Managing Your Priorities
Part 4 of Spiritual Priorities
Wednesday January 18, 2012

Point: When you see as God sees, you’ll do as God says.

Intro:

* Review over the series.

Me: * Something I’ve learned about myself is that I have a desire to be successful. I want to succeed at everything I do. I want to make good grades, ace tests, earn any sort of academic honors possible, be the hardest worker, get the certifications, degrees, you name it. * And all of that takes huge amounts of effort. Effort that I believe is well spent. * But for all of my desire to be successful in life, the one thing that moves me so much more strongly than that is my desire to have closeness with God. * Over the past almost 7 years of me being saved (and even before that I just didn’t realize it at the time) I have found that more than anything else I want to please God. * Just the thought of missing out on His plan for my life is absolutely crushing.

(Transition: And here’s what I know: You are the same way. You have a desire to walk on God’s path for your life and deep down you have a desire for, are you ready for this, commitment to God. [Whoa!!])

We: * How do I know that? Because Ecclesiastes 3:11 in the NLT says, “He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God's work from beginning to end.” * God made us to worship Him and have a relationship with Him. And because He made us this way, we desire to have a committed (there’s that word again) relationship with Him. If we were not created for commitment to God, then Ecclesiastes 3:11 would say, “God has planted a limit (or a desire for something temporary) in the human heart.” * As it happens the Bible does not say that. Because we are programmed to crave commitment to God. But the problem is that because of the fall of man, sin entering the world, and all of us being born into sin, we are also unable to achieve commitment to God. * I could never put it any better than the Apostle Paul did in Romans chapter 7, so just listen to Paul describing this very struggle:
Rom 7:14-25 (NLT) 15 I don't understand myself at all, for I really want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do the very thing I hate. 16 I know perfectly well that what I am doing is wrong, and my bad conscience shows that I agree that the law is good. 17 But I can't help myself, because it is sin inside me that makes me do these evil things.
18 I know I am rotten through and through so far as my old sinful nature is concerned. No matter which way I turn, I can't make myself do right. I want to, but I can't. 19 When I want to do good, I don't. And when I try not to do wrong, I do it anyway. 20 But if I am doing what I don't want to do, I am not really the one doing it; the sin within me is doing it.
21 It seems to be a fact of life that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. 22 I love God's law with all my heart.

* As we talked for the past few weeks about spiritual priorities, we’ve learned how important it is to see as God sees so that we will do as God says. * Now we see that we have this inner desire to be in-line with the will of God...to “see as God sees so that we will do as God says”...and yet we do not have the ability to accomplish any of that. * It does us no good to talk about seeing as God sees, and matching up our priorities with God’s priorities unless we know how to accomplish that.
(Transition: So where else would we expect to find spiritual information for our lives other than the Bible?)

God: * In order to see as God sees we must get rid of our own vision.
Matt 26:35
Then Jesus said to them, "All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written:
'I will strike the Shepherd,And the sheep of the flock will be scattered.' 32 But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee." 33 Peter answered and said to Him, "Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble." 34 Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you that this night, before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times." 35 Peter said to Him, "Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!" And so said all the disciples. 36 Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, "Sit here while I go and pray over there." 37 And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. 38 Then He said to them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me." 39 He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will." 40 Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, "What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? 41 Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." 42 Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done." 43 And He came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy. 44 So He left them, went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. 45 Then He came to His disciples and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand."
NKJV

Luke 22:45-46
45 When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow. 46 Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."
NKJV
* How many times has this passage of scripture been preached on and yet there’s a spiritual principle here that we often skip over. * In order to see as God sees you have to lose your own vision. * We often preach that it was the intensity of this great spiritual battle that made the disciples sleep. We say that their flesh was weak and could not handle the battle so they got sleepy. * And of course we do know that this was perhaps the deepest and greatest spiritual battle of all time...but the Bible gives us the explanation for why they slept. Luke 22:45 says that Jesus found them sleeping “for sorrow.” * Why were they sorrowful? It would make more sense for them to be scared. Or maybe just tired. But sorrow? * They were sorrowful because they saw their own goals and ambitions fading away. They were attached to their own vision. Not God’s vision.
Mark 10:35-37
35 Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came over and spoke to him. "Teacher," they said, "we want you to do us a favor." 36 "What is it?" he asked. 37 "In your glorious Kingdom, we want to sit in places of honor next to you," they said, "one at your right and the other at your left." NLT

* Ok so we can see what James and John were planning. Jesus was their pathway to power and authority. They had visions of grandeur and reigning like kings...but the only crown Jesus planned on wearing at that time was a crown of thorns. * Peter had his own idea of what God was going to do in his life as well.
Matt 16:18-19
18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
NKJV
* Imagine being Peter and having this idea of a glorious church and having the keys of the kingdom of heaven...and now the one who made you all these promises is going to be mocked and killed. * So now you have James and John thinking “I thought I was gonna reign with Him!” and Peter thinking “He promised me a church and keys of authority!” * Do you see the problem? The disciples did not have the same priorities that God had. They did not see things the way God saw things. * They were looking at their own vanishing, earthly hopes, but God was looking at the coming kingdom.

WE ARE THE SAME WAY * How often we sorrow at the loss of an illusion. * We have our own idea of how we want God to run our lives, and we are unwilling to let go even if God tells us to let go. * We are happy to serve God as long as He sees things our way...but we are unwilling to adjust our own vision. We want God to match up His priorities with our priorities and change His vision to suit our vision. * And if you’re shaking your head in agreement right now, make sure you remember that you are the same way. We’re ALL guilty of it. * When we see as God sees we will do as He says...but we’ll never see as God sees unless we lose our own vision. * The Apostle Paul can tell you that from firsthand experience. Before he was saved and became an apostle, he was killing and persecuting the church. While he was on his way to Damascus to go and throw the born again believers in jail, Jesus came to him. * Jesus knocked him off his horse, saved his soul, and what else? He took his vision. * Jesus knew that in order for Paul to see things God’s way, Paul had to lose his own vision. When Paul lost his own vision...when he died to himself, he began to see things God’s way. THAT’s when he was able to travel the world preaching the Gospel. * THAT’s when he was able to write 2/3 of the New Testament and write things like Galatians 2:20 where he said, “20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” * We must see as God sees in order to do as God says. But we can’t do that if we don’t lose our own vision. * Peter, James, and John were unable to see God’s plan...it wasn’t that they did not want to be fully surrendered and in tune with God. They were trying their hardest. Jesus knew that. * He knew they had good intentions. That’s why He said “The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” * They were just like you and me. They wanted to conform their lives to God’s plan. The spirit on the inside wanted to see like God sees...they just couldn’t do it because their flesh was weak. * We have to crucify our flesh and let Christ live. We have to die to ourselves. It’s not just something old fashioned that sounds good when you say it in some old fashioned church. It’s the truth of God. It’s always been the way to see as God sees. * Every time a man or woman has died to themselves, lost their old vision, and became surrendered to God, they start seeing things the way God sees them.

Examples:

* The Bible says that the prophet Ezekiel was among the captives, all he could see was bondage and despair, but then he looked up and started seeing visions from God. He started seeing things God’s way. * The prophet Isaiah had things planned out for his life and he was going to let King Uzziah be his provider and take care of everything for him...but when King Uzziah died Isaiah started seeing things God’s way. He saw the Lord high and lifted up. Isaiah was the guy saying, “Lord send somebody to do your work”...but when he traded his vision for God’s vision Isaiah started saying “Send me!” * He used to be the guy who was down and in despair, but now he’s writing the prophecy in Isaiah chapter 9, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light...for You have broken the yoke of his burden...For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given and the government will be upon His shoulder...Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end.” * Moses had a vision to deliver one Israelite man from bondage by killing and Egyptian, but when he got a hold of God’s vision he realized that God was going to deliver the whole nation. * The prophet Amos was among the sheepherders and God started giving him visions and speaking to him. * In order to see as God sees you have to lose your own vision.
(Transition: So you say, “that’s all good, but what does that really mean for my life? What do I need to do?”)

You: * Surrender your vision. All you have to do is surrender. And if you are willing to lay down your own ambitions, God will give you the grace, the power, to walk committed to Him...to see things the way He sees things...and to do as He says. [GET DEREK TO COME TO MUSIC] * When we talk about setting spiritual priorities and making God’s priorities our priorities, we are not talking about being able to do anything on our own. We can’t even obey God without His help. * Let me show you something about the amazing grace of God. * When Jesus came back and found the disciples asleep He said “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? 41 Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation.” * He was not mocking their weakness...He already knew when He asked them to pray with Him that they couldn’t do it. He knew they would fail at it from the start. * He was showing them that they couldn’t do it on their own. * When the disciples were bragging about how faithful they were to Jesus, He already knew they would fail. * It’s like when a little boy brags to his dad and says “dad I’m going to lift this big [bale of hay or cinder block or fence post] all by myself” and the dad says “ok you go ahead” ...the dad doesn’t expect him to be able to do it. He lets him try it, and then the dad does it himself. * Christ was teaching the disciples, and us now, that we can only succeed with His help.

Altar call: 1. Salvation 2. If you’ve given it your best effort a million times and still failed...God wants to help you tonight. -- He wants to help you see things the way He sees things so that you will be able to do what He says.
--- If God has been drawing you to lay down your own way of thinking and take on His vision.
---If you’d raise your hand and say “I want to get to a closer place where I can see God’s way more clearly.”
Then come.