LIFE’S MOST IMPORTANT ISSUES
INTRO.- ILL.- A certain boss was talking to his employee about selling their products and he said, “The main thing to remember is that repetition is the key. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. If you have a product to sell, keeping harping on it in every possible way and at every possible chance. Cram it down people’s throats if you have to...make yourself sickening, if need be...but don’t forget to repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat. It’s the only way to get results.”
The employee said, “Yes, sir!”
Boss: “And now, what was it that you came in to see me about?” The employee replied, “A raise in salary! A raise! A raise! A raise! A raise!”
What is your priority in life? Or what are your priorities in life? A salary raise. More money. For
most people it’s money, money, money, money.
ILL.- In Deadwood, South Dakota, there is a museum which has the following inscription written by an old prospector. He said, “I lost my gun. I lost my horse. I am out of food. The Indians are after me. BUT I’VE GOT ALL THE GOLD I CAN CARRY!”
ILL.- According to one Roper Organization survey, the number ! daydream that most have is to be rich. “Who wants to be a Millionaire?” And many people want to be a millionaire.
ILL.- Ragged clothes....never enough food to eat.... virtually no medical attention....poor sleeping
quarters....little or no time for recreation or rest .... no time for family....SOUND LIKE A POOR PERSON IN TERRIBLE SHAPE?
Not so. Her name is Hetty Green who at one time was the richest and most detested woman in America!
At one time Hetty Green had $100,000,000 in the bank and yet she ate crackers and cold oatmeal because she was too cheap to buy good food. She lived the last 20 years of her life with a painful hernia because she would not spend the money, which was $150 at that time, for an operation. She tried to relieve the pain by placing a stick over the hernia and binding it to her body with rags.
You will be angered to find out that her own son’s leg had to be amputated because she was too cheap to take him to a doctor. She tried for several days to get free medical attention but each doctor she went to for help recognized her as a millionaire and refused to treat the boy for free.
When she was at last reconciled to paying a doctor she went to her neighborhood doctor and was told the boy’s leg would have to be amputated above the knee.
With millions of dollars in the bank, Hetty Green spent half the night searching for a lost $.2 cent
postage stamp. Another time, she attempted to forge the signature of her deceased Aunt in a vain attempt to get another million dollars!
Hetty Green’s father was Edward “Blackhawk” Robinson who sat her on his knee and read to her the business news and stock market reports when she was only 5 years old. Hetty Green claimed to have read them by herself when she was six years old. She was brainwashed as a baby with the mercenary philosophy of her father. She grew into a ruthless financial tyrant who found it easier to make a million dollars than to take a bath. When she died the fortune that enslaved her continued to plague her playboy son and screwball daughter.
The story of Hetty Green is the story of a slave, a slave to money. Her priorities were all messed up!
Matt. 16:26 “What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?”
Brothers and sisters, what are your priorities in life? I hope they are not the priorities of Hetty Green. Anyone who is on her track is on the wrong track!
ILL.- The founder of McDonald’s fast-food restaurants, Ray Krock, was once asked what he believed in. He said, “I believe in God, my family and McDonald’s, but when I get to the office, I reverse the order.”
Whenever Ray Krock got to work his priorities changed. It was then McDonald’s first, his family and
God last. And he was, of course, another person who had wrong priorities.
Brethren, the vast majority of the people of the world have mixed up or wrong priorities.
II Tim. 3:1-2, 4 “There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money...and lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.”
Most people’s priorities are: they love self, money and pleasure. AND THEY ARE WRONG! In God’s eyes they are wrong!
Again, what are your priorities? What do you believe in most of all? What do you value most of all? What does your life say? How does it read? What do other people see as your priorities? And more importantly, what does God see?
PROP.- I want to share with you what I think our priorities as Christians should be in life. Or life’s most important issues.
1- faith
2- family
3- future
I. FAITH - WE MUST LIVE BY FAITH
Heb. 11:1 “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
Heb. 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.”
Brothers and sisters, are you living by faith? God wants to live by faith in Him in every area. He
wants us to learn to trust Him in everything.
ILL.- Little Peggy asked her daddy, “Daddy, can I have a cat?” “Yes,” her daddy said, “but not until we move into a larger house.”
“Daddy, can I have two cats?” “Yes,” her daddy said, “You can have two cats or three or four if you
want, but only if we move into a larger house.” AND OF COURSE, HER DAD WAS SURE THE FAMILY, WOULD NOT BE MOVING ANYWHERE.
But the inevitable happened, they moved into a bigger house which had a very large yard. And her daddy had forgotten about his promise, but little Peggy hadn’t forgotten and she kept pressing her daddy and he kept making excuses.
One night little Peggy decided to pray differently. Instead of asking God for a cat, she prayed, “Thank you, God, for sending me a cat.”
Her older sister asked, “Why did you pray that way?” Peggy replied, “Well, I thought that if I thanked God He would be embarrassed and send the cats.”
The next day Peggy was playing out in the back yard and happened to go into the tool shed. There she found an old mother cat and a bunch of baby kittens. Of course, no one in the family knew about the cats until Peggy told them. But Peggy believed that it was a good thing that she had embarrassed God!
Little Peggy had faith that God would answer her prayer. Do you have faith that God will answer your prayers? Do you live by faith?
Brethren, when Jesus stood before the tomb of Lazarus whom He raised from the dead, He prayed these words in John 11:41-42 “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me...”
Brethren, although Jesus’ public prayer was very short and conversational, the most important thing about His prayer was that it indicated His faith in His Father. Did you hear His words? “Father, thank you for hearing me...” “Thank you for answering my prayer....” That’s essentially what Jesus prayed!
Jesus was saying “thank you” for the answer even before He received the answer! THAT’S WHAT I CALL LIVING BY FAITH IN THE FATHER! Do you have that kind of faith? Or that much faith? Very few times have I ever prayed, “Thank you for answering my prayer in advance.” But that’s what faith does.
II Cor. 5:6-7 “Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. WE LIVE BY FAITH, NOT BY SIGHT.”
ILL.- A man ran into a friend he hadn’t seen in years and asked, “How’s your wife?” “She’s in heaven,” replied the man. “Oh, I’m sorry.” Then he realized that was not the thing to say, so he added, “I mean, I’m glad.” That was even worse so he finally said, “Well, I’m surprised!”
Brethren, do you believe with all your heart that you are going to heaven when you die? Let me hear it!
My next question is: Then do you believe with all your heart that God can take care of any and all problems that you face in life? Now that’s another thing, is it not?
Most of us wholeheartedly believe that we’re going to heaven, but for some reason or another, we don’t always believe that God can take of our problems here and now. AND IT REALLY DOESN’T MAKE SENSE, DOES IT?
Brethren, throughout our lives we are confronted with all kinds of situations and/or problems and these need to be dealt with by faith in our living, all-powerful God!
Do we really believe that God can take care of us in every way? When raising our children? With
work-related problems? With financial difficulties? With health problems? When aging comes or when we are thinking about retirement?
DO WE TRUST GOD TAKE CARE OF THESE SITUATIONS?
ILL.- An American couple decided to send a playpen to a friend in Northern Canada on the arrival of their 4th child. They wrote back, “Thank you very much for the pen. It is wonderful - I sit in it every afternoon and read. THE CHILDREN CAN’T GET NEAR ME.”
We all know that raising children can be a hair-raising, mind-bending experience. And sometimes we
just don’t know what to do or where to turn for help.
ILL.- Francis McClard is a 22-year-old young man who is the Asst. Manager at the Silk Tree Factory in Cape Girardeau, MO. He and his wife Dana have one son named Trevon who is now four-years-old.
Every so often mother Dana would bring Trevon in the store and as soon as he came through the door he was off and running! He would often go running through the store and when Mom decided it was time to leave he would often leave kicking.
I told Francis one time, “You have a strong-willed child.” I went out bought him the book by Dr. James Dobson “The Strong-Willed Child,” took it to him and said, “You better read this.”
Francis and Dana are, no doubt, going to run into some problems with their son Trevon. What can they do? Where can they turn? TO THE BEST CHILD PSYCHOLOGIST THERE IS, THE LORD!
And guess what? Francis, Dana and Trevon are now attending a good, Bible-believing, Bible-preaching church. THE CHURCH STEPS ARE A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION! And this holds true for all situations of life.
Brethren, the Lord is the one who makes sense out of nonsense! He is the one who can make things right when things go wrong! He can lift us out of the mire and into the choir! He can cure the incurable and change the leopard’s spots!
It doesn’t make any difference what we’re faced with in life: family problems, female problems,
fellow-worker problems, financial problems, or failing health problems. WE MUST LOOK TO THE LORD AND TRUST HIM FOR THE ANSWERS TO LIFE’S PROBLEMS!
Prov. 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and he will direct your paths.”
Prov. 16:3 “Commit to the Lord whatever you do and your plans will succeed.”
Ps. 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble.”
Faith, i.e. living by faith in the Lord is the key to victory in life. If you walk by faith in Him and His
Word, you will eventually succeed! You will come out on the top of the heap!
1- Faith - we must live by faith
II. FAMILY - WE MUST LOVE OUR FAMILY
Next to our personal relationship to the Lord comes our relationship to our family. First, we must
love the Lord and live by faith in Him and secondly, we must love our family members. AND SOMETIMES, THAT’S NOT ALWAYS EASY TO DO! Amen?
ILL.- “But my dear,” protested the hen-pecked husband, “I’ve done nothing wrong. You’ve been
talking for an hour and a half and I haven’t said a word.”
“I know,” his wife replied, “BUT YOU LISTEN LIKE A WISE GUY!”
ILL.- A wife said to her husband, “Do you remember the night you proposed to me?” Husband said, “Why, yes.” Wife said, “I couldn’t say a word for a whole hour after that.” Husband replied, “YES, AND THAT WAS THE HAPPIEST HOUR OF MY LIFE.”
ILL.- The marriage counselor asked the wife, “Do you encourage your husband in his work?” She replied, “Why, yes, I KEEP TELLING HIM HE SHOULD ASK FOR A RAISE.”
ILL.- Husband said to his wife, “What have you been doing with all that money I give you for groceries?” She said, “TURN SIDEWAYS AND LOOK IN THE MIRROR.”
ILL.- A young minister went to an older minister for advice on how to perform his first wedding. The
older minister said, “Just remember that if you happen to forget what you’re going to say you can always quote a Scripture. It’s always right to quote Scripture.”
Well, the next weekend the young minister performed his first wedding and sure enough, right in the
middle of the ceremony he forgot what he was supposed to say. So he remembered what the older minister said to do. He thought of a Scripture and quoted it, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they’re doing.”
Brethren, it’s obvious that marriage doesn’t always work like we think it’s going to. ALL MARRIAGES
HAVE THEIR UPS AND DOWNS! And sometimes, it’s more down than up. But nevertheless, we must keep on loving one another!
I don’t claim to have all the answers when it comes to marriage BUT I KNOW WHO DOES HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS!
Eph. 5:25 “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.”
More marriages would be healed and more marriages would be kept together and more marriages would flourish and grow if more husbands would learn to love their wives just like Christ loved the church!
And if more wives would love their husbands in a similar manner! Love is not a one-way street,
going one direction. It is two-way street, going both directions.
Love must be practiced by both husbands and wives as best we can. There’s the kicker: AS BEST WE CAN!
ILL.- “A little dab will do ya.” That’s what the old Brylcreem commercial of many years ago used to say. And I think that’s what a lot of husbands and wives think when it comes to loving one another. “A little dab will do ya.”
But a little dab will never get the job done when it comes to love in the marriage relationship. There
are times when we ought to go out of our way to demonstrate love for one another in order for that
love to grow!
ILL.- A wife said to her husband, “When we were younger you used to nibble on my ear.” (The husband starts to leave the room...) And his wife said, “Where are you going?” Her husband replied, “TO GET MY TEETH.”
Husbands, perhaps we ought to go out of our way to do a ear-nibbling once in a while! But first, perhaps there should be nice evening out to dinner...and perhaps some flowers or some other nice gift.
And wives, what about that special dinner that your husband likes so much? Wouldn’t that be one nice way to demonstrate your love for him?
Husbands and wives, we must do our best, not our least to demonstrate our love for one another. LOVING OUR MATE MUST BE A PRIORITY IN OUR LIVES.
And next to that we must love our children.
ILL.- Some parent said, “These children are nuts today! I have a child myself and he’s 10-years-old.
He’s going to be eleven....IF I LET HIM!”
ILL.- Someone said, “Adolescence is a period of rapid changes. Between the ages of 12 and 17, for example, a child may see his parents age 20 years.” ISN’T THAT THE TRUTH?!
ILL.- Someone else put it this way: “The problem of juvenile delinquency is proving that parents are
not getting at the seat of the problem.” DID YOU GET THAT?
Love for our children must be a priority! We must do whatever we can to love them: discipline them, train them, talk to them, but definitely listen to them, play with them, do things with them, pray with them, go to church with them, and be patient with them.
As someone said, “Our children are the only earthly possessions that we can take with us to heaven.”
And it takes a lot of love and loving to lead our children in the way of Christ and to heaven’s gate!
LOVING OUR FAMILY...OUR MATES AND OUR CHILDREN AS BEST WE CAN MUST BE A TOP PRIORITY IN LIFE!
1- faith - we must live by faith
2- family - we must love our family
III. FUTURE - WE MUST LOOK TO THE FUTURE
Looking to the future, keeping our eyes on the future must also be a priority in our lives.
ILL.- A man was very sick and called his doctor for an emergency appointment. The nurse said the doctor couldn’t see the man for two weeks. He replied, “By that time, I could be dead and in heaven.”
The nurse responded with, “In that case, you can always cancel the appointment.”
ILL.- Old Pete was very close to dying but made a miraculous recovery. While still in the hospital his
pastor came by to see him and the conversation went like this:
“Tell me, Pete, when you were so near death’s door, did you feel afraid to meet your Maker?” Old Pete replied, “No, Pastor. IT WAS THE OTHER MAN I WAS AFRAID OF!”
ILL.- According to a Chaplain Ray, Saint Peter processes applicants to heaven in a very unique way.
He gives each person a piece of chalk and says, “You start climbing that big ladder and every time you reach another rung, you make a chalk mark for each sin you committed.”
An hour later, one man comes climbing down the ladder. At the bottom of the ladder, an angel asks,
“Didn’t you make it?” He said, “I don’t know. I’M JUST COMING DOWN TO GET MORE CHALK.” Sounds like most of us!
Brethren, I do know that our future is in heaven! There is no doubt about it! WE WILL GET THERE
BECAUSE OF THE GRACE OF GOD! And heaven is where our hearts and our heads should dwell!
ILL.- There is an old legend about a swan and a crane. A beautiful swan landed by the banks of the
water where a crane was wading, looking for snails. The crane said to the swan, “Where do you come from?”
“I come from heaven,” replied the swan. “And where is heaven?” asked the crane.
“Heaven!” said the swan, “Have you never heard of heaven?” And the swan went to describe the beauty and blessing of heaven to the crane.
Finally, the crane asked, “Are there any snails in heaven?” “Snails!” replied the swan, “Why no! Of
course, not.”
“Then,” as the crane continued looking for snails along the slimy banks of the water, “You can have
your heaven. I want snails!”
Brethren, I have experienced a lot of good things in this life. I have enjoyed the beauty and blessing
of marriage. I have enjoyed the excitement and joy of having children. I have enjoyed thousands of
pleasing meals and fun times in life. I have been privileged to do some things that most people will
never do. I HAVE TASTED OF LIFE’S GOODNESS. But I have also tasted of life’s sadness.
And the best is yet to come! And I am looking forward with great anticipation to that best in heaven!
Col. 3:1-3 “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. SET YOUR MINDS ON THINGS ABOVE, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.”
Brethren, I believe that God wants His children to enjoy the good things He has given us in this life.
But at the same time we must not become so absorbed with looking for snails that we don’t look forward to the best that God has prepared for us.
CONCLUSION-------------------------------------------
ILL.- Pastor George Truett was invited to dinner in the home of a very wealthy man in Texas. After the meal, the host led him to a place where they could get a good view of the property he owned.
Pointing to oil wells on the landscape, he boasted, “Twenty-five years ago I had nothing. Now, as far as you can see, it’s all mine.” Looking in the opposite direction at his fields of grain, he said, “That’s all mine.” Turning another direction toward huge herds of cattle, he said, “They’re all mine.” Then pointing another direction toward a beautiful forest, he said, “That too is all mine.”
He paused, expecting Pastor Truett to compliment him on his great success in life. Truett, however,
placed his hand on the man’s shoulder and pointed heavenward with the other and said, “HOW MUCH DO YOU HAVE IN THAT DIRECTION?”
The man hung his head and said, “I never thought of that.”
Brethren, do we ever think that some day this life will be over and that the next life will be forever?
We need to building a life that prepares for the next life. That should be our major priority in this
life.
