By: Pastor Joshua Gwara Omolo, Kenya, Africa
2Timothy 2: 20: – But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of
wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonor. If a man therefore purges
himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use,
and prepared unto every good work
Definition of a vessel
The word vessel is often used in the Bible, and in English terms it translates to be either a
container such as a bowl or a jug, or either a ship or a boat. The Biblical meaning denotes a
person whom God calls and uses as a vessel.
God’s plan to all mankind is to use men for a special purpose and special calling to fulfill the
purposes of God. The primary purpose of God to all men is to worship God in truth and in the
Spirit.There are also numerous advantages and blessings that accompany the when an
individual accepts to be used by God as a vessel, there is a special level of honour and favor that
manifest when a believer choses to obey God’s command to be used by Him and those
blessings comes in handy to remove the shortcomings in the life of the carrier of the grace of
honour.
The power of being a vessel of honour
Some challenges can only persist in your life simply because you are yet to yield to the calling of
God. Becoming a vessel of honour is a choice in life. A person who has chosen to accept God’s
calling has the opportunity to undergo divine transformation process that leads to experience
of honour and favour from God. Greatness in life can only manifest in the life of a man who is
able to accommodate the process of sanctification and transformation that comes from God.
The call of Simon Peter by Jesus is what led him to be transformed from being a fisherman to
being an Apostle (fishers of men), “a chosen vessel.” The word “chosen” implies that he was
special, precious, valued and prized. Even before Peter started serving God he was special in
the eyes of the Lord.. Jesus is on record telling Peter, “follow me and I will make you fishers of
men” (Mark 1:16-20) and that comes with honour. All of us are very special to the Lord. All of us
have great value to God. We possess certain uniqueness in us different from the other people
around us.
The Purpose Driven Life
The purpose as to why God created man is to serve God. Our worship to God is the number one
assignment in life. Our God the father of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ is very categorical in
His word when He says in the book of John 4:23 – Yet a time is coming and now has come when
the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of
worshippers the Father seeks. God is looking for true worshipers whose hearts are inclined to
the word of God, this therefore calls for mankind to offer himself as a living sacrifice.
Our worship to God is always hindered due to the fallen nature of mankind. There are many
things in our life that requires purging for God to use us as vessels of honour; for us to become
carriers of the divine power of God it requires total sacrifice where we should purpose to live
selfless life fully dedicated to the master’s need. The need for us to purge ourselves from the
carnal desires is extremely important in order to create sufficient space for the Spirit of God to
sanctify us in readiness for the work of God.
Learn to purge yourself by choosing to live a holy life
Holiness is a choice and not a chance in life. The reward that comes with it is beyond
imagination. Holiness is the pillar on which God’s divine promises to successful life is pegged
on. The Bible says without holiness it is impossible to please God. We can engage in so many
activities in life but without holiness then all that we are doing is exercise in futility. There is
need for our value systems to go through serious purging process for us to be transformed to
be like Christ.
We carry a lot of dry bones within us after the fall of man and the process of sanctification is
inevitable for the purpose of our transformation.
The old nature which was the nature of the sinful man cannot qualify to become a vessel of
honour that can be entrusted by God to carry his glory. True believers must purpose to become
intentional faithful worshippers and deliberately invest serious capital in quality work of
spiritual development in order to acquire the gold status in the kingdom of God (Phil 2:12 –
work out your salvation with fear and trembling).
Kingdom of God operates on reward system
Salvation is purely by grace but the rewards from God are based on the good works. The
faithful followers of Christ must desire to live a life like Christ himself. Purging process is that
step of choosing to say no to ungodly behaviors and to say yes to those things that glorifies
God. Our salvation requires quality investment on character development. We need to be
accountable to one another, the church needs to develop the habit of reading and studying the
Bible. Application of the word in our day to day walk with Christ is the main proof of a new life
in Christ Jesus. Let every believer in Christ Jesus learn to not only hear the word but also
become doers of the word; meditating on the word day and night in order to make the word of
God dwell in us richly is key to spiritual development. Every level in our spiritual walk with God
attracts a given measure of favor commensurate to that level and every believer has an
opportunity to choose the level they want to belong.
It is important to remember that everyone shall be rewarded according to their works. The
quality of your investment and the value of the materials invested. In Genesis 5:24 – Enoch
walked with God and he was no more seen; for God took him away. Enoch simply allowed God
to increase in him till there was nothing left of him that death could claim. We need to learn to
reduce so that God may increase in us on daily basis. Quality work on our personality and
interest’s that conflicts against the intentions of God must be purged for the Spirit of God to
sanctify us in preparation for the next level. We must learn to sacrifice our time, finances and
energy by giving them fully to the Lord’s service then we will increase in the knowledge of God.
Four levels of vessels/workers in the kingdom of God: –
- Gold
- Silver
- Wood and
- Clay
5 Kingdom Principles to becoming a vessel of honour - Arm your soul with the power of love – Mark 12:30-31 – Love the Lord your God with all
your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind… - Guard your soul/heart – Proverbs 4:23 – Above all else, guard your heart, for everything
you do flows from it - Purge yourself – 2Tim 2:21 – those who cleanse themselves from the latter.., James
5:16:- confess your faults one to another - Avail yourself for God – Isaiah 6:8 – whom shall I send and who will go for us. (Mathew
24:38-39 – For as in the days that were before the flood…)
-Mathew 9:37-38 – The harvest is plenty but the laborers are few… - Build Trust – Luke 16:10 -Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted
with much.
Love covers a multitude of sin. – Mark 12:30-31 – Love the Lord your God with all your
heart….
Love is a person and it is the person of God. Love determines the wellness of the condition of
your soul. When your soul is sick then you suffer acute limitations in living a purpose driven life.
Lack of love creates a high level deficiency of passion to please God in everything you do hence
leading to boredom. When you hear people say that they don’t find a meaning in life the reason
behind is that love of God is not present in that person. Many people who commit suicide fall in
this category where they try to substitute the love of God with other substances which doesn’t
work at all. Love is a force of God, it has power over hate.
Two forces govern this world: the force of hate and the power of love. John 3:16 – for God so
loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in Him shall not
perish but have an everlasting love. Jesus was full of love and the Bible says he did good in
every place he went. Vessels of honour worthy to be used by God are supposed to be agents
and carriers of the love of God. The easiest way to defeat evil in the present world is to show
love even to your enemy.
We steal and cheat because we do not love. We commit immorality because we do not love.
Sex outside marriage destroys both parties involved. Government leaders embezzle public
resources because they do not love. In fact man sinned and channeled all evil into the world
because he chose to let go of God’s love. God is calling all men back to the first love through
effective repentance. Revelation 2:1-2 – Nevertheless I have this against you, that you left your
first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first work.. God
is raising case against the church in Ephesus about the lost love. Love is a force from God and
hate is a force from Satan (1John 4:7). You live in the light when you carry love. Just as light has
power over darkness so love has power over hate.
In the book of Hebrews 10:32, says “When the people were in the bloom of their first love,
were they enthusiastic! They put everything into their relationship. They yielded themselves to
God” The love for God surpasses everything in life because it is the core foundation of the
reason for our living. We are blessed the way we are today because of the great love God has
for us, and if we are indeed the children of God then we need to exhibit the same of the father
to the world. Ephesians 2:4-5 – But because of His great love for us , God, who is rich in mercy,
made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have
been saved.
Many wars and rumors of war happening in the world today are orchestrated by hate because
love is absent. Many families have become dysfunctional because there is no love. The
shootings in our public schools are happening because of hate. God is calling all men to
embrace His love by accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and savior over our life for us to experience
the true love of God, it is impossible to share the love of God without the salvation of Jesus
Christ. When we receive Christ Jesus then we can become a vessel of honour.
Guard your soul/heart – Proverbs 4:23 – above all else guard your hearts………
Self-preservation is the enemy number one to spiritual prosperity. When we quit thinking about
ourselves and our own self-preservation, we undergo a truly heroic transformation of
consciousness ( By Joseph campell). Self-sacrifice is the heavenly language and the truest
weapon to guard our heart. The Bible says in Mathew 16:25 – “For whoever wants to save his
life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will find it” We must learn to carry our
cross daily and follow Christ.
The heart of a man is the center piece of his/her personality. Every bit of the destruction of a
man begins at the point when the heart is corrupted through perversion. Proverbs 4:23 –
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Keep your mouth free
from perversity; keep corrupt talks far from your lips, let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your
gaze directly before you. The most effective way to guard your heart is by ensuring that the
four main gates in your body are properly manned. The two gates in human body are the eyes
and the mouth
Guarding your heart is essential in the context of sin because it helps you protect your inner
most self from the deceptive allure of sinful temptations. It involves making choices that align
with your moral and spiritual values, avoiding harmful influences, and striving for a pure heart.
In the Bible the heart is considered the seat of life or strength. Hence it means mind, soul, spirit,
or one’s full emotional nature and understanding.
Guarding your heart involves energizing your life with the transforming truth of God’s love and
God’s word. Never treat scripture like a collection of facts. Pay attention to all the instructions
given by God in His word. The servant of God Joshua was told by God himself to ensure to
mediate the word of God day and night and to observe to do all that is written in the word and
then God will prosper you together with your children. Listen closely to the word of God.
Engage in a routine spiritual service to clean your heart on regular basis by reading the word of
God which is the Bible and meditate on the word. Our character tends to follow the path of
what we constantly meditate about whether good or bad. When you form a habit of meditating
on the word of God then this will positively build high self-esteem. People who suffer low self-
esteem cannot perform to the expectation of their masters, as the Bible says in the book of
Proverbs 23:7 – As a man thinketh, so is he. This expression means that what someone says or
does is directly proportionate to what he thinks. The mind here becomes the primary breeding
ground for who we become.
The consequences of unguarded heart can manifest in so many ways for instance poor choices,
broken relationships, hurt and disappointments. But remember when we mess up and are not
the best version of ourselves, God is faithful to forgive and restore. The desire to press on and
walk closer to the Lord is all we need.
Purge yourself – 2Tim 2:21 – If a man therefore purges himself…….
Confession of our sins to God and one to another is the primary foundation means to purging
ourselves from sinful desires. You must make concrete and even extreme choices against that
which you have sinfully desired. There needs to come a time when you need to take a break
and move to a solitary place and call yourself to a meeting room where you dialogue with your
spirit, you need to reach a point where you take a vote on issues that matters not only in this
temporal life here on earth but also on matters regarding eternity. Self-assessment based on
the truth of the word of God is extremely important when you start evaluating your
performance in life. It is at this point that you can make independent decision which is devoid
of any human influence as the third party.
Vessels of honour are costly to make and they take time and a lot of sacrifice to produce. The
same principle applies when you reach a point where you must let go and let God have his will
and way in your life. Sometimes it will cost you to separate from some of the friends you value
so much. In some instances it will cost you to reject certain offers for the sake of Christ, but in
all these it’s worth paying the price for the sake of the prize ahead. I want to just remind us that
there is a crown awaiting those that will overcome in heaven, so there is need to keep
reminding ourselves this fact in order to make the wise decision to glorify God in all that we do.
I hope you believe in the say that goes, “in life no pain no gain”
Guarding your heart in essential in the context of sin because it helps you protect your
innermost self from the deceptive allure of sinful temptations. It involves making choices that
align with your moral and spiritual values, avoiding harmful influences and striving for a pure
heart. The reason David sang to the Lord saying, “Create in me a clean heart and renew your
right spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10). Only God can create in you a clean heart, all other human
efforts cannot achieve anything of this kind.
Allow God to constantly search your heart and show you if there is any evil that needs
attention. Always ensure that you carefully weigh your heart at all times to ensure it remains
pure. Prayerfully you can seek for God’s guidance and protection. Learn to set aside time when
you can dedicate yourself to the reading and meditation of the word of God so that he word
may dwell in you richly, this calls for discipline to overcome the temptation of being glued to
the gadgets and television.
It is prudent to learn to evaluate all information before you consume them. Social media is a
wash of much illicit information that comes with the intention to pollute people’s minds.
Pornographic images and literatures is a deadly poison to the heart.
Avoid rourmour mongering and spreading of lies and propaganda among your friends. Your
tongue must be bridled if you are to walk right with God. The tongue is a small part of the body
but it can wreak havoc if left unchecked at all time. All these are steps to becoming a vessel of
honour which God can use for noble purposes in the kingdom
Availability for God’s service – Isaiah 6:8 – Whom shall I send……
We are living in a very fast world where everything seems to be on the first lane, this culture
has permeated in the church where we are almost rubbishing the need for fellowship. Almost
everything is going virtual so much so that today many churches are having majority of their
members attending virtually especially after the covid19 effects.
Virtual fellowship is good but physical fellowship is better. We will never reach a point of
satisfaction by substituting our physical presence in the presence of God with gadgets. Jesus
second coming will not be virtual but physical, it’s the reason God wants you physically
regardless of your busy schedule. Hebrews 10:24-25 – And let us consider how we may spur
one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in
the habit of doing, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day
approaching.
God is looking for people whom he can send worldwide. The harvest is plenty but the laborers
are few because not many people are ready to avail themselves to be sent by God. Many
excuses that we keep on advancing cannot hold water at all. Some are waiting to serve when
it’s convenient, others are waiting till they retire then is when they can engage in the ministry.
Elisha was unable to stand mentorship of his master prophet Elijah when he tried to still hold
on to the things of the world and his people. Elijah had to rebuke him sharply that is when
Elisha saw the need to go back and slaughter the oxen then he came back and served Elijah
effectively and finally he got a double portion of his anointing.
You cannot become a vessel of honour till you refuse to remain an average Christian, carrying
average testimony, earning average income and living average life. God’s vision and dream for
you is abundant life (Joh 10:10 – The thief comes not but to steal, to kill and to destroy: I am
come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly). Double portion
anointing which was received by Elisha was as a result of total sacrifice and quality focus on the
things of God. Both your time and money are needed to be available for the Lord/s service.
When you serve God, you grow closer to Him. You learn more about His character and what He
desires for your life. As you draw near him he reveals more of Himself to you and gives you a
greater understanding of His will. Serving God also strengthen your faith and deepens your
trust in Him.
When you become available and serve God, you grow closer to Him and God promises to
establish your plans. You need to commit to Him every day and committing just means giving
your best every day to God. You don’t need to be perfect. Belong to a fellowship where you are
known by the leadership that you are a member. Participate in the programs of your church or
fellowship with the rest of the church members.
One of the best ways to know that you are available to the service of God is when the programs
of your church or fellowship are fairly accommodated in your diary. When you grow to the
point where you can decline certain rising assignment because you have already dedicated that
time to God in your calendar then that will be a sign that indeed you are available and ready for
growth. The only way you can be disciple to grow to maturity in Christ is when you allow your
spiritual mentor to determine a sizable portion of your diary. God through his servants who are
your mentors sometimes can change your personal plans you had already slotted in your diary
and you will not need to struggle so much to accommodate the God given instruction, which is
obedience.
The desire to make more wealth has remained today one of the main obstacle to availability for
God’s service. Many churches are struggling to gather sufficient quorum of congregation
because members are doubling from job employment to other businesses, many working for
over twelve hours a day in order to make the ends meet. Unfortunately the money is never
enough, this trend has turned around God’s plan where now people are serving money instead
of money being the servant to men.
Build Trust – Luke 16:10 -Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with
much.
Trusty deficit is a big challenge today not only among the spouses but also between man and
God. Many businesses have gone under based on lack of trust among the employees. Trust is
the currency that can never experience recession regardless of the season of life. Trust is like
the air we breathe, when it is present nobody notices; when it is absent, everybody notices.
Mistrust begets mistrust; trust begets accomplishment. Many pastor are struggling to accept
the concept of champions table because they are wondering whom they can trust with
sensitive information about them.
Many employees fail to get their promotions at their places of work because of trust deficit.
Majority of spouses have divorced because they suffered trust deficit in their marriage.
Corruption and economic challenges being experienced in many nations across the world can
be directly linked to mistrust among the leaders in government.
God is looking for men who can be entrusted with little so that they can graduate to much.
Always learn to do what you believe is right, even when others disagree, will lead others to
respect your honesty. Interestingly when building trust, you must be willing to upset others in
occasion. Do not be thirsty of affirmation from men if you want to build trust because most of
your decision will not be appealing to the majority around you.
Mathew 3:17 – And a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved son, in whom I am well
pleased!” This was God’s signature of trust He had on Jesus. Trust is the master key that opens
the strong room of great success that money cannot buy. Risking your heart by trusting
someone else to take care of it takes courage, and that’s the reason why when you choose to
trust another person, you step out of your comfort zone.
The Lord is telling us in Jeremiah 17:7-8 – Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, The man
who puts his decision based on the faith in God. The man whose value system is aligned to the
will of the Lord is that man who is ready to forego anything for the sake of relationship with
God. Abraham was ready to sacrifice his only son Isaac because He trusted in the Lord God.
When he fully obeyed God then it was counted righteousness by faith.
God wants to give you life of abundance, influence, greatness, confidence and balance if only
you trust Him. The journey of faith must begin with first and foremost trusting upon the Lord
Jesus Christ as your Lord and savior of your life. When you trust in the Lord he will give you
power to become the son of God. John 1:12 – But to all who received him, to those who
believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God. Trust in the Lord is the seed
that begets life eternal in Christ through the washing of the blood of Jesus. You can change your
life today by choosing to become trust worthy in all your relationships. Above all you can be
saved if you choose to trust in the Lord with all your heart, with your entire mind and with all
your spirit
Trust can be built by placing block after the other, and with gradual commitment till it becomes
a powerful tool to make you become a vessel of honour .A vessel that God can use to bring
glory to His name. You should purpose to use every tool given by God which is the application
of the word of God to build trust with God and with the people around you.
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