Strait And Narrow Sermon Vi: Mature Christians Live And Love Like Jesus Series

CHRISTIANS WHO TRULY KNOW “HIM WHO IS NOT OF THIS WORLD” LIVE AND LOVE LIKE HIM

Two little lines I heard one day, traveling along life’s busy way, bringing conviction to my heart, and from my mind will never depart: “Only one life twill soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last.” With the cultural divide in our world as wide as it is, keep in mind that “things of this world” are temporal whereas “things of God” are eternal.

Former Governor of Arkansas Mike Huckabee, also a Baptist minister, made a point that bears repeating: “We are fast becoming (a culture of death and) a Godless society.”

Folks: It doesn’t have to be that way. If Christians truly show they know “Him who is not of this world” by living and loving like Him, “things of this world” will fade and give way to spiritual renewal that revitalizes a majority of folks who profess to be Christians so that once again we become a God-honoring people.

If we the Church “turn our eyes upon Jesus” and stay focused on His Name which represents who He is . . . what He has done for us . . . what He wants us to do for Him . . . the lure of the wide and broad way will no longer get our attention . . . the lust for that which the world tries to get us to buy into will most likely dissipate . . . the love of Christ will take hold of us and return us to the strait and narrow path. A big challenge mature Christians have to “deal with” is our attitude toward possessions. It’s really a matter of whether material things possess us as opposed to us possessing them - the latter meaning that we have learned in whatsoever situation we find ourselves, to put possessions into proper perspective.

One of the stark realities of getting older is: You cannot take it with you. Question: Have you ever seen a hearse pulling a U-Haul trailer? Along that line . . .

A funeral home in Augusta does Chinese funerals. On one occasion visiting a family whose patriarch, born in the old country, had passed away, there was the usual Chinese red, gold-plated casket inside of which had been placed money for spending in the hereafter, as is an ancient Chinese custom. A funeral home assistant told me that he was asked if he thought about replacing the money in the casket with a check made payable to the deceased.

It’s not that Christians don’t need material possessions in the here and now but that, as we mature, we learn to do with less by possessing only that which we need for survival, sustenance and some degree of satisfaction.

Did not Jesus say that He came that we might have life in the hereafter but also abundant life in the here and now.

We’re not talking about a vow of poverty as is the case with a few who see such as their mission in life --- to the extent that they isolate themselves from the world by joining a monastery where “solitude” and “speak not” are rules to be kept by those who stay there.

Heard about a fella who became so pious that he decided the monastery might be the place for him to spend the rest of his life. Upon admission, he was told by the head Monk that he could not speak again until the first anniversary of his becoming a member of their Order.

On his first anniversary he was brought into the head Monk’s presence and told that he could say two words.

He said: “hard beds”. On his second anniversary the two words he spoke were: “lousy food”. On his third anniversary, he was called in so he could speak his two words. He said, “I quit”. Whereupon the head Monk responded, “You might as well because you’ve done nothing but complain ever since you came here!” Do you ever feel like saying, “I quit”?

What is the Christian perspective with regard to possessions while living in a culture so consumed by materialism? Wouldn’t it pretty much be similar to our Lord’s perspective on “the two ways”? Matthew 7:13-14 . . .

Keep in mind that Jesus plainly spoke the truth when He declared: “You cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24). To choose the narrow way is to serve God . . . whereas to choose the broad way is to serve mammon - money, materialism. So, the Christian perspective on possessions is to give of one’s best to the Lord our Master – which, if we do, will leave very little or no room for giving ourselves to worldly pursuits, as if such has eternal value.