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Presented, Sunday, June 15, 2008 am
SPIRITUAL INDICATORS (5)
What is most important to me?
Today we continue our study of spiritual indicators. An indicator is a gauge that gives us information about the condition of something. Consider a compass which is an interesting indicator. Most indicators describe the present condition of an object and point toward that condition. A compass needle, on the other hand always points north. You then use that consistent direction to get your bearings and determine where you are and the direction you need to go.
That is a pretty good way to describe the life of a Christian. God’s word ALWAYS points the way to where we need to be. But we can also use it to determine where we are in comparison to that and then how to get to where we need to be.
As we have noted, a SPIRITUAL INDICATOR is something concrete that we can use to help us get our spiritual bearings. It is a standard we can look at to help us see if we are pleasing to God in our lives. Thus far we have noted several spiritual indicators. We have discussed how we communicate with God (Bible study and prayer), how we control our tongues and how important our brethren are to us. Today we want to examine the question, “What is most important to me?”
I. I. God has always demanded that He be first!
a.
The first
commandment given at Mt. Sinai was, “You shall have no other gods before Me.”
Ex. 20:3
Their failure to put God first is what led to the downfall of both Israel and
Judah.
b. Jesus taught this throughout His ministry.
i. Matt. 6:33, Jesus said to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.
ii. Luke 14:25-33 where Jesus taught a lesson about counting the cost.
iii. Furthermore, Jesus lived it, always submitting to the will of His Father, even in death – Hebrews 5:8-9 – though He was a Son, He learned obedience…
c. It was clearly taught by the apostles
i. Acts 5:29 where they faced beatings, Peter said, “We ought to obey God rather than man.”
ii. Romans 12:1-2 calls for us to present our bodies as a living sacrifice and to be transformed. The idea of a sacrifice is to give something up. In this text we are to present our own bodies as the sacrifice. What that means is that we are giving up our all for Him. That can ONLY be done if He is first.
iii. 2 Tim. 2:3-4 speaks of a soldier enlisting and notes, “No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.” Paul is speaking of endurance in the life of a Christian. In the Lord’s army, He must be first.
d.
Thus we must
constantly ask ourselves what is most important to us. The answer becomes
a SPIRITUAL INDICATOR in our lives. 2 Corinthians 13:5 calls for us to examine
and prove ourselves. Paul says, “Do you not know yourselves that Christ
is in you? – Unless indeed you are disqualified.”
In Philippians 3:7-14 Paul speaks of all that he gave up and why. It was
so that he could gain Christ and be found in Him.
II. II. But we live in a world that is constantly competing for our loyalty
a.
It has always
been that way. It was worldliness that caused God to destroy the world
with a flood. Worldliness caused lot to pitch his tent toward Sodom.
Worldliness continually led Israel and Judah down a path AWAY from God. It
was materialism that led Jesus to the cross (remember what the Jewish leaders
wanted in a kingdom).
The subject of materialism takes up a substantial portion of the Bible,
including the New Testament and teachings of Jesus.
b. To successfully live the Christian life demands that we purge ourselves of the world!
i. That does not mean that we isolate ourselves completely from the world. It has to do with our attitude toward the world.
As Jesus prayed to the Father for His apostles He noted that they were IN the world, but not OF the world. Cf. John 17:10, 14-16. There is a valuable lesson for us in that.
ii. 2 Corinthians 6:14-18 describes our relationship with the world. We are to come out from among them.
iii. 1 John 2:15-17 we are told to not love the world or the things in the world.
iv. 1 John 5:4 notes that we must overcome the world.
v. Galatians 5:24 says that “those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”
c. The very act of obeying the gospel also demonstrates this.
i. Acts 2:38 describes the act of baptism as the remission of sins.
ii. Romans 6:1-14 explains this as Paul reminds these brethren WHY they were baptized and what it meant. They could NOT continue in sin!
d. We must realize that we CANNOT serve God and the world at the same time.
i. Matthew 6:24 – Jesus said we cannot serve two masters.
ii. James 4:4 says that friendship with the world is enmity with God.
iii. In Luke 8:14 as Jesus explained the Parable of the Sower we see why. In describing seed that fell on thorny ground He noted that it chokes out the word with, “cares, riches and pleasures of life” and thus it brings “no fruit to maturity.” Brethren I am fearful that this describes many Christians. We profess to follow Christ and render to Him lip service, but we also highly cherish our possessions. We live our lives trying to manage the two and especially the conflicts that arise.
e. Yet that is exactly what many who profess to follow Christ attempt to do.
i. They want to serve God but only when it is convenient. They want to serve God but they don’t want to give up the world and its ways.
ii. Many are like the rich, young ruler of Matthew 19:16-22 who came to Jesus for eternal life. But he went away sorrowful because he was not willing to walk away from his material wealth. How many of us would pass that test?
III. III. What is most important to me?
a. While I claim to put God first, do I really do that? Can I honestly say that my mind is set on things above and not on the things of the earth? When I am faced with a decision to either serve God or pursue my worldly ambitions, which one would I choose?
b. What would I be willing to give up for Him? Would I be willing to walk away from everything that I own if that was demanded in order to serve Him? How much would I be willing to suffer for Him? When faced with a choice to either serve God or mammon, which one do I choose? Which one do I choose MORE OFTEN?
c. How am I living my life? Am I driven by worldly possessions? Am I in debt? Why? Am I concerned about my social standing more than my standing with my brethren and God?
d. What do I do with my spare time? How much of it do I give to God? How important is recreation to me? Do I consider God when I go on vacation? Would I give up a day to help a brother in need without expecting anything in return?
e. Am I addicted to sin? Pornography, substance abuse, profanity, gambling, filthy music. Am I addicted to money and things or worldly power or popularity and am I driven by them in my decisions? By definition, an addiction involves priorities. What are my priorities?
f. How do those in the world view me? Do they see me as different? Would they be surprised if they were told that I am a Christian? If Christianity were outlawed, would there be enough evidence to convict me?
IV. IV. What can I do to get my priorities straight?
a.
Realize the
REAL value of this world. It is
temporary.
James 4:14 says that our life is but a vapor that appears for a little while and
then it vanishes.
The world is passing away – 1 John 2:17; 2 Peter 3:10-12 – the elements
will melt.
b.
Make up your
mind! Chose for yourselves whom
you will serve. 1 Kings 18:21 where Elijah asked, “How long will you
falter between two opinions?”
Joshua 24:15, he said, “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve!”
REMEMBER: We do what we want to do!!!
c.
We HAVE TO
purify ourselves! We are useless
to God as long as we keep living in sin. We have to truly repent to be of
any service to Him!
James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.
Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”
1 John 3:3 says, while dealing with the fact that God’s love is manifested
toward in calling us His children and the knowledge that in the end we will be
like our Lord seeing Him as He is, “and everyone who has this hope in Him
purifies himself, just as He is pure.”
d.
Learn
contentment. 1 Timothy 6:6 tells
us that godliness with contentment is great gain.
Hebrews 13:5 tells us to be content with such things as we have.
e.
Change the
way you think!
We cannot dwell on the world and hope to overcome its enticements. The
answer is to limit exposure. Consider what you watch and listen to and where you
go.
Colossians 3:2 says, “Set your mind on things above, not on things of the
earth.”
Philippians 4:8 describes the types of things we are to think or meditate upon.
Become “other worldly” – that is really what it is about.
And thus we can see another spiritual indicator. We have one left in this series of studies. It is my hope that with these lessons we will take a serious look at ourselves and where we see the need for change we will make those changes. For those who want to go to heaven (and I believe that to be all who are here) you will never regret making the changes you need to draw you closer to God. And a good part of that involves changing our view of our place in this world in light of what God would have us to do. Think about it!