Whole Life Faithfulness: What Does God Expect of Me?
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Intro: Story of Playing Golf and shooting for the wrong flag
We can shoot for the wrong flag in our faithfulness to God.
We must know what the target is, otherwise…
We will aim for the wrong things.
Goals
Activities
We won’t aim for anything. “If you aim at nothing, you’ll hit it every tim.”
Questions we want to answer:
What does God want us to aim for?
How do those things rank in order of priority to God?
How do I fulfill those priorities?
1. Maintain your personal walk with God and obedience to him.
1. Maintain your personal walk with God and obedience to him.
Isaiah 43:10 (ESV)
“You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he.
Know and believe God.
Philippians 3:7–8 (ESV)
But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ
In comparison to knowing Christ, everything is “as rubbish.”
Christ calls us to place walking with him over every other priority: Family, possessions, even life itself. Luke 14:25-27
Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.
Does Jesus literally mean we should hate our family members and not value our lives?
No, that would be contradicting what he says is the second greatest command: Love your neighbor as yourself.
He is making a point, a very difficult point: Your personal walk with Jesus and obedience to him are more important than your family, and everything else, even your own life.
I wouldn’t want to do this unless I knew he was…
for my good.
powerfule
We see both of those things fulfilled in Christ Jesus. GOSPEL
Practical application:
Have a daily time alone with God.
“If you are to busy to have a daily quiet time, you are busier than God wants you to be.” -Max Barnett
Practice immediate obedience and repentance.
2. Fulfill responsibilities to the family.
2. Fulfill responsibilities to the family.
Care for one another and help relatives who cannot work or care for themselves. 1 Tim. 5:4, 16.
Care for one another and help relatives who cannot work or care for themselves. 1 Tim. 5:4, 16.
But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
If Married
If Married
Be closer to your wife than anyone else. Gen. 2:24
Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
Provide for the needs of his wife. 1 Tim. 5:8
Provide a living picture of how Christ and the Church relate. Eph. 5:22-25
Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,
If raising Children
If raising Children
Provide for his children. 1 Tim. 5:8
Raise children to be godly adults. Mal. 2:15.
Train them in the instruction of the Lord.
Story. Ex-gf “I want our kids to think freely for themselves.”
These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.
Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
To discipline them.
Discipline your children while there is hope. Otherwise you will ruin their lives.
Should these family responsibilities take priority over ministry?
Should these family responsibilities take priority over ministry?
Yes
Prayer life will be hindered for men who don’t treat their wives well. 1 Peter. 3:7
Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.
Failure with family responsibilities disqualifies a man from higher level ministry positions. 1 Tim. 3:2-5, 12.
if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination.
3. Fulfill responsibilities to the Church.
3. Fulfill responsibilities to the Church.
Strengthen and encourage one another. Heb. 10:24-25
And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
Meet together regularly. Heb. 10:25
Work for harmony and unity. Eph. 4:3
Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
Treat one another with sacrificial love. John 13:34-35
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Give and receive Scriptural correction. Heb. 3:12-13
Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
Use the Spiritual Gifts God gave you to benefit the Church. 1 Pet. 4:10.
To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
Support the work financially. 1 Tim. 5:17-18.
Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches.
Follow spiritual leadership within Scriptural limits. Heb. 13:17
Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.
4. Pay for your own living through a business or job.
4. Pay for your own living through a business or job.
The Basics:
The Basics:
Choose honest work that pleases God, not illegitimate work. Eph. 4:28
Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.
Do quality work with enthusiasm.
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,
Earn enough to pay for you, your family, and to give to those in need. Eph. 4:28, 1 Thess. 4:11-12.
2 Thessalonians 3:10 (ESV)
If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.
Respect your superiors. Col. 3:22.
Bondservants, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ,
Treat subordinates considerately and fairly. Eph. 6:9.
Masters, treat your bondservants justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.
Excellence in one area does not excuse failure in another area.
Excellence in one area does not excuse failure in another area.
Examples:
The Devoted Man: Sit with Jesus, not have a job.
The Family Man: Prioritizing kids sports/excessive outings over church.
The Minister: Ministry to everyone else going great, but not to the wife and kids.
The Hard Worker: Killing it in Job, neglecting family.
Don’t get so zoomed in on excellence in one area, that you are negligent in another.
Keep in mind:
Season of life you are in may impact ratios.
Single: Less time allotted to family.
Young families: Less time allotted to personal time with God.
Whole life faithfulness is the goal.
We will fail in some of these. We need Jesus.
What is it for you?
