Message Notes
God First: Who is at the center of your
life?
June 6, 2004
1) First realize
that God is WORTHY of being first in our lives.
Isaiah 44:6 This is what the LORD, Israel's King and
Redeemer, the LORD Almighty, says: I am the First and the Last; there is no
other God.
Revelation 4:11 "You are worthy, O Lord our
God, to receive glory and honor and power.
For you created everything, and it is for your pleasure that they exist
and were created."
Everything was created by
God and for God. If you are the creator
of something, you deserve the praise for it.
If you paint a painting, you would be upset if someone started praising
me for what you did. It would be
completely unfair! God created us… he
deserves to be praised for his work.
There are no other gods that deserves to be first. But it’s easy to be deceived, because in
reality anything can become a “god” for us… our work, our friends, our home- do
you spend more time on home repairs than you do spending time with God? Movies, books, cars, anything… if it consumes our life at the expense of
God, it has become a “god.”
Before we can make God
first in our lives, we have to realize that God is greater than anything else.
Ever. No matter what, God is
greater. Think of the thing you
treasure the most… God is greater.
2) Realize that the
point of life is not to make yourself successful, but to GLORIFY GOD and
do his work.
·
Is your goal in life to make your name known?
·
Is your goal to appear successful to the world? To your family? To your friends?
·
Or… is your goal to make God glorified above all
else?
This is a hard pill to
swallow. I struggle with this all the
time, especially at this point in my life.
When I think about what God has in store for me in the future, I always
think about what is most beneficial to me. If God is going to use me as a full time
minister, I picture working in a huge church, writing books, speaking at
conferences and having other ministers around the country know who I am by
name. But how much of that is motivated
by pride, and how much is motivated by the desire to see God glorified? Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong
with having goals or dreams. But if the
primary motivation for those dreams and goals is to bring glory to yourself,
then your heart is in the wrong place.
John 8:54 Jesus replied, "If I glorify myself, my
glory means nothing. My Father, whom
you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me.
To have God make you
successful means everything- to glorify yourself means nothing in the end. Jesus himself- although he was perfect, said
that if he was seeking glory for himself he was in the wrong. But God honored his work and glorified
Him. God does the same for us… If you seek to do follow God and put Him
first in your life, he will honor that and bless you. To glorify yourself means nothing- to have God glorify you means
everything.
3) You have to be FAITHFUL
IN THE SMALL THINGS before God will use you to fulfill your potential.
Matthew 25:21 "His master replied, 'Well done,
good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put
you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'
Many people talk about how
they don’t see God at work in their lives.
Maybe you’ve been asking God to
do more with your life. Maybe you just
want to see God work at all. Many times
he is attempting to work, but we’re not letting Him do it. Because we are not faithful with the small
things.
Why? - In the military,
during training soldiers are expected to follow every order to the letter… this
is because the sergeants know that when the hard times and confusion of battle
come, that attention to detail could save their lives. If you are not willing to do the small
things that God asks of you daily- loving others, forgiving others, spending
daily time with God - there is no way you can expect to survive if faced with a
real spiritual battle.
- If you DO show
faithfulness in the small things, God will use you to do more than you ever
could on your own. When we are relying
on God’s power, there is nothing we can’t do.
Philippians
4:13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
How can you rely on His
strength if He is not the center of your life?
4) Finally, realize that there
is a difference between BELIEVING in God and LIVING FULLY for
him.
Putting God first means
living fully for him.
1 Corinthians 10:31 So
whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old
has gone, the new has come!
If
you have prayed to receive Christ- If you believe in Him and that he saved you
from your sins, that is AWESOME!
But… if so, then your old way of
living is gone! Putting God first means
you do everything with God in mind.
Whatever it is- whether it be work, home improvement, playing sports,
watching sports, going to a movie- all of it should be done for God’s
glory. What does that mean? Explain…
The
hardest part is doing it… A common
problem with Christians in America is that we are quick to affirm truth, and
slow to apply it. Many of you will
agree with what I’m saying, but you have to do it.
If
anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation- it applies to everyone. Not just
pastors, priests, ministers. It applies
to you as doctors, construction workers, mothers and fathers. We are all responsible for putting God
first. Are you going to let him use you
to the fullest? Or… are you going to
settle for second best?
5) What if I’ve
never given my life to God in the first place?
Romans 6:23 For the wages
of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus
our Lord.
Jesus, I want You to
be the center of my life: of my career, my relationships, my time, my health,
and my family. I want to put You first,
before anything else. Today, I humbly
ask for your help. Jesus Christ, I admit to you that I am messed up. I realize
today that I am not living my life for you. I realize my sin has offended you,
so I turn from my sin and ask for the forgiveness that you freely give. I turn
to you, Christ, and ask you to be the leader of my life. I give you everything
I am and everything I will be. Amen.