the Bible says that we (the church) are God’s priests. First Peter 2:9 says, “…for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests…” As High Priest, Jesus acts as a general contractor, coordinating all the sub-contractors. Some lay the foundation, some frame the house, others run the electrical wire, others do the carpentry, others doing the painting, others put in the carpet or tile or hardwood floors, so on and so forth. The goal of the general contractor is to build a house, but the goal of Jesus is to build his church (Matthew 16:18). He leads some to serve in kids church, others on host team, others to teach his Word, others to lead the church in worship, others to produce the service, others to help with administrative tasks like collecting and counting the offerings, preparing the worship guides and maintaining the church offices. But for the church to be built up, everyone has to play their part.
As the priests under Jesus’ authority, we have a responsibility to offer our talents to God to be used to help get people to heaven. Ephesians 4:7 says, “Christ has given each of us special abilities—whatever he wants us to have out of his rich storehouse of gifts.” LB And 1 Corinthians 12:7 says that each spiritual gift we are given “is given for the common good.” That is, for the good of the church. So the Bible says that God made you good at what you’re good at so you could help the local church reach people for Jesus. So the question isn’t: Has God made me good at something? And the question isn’t: Does God want to put my talent to work? The question is: Have I discovered my talent?
You see, it’s not just important that you play your part. It’s equally important that you play the right part. If the painter decided he wanted to have a go at framing the house (even though that’s outside his skill set), disaster would result. The same is true in the church. So it’s so important that each of us finds the right fit within the church. Well this is why we offer New Day University (specifically our Connect 301 class). In this class you learn how God has uniquely gifted you as well as where you best fit in the church. If you haven’t already taken this class, you can sign up by clicking here.