"OCD" Obsessive in Christ' Direction in 2023

At the point of salvation, a life long journey called sanctification begins, the process of becoming more like Christ with each passing day. Likewise, we learn practical truths to function in this world more effectively. The sad truth is that by the time we figure out how to function in this world where we are sojourners and strangers as the Bible states, our time is up and we reach glorification in heaven.

Luke 2:52 “52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.”

Our Lord and Savior learned to function with man as well.

As we move into a New Year and as we age, we begin to learn ourselves better, our strengths, our weaknesses and those actions we must do to function effectively in this world. When I was younger, you have heard the statement, “the devil is in the details.”

If there was a statement that applied to me, it would be that statement. I was one that majored on the “here and now” and didn’t consider that “putting off”, procrastinating on matter, not prioritizing certain matters in my life, how they would penalize me later.

Jane will tell you that when I was younger, I was not a good detail person and it was my nemesis. I would not write down appointments to remember, I would not balance my checkbook, I would not stay on top of my book work at work and pay attention to when certain bills were due. That life carried over into an unruly desk, and unruly closet, and the story could go on from there. In a nutshell, my life wasn’t structured.

Some of those lessons came hard as I had to overcome that weakness in my life and I still work very hard to this day on that issue. I have the utmost respect because they learn to live a highly disciplined, structured life and believe me, there are tremendous benefits to living life as such.

Today, I get joked on a great deal because I have become OCD, “Obsessive Compulsive Disorder” in my areas of weakness. Now God forgive me, I do not want to make light of people that really struggle with extreme levels of OCD and we should pray for them and pray that the Lord can help them find personality balance to function in this world. Obviously, I am making light of the phrase tagged to people that have a level of discomfort when they are not on top of certain matters in their life. Because I had failed in the area of what we could term “administration” for so many years in my life, I have worked extremely hard to improvethat area of my life to the point that Jane states I have become “OCD” about certain matters. I am OCD about my office, picking up after people, dishes, making the bed, taking out the trash, paying my bills, doing my taxes, etc.

So, all that background to say that when I sit around the week of Christmas to New Years, chaos and confusion is not my friend. I look at clutter in my life, clutter in the home, what needs to be taken away, what needs to be at the forefront more, and what do I need to add to improve upon the year.

You can decipher all that I said to understand I am talking about New Year’s Resolutions? What in my life do I need to change? What do I need to reinforce? And, what do I need to add to enrich my life in the New Year?

May I be honest with you and say that the things I get ribbed about being “OCD” a great deal, I truly take it as a compliment because they are actions I have found that help me function better in life. And, it has truly taken me a life time to figure it out.

The greatest obsession we can all live out in the New Year is “Obsessive Christ Direction for Daily Living”. My prayer for you in living out the New Year is that you would become OCD about Jesus. Let’s pray.

Ephesians 4:21-24

Ephesians 4:21–24 NKJV

21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: 22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, 23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.

Prayer

Oh dear Lord, thank you for life. 2022 held so many highs, lows, and everything in between for each of us here this morning. There could be a handful here today that state 2022 was a great year, they found the love of their life, they had a baby, they bought their first home, they landed their dream job and the list goes on. Others here this morning could say and would say that it was one of the toughest years due to health loss, financial setbacks, loss of a loved one and the list goes on. But oh heavenly Father, my prayer for each of us is that we could all say you carried us through it. You love us and You never left us. We grew in you, in some cases of celebration due to your goodness, in other times, due to heartache and failure that you were found faithful. Oh dear Jesus, embody us, strengthen us, direct us, and draw us closer to you in the New Year. IN Jesus’ name, Amen.

Message

Paul writes to the church at Ephesus to enlighten them to the blessings they enjoyed in Christ Jesus. When a new follower enters into a relationship with Jesus, they are ignorant to all that is afforded them in their new life in Christ. This was the way it was for the people of Ephesus. They accepted Christ and yet they had no idea all that entailed. In Chapters 1-3, Paul made them keenly aware of the riches afforded them in Jesus Christ. They are adopted into the family of God, the fact they have been redeemed, forgiven, they have been sealed in the Holy Spirit,and they were recipients of God’s Amazing grace. They had new citizenship in another place, heaven.

Where we are studying in Ephesians this morning, Paul states:

“if you realize all of these riches in Christ, If you did in fact surrender your life to Him, If you are going to follow this path for your life, then these are the actions you should do as a Christian.”

Within these four verses, Paul describes your best life to chase after in 2023. If you want to be OCD, obsessive in following Christ’ directive for your life, here is how you go about it.

Notice the background of the slides as we begin. The picture is a crest in the desert with the sun shining in the distance. Is that not life as we know it? There are some bright spots ahead, but the crest reflects the unknown. Furthermore, there are times we feel as if we are on a desert without any answers in sight.

Decipher His Thoughts for your Life

“If indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him”

Paul makes an “if then “statement or what we refer to as a conditional statement. Paul is stating that if you are a Christ follower, then defined within that meaning, is one that listens and studies what Christ would have to say about your future decisions. Unfortunately for many, as one begins the New Year, they end with “what would Jesus do?” rather than beginning with His thoughts on their decisions.

I do not know how it was at your house on either Christmas Eve or Christmas, but we host our family on Christmas Eve and on Christmas Day our family is divided with the new families they have married into. There was more food than would fit on the plate at Christmas. You go to the island counter where all the food is to be served and you get to the end and have regret that you did not make enough room for the other items to fit on the plate.

I believe many people live the Christian life in that manner. They try every other thought pattern to make life decisions rather than prioritizing Jesus’ thoughts on what direction they should take. They do not fit Jesus on the plate because they have already filled their plates with decisions from other sources.

Where to begin? The key-begin. It’s not how long, but how consistent you are. One section of one chapter per day is better than not reading anything. Make it a point to listen to a devotional on your bluetooth running through the speakers of your car going to work. Pray. Again, two minutes of prayer is better than no communication with the Lord. You know why I say that? For everyone in here that has an habitual quiet time daily, it becomes as if it were oxygen that we breathe. It sets the day. I remember my life before a disciplined devotional and I respond today to people differently. I use to repond as the world responds, but because I am more bathed in Jesus and prayer, I respond

Luke 10:16 “16 He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me.””

John 10:27 “27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”

Discard Some Things from your Old Life

Another aspect of learning best how to function for me is to avoid clutter. I do not function well in chaos and clutter. I’m big about immediately as we open the gifts to get large garbage bags and put the paper in because I have seen when all the paper is everywhere that people lose their gift in the trash when it does come time to put the trash away if you wait. And, if you are not careful at Christmas, when something new comes in, something old needs to leave to avoid too much clutter. OUr lives can be somewhat the same in Jesus. The trash of this life can spoil the treasures He offers. To live an Obsessive Christ directed life, in order to fill our lives with Jesus, Paul states that there are some things we need to discard.

Look at what Paul states:

Ephesians 4:22 “22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,”

The Hebrew writer says it in similarity to what Paul is stating:

Hebrews 12:1 “1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,”

In layman terms, what is holding you back from being your best in Christ Jesus?

It boils down to two basic corrections.

Some Changes that are practical in nature to correct that help us function better in this world.

Some changes that are painstaking because they cause us to sin.

What are some of the practical changes that you need to make that will help you to be your best in Christ Jesus?

A. Procrastinating and putting things off, or prioritizing? I know many people that think if they do not address issues they will just go away. In fact, invariably, they worsen when you wait and usually you allow mole hills to become mountains. Lessons from the Proverbs, the wisdom literature of the Bible speak to this matter.

Hypochondriac-do you know any hypochondriac’s?

Proverbs 23:7 “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.

B. Financial woes-you accept defeat and say that because I’m not good at managing money, I will not burden myself with that pressure of worrying about it. Two thoughts come to mind quickly.

i. We are to see after our loved ones.

1 Timothy 5:8 “8 But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

ii. Its not ours in the first place. We are a steward of what the Lord has entrusted us with. When we grasp that concept and we realize its not ours, we will manage it better and be left with more for our stewardship efforts.

Raise your hands if you ever stole from your employer? No, do not raise your hands. You would not take anything off the job because you know its not yours and you value your job too much to be that short sided.

When we do not tithe what is His and manage those monies as they are His, are we not stealing from Him when we do not give Him what is rightly His in the first place?

Malachi 3:10 “10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this,” Says the Lord of hosts, “If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it.”

We know there are other practical lifestyles we are to discard to preserve His temple He has given us, our bodies. Maybe you need to discard a sedentary lifestyle and get more exercise?

Many of us have to address discarding excessive eating and the list goes on. Are there practical matters holding you back? Do you sleep too much and can not complete the duties you need to complete to be successful? You get the idea. You can not go into the New year that you do not address some practical changes, discarding some old behaviors that are holding you back.

Now, the real question this morning is what actions are causing you to sin in your life? What pet habits, what pet sin habits are holding you back from growing in Christ Jesus? And the truth is the sin I need to overcome is painstaking for me because it is chronic in nature. It has not been an easy sin to overcome. For you that sin would be a simple fix and vice a versa. The sin you deal with for me we would be a walk in the park to over come.

Colossians 3:8 offers a list of things we are to put off.

Colossians 3:8 “8 But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth.”

Do you have an anger issue? One of the places that you begin is to determine the root cause of the anger? Are you angry because of something that has happened in your past? Are you angered because you feel you have been treated unjustly? The point is to address the root cause of the anger. Meet with the individual or group that caused the pinned up anger. Seek counseling. The truth is no one wants to be around anyone that is constantly angry. You pull the people down around you and it is not a good witness of Christ.

Wrath-are you a vindictive person? Do you have a revengeful attitude? You are the type to say to yourself, “I will not get mad, I will get even.” Have you ever stopped to consider that if Jesus chose to get even with us every time we sinned against Him, where would we be today?

Dearly beloved, anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy are all terms that are sins against your neighbor. The truth is that when we harbor these attitudes, we are the loser. When you hold those types of attitudes against another party, they are clueless many times to the attitude you harbor. The one that is being eaten up inside is the person harboring the attitude. Dearly beloved, God’s Word tells us to put off those attitudes. They are not fitting of the Christian life.

There are a myriad of aspects to life that could be holding you back. The Bible speaks clearly on the subject of lying. I encounter people regularly that tell lies so much they believe it themselves. Dearly beloved, just today in our society, the majority does not believe there is absolute truth, there is absolute truth. People believe today just that, if they believe it, it is truth. Oh dear church, be a people that stand on truth.

John 8:32 “32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.””

This verse is speaking of Jesus, “I am the way, the truth, and the life”, but the fact remains when you live and speak truth, you have a free conscious.

Oh dearly beloved, do you desire to be obsessively Christ Directed? Put off those practical matters that are holding you back, health matters, financial matters, busy calendars that are filled with fluff, and the list goes on. More importantly, make the painstaking effort to rid those roadblocks of life style that cause you to sin and hold you back from growing in your life in Christ. Is it a place you frequent, is it addiction, is it gossip, is it technology, get rid of it, put it off and you will be the better for it.

Display those Positive Traits in your Life

Ephesians 4:23 “23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind,”

Notice Paul states to renew your spirit in your mind. He is saying keep reemphasizing those things you do well and do them better. Notice there is no capital in spirit. He is not referring here to the Holy Spirit direction in your mind in this case. He is discussing your spirit.

Because you were created in the image of God, there is good instilled in you. There are some aspects of the Christian life you do well and so we are to accentuate those traits.

American Business Theory is to work on those areas you are weak in business while Japanese business theory is to drop those areas where you are weak and accentuate the areas of business that you excel. We could learn from both mindsets. The truth is that God has instilled in you some godly traits that you already exhibit. Put those traits on display.

Use them for God’s glory.

All across this room I see gifts God has given you that He can use for His glory. Some of you have gifts of hospitality, use them for His cause. Some of you have the gift of encouragement. Pick up people when they are down. Some of you have the gift of discernment and have a way of conveying wisdom to another without being offensive. Yet others here today have the gift of laughter and can pick up one’s spirits when they are down. May be you have the gift of meekness? You are approachable, but not overbearing.

Do you know how to know what traits you have that God wants you to grow and strengthen and multiply for Him? The gifts God’s people complement you on. God’s people will tell you where you shine. You know what you do with that gift? Just shine brighter and brighter.

Some times we get down in the mouth and we say that we have nothing going for us. That is not true. That statement is not biblically true.

Ephesians 2:10 “10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

You are God’s creation. He created you for His purpose. And, he instilled in you good “beforehand” and “we should walk in them”. You need to focus on those things, those good things that God has instilled in you and do them better.

Develop and Transform more like Jesus in Your Life

Ephesians 4:24 “24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.”

Lastly, we know that if we are to be obsessively Christ directed, there are some new attributes we need to add to our lives in 2023. When we accepted Christ, we opened the door of His blessing to be that new creation He promised at our time of salvation. We must work in conjunction with the Holy Spirit to develop, to become sanctified, become more like Jesus with each passing day.

Do you have a hero? Is there someone you look up to? Is there someone you idolize and admire for their abilities? I read an article yesterday about a journalist that wrote the article about Barbara Walters dying at age 93. She complemented Barbara Walters and admired how she had broke the mold of women being able to find their way into modern day journalism and broadcasting the news. Her article shared of her admiration for Barbara Walters talent.

We all have our heroes. Paul writes in another place about the new man:

Colossians 3:10 “10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him,”

Here we have the word “renewing” again.

“if then”, Let’s go back to the conditional statement we stated at the beginning:

Ephesians 4:21 “21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus:” If you are going to choose a life being obsessive Christ directed, you must continuously bathe yourself in the knowledge of Him, being jesus, that created you.

How many of you know who Rich Little is? Rich Little is one of the great impressionist or impersonators. He can impersonate Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Stewart and the list goes on. For Rich Little to impersonate someone, he would take countless hours studying their mannerisms, the way they hold their hands, head, facial expressions, inflections in their voice, their lingo, the type clothes they wear, and the list goes on.

If jesus is your hero, how much time do you study His mannerisms, His thoughts, His comments, His attitudes, His actions?

When we accepted Christ, we chose a new life, live it.

Romans 6:4 “4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”

How do we grasp this new life in Christ? By the help of the Holy Spirit leading us.

Romans 7:6 “6 But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.”

You may ask, what is this new life, what should I be adding, where do I begin?

Matthew 7:7 “7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”

Dearly beloved, our best life is His life in us. In closing listen to what Romans 12:2 states:

Romans 12:2 “2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

Do you believe that the Lord’s will is best for you? Raise your hands.

“good and acceptable and perfect will of God” is what we all want.

Do you want to begin 2023 on the right foot?

Decipher initial His will for your life.

Discard some things from your life that is not befitting of the best life in Christ.

Display those positive traits the Lord has already instilled in your life.

Continue developing and transforming more like Jesus with each passing day.

Let’s pray.