You woke up at the regular time, took care of all the morning necessities, went off to fulfill your obligations for the day, and then successfully completed all the requirements that were set before you in the evening, a full day, a full and completely wasted day. This is the norm for many people saved and lost alike, the daily chores are the demand, the eternal is left off to the side, the flesh is satisfied, the soul continues to starve. “The full soul loatheth an honeycomb; but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.” (Prov. 27:7)
Problem is my friends, far too many that call Christ Lord digest His word as if it were bitter herbs, fighting back both the desires to study it and the effort required to do so, a quick read here or there, and then it’s back to the transitory, the world and its pull on us. It is completely understood that many must walk out that door most of the days of the week in pursuit of financial gain, for it is the way that our Lord blesses us in some of our needs, but to place it above our service to Christ is to walk a dangerous path, to look at our employment field as the means to an end is to place the Lord God second. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.” (Matt. 6:33) A well-known verse, but applied so sparingly by so many.
Our Lord did not promise to keep us in the lifestyle that we have accustomed ourselves to, He made no promise to give us our hearts desires in the concerning of the world. What we have we were given, what we own belongs to Him, all that we are is only because of His infinite mercy towards us, “We can do nothing of ourselves,” to put Christ anywhere but first in our lives is a call for disaster, if you are truly saved, for a servant is not above his master, (Matt. 10:24) but I am afraid that the majority of the Christian community have become fickle servants, deciding to choose for themselves how and when they will serve. The world will always demand to be placed first, our adversary has sought for no less since the day he said, “I will,” (Isaiah 14:14) and its call is always imperative, never waning. The immediacy is seen as important, and even though it arrives every single day we still chase after it like the horse to a carrot on a stick. Your reward for all that hard work, all that diligent service will be the loss of everything that you have, and then death, the world can offer no more than the transitory.
Isn’t it amazing the value we place on it though, never even realizing the weight, that daily, continuous burden, upon our backs. To work for the material first seems completely logical, but you must remember my friends, whatever Satan says is always the complete opposite of what the word of God says, and he is extremely good and making it sound so especially important. There are far too many that believe the blessings of the Lord in the materialistic realm come only by our diligent hard labor, that this is the way that He has chosen to provide for His children, but those who believe this will also try to quote the invisible verse in the Scriptures that says, “God helps those who help themselves.” It is usually quite easy to help these individuals, although they do not see it as help, just use the inverse of their own false statement, “God does not help those who will not help themselves.”
Am I suggesting that you quit your job and go out to witness to the lost all day, spending every waking hour studying and praising His name, no I am not, am I saying that He will provide for you if you do, yes I am, for He has said so to us. “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” (Prov. 3:5) God doesn’t do lazy, and He isn’t very fond of His children who are lazy, and do you know what, fulfilling all the requirements of the world and none of God’s makes you lazy. It matters not if you’re working eighty hours or more a week, spend only eight minutes a week studying diligently His word and see where that gets you, give every waking moment to the cares of this world, and just a few minutes a day in quick simple prayers and you will reap what you sow, and my friends, you will not like the harvest. (Prov. 22:8)
It isn’t called “make work,” it’s called false priorities, the world calls it hard, studious labor, the Lord calls it foolishness, and the only foolishness that the born-again believer is to be involved in is the foolishness of preaching. (1 Cor. 1:21) One of the purposes of these letters to you is to encourage, and if it takes you to beat yourself up a little, as it were, for you to become encouraged and hopefully convicted, so be it, the walk with Christ will become easy when we arrive home. Some are working so hard, and all they need to do is submit. “Come to me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:28) The physical turmoil, the emotional stress, all the cares of this world that we still carry on our backs can be left behind, if all we would do is seek first Christ.
There is a peace that comes with this that we will never fully comprehend, (Phil. 4:7) that is what He offers us when we cast our cares upon Him. (1 Peter 5:7) You need to begin to realize my friends that He whom we serve owns everything, there is nothing that does not belong to Almighty God, and as an heir to the kingdom, (Rom. 8:17) all is yours, you need only to ask. The wicked, foolish man would ask for it all, the spiritually mature believer already owns it all, and would gladly relinquish all of it, and has, for Christ. We don’t have to struggle anymore, we do not need to place any cares whatsoever upon ourselves, He has promised to provide, not promised to provide as long as we kick in a little effort. There is a big difference between being lazy in the world and being lazy in the word, both will leave you hungry and empty, but only one will make you unprofitable in the eyes of the only One who matters.
We are never to use this grace that has been bestowed upon us for the wrong reasons or intents, (James 4:3) if a man can work, he should, but whether you take this in offence or not is immaterial to me, he is less of a man who puts Christ second, if he believes that by the sweat of his brow he can fulfill all of his family’s needs and desires. I have met a lot of guys in my life, but I have met very few men. A man of God never relies on himself, and always without fail relies on our Lord for everything. He who does so will be blessed beyond what he ever thought possible, his cup will run over, and in that flowing over his family will be blessed.
Put Christ first, not in some things, not just on Sunday morning, but in every aspect and avenue of your life, and watch as He begins to work miracles in your life, miracles you could not perform if you lived a thousand lifetimes. “Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; for he is faithful that promised;” (Heb. 10:23)
