Throughout the Bible, God consistently gives instructions for people to “go” and do something. Though He may tell someone to “stand still” so He can exercise His power (Exodus 14:13), more often He instructs us to do something. The reason? Faith without works, or action, is dead.
Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead…For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also (James 2:17, 26 NKJV).
If God tells us to do something, our response to that word should be faith, believing it to be true. But we prove we believe through our actions. Even instructions to “stand still” or “rest” are actions we must obey to see God’s plan fulfilled. God’s plans and desires for us come in the form of assignments and miracles—with rewards to follow.
Our Assignment
Every Christian has two assignments from God: The Great Commission and an Individual Assignment. Sometimes, we may discover our assignments and feel excited. Other times, it may feel intimidating. Thankfully, because of our salvation, we aren’t left to complete them alone. We have God’s power backing us (Zechariah 4:6), but we must draw on that power by faith and do whatever He tells us to do.
Individual Assignment
Like Esther, Abraham, and Moses—among many others—God has placed a specific assignment on our lives. He even planned our calling before we were born (Jeremiah 1:5). Notice that in many of the biblical accounts, the assignments seemed impossible. At the very least, it was inconvenient. Naturally, the timing didn’t seem right. Yet God called those people, undeterred by what may or may not be possible.
For instance, the king could’ve ordered Esther’s death, yet she went before him anyway. Abraham was comfortable in his homeland and too old to have children, but God still told him to leave his country, promising him an heir. Moses was a fugitive who struggled with self-confidence. God, again, chose him to lead his people out of Egypt, even when a wicked king was ruling.
Bottom line, there will never be a perfect time, place, or situation. God just expects us to obey if we want to see that plan fulfilled. We don’t have to have what it takes; we just must be willing to go.
The Great Commission
Whatever our individual assignment is, it will be to support our ultimate commission: the Great Commission. God may call us to be dentists, but that’s all to support our spiritual calling. He may call us to be stay-at-home moms, but that includes spreading the Gospel to our family and those around us. It is never one or the other.
But to fulfill the Great Commission, we must do something. It requires us to go preach, baptize, cast out demons, speak with new tongues, and lay hands on the sick. We don’t have to be in full-time ministry to do these things. We just need to be willing vessels, led by the Holy Spirit, to go and do whenever and wherever He leads us. It can take place at the grocery stores, sports events, birthday parties, and doctors’ offices. The opportunities are endless!
Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen. And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover” (Mark 16:14-18, NKJV, emphasis mine).
Our Miracles
Receiving miracles in our lives also requires that we go. It is an act of obedience tied to our miracle. Without it, God wouldn’t release His power, even though it is available. For example, when a centurion requested healing for his servant, Jesus said, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you” (Matthew 8:13, NKJV, emphasis mine). If the centurion had lingered, begging Jesus to heal him, it would have been a sign of unbelief. But the centurion believed Jesus and went home to find his servant healed that same hour (v.13b).
There are countless stories in the Bible, in the Old and New Testaments, where God told people to do something unusual to trigger their healing, deliverance, or provision. Their obedience, though sometimes strange and inconvenient, produced miracles. God was powerful enough to perform the miracle without those acts. But He required their act of faith for them to receive. (Examples: 2 Kings 5; John 2:1-1; 1 Kings 17:1-16; Joshua 6:1-21)
Our Rewards
Rewards always follow going. For completing the Great Commission, God has promised rewards in heaven, particularly crowns for soulwinning (1 Thessalonians 2:19-20). This is also true of fulfilling our individual assignments, including hearing “well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:23). Then, of course, the reward for “going in faith” for a miracle is receiving the miracle. That act of good discipleship also brings rewards in heaven (Matthew 25:21).
In both our assignments and our miracles, God will not make us do them. We can choose to go or choose to stay. God’s choice, however, is always that we choose to go. He desires our obedience and the fruit that comes with it even more than we do!
Christa Madrid 