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Ever Only All for Thee

Ever Only All for Thee

Words of Faith 12-11-19

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2019

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL

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Colossians 4

[14] Our dear friend Luke, the doctor, and Demas send greetings.

 

      How would you like to have a friend who would follow you around, encourage you in times of difficulty? One that would bind up your physical wounds, stick by you no matter what? One that would write down an account of your greatest contributions to history?  That is exactly what Paul had in his dear friend Luke the Physician.

      Among those at Paul’s side in the Roman prison, we find Luke, Paul’s dear friend and doctor who stood firm not only in this earlier imprisonment but also in Paul’s later imprisonment.  Luke is perhaps best known for writing a Gospel account that bears his name and the Acts of the Apostles.  Among the Gospel writers, he was the only Gentile. While the date and circumstances of his conversion are not known, he contributed significantly to the encouragement of the early church and the spread of the Gospel.

      According to his own statement, Luke was not an "eye-witness and minister of the word from the beginning." He probably was a physician in Troas and was converted there by Paul.  From that point on, Luke accompanied Paul to Philippi but did not share his imprisonment there or accompany Paul further after his release. 

      On Paul's third visit to Philippi, we again see Luke, who probably had spent all the intervening time in that city, a period of seven or eight years.  From that time on, Luke was Paul's companion during his journey to Jerusalem but again disappeared during Paul's imprisonment at Jerusalem and Caesarea. 

      Luke reappeared again when Paul set out for Rome and remained with him until the close of his first imprisonment. The last mention of the "beloved physician" is in Paul’s second letter to Timothy, “Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry” (4:11).

       There are many passages in Paul's letters as well as in the writings of Luke, which show the extent and accuracy of Luke’s medical knowledge as well as his mastery of Greek language and composition.  He was a brilliant writer and a faithful friend.  Paul referred to Luke as the "beloved physician," a physician who was endeared to the hearts of believers. Apparently, his medical treatment of believers was diligent, warm, compassionate, and personal. He had an effective ministry for Christ among the believers using the skills of his previous life.

          Luke is an excellent example of someone whose life was completely changed by Christ but whose professional skills and gifts were then used by the Lord for a glorious end.  It is interesting that when the Lord called Moses, he commanded him to throw down his shepherd staff.  That staff represented the skill and livelihood that Moses had grown to depend upon.  It was an act of faith for Moses to throw down the one thing that he had to lean on only to see it then transformed in a prophetic way.

        In the same way, Luke threw down his life as a physician in Troas and the Lord transformed it into an adventure that took him all across the Roman Empire helping, supporting, healing and writing in the Name of Jesus.  God can and will do the same things for us as He transforms us and uses our gifts and skills for His Kingdom and glory.

        Luke was a good friend to Paul, but even more, he was a dramatically transformed man who gave himself wholly and completely for the glory of God.  He reminds us that God can use anything from a previous life for His glory.  You may think that you have nothing to offer to God, but this is not true.  God can transform your life, skills, profession, and even failures and use them to share the Gospel and proclaim healing.

 

       Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee; Take my hands and let them move At the impulse of Thy love. Take my feet and let them be Swift and beautiful for Thee; Take my voice and let me sing, Always, only for my King. Take my lips and let them be Filled with messages from Thee; Take my silver and my gold, Not a mite would I withhold. Take my moments and my days. Let them flow in endless praise; Take my intellect and use Every pow’r as Thou shalt choose. Take my will and make it Thine, it shall be no longer mine; Take my heart, it is Thine own, it shall be Thy royal throne. Take my love, my Lord, I pour At Thy feet its treasure store; Take myself, and I will be

ever, only, all for Thee. (Frances R. Havergal, 1874).

 

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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, and our website, and our church app, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2010 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.  

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