What is to be spent for God?
To be spent is to totally yield yourself not just a little, not just a part of you….you give your whole self in service to God.
2 Corinthians 12:15
And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.
The opening scripture shows Paul’s sacrificial love where he was willing to give everything he had spend all that he is in his service to God and His people.
Paul accepted his call when even he was prophesied to that he would suffer, he accepted the call because to him service to God’s people was much more important than the sufferings he was going to endure.
In his service, Paul endured severe hardships and dangers in his journey to share the gospel, of it was a near death experience, Paul went through it, hunger, robbed, accused falsely by his own etc he experienced all but Paul never gave up at any one point because he was a man on a mission, a man spent for God.
2 Corinthians 11:23
Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft.²⁴Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.²⁵Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;²⁵⁶In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;²⁷In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.
Child of God, from the moment you accepted the call from God, you were given a commission;
Matthew 28:19-20
¹⁹Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:²⁰Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
However there are many perils that will come your way. Ministry is not just spiritual,it extends to physical, emotional, mental and financially, you will be tried in all these but don’t give up. These perils are just part of your journey and we have an assurance that in this journey He is with us till the end of the world.
When you accept to spend and be spent for God, not everyone will receive you. For example from our opening scripture Paul says the more he loved the Corinthians, the less he was loved by them. Our decision to spend and be spent for God has nothing to do with the response we will receive from others. Our only focus should be, He that called you, the one that sent you; the author and finisher of your faith.
Hebrews 12:2
Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Ministry will try you..oh it will surely try you!!! Elijah on his journey prayed to die (1 Kings 19:4), Moses complained that he was not the one who birthed these people (Numbers 11:11-12) however the Bible says that if you do go through these, do not think you are alone, believe that Christians all over are going through the same and the end result of all these is perfection, establishment, settlement and strength!
1 Peter 5:9
⁹Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.¹⁰But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.
Prophetic Utterance:
I am a prisoner of Christ for Souls
I spend and I’m spent for God
The life that I live is not mine
If it means that they will reject me, Lord I’ll still obey
Guiding text:
Romans 8:18
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.