Make Room For Jesus

Remember the radio and tv program “Fibber McGee and Molly?” The most memorable thing is Fibber’s closet. For those too young to know or too old to remember, here is a clip showing that closet. [CLIP].

Too full, too disorganized, too careless. Needed a good cleaning out!

Sometimes our lives are like Fibber’s closet. Stuff piled on, crammed in, and shoved back.

We often have to get rid of something in order to make room for something else.

We need to do that regularly in our minds, hearts and lives. There are life cluttering habits, activities, desires, relationships and material goods. These may only be bad because of the space in our lives that they take up or because they crowd Jesus either to the back burner or entirely from our lives.

Jesus made room at the cross for you just as Gerald sang. He made room for you in His plan of salvation and has made room for you in Heaven. Since He made room for us in His death, let us make room for Him in our lives.

Luke 10:38-42. For this I am using the NASB.. We will see that Martha is the source of some good lessons. “Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord's feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, ‘Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.’ But the Lord answered and said to her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.’”

I want to speak with you today about making room for Jesus. What do we need to do to make room for Him?

I. CLEAN OUT THE CLUTTER:

A. I am sure her house was in spic and span order – but her mind was cluttered by anxiety. Jesus said, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary.”

B. Not all clutter is inherently bad – it might all be good stuff but it just becomes too much and too much more and then it is a hindrance and a bondage and it crowds out other things.

1. How quickly we accumulate stuff. It’s like walking through a muddy field – every step we collect a little more mud.

2. Items in our shed took a lot of space. Some of it didn’t work, or we didn’t need or use it anymore. So we got rid of a bunch of stuff through recycle, or give-away or tossing it in a junk pile! All that was innocent stuff.

C. But there is clutter that is inherently harmful and we need to get rid of it.

1. Some people, like Martha, clutter their minds with needless anxieties and fears. “What if (a sink hole swallows my house?” “ ... a snake is in my bed?” “... I’m hit by a tsunami at the coast?”). Could happen, but

a. Odds are against it.

b. Worry won’t prevent it.

2. Some people clutter their minds with immoral thoughts.

3. Some people clutter their minds with negative, dark, violent stuff.

4. Some people clutter their minds with too much speculation about useless stuff. “Which came first, the chicken or the egg?” “How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?” “Where did Cain get his wife?” “Did we exist in heaven before we were conceived on earth?” Does any of that matter?

a. Paul wrote, “have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness;” 1 Timothy 4:7 (NASB).

b. He told Timothy, “instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines, nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation rather than furthering the administration of God which is by faith.” 1 Timothy 1:3-4 (NASB).

5. Some people clutter their minds with so-called “Christian Inspirational Books.” Now, I don’t want to sound judgmental or negative or know-it-all-ish but I do want to be clear that not everything claiming to be Christian is Christian. If they deny or contradict or wrongly apply the Bible they simply clutter our minds. For example:

a. The book that claims that if you pray the same prayer of Jabez, you’ll get the same results is salami. Here is that prayer, “Oh that You would bless me indeed and enlarge my border, and that Your hand might be with me, and that You would keep me from harm that it may not pain me!" 1 Chronicles 4:10 (NASB) We are nowhere told to pray that prayer! Strange that Jesus didn’t repeat that prayer instead of the “Lord’s Prayer” when He taught the disciples how to pray. Maybe He didn’t know?