God Says: "What Have You Done For Me Lately?"

God receives questions from lukewarm Christians and On-Fire believers 24/7. Thank God we have a patient and loving God! But sometimes we must look in the mirror and see HIS question reflecting us..."What have YOU done for ME lately?" How do you respond to God's question in your life?

God Says, "What Have You Done For Me Lately?"

The World's High-Stakes Questions

Most of us are familiar with "high stakes" tests. But, of course, the stakes are higher for some tests than others. Indeed high-stakes tests can alter your personal and professional life. Comprehensive exams in graduate school are examples. Certification and licensure exams are others.

The point is this: high-stakes tests function as gatekeepers. Gatekeepers determine who is allowed in and whom to keep out. Sometimes it's a single question that tips the scale in one direction.

The potential for high-stakes tests to alter your life is evident. But as devastating as it can be to fail a high-stakes test, it's not a matter of life or death (at least it shouldn't be).

However, what if your high-stakes test was ONE question? Get it right, and you pass. Get it wrong, and you fail forever. What if a single item high stakes test would determine your eternal fate? Would you take the question seriously? I believe so.

God's High-Stakes Question(s)

How's your imagination? I hope it's vivid because I'm asking you to stretch a bit. Let's imagine that God is hanging out with us right now. He has called us together to let us in on His two-question, high-stakes test. He uses the same questions for everyone. Nothing tricky.

God says to us, "open your Bible and look at what I said through the Apostle John":

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:16

God's Question #1: "Do I know YOU?"

We can only offer God a resounding "YES" to that question by saying yes to His Son, Jesus. If we believe in Jesus, acknowledge that He paid the ultimate price on the cross for our sins, was raised from the dead after three days, and now sits at the right hand of the Father. I believe that God (and Jesus) knows us. Jesus is Lord and Savior.

I assume that your response is something similar. If so, I believe God says, "Good Answer!" All on-fire believers got that high-stakes question correct. Most of the lukewarm Christians got it, too. So let's be kind to lukewarm Christians.

But God's Difficult question is coming.

Once again, God asks us to open our bible. Then, he says, read these two verses aloud so I can hear them:

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "Whoever wants to be My disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." Matthew 16:24

For the Son of Man is going to come in His Father's glory with His angels, and then He will reward each person according to what they have done. Matthew 16:27

God's Question #2: "What Have YOU Done for ME Lately?"

Is this a difficult question, especially when we know God is asking it? No matter how "ON FIRE" we are as believers, we are still lukewarm compared to Jesus. Yes, some do more, and others do less, but we all fall short of the "Jesus Standard."

Fortunately, God already knows how far we are from PERFECTION. I believe He is asking us to look in the mirror and reflect on what we have done to expand His Kingdom.

That is something we all can do.

We understand that we aren't "earning" or working our way into heaven. Salvation is through faith, not works. However, once saved, God tells us (see Matthew 16:27 above) that He will "reward us according to what we have done." So what we DO, not think about doing, is vital to God.

The B.B. King (No Blues Christian Test)

So here's the B.B. King test applied to Christians. I'll call it the "No Blues Christian Test) for fun. It's applied to what we DO for God. The great Blues guitar player B.B. King was talking about his practice schedule. Mr. King said, "If I miss practice one day, I know it. If I miss practice for two days, my band knows it. If I miss practice for three days, everyone knows it!"

Now, go back to the mirror and see God asking you, "What did YOU do for ME Lately?" If you answer "NOTHING" for three days, you may be on the fast track to becoming a lukewarm Christian. Not a good place to be during the "end times." Jesus distinguished between true and false disciples when He said:

"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven." Matthew 7:21

To some, this may sound unfair, but I don't think so. Remember the price Jesus paid for us. Remember why we are working every day. It's not about getting into heaven or about the rewards. It's about honoring and loving our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Jesus said, "If you love Me, keep My commands." Matthew 14:15

If we keep His commands, not only are we known by Him, but He will reward us for what we do for Him. That seems like a good deal to me. Much better than any deal the "world" is offering.

Conclusion

Life is full of high-stakes tests. The world offers them in abundance but rarely do they involve life or death outcomes. On the other hand, God has a high-stakes test of only two questions. Get them correct, and you'll spend eternity with Him in Heaven; get them wrong, and the alternative is unacceptable. So here's a challenge: at the beginning of every day, look in the mirror and ask yourself two questions:

1. Does God Know me?

2. What will I DO today to do His will?

At the end of the day,

1. Does God know me?

2. What did I DO today to advance His Kingdom?

I pray that every day God knows you on a first-name basis, that He has YOUR name written in His Book, and that you have the perfect response to His question, "What have YOU done for ME lately?"