Many agree that we have been experiencing a values-vacuum in America.
We've been living in a permissive society where basically anything goes - and now we're reaping the results.
Crime, murder, escalating divorce rates, drug and alcohol abuse, and sexual immorality are just a few of the symptoms of the moral decline.
Everybody says we need to get back to family values but nobody wants to define what those values are.
It's politically correct to believe in family values, but it's politically incorrect to get specific about what those values really are.
Here at The Point our concern is not political correctness. Our goal is to be biblically correct.
The Word of God forms the foundation of our teaching.
So, what are values?
Values - Important and lasting beliefs or ideals.
Values are those elements of your life that are vitally important to you.
They are those core beliefs which guide you to living your life in a way that is meaningful and satisfying.
Values are the standards you measure your choices by, whether you do that consciously or subconsciously.
Like a compass, values provide direction and clarity for our lives.
Values come from many sources.
You may share some of the values of the PEOPLE AROUND YOU (your family, friends, colleagues, etc.).
On a broader scale, you may pick up certain values by being a part of a SOCIAL, ETHNIC OR RELIGIOUS GROUP.
I suppose certain values can be dictated, to some extent, by your PERSONALITY.
It would be fair to say that Values emerge from a combination of background and experiences.
SOCIAL MEDIA is undoubtedly helping shape the values of a new generation.
Certain values may remain constant throughout your life, while others evolve and develop over the course of time.
Changing values can be good and changing values can be bad.
Changing values are good when they represent growth and maturity.
Changing values are bad when the represent a deterioration of or deviation from God’s standards.
That’s why THE WORD OF GOD must remain the foundational source for determining our values personally, and as families, or households of any size.
It is no secret that the MEDIA, has been a major contributor and influencer of values in American culture.
Through the media, most of us have seen the dramatic downward shift that has taken place in regard to morality, ethics, and values, in contemporary families.
A quick review of some of America’s popular TV families reveal an obvious shift in values.
Ozzie and Harriet Nelson -> the Waltons -> the Engles -> the Cosbys -> The Simpsons -> the MODERN FAMILY.
To get back to traditional family values, we've got to go back a lot further than Ozzie and Harriet to get to there.
Thousands of years ago, God gave 10 values for family living. We call them The Ten Commandments.
These are not values that are faddish.
They are not influenced by culture.
They do not come and go.
These are lasting values that have stood the test of time.
In fact, these values form the bedrock of western civilization.
They are the foundation on which our entire judicial and legal system has been built.
The Ten Commandments are commandments that come from God.
So, for the next few weeks we're going to explore how these commandments can make a positive difference in your family and mine.
Deuteronomy 6:6-7 (NIV)
6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.
7 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.
When God gave these commands, there was no expiration date.
He told us to remember them ourselves and teach them to our children.
Do your kids know the Ten Commandments?
They’re learning them right now in our Next Gen department.
We have a responsibility to teach our children the important things they need to know to live safe and productive lives.
For instance, we would all agree that it is important to teach a child not to touch a hot stove. We do so for their own good.
By the same token, we need to understand that God gave these commands to help us, not to hurt us.
They are to protect us, not to punish us.
The Ten Commandments have a positive purpose.
They are for our benefit.
And if you ignore them, you do so to your own peril.
There is always a price to pay whenever you disregard God’s commands.
You will suffer the consequences when you violate God’s clear direction.
Psychiatrists tell us we need boundaries for emotional and mental health.
These parameters in life are healthy and good.
Today we're going to discover the foundation for building a strong family.
Our key text will be in Exodus chapter 20.
As we are about to see, the specific commands are not accidental.
The Commandments are not in random order.
I am convinced that God intentionally put the first commandment first, because it' is fundamental to all the rest.
Exodus 20:1-2 (NIV)
1 And God spoke all these words:
2 "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
He’s setting things up to bring us to Commandment #1…
Exodus 20:3 (NIV)
3 "You shall have no other gods before me.
The Israelites had just come from the land of Egypt, a land of many idols and many gods. Because each god represented a different aspect of life, it was common to worship many gods in an attempt to get the maximum number of blessings.
When God told his people to worship and believe in Him, that wasn't the hard part.
He was just one more god to add to their list.
But when he said, "You shall have no other gods before\but\expect me," that was difficult for the people to accept.
But if they didn't learn that the God who led them out of Egypt was the only true God, they couldn’t be his people—no matter how faithfully they kept the other nine commandments.
So, God made this the first commandment. No other gods.
Why does this even need to be spoken?
Isn’t there only one God anyway?
There is. But there is a subtle distinction you need to be aware of.
The word "gods" as it is used here, is written with a small "g".
He's not talking about "the God".
He's talking about little gods. (Big G – Little G)
A god could be anything that dominates or controls your life.
Your god could be money, fame, work, pleasure, another person, even golf. The list of possibilities is almost endless.
Even good things that God has created for us to enjoy, become gods when you give them the place in your life that should only be occupied by the One True God.
We grasp for these things that we hope will bring identity, meaning, and security to our lives.
I don’t think anybody really sets out with the intention of worshiping any of this stuff.
But by the amount of time and energy we devote to them, they can rapidly grow into gods.
One of the best ways to prevent this from happening, is to make sure that the One True God holds the central place in your life. That way, there is no room for these other things to creep in and turn into little gods.
Whenever anything or anyone takes the place that rightly belongs to God, that single decision will have devastating implications on every other facet of your life.
This is a foundational principle for life that we dare not overlook. Foundations are of utmost importance.
Whenever the foundation of a building is compromised, the entire structure is in jeopardy.
What’s true for buildings is true in your life.
You see, we will all choose a foundation for our life.
And what you base your life on is of such great importance.
Have you nobody admires the foundation of famous buildings like the White House, the Sears Tower, the Chrysler Building, or the U.S Capital Building?
Nobody wants a picture of the foundation of any of these buildings. That is because foundations aren’t glamorous.
But in many ways, the foundation is the most important part of the structure.
Without a proper foundation, the structure is destined for destruction.
We see this principle at work in our world today.
Marriages and families are crumbling and falling apart.
They have been built on the wrong foundation.
It doesn't matter how much time, effort, and money you put into the structure, if it's not built on the right foundation, it isn’t going to last.
To build on the right foundation means putting God first in your family and in your life. That is one decision you will never regret.
Whenever God gives us a principle, He also offers us a promise.
Here is an example…
Proverbs 3:6 (TLB)
6 In everything you do, put God first, and he will direct you and crown your efforts with success.
Putting God first is the wise thing to do.
When we put Him first, He has promised to direct us and crown our efforts with success.
I want to give you five tangible ways to put God first.
They form an acrostic which will help you remember them.
Let's start with, what for many, is the most difficult place for them to put God first.
F - FINANCES
Put God first in your finances.
Proverbs 3:9 (TLB)
9 Honor the Lord by giving him the first part of all your income, and he will fill your barns with wheat and barley and overflow your wine vats with the finest wines.
God has said that money is the number one test of your priorities.
We spend so much of our lives dealing with money. It affects us all.
We all spend a significant amount of our lives trying to earn it, save it, spend it, give it, and invest it.
You can find out what is important to a person, not by what they speak, but by what they spend.
If I were to ask all of you to get out your (checkbook, bank statement, credit/debit card statement, etc.) right now and pass it to the person to the right of you and let them examine it, what would it reveal about the priorities in your life?
By simply looking at how you spend your money a person who has never met you and does not know you would be able to tell a lot about your life.
Maybe that's why you don't want them to see it.
We can find out what is first in our life by the way we spend our money.
Deuteronomy 14:23b (TLB)
23b The purpose of tithing is to teach you always to put God first in your lives.
The tithe by definition is 10%
God says that the first 10% of what we make is to go back to Him.
The purpose of the tithe is simply to teach us to put God first.
I don't know any clearer, simpler advice to give you as a pastor that cares about you than to say, if you're in a financial mess right now, step one is put God first in your finances.
If He's not first in your finances, He's probably not first in your life.
When I set aside the first 10% of my income, and I give it on the first day of the week, I am revealing what is truly important in my life.
Tithing is an act of worship.
You may give generously to other charities and worthy causes, but that's not tithing.
Tithing is an act of worship that is done as a priority, at our place of our worship.
I - INTERESTS
If God's really going to be number one, you put Him first in your interests.
That means in my fun times, my play times, my past times, my amusements, recreation, hobbies, etc.
1 Corinthians 10:31 (NIV)
31 So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
How do you do that?
You do it, by putting God first in everything you do.
You can tell a lot about a person’s priorities by seeing what they get excited about.
What gets you excited?
That's what's important to you.
What do you like to talk about the most?
I know people who can talk for hours on end about their kids, sports, hobbies, and all kinds of things, but they can't talk about the Lord for two minutes.
If God is first in your life you're going to make Him a part of your conversation.
You won't be ashamed to talk about Him because He's first.
R - RELATIONSHIPS
If you want God first in your life you're going to have to choose your friends carefully.
Proverbs 27:19 (TLB)
19 A mirror reflects a man’s face, but what he is really like is shown by the kind of friends he chooses.
Someone might ask, what do my friends have to do with God being first in my life?
This has to do with the fact that we become like the people we hang around with.
If you spend time with people who take God lightly,
you will tend to become a casual believer.
But if you spend time with people who are committed and take God and His Word seriously, it is more likely you will become a stronger, more committed Christian.
That’s not to say believers shouldn’t have unbelieving friends.
It is to say, be careful.
Proverbs 12:26a (NIV)
26a A righteous man is cautious in friendship…
A righteous man/woman/teenager is cautious.
The truth is, if you really want God first in your life - there are some relationships that you need to stay away from. They are dead wrong for you and you probably know it.
So, don’t make excuses.
Choose your friends wisely and carefully.
Put Him first in your relationships.
S - SCHEDULE
Put God first in your schedule.
This is, of course, about time, which is our most precious commodity.
Ephesians 5:16-17 (Phillips)
"Make the best use of your time, grasp firmly what you know to be the will of God."
I put God first in my schedule by asking Him to help me use my time wisely.
God, what do You want me to do today?
If you find yourself constantly having more things to do than you have time to do, it could be that you're doing some things that are not God's will for you.
They may be good things.
A pastor told me once, if you think you need to be in two places at one time, one of them is not an obligation.
Whenever I start feeling frustrated, and hassled, and frazzled, it's often because I am trying to do more than God wants me to do.
And when it comes to putting God first in your family, or in your life, you need to set aside time in your schedule to be with Him.
It doesn't matter when you do it. Just do it
You just need to do it, even if it is only ten or fifteen minutes.
Set aside some time not only to talk to God, but to listen as He talks to you.
We can get so busy that God gets shoved out of our lives completely.
A verse in Jeremiah that says, "My people have forgotten me for days on end."
I don’t want to be in that number! I hope you don’t either.
One way to avoid that possibility is by making time to be with God on your own. Daily devotions.
Make time to pray together as a couple or as a family.
Praying before meals reminds us that God is the source of all our blessings, including the food we eat, and it provides a built-in reminder to spend time with God every day.
When we pause before we eat, we are also modeling an important priority before our children, letting them know that God is first and He is our priority in life.
T - TROUBLES
When you face unexpected problems and pressures,
when you have a crisis, God wants us to turn to Him.
For far too many, prayer is the last resort, when it should be the first choice.
I have heard people say things like, "I guess all we can do now is pray."
It is like prayer is the last resort.
It makes things seem like they are almost hopeless.
Prayer should NOT be the last resort for a dedicated follower of Christ in crisis. Prayer should be our initial response.
God says He is an ever-present help, a refuge in our time of need, our source of strength and hope in our time of trouble.
Psalm 50:15 (NIV)
15 Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.
Some people get embarrassed and think, I don't talk to God much when times are good so I don't want to bother him with my problems.
No loving parent would ever feel that way with their children.
And God would never feel that way with His children either.
One of the easiest ways to tell when you’re not putting God first in this part of your life is worry.
Worry is the warning light that God is not first in your life, at least not at that particular moment.
When I start worrying, it says, I'm playing God.
I'm assuming responsibility He didn't intend for me to bear.
When God is not first we begin to worry.
When He's not first in my finances I worry about them.
When God is not first in my relationships, I worry about them.
When God isn't first place in my schedule, I worry about my schedule.
When God isn't first in my problems, trials, troubles, I worry about them.
APPLICATION - I want to invite you to stop and do a priority check this morning.
Is God first in every area of your life?
You can only build a strong family as you build on the right foundation.
That can only happen as honor the first commandment and we put God first.
Make sure God is first in your finances, interests, relationships, schedule, troubles.
Exodus 20:3 (NIV)
3 "You shall have no other gods before me.
CLOSING PRAYER
Do you think our world would be better or worse if more people put God at the center of their lives?
