Tag Archives: God

The Most Important Commandment

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Ask God Any Question

Several times in my lifetime, I’ve found myself in a conversation with someone who made a statement that they intended to ask God about something when they saw Him someday! How about you? If you could ask God any question, what would it be? Well, in Mark’s Gospel, the writer says that: “One of the scribes approached. When he heard them debating and saw that Jesus answered them well, he asked Him, ‘Which command is the most important of all?’ Of all the 613 commands found in the Torah (Jewish Old Testament), which was THE most important? Wow! That’s a big question! Which command is at the top of the list? Don’t wanna miss that one! 

The Most Important Command

“This is the most important,” Jesus answered: “Listen, Israel! The Lord our God, the Lord is One. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.” (Mark 12:28-30). This is really a timely post as it seems the church, in general, is confused about “worship.” But Jesus really clears things up, doesn’t He? He’s really saying that we have to love God with ALL of our being—ALL of our “heart” & our “soul” & our “mind” & our “strength.” So, it’s impossible to love God until we know Him! But we live in a day when everyone claims to love God! That may be a generalization, but I’m absolutely stunned by the number of times that totally lost, unregenerate people—who have NO IDEA “Who” God is—still tell me they LOVE Him!

To Know Him Is To Love Him

I can believe them when they say they “love” pizza, for example, because they’ve tasted it! They’ve handled it! I can believe them when they say they “love” hunting because it’s something they’ve done! They take their dog and a friend! So, they’ve experienced it! But you cannot possibly love God until you KNOW God! Until you’ve met Him and know Him well enough to explain WHY you love Him! Study Jesus’ words! That’s precisely what He’s saying! Jesus says we must love God PERSONALLY! Notice, from His response to the scribe’s question, how Jesus uses six “personal” pronouns, and every one of them is “possessive”— “The Lord OUR God”; “Love the Lord YOUR God”… ”with all YOUR HEART”… ”with all YOUR SOUL”… “with all YOUR MIND”… “with all YOUR STRENGTH.”

Love God Personally

THE most important commandment in all of Scripture is to have a personal, possessive love for God, Jesus says. And you cannot love someone you don’t know! My wife and I have been married 42 years, but I confess to you that there were 20 years during which time I did not love her! Not one bit of love did I have for her, and the reason was that I didn’t know her! I hadn’t met her yet! Once I did, I grew to love her as I came to know her! That’s no different with God! We have to know Him personally before we can claim to love Him! We come to know His character, and we know Him through Jesus and the Word! And when we truly know Him, we can’t help but love Him.
 

Worship Rejects All Competing Loves

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A Living Sacrifice

According to the Apostle Paul’s urging to the Church of Rome, when your worship is genuine, it will impact your life in such a dynamic way that God will use it to produce perpetual change in you: “…I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. This is your spiritual worship…” (Romans 12:1). As we worship God, He is redeeming our lives—as we intentionally present them to Him—to “remake” them into the image for which we were created before sin ruined it all!

Your Body Is A Sanctuary

That’s why Paul wrote to the Church of Corinth, “Don’t you know that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).  “Don’t you know,” Paul asked, “that if you’ve accepted Jesus as your Savior, you’re NOT your own! He BOUGHT you—that word carries the idea of redemption. He redeemed you! He reclaimed you! He’s in the process of restoring you by sanctification! So, we must intentionally present our bodies to Him as a living sacrifice to glorify God with our bodies. But there’s a second point that Paul ties to our worship in the next verse: ‘Do not be conformed to this age’; or, ‘this world’ as some translations render it! (Romans 12:2)

Don’t Get Squeezed

I like how the Phillips Translation puts it: ‘Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold…'” In other words, worshiping God involves an intentional rejection of the world’s demand to conform! There are really only two worldviews or philosophies. There is the philosophy of the world that is self-centered, self-pleasing, and self-indulgent. It’s promoted in advertising, books, movies, video games, and most social media. It’s constantly pinching us and squeezing us into its mold—“If you don’t conform, you’re out of touch,” the world says! The opposing worldview submits to Creator God and His Word! Paul continues, “…be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.” Worship transforms and renews your mind!

Intentional Transformation

Genuine worship includes an intentional transformation of the mind to think like God thinks—those thoughts that are “good, pleasing, and perfect” and align with God’s will. What a contrast Paul presents between being conformed and pressed into the world’s mold, or being transformed with a renewed mind—all within the context of worship! Worship is much bigger than singing songs to Jesus for 20 minutes on a Sunday morning. This passage paints a picture of worship that’s all about God doing a work in us. As we humble ourselves in brokenness before Him and intentionally offer our bodies back to Him, He begins to change us in ways that make us more and more usable for His Kingdom’s purposes. He is re-making us to be what we were meant to be, and His Spirit works with our spirit by transforming our minds. 
 
 

Worship Is Giving Your All

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Worship Changes Us

When it’s genuine, worship CHANGES us! It seems to me that when Paul defines our “spiritual worship” as presenting “…your bodies as a living sacrifice…”, he interprets worship as a personal meeting with God that has such a redemptive and sanctifying impact on us that it CHANGES us (Romans 12:1-2). That’s what genuine worship does to us! Worship is not an exchange where we check it off of our spiritual “TO DO” list so God becomes obligated to give us something in return!

An Encounter With The Living God

Worship is nothing short of an encounter with the living, active, covenant-keeping God! It’s seeing how He humbled Himself and came to the planet that He created as a vulnerable baby, and gave His all on the cross for us so that He might gain our redemption! Worship is being so moved by His action that, in brokenness and humility, we seek nothing more in return; but, in the likeness of our Savior, we give our all back to Him—a living sacrifice! We’re undone! All of life becomes worship!  The Latin phrase “coram Deo” means “before the face of God,” and it’s used in the context of our worship because genuine worship is lived out everywhere and anywhere we find ourselves! Whether it’s our work, leisure, or family time, there is nothing “secular” that is outside “the face of God” or outside His authority or realm. All of life is sacred!

Don’t Compartmentalize Your Life

We cannot compartmentalize any sector of our life and claim it as ours or as something out of God’s reach. Paul tells the Church of Rome that spiritual worship is an intentional presentation of our bodies to God—“…present your bodies as a living sacrifice…” To what is Paul referring? The most obvious answer is the Old Testament sacrificial system, where a lamb was slaughtered in faith, believing that God would pass over the sin of the one sacrificing. But I think Paul intends for us to go deeper in our meditation on this passage and see the Lamb of God who became the ultimate sacrifice for our sin. Jesus was the final answer— “…once for all…” God said! “It is finished,” Jesus said. There would be no more dead sacrifices! 

The Mercies Of God

In these two verses, Paul says that it’s because of “…the mercies of God…” that we become “…holy and pleasing to God…” when we offer ourselves as a “living sacrifice” to Him! Worship has everything to do with our redemption. To “redeem” something means to restore it or to reclaim it so it can once again be used as it was intended. When Jesus made atonement for our sin on the cross, He “redeemed” us. It means He “reclaimed” us from the sin that had owned us since Adam’s fall, and He began a “restoration” process in us to make us what He originally meant for us to be. And He’ll complete that process on the day of our glorification when we see Him. Paul seems to infer that “worship” will become our “default setting” when we truly grasp all that Jesus gave for us, and we’ll want to do nothing less but give our all to Him!

This Is Your Spiritual Worship

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Last Post Until The New Year!

Defining Worship

Ask how the Bible defines worship, and you may be surprised how wide and inclusive the answer is! Many of us perceive worship to be limited to this narrow part of a church service we call singing. For others, you grew up in a tradition where ‘worship’ consisted of elaborate prayers spoken in the King James language—with all the ‘thees’ and ‘thous’—very ritualistic and done in a ‘sanctuary’ with stained-glass windows, lit candles, incense, and old classical sacred music with a pastor wearing a long, flowing robe. Each of those things can possibly contribute to authentic worship, provided the focus is on God and not some kind of warm, fuzzy, religious feeling you get from all those ‘accessories’.

Worship Is A Heart Attitude

Genuine worship is not an activity; it’s an attitude of the heart—originating in your inner being, or the real you, and it changes your life! I guess that’s pretty wide and inclusive, isn’t it? Real, genuine worship impacts your entire life because you’re occupied with God, your Creator! Worship is being occupied with God’s character, with who He is—His love, His grace, His mercy, His kindness, His benevolence, His justice, His righteousness! It’s to praise Him for being a good Father, a faithful friend, and an indwelling Spirit who transforms us into His likeness as we’re engaged in genuine worship and reflect on His beauty!

Worship Makes Us Better

In other words, worship will gradually reform us into His likeness—we become more loving, gracious, merciful, kind, benevolent, just, and righteous! We become better fathers and mothers. We become more faithful friends, all because we’re focused and occupied with God in worship. Romans 12:1-2 is one passage of Scripture that has recently arrested my attention because of what it has to say about worship. After breaking down the Gospel of Christ in the first 11 chapters, the Apostle Paul concludes: ‘Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship…‘ I had never considered this a definition of worship! But, in fact, it is! 

Paul’s Definition Of Worship

Paul is defining ‘worship’ for us! Look at it again: He begins with a command: ‘…present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God…’ And then he says, ‘…THIS IS YOUR SPIRITUAL WORSHIP.’ If you’ve ever been curious about a good Biblical definition of ‘worship,’ well, here it is! Why is that significant? Because we need to know how to worship God rightly, or He will reject and dismiss our worship. I’m referring to the authority of God’s Word over every area of our lives! The Scriptures are not only inspired, they’re authoritative. In other words, we don’t have the right to define ‘worship’—or anything else for that matter—differently than God does in His Word. Paul is saying that genuine, spiritual worship impacts us and profoundly changes the way that we use our bodies—we sacrifice our bodies to please Him!
 

Don’t Worship God Empty-Handed

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Worship God With An Offering

So, my last few posts have focused on King David’s communication to Israel, in 1 Chronicles 16, about the proper way to worship God. It’s never acceptable to worship God according to our own homespun rules! We must worship Him in the way that He demands to be worshiped! One way that David commanded the congregation to worship God was with an offering! “Ascribe to Yahweh the glory of His name; bring an offering and come before Him. Worship the Lord in the splendor of His holiness” (v.29). In other words, do not come to worship God empty-handed!

Stewards Of God’s Stuff

Remember that we’re stewards of God’s stuff. Nothing we have actually belongs to us! We’re not really owners of anything! We’re managers of a portion of God’s estate! God owns it all, and proper worship includes a return of a portion of His blessings to us in the form of an offering! He’s the Creator! He’s created all the wealth in the universe, and He lends it to us! So, worship God because He’s the Creator! That’s how David continues his admonition to the people of Israel: “…the world is firmly established; it cannot be shaken. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, ‘The Lord is King!’ Let the sea and everything in it resound; let the fields and all that is in them exult. Then the trees of the forest will shout for joy before the Lord, for He is coming to judge the earth” (vv. 30-33).

All Creation Worships Him

All of creation— the heavens, the earth, the sea and everything in it; the fields and all that is in it; the trees of the forest— all creation worships Him! Finally, David concludes with a charge to worship God now because it’s what we’ll do for all eternity: “Give thanks to the Lord,” he says, “for He is good; His faithful love endures forever. And say: ‘Save us, God of our salvation; gather us and rescue us from the nations so that we may give thanks to Your holy name and rejoice in Your praise. May Yahweh, the God of Israel, be praised from everlasting to everlasting’” (v. 34). Clearly, it’s a sign that a believer has not spent a lot of time in prayer and the Word when they express a fear that heaven may be boring!

We Can Only Imagine

After a billion years in heaven, we’ll still not know God entirely! No amount of intimacy with Him will close the gap in our knowledge and understanding of an eternal, infinite God! I’m certain that I’ll find Him more fascinating than all the Super Bowls and Star Trek reruns I’ve ever watched! Then all the people said “Amen” and “Praise the Lord” (v. 36). And there was great joy as God dwelt with His people as His Glory descended on the Ark of His Covenant with His people! One day, the Book of Revelation says, “God will dwell among us”; literally, “He will pitch a tent among us.” Joy flows from worship! If we’re genuine God worshippers, we won’t be able to hide it! It’ll show on our faces! Grumpy Christians just aren’t worshipping God as they should! So, worship God! It’ll change your life! It’ll change everything!

Worship God Rightly

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An Example of Biblical Worship

It’s been my experience that many, who claim to be followers of Jesus, do not worship God rightly. I’ve found many who claim to be worshipers, but their worship fails to resemble what God commands worship to look like in Scripture. A great example of biblical worship can be found in King David’s Holy Spirit-inspired message to Israel about proper worship. Just open your Bibles to 1 Chronicles 16 and you’ll see what I mean. Among other things, David commands the congregation to worship God with their offerings: “…ascribe to Yahweh the glory of His name; bring an offering and come before Him. Worship the Lord in the splendor of His holiness” (v.29). Don’t come to worship God empty-handed!

Stewards! Not Owners!

Remember that we are stewards and managers of God’s stuff, not OWNERS! God owns all of our stuff! We’ve been given the responsibility to manage a portion of God’s estate. God is the owner of it all! And worship has always included an offering! David also led Israel to worship God for His creation— “…the world is firmly established; it cannot be shaken. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, ‘The Lord is King!’ Let the sea and everything in it resound; let the fields and all that is in them exult. Then the trees of the forest will shout for joy before the Lord, for He is coming to judge the earth” (vv. 30-33). All of creation— the heavens, the earth, the sea and everything in it; the fields and all that is in them; the trees of the forest— all worship Yahweh, David says!

The Very Rocks Would Cry Out

At Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, when the Pharisees told Him to rebuke His disciples for giving Him honor as Messiah, Jesus told them that “…if they kept silent, the very rocks would cry out…” We are called to worship God for the wonder of His creation and for the wonder that all creation worships Him! And then, David instructs Israel to worship God now because they’ll be worshiping God for all eternity— “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His faithful love endures forever. And say: ‘Save us, God of our salvation; gather us and rescue us from the nations so that we may give thanks to Your holy name and rejoice in Your praise. May Yahweh, the God of Israel, be praised from everlasting to everlasting” (v.34). We don’t know a lot about heaven, but worship will be part of it!

Worship Beyond Imagination

It’s a clear sign that a believer hasn’t spent a lot of time in prayer and the Word— seeking after God— when they express fear that an eternity in heaven may get boring! After a billion years, we’ll still not know our God completely! But I’m certain I will find Him more fascinating than all the Super Bowls and Star Trek reruns I’ve ever watched! As David finished his sermon, the text says that all the people said “Amen” and “Praise the Lord” (v.36).  And there was great joy as God dwelt with His people. The disciples also had great joy as God, the Messiah, dwelt with them during his three-and-a-half-year ministry leading up to the cross. In heaven, Revelation reveals that “God will dwell among us”; forever we’ll worship Him!

Worshipers Remember God’s Work

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Worship Includes Memories

Have you ever considered that a proper worship of God includes your memories? It’s not proper worship to be disengaged with our minds! King David tells Israel to worship God by remembering all that’s He’s done for them: “Remember the wonderful works He has done, His wonders, and the judgments He has pronounced” (1 Chronicles 16:12).  In other words, give testimony to the work that God is doing; and, has done in your life! “Let the redeemed of the LORD proclaim that He has redeemed them from the hand of the foe” (Psalm 107:2). We worship God when we stand, before our church faith community, and testify to the way God is working in our lives!

Let The Redeemed Tell Their Story

The NIV actually translates Psalm 107:2 like this:  “Let the redeemed of the LORD tell their story…” If you’re truly seeking after God in your life, He will show you how busy He is in your life! Your life will be intentional and purposeful. You’ll have stories to tell of the wonderful ways that God is at work. Notice that David follows that up by telling Israel to worship God by remembering His covenants. I’m thinking we don’t do this enough— at least not in my church! We don’t remember and rehearse enough that God is a covenant-keeping God: “Remember His covenant forever—the promise He ordained for a thousand generations, the covenant He made with Abraham, swore to Isaac, and confirmed to Jacob as a decree, and to Israel as an everlasting covenant” (1 Chronicles 16:14-22).

The New Covenant

At the Last Supper— on the night that He was betrayed— Jesus took the cup and said, “This cup is the new covenant established by My blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” REMEMBER the New Covenant, He says! Here’s why we can be secure in our salvation— because God has made a covenant to save us when we put our faith in Christ’s work on the cross, and He keeps us saved and seals us through that covenant confirmed by Jesus’ shed blood! Then David turns his attention to the nations: “Sing to the Lord, all the earth. Proclaim His salvation from day to day. Declare His glory among the nations, His wonderful works among all peoples” (1 Chronicles 16:23). Making disciples of Christ is worship!

We Worship By Making Disciples

The making of disciples is NOT just a New Testament thing! It was never God’s plan for Israel to keep His salvation to themselves! David continues, “…all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the Lord made the heavens…”; “Ascribe to the Lord, families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength” (1 Chronicles 16:26,28). Israel, like the Church, was to be a peculiar people and a priesthood of believers to the world! It is the destiny of future history that one day, “…every tribe, every nation, and every people group will be gathered around the throne of God to worship Him…” (Revelation 7:9). Have you ever considered that it’s an act of worship when we make disciples? It honors Jesus’ commission! REMEMBER THAT!

Worshipers Are Thankful People

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Returning The Ark

The Ark of God’s covenant with Israel was coming back to Jerusalem! King David, the newly installed king, made it a priority to lead Israel back to faithful worship of Yahweh! You might recall that the Ark had been captured, by the Philistines, while Saul was Israel’s king. Though it had been returned to them after God broke out against them with plagues, it had been neglected under Saul’s leadership.  So, returning the Ark to Jerusalem was one of King David’s first orders. “On that day David decreed for the first time that thanks be given to the Lord by Asaph and his relatives: ‘Give thanks to Yahweh; call on His name’ David said, ‘proclaim His deeds among the peoples. Sing to Him; sing praise to Him; tell about all His wonderful works!’’-1 Chronicles 16:7-9.

Worship Begins With A Thankful Heart

God’s Holy Spirit inspired David to write that genuine worship begins with a thankful heart.  It’s his initial point! It’s impossible to worship God rightly if your heart is bitter and unthankful! The old preacher, C.H. Spurgeon, once wrote: “All the good that we enjoy comes from God. Recollect that! Alas, most men forget it. Rowland Hill used to say that worldlings were like the hogs under the oak, which eat the acorns, but never think of the oak from which they fell, nor lift up their heads to grunt out a thanksgiving. Yes, so it is. They munch the gift and murmur at the giver.”  True worshippers of God must quit taking God’s blessings for granted!

Thankful For The Good & The Bad

Our faith will grow deeper & deeper the more we thank God for everything in life—the good with the bad! And then, David calls out the children of Israel to worship God by singing praise to Him. Notice, it’s not a “suggestion”; rather it’s an imperative or a command. David doesn’t tell them to sing only if they’re good at it. He’s preaching to the congregation, and he commands all of them to sing! The psalmist wrote, “Make a joyful noise to the Lord” (Psalm 98:4).  It seems that God may actually take a bit more delight when the musically ungifted or unskilled in the congregation sing with all their heart because they’re not doing it for the praise of men but for the genuine love of God.

Worship Is Seeking God

David also tells the congregation of Israel to worship God by seeking Him— “…let the hearts of those who seek Yahweh rejoice,” he says, “Search for the Lord and for His strength; seek His face always” (1 Chronicles 16:10).  It’s an act of worship to seek after God! In fact, the writer of Hebrews says that God “…is a rewarder of those who seek Him” (ch. 11:6). God actually rewards the worshiper who seeks Him! He hides Himself from those who seek Him for their own selfish interests; from those who want Him to be a genie in a bottle. But, to those who seek Him so that they might know Him, He will be found! Do you seek Him? Do you pursue Him with greater passion than you pursue the fleeting interests of this world? Only then will you find Him! Seek Him as though He were the greatest treasure in life; because He is!

How Must We Worship God?

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A Frequent Bible Theme

What comes to your mind when you hear the word “worship”? What images does the word “worship” create for you? There are roughly 450 verses, in Scripture, that contain the word “worship” or “praise” in them. So, it’s a frequent Bible theme! Most often, it’s used as an appropriate outpouring response, of the human heart, toward Yahweh, who is worthy! At other times, it’s used negatively, by the writers of Scripture, because the worship & praise are directed at “idols” or “false gods” or “human kings”; or, some other created thing!

Worship Is Personal

The dictionary definition for worship goes like this: “worship is rendering honor and homage to God or to any object regarded as sacred; it is adoration, devotion & praise.” While true, that definition seems a little stale & sterile to me! It lacks the key element of a personal relationship! I much prefer this definition: “Worship is a redeemed heart, occupied with God, expressing itself in adoration & thanksgiving.” Much better! Or, what about this definition, by A.W. Tozer: “True worship is to be so personally and hopelessly in love with God, that the idea of a transfer of affection never even remotely exists.” True worship is always about GOD! He is always the focus of true worship! He is the object of our worship! We are to “be occupied with Him.”

Because Of Who He Is

We reverence, honor, and adore Him—NOT because of what He does for us; but, because of WHO He IS! We worship the God who entered the world, He created, to save & redeem His people, who are lost in sin! And, here is the bottom line about worship—when our worship, of God, is true & genuine, our heart & our life will be CHANGED! True worship changes us! I would suggest that it begins in our head with knowledge of the “who”, “why’s” and “how’s” of worship! Then, our knowledge of worship makes its way to our hearts; and, we know when it’s arrived, in our hearts, because our hands quickly follow! It’s seen being lived out in the deeds & actions of a changed life! That’s what happens when genuine worship takes place! If we don’t worship God rightly, we become guilty of disobedience to His commands!

God Commands Us To Worship

God commands us to worship Him & no other! And, He’s instructed us what our worship ought to look like: “I am the Lord your God…Do not have other gods besides Me. Do not make an idol for yourself…You must not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God” Exodus 20:1-5; and, “Fear Yahweh your God, worship Him” Deut 6:13. A clear picture, of the worship God accepts, is the story of Israel returning to a gathering of praise, around the Ark of God, under King David. In 1 Chronicles 16, David recites a Psalm, of worship & praise, directed at Yahweh! As the recently appointed king, of Israel, David made it a priority to lead Israel back to faithful worship of the LORD. This is what worship looks like —it doesn’t matter if it’s Israel in the O.T.; or, the church in the N.T. Read it again!

Do You Have Financial Pride?

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Taking A Little Vacation

Will Return On November 13

Instruct Those Who Are Rich

When the Apostle Paul instructs Timothy about his finances, he does so in a way that a disciple-maker might teach his disciple or a leader in a church might preach to his people. “Instruct those who are rich in the present age,” Paul begins in 1 Timothy 6:17-19, “not to be arrogant…” People who are blessed with money tend to struggle with pride. So, “…instruct them,” Paul tells him, “NOT to be consumed with financial pride.” Let me stop there for a moment and address those of you who don’t think Paul’s words apply to you because you don’t think you’re “rich.” YES! He is talking to you! And, YES, you are rich!

Yes! You Are Rich!

Half the world’s population lives on less than $2.50 a day! If you live on more than that, you’re in the upper half of the world’s wealthy! If your household income is $37K or more, you’re in the TOP 4% of the world’s wealthy! If you make $45K or more, you’re in the TOP 1%! YES! The Apostle Paul is talking to you, and he says, “Don’t be consumed with financial pride.” How do you know if you have financial pride? Have you ever said or thought something similar to this: “If they worked as hard as I do, or if they used their brain like I do, they wouldn’t be poor.” That’s PRIDE! That’s saying, “I’m the reason I’m wealthy! I worked hard for it! I used my brain, and I deserve it.” To the Church of Corinth, Paul reminded, “…what do you have that you did not receive? But if you did receive it, why do you BOAST as if you had not received it?” (1 Corinthians 4:7)

How Can We Boast About Anything?

God has given us our brains, our opportunities, and our resources! He’s given us EVERYTHING we have! How can we boast about it? And, as if to emphasize that point, Paul adds this: “…don’t set your hope on the uncertainty of wealth…” Don’t be consumed by financial DEPENDENCE! Don’t DEPEND on it! Wealth, Paul says, is uncertain! It can’t be trusted! The wisdom from the book of Proverbs puts it like this: “Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle” (Proverbs 23:5). In other words, just look at money, and it’ll fly away! Avoid living an insignificant life! Don’t waste your life! The sin of “consumerism” draws its strength from financial pride and financial dependence!

Finding Your Significance

Set your hope on God, Paul says— “Instruct those who are rich, not…to set their hope on the uncertainty of wealth, but on God, who richly provides us with all things to enjoy.” God is the giver of the gifts we enjoy! But He never intended that we should enjoy the gifts more than the Giver! Our significance is wrapped up IN HIM, not in the stuff He has lent to us! So, be consumed with Him! We overcome the consumerism bug by being consumed with God and with others! He continues in v.18, “…do what is good, to be rich in good works…” Be consumed with serving others with the gifts God has blessed us with! And, “…be generous, willing to share…” Paul adds. There is really no worse testimony about the sufficiency of Jesus than a stingy, Scrooge-like Christian. Jesus said, “FREELY you have received, FREELY give!” (Matthew 10:8)