Our Desire at McKinney Central

Paul prayed in Colossians chapter one a simple prayer for the brethren, but in that prayer he drove at the very core of what every Christian should desire and what our desire is here at McKinney Central. He said “to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing him, bearing fruit in every good work, and increasing the knowledge of God” (Colossians 1:10) While the things mentioned here seem simple, they target every part of the Christian’s life. We desire to walk (our manner of life) in a way that is worthy of the name of our Lord and of the sacrifice He gave in order to redeem us. The Apostle Paul wrote, “I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beseech you to walk worthily of the calling wherewith ye were called,” (Eph 4:1). We are a purchased people, redeemed, who were taken out of darkness in order to live an righteous life.

Second, we want to be fully pleasing to Him. God is our ultimate judge and we will stand before Him and give an account for our deeds. In that time we want to be ready to meet Him and hear the good phrase “enter into the joy of your master” (Matthew 25:21). If we fail to meet that goal then we have failed at everything. Additionally, many people do things that are pleasing to the Lord, but they are not fully pleasing to Him. We want to make sure we are doing our best to keep the entire law in the way He approves. 

Thirdly, we want to make application to our lives and bear fruit in the good works the Lord has given to us. God expects us to bear fruit. There is no way to get around the Lord’s command. This simply means that as Christians we strive to grow in our individual faith, build one another up when we have opportunity, and reach the lost around us with God’s word. Additionally our works are directed from God’s will and not by tradition of man or any other source. It is God’s word alone that equips us for “every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17) and any instruction that is either against His word or not found in it will not be practiced among us. Jesus did not go through the horrible death of the cross because He wanted our opinion.

Finally, we simply want to increase our knowledge of God’s will. We use it solely as our guide, but our understanding is finite and must be increased. In our desire to do this we study together each week collectively and strive to study individually as well. We are interested in the truth of the matter and will receive humbly any instruction that comes from God’s will. This final desire is what fuels all the other three and it is at the core of our collective acts each Lord’s day. This is our sole desire.