Responsibilities In This World

INTRO.- ILL.- Someone came up with some crazy ideas on how to make life more enjoyable.

- Old telephone books make ideal personal address books. Simply cross out the names and addresses of people you don’t know.

- Fool other drivers into thinking you have an expensive car phone by holding an old video remote control up to your ear and occasionally swerving across the road and mounting the curb.

- Avoid parking tickets by leaving your windshield wipers turned on to fast wipe whenever you leave your car parked illegally.

- No time for a bath? Wrap yourself in masking tape and remove the dirt by simply peeling it off.

- Apply red nail polish to your nails before clipping them. The red nails will be much easier to spot on your bathroom carpet. (Unless you have a red carpet, in which case a contrasting polish should be selected). I DON’T THINK SO!

Making life more enjoyable sounds good to most people but is it really possible? It’s one reason why some people shoot for the stars in making money or wanting to become famous. It’s why thousands and thousands of young people try out for the American Idol show. They probably figure it’s a quick way to fame and fortune. And for some, it’s been pretty good.

However, there is no quick-fix to anything good in life.

ILL.- I remember going back to visit my mother about two months after my dad died. I took mom out to eat somewhere and while we were sitting there talking she laid out 8 checks on the table. I said, "What are these?" She said, "These are interest checks. Each of them represent $10,000." I said, "What? You mean to tell me that you have $80,000 dollars?"

I never questioned mother after that.

How did she get $80,000? Did she rob somebody? Was she involved in some gambling scheme? Was she involved in the syndicate? WHAT DID SHE DO? Knowing my mom and dad as I did, I know she how got that money. She and dad worked hard for it and saved it. And that is how most people do it, that is, if they are blessed with any money at all.

The point is that anything really good in life doesn’t come easily. Generally, it takes planning, hard work and something else. What’s else? I think more than anything it takes God’s blessing on your life.

How do you make life more enjoyable? You seek the Lord in life! You seek His will for your life! You include Him in your life! You walk with Him daily!

John 10:10 "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." KJV "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

But along with enjoyment, there are some requirements in life. God wants us to work. He wants us to fulfill our responsibilities to Him. He often blesses us in spite of our delinquent attitudes and actions but He’ll bless us even more when we do His will.

PROP.- In this text we see some responsibilities that we all have in this life.

1- Our duty to God

2- Our respect to man

3- Our witness to mankind

I. OUR DUTY TO GOD

1Paul looked straight at the Sanhedrin and said, "My brothers, I have fulfilled my duty to God in all good conscience to this day."

ILL.- Mrs. Hunter was called to serve for jury duty, but asked to be excused because she didn’t believe in capital punishment and didn’t want her personal thoughts to prevent the trial from running its proper course. But the public defender liked her thoughtfulness and tried to convince her that she was appropriate to serve on the jury.

"Madam," he explained, "This is not a murder trial! It’s a simple civil lawsuit. A wife is bringing this case against her husband because he gambled away the $12,000 he had promised to use to remodel the kitchen for her birthday."

"Well, okay," agreed Mrs. Hunter, "I’ll serve. I guess I could be wrong about capital punishment after all!"

We want to think about our duty to God, which could well include serving on a jury some day. I’ve never been given that duty yet but as a citizen I would try to fulfill that responsibility if I were called.

We need to think about our duty to God in response to His will for our lives. What’s His will and/or mission for your life? Have you figured it out and are you doing your duty to God?

It’s pretty obvious from scripture that God wants us to live right, to work, to take care of our families, etc. BUT HAVE YOU DISCOVERED HIS WILL BEYOND THOSE THINGS?