What Would You Give Up?
Outreach Series • Sermon • Submitted
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· 4 views"Our possessions can distract us from the mission Christ has for us."
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Introduction: Fleeting Wealth
Introduction: Fleeting Wealth
James Marshall left his family’s home in New Jersey as a young man and, like so many others, began a migration west. After contracting malaria while living in Missouri he was advised to go further west, and in 1845 he arrived in California. He worked a number of different jobs and served in the army during the Mexican-American War in 1846. When he got out, a man he had earlier befriended, John Sutter, entered a partnership agreement with Marshall to build a sawmill.
When they discovered that the spillway they had constructed was too narrow to handle the amount of water needed to operate the mill, they began the process of enlarging it. On the morning of January 24, 1848, as Marshall examined the channel, he found large flakes of pure gold, sparking one of the greatest gold rushes in history. But Marshall did not profit from his discovery. The mill project failed. His mines did not produce. A vineyard he bought went bankrupt. In his old age, reduced to abject poverty, Marshall died alone in a small shack.
Wealth is easy for us to trust. If God blesses us and we begin to accumulate financial resources, we must be on guard against them becoming an idol in our hearts. Paul instructed his protégé Timothy to issue a warning to the rich members in his church: “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy” (1 Timothy 6:17).
Main Idea: “Our possessions can distract us from the mission Christ has for us.”
As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
“Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him. “No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: Do not murder; do not commit adultery; do not steal; do not bear false witness; do not defraud; honor your father and mother.”
He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these from my youth.”
Looking at him, Jesus loved him and said to him, “You lack one thing: Go, sell all you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” But he was dismayed by this demand, and he went away grieving, because he had many possessions.
Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!”
The disciples were astonished at his words. Again Jesus said to them, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
They were even more astonished, saying to one another, “Then who can be saved?”
Looking at them, Jesus said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God, because all things are possible with God.”
Peter began to tell him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.”
“Truly I tell you,” Jesus said, “there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for my sake and for the sake of the gospel, who will not receive a hundred times more, now at this time—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions—and eternal life in the age to come. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”
(Prayer)
The Question We All Ask:
The Question We All Ask:
As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
What this question tells us about mankind:
There is eternal life. Ecclesiastes 3:11
He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also put eternity in their hearts, but no one can discover the work God has done from beginning to end.
2. How do I get it?
Self-Deception:
Self-Deception:
“Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him. “No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: Do not murder; do not commit adultery; do not steal; do not bear false witness; do not defraud; honor your father and mother.”
He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these from my youth.”
I’ve never murdered, but Jesus said if you cried that you hate someone, you’ve committed murder.
I’ve never committed adultery, but Jesus said if you look at someone with lustful eyes you’ve committed adultery.
I’ve never stole anything like P. Mike did with the Furby. If you have ever been on your cell phone while working, you stole time from your boss.
I honor my mother and father (figure of authority).
An Idol Revealed:
An Idol Revealed:
Looking at him, Jesus loved him and said to him, “You lack one thing: Go, sell all you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” But he was dismayed by this demand, and he went away grieving, because he had many possessions.
The rich young ruler had a “god,” and it wasn’t Jesus. His “god”was his wealth and possessions.
Warning About Possessions:
Warning About Possessions:
Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!”
The disciples were astonished at his words. Again Jesus said to them, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
They were even more astonished, saying to one another, “Then who can be saved?”
Looking at them, Jesus said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God, because all things are possible with God.”
Peter began to tell him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.”
“Truly I tell you,” Jesus said, “there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for my sake and for the sake of the gospel, who will not receive a hundred times more, now at this time—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions—and eternal life in the age to come. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”
What Can Be Idol’s List:
Instagram and Facebook
News
Busyness
Money
Sports (Especially Playoff Time)
Video Games
Food
T.V.
Buying New Stuff
Emails and Texts