It is better you don’t do it at all than to be a stumbling block to those who really wants to do it.
When some Christains refuse to do God’s Work, they become a stumbling block to those who would have done it better.
We also talked about ‘port folio’ Christains. They like titles but they don’t like the responsibility attached to it.
If you live in obedience to God, you will be blessed.
If you live in disobedience, you will be cursed.
Eye service is equal to levity.
Eye service is the sum up results you get when you mix levity and hypocrisy.
And God hates it. A lot.
A case study of the consequences of eye service can be seen in the House of Abinadab especially the death of Uzzah.
When no one is watching you, how do you serve God?
“Why will God kill a man that is trying to help him?”
You cannot exercise eye service alone.
Eye service is a public display of hypocrisy.
How was the House of Abinadab treating the ark?
While alone, you don’t have to do eye service to impress someone.
The success of obed edom house hosting the ark which had been in Abinadab house for twenty years but brought death to them brought massive blessings to Obed edom’s house in the space of three months.
The ark represents the work of God
Abinadab hosted the Work of God for twenty years and it did not bless them but Obed-Edom hosted the work of God for three months and was blessed.
How we handle the Work of God determines how well we live well or how terribly we will be.
The work of God is either a blessing or a curse to those who do them.
The difference is their sincerity and hypocrisy.
God hates luke warmness because Luke warmness means hypocrisy.
The story of Abinadab can be taken from 2nd Samuel 6:1-7 and 1st chronicles 13:9-12
Uzzah and Ahio were the two sons of Abinadab.
There is the saying” Too much familiarity creates contempt”.
Who knows ? Uzzah was too familiar with the Ark so he touched and carried it anyhow.
When the Ark stumbled, Uzzah reached forth his hands to support it forgetting that the Ark is not to be touched without sanctification
The story of the two sons of Aaron is similar to this.
You can never play to the principles of God when you are negligent..
They were negligent. If they weren’t, they wouldn’t have let the fire go out in the lamp.
Eye service is always done when been watched.
It is never done in secret.
Definition two for eye service
Eye service is when a man is performing a job satisfactorily only when the employer is around watching him/ her.
Definition three:
When an employee is over acting on a specific instructions just to attract the attention of his/ her employer
In summary, eye service are people employed or volunteers who only work when they are being watched by someone. They do what they do to impress others
They love the praises of men rather than the praises of God.
John 12:43
They like to be called pastor, Elder, deacon etc but their heart is far away from God.
Isaiah 29:13
Matthew 15:8
They are like the scribes and the Pharisees in Jesus time who liked to pray very loud in public places, they clap the loudest, they sing the loudest but their heart is far away from God.
Ephesians 6:5-8
Colossians 3:22-24
Eph.6.5 – Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;
Eph.6.6 – Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart;
Eph.6.7 – With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men:
Eph.6.8 – Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.
Col.3.22 – Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God:
Col.3.23 – And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;
Col.3.24 – Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.
Whatever that you can do in someone’s presence that will be pleasant to him, do the same in his absence
Don’t wait for someone to be there before you do it well.
People feel they are indispensable because they feel that they are the only ones that have the capacity to do the work.
They become pompous and arrogant because they think that the work cannot be done without them.
1st corinthians 1:27
God qualifies the unqualified and uses them.
God uses the foolish things in the world to humble the arrogant.
God who blessed Obed-Edom could also have blessed Abinadab who hosted the Ark for twenty years.
God who killed Uzzah could have spared his life and make him into a great priest.
How these people were treated depended on how they treated the Ark.
So, how are you treating the Ark?
You can’t be pursuing your work at the expense of God’s Work and expect God to bless you.
Rise up and let us build!
May God have Mercy on is in Jesus name
The people had a willing heart, and in six months they completed the project inspite of the opposition they encountered.
Nehemiah convinced the people to build the Wall.
Let’s not bring curse upon our head.
The Church is either a blessing to you or a curse.
It depends on how you handle it.
The Work of God was a blessing to Obed-Edom but a curse to Abinadab.
The curse was so harsh that Uzzah had to die for pretending to do God’s Work well.
PJC 