What's Missing

WHATS MISSING

What day is it tomorrow? Yes, it is Monday and that is the beginning of a brand-new work week.

Praise be to the Lord, Jehovah Jireh! He is our provider!

We all stand in need of the cares of this life: food, shelter, and clothing. Which translated means we are all busy doing what it takes to survive.

“Don’t worry about these things (Jesus tells us). For your heavenly Father already knows all your needs.”

Instead of worrying, He instructs us to ““Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

“Do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:33–34)

If we desire to be a faithful and happy disciple of Christ, it is incumbent upon us to master and implement this teaching of Christ.

O the peace and strength these words have to offer us today if we could only trust them to be true.

Will God really take care of us if we put Him first?

The instruction here is to seek; to search for something; to go after something.

Here, the object of our search is God Himself.

Seeking God seems to have become a lost discipline among the modern church.

We are too busy with the affairs of this life to focus upon God, His kingdom, or His righteousness.

Tragically, this has resulted in the absence of God’s mighty power and presence from working in us, among us or through us.

This certainly has created a spiritual climate conducive for the great apostacy which, according to biblical prophecy, is to precede the coming of the antichrist. Prior to his introduction to the world many will fall away from the faith.

Satan will utilize everything at his disposal to lure men away from God to deceive them and bring them under his control. He attempted this strategy on Jesus Christ, yet he failed miserably!

The cares of this life and the lure of the things of this world have always served as obstacles to the individual wishing to follow Christ.

This was true for those who first followed Jesus, and it is even more true for us today because of the many things which the world has to offer us in its appeal for our devotion.

We must be conscious of the fact “these things”, even though necessary, are also temporary. They are useful only for meeting temporary needs. Temporary things cannot meet eternal needs nor satisfy eternal desires.

Our Greatest Need is to Give

God’s desire is for us to seek Him and His will for our life.

His plan for our life is a perfect plan. One that provides a future and a hope; one filled with true meaning and joy.

He longs for us to exalt Him above all else, not that He needs anything from us, but so we can know Him and the life He created us for.

He was in Christ reconciling us to Himself; restoring to us the life taken away from us because of our sins.

Considering the many, wonderful mercies, He has shown to us, it is our reasonable service to “present our bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God.”

In Romans 12:1, We are presented with the imagery of a burnt offering unto the Lord as was practiced under the Old Testament Law. The burnt offering was offered in worship to God. As the sacrifice was bound by cords to the horns of the altar, we must bind ourselves in full commitment unto the Lord using the cords of our love for Him. Different from other offerings, the burnt offering was completely consumed by the fire without the priest receiving any portion for themselves. In the same way, we too, must surrender our all unto the Lord. “This is our spiritual act of worship.”

Only when our will is completely surrendered to God, can He fill our life with the riches of His goodness. Our life will be filled with the evidence of His power, His Love, and His righteousness.

God Desires to Give Us Riches from Heaven.

Colossians 3:1–2 Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.

Have you been raised up with Christ? Have you received the true life from above? Then keep seeking the things above - the spiritual and eternal things which this world cannot offer.

The things from God make for an abundant life in Christ.

The things of this world will never satisfy your soul and, besides, they are subject to deterioration and loss.

God’s word declares that everything in this world, along with all its passions and its lusts, will pass away.

The things from above belong to God and His eternal kingdom, and it is His delight to share them with His children.

Can You Trust God Enough to Make the Trade? The Temporary Life For The Eternal?

Many in today’s church bear much resemblance to a certain young man who came running to Jesus with great enthusiasm.

With great sincerity he asked Jesus what he could do to have eternal life. He sensed something was missing.

Jesus loved this young man and welcomed his question for which He had the answer.

Mark 10:21–22 Looking at him, Jesus felt a love for him and said to him, “One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But at these words he was saddened, and he went away grieving, for he was one who owned much property.

This man practiced the tenets of his faith and considered himself to be one of God’s people, a Jew, who believed in God and kept the law.

Even though he was sincere, he was unwilling to surrender his all.

What about us? What about you? Do you sense that something is missing?

Like this young man, you may consider yourself a Christian. You may practice certain tenets of faith, but have you surrendered everything to God?

· Are you content with lacking anything from God?

· Do you desire to fill your life with earthly things, or do you want the riches of God?

· Do you desire the fulness of God’s presence and power to fill you, or are you content with spiritual emptiness and substandard existence?

What is the one thing or things that is missing in your relationship with the Lord?

Give your heart permission to give God everything you have.

Give God His rightful ownership of your life. “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof.”

Let God have everything you have and start laying up treasure in Heaven.

Lord, Give us understanding, so that we may keep your law and obey it with all our heart.

Direct us in the path of your commands, for there we find delight.

Turn our heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain.

Turn our eyes away from worthless things; preserve our life according to your word.

(Psalm 119:34–37) NIV