What Will We Value?

The Holy Spirit is doing a fresh work in my life, drawing me closer, allowing me to see and hear clearer in prayer and in the Word, and calling me to abandon the things of this world.  This post communicates a piece of what He is confirming in me and calling me toward in these days.

The picture of this Bible is one that I look at often as it reminds me of what I should value in this life.  It is one of the most precious pictures I own. It communicates what someone treasures and values. 

In our lives, we are always communicating something about what we value whether we realize it or not. You can see our values in what we say, what we buy, what we wear, who we spend time with, the content of our conversations, and how we spend our time. Then, in the world of social media – what we type, take pictures of and post can reveal some of the things we value.

What we fail to realize is that all of our actions are not just communicating our values and shaping how we are seen by others, but if we were honest, those things reveal what is actually inside of our heart – they lay bare the true condition of what resides inside of us where the Holy Spirit also lives.  I wonder what He must think as we put more and more things in our lives that are not in line with Who He is and His purposes.

Jesus said it like this…Luke 6:43 “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. 45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of”.

As Christ-followers, how we live matters and what our life affirms as important also matters for someone is always listening, watching, being confused over, observing, being encouraged by, forwarding, or reading.

The world and the Trinity have nothing in common, so then how should we live as children of the Three in One?  The answer is found here…

1 John 2:15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

I think our struggle at times in loving the world flows from several areas…

(1) We can get caught up in the love of the world

(2) We have never really seen abandonment from the world in someone we know 

(3) We don’t think Jesus has infinite value over the things of this world

I want to deal with #2 above and give us two examples in the Scripture on what this could look like and we could embrace.  The examples are Moses and Paul, and we will first examine Moses.

            Moses

Hebrews 11:24 By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, 25 choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward.

Look at the choice Moses made in regard to what he wanted to be shaped by and be known for in his generation.  He refused to be called a son connected to Pharaoh but rather he wanted to be clearly marked as one belonging to the people of God. 

The second choice he made was contrary to the current church climate in America where he chose mistreatment, not comfort.  The verse also says that Moses chose the persecution over a life of the fleeting pleasures of sin.  We should not just assume this only means sex or alcohol.  This also means any of the pleasures that this world offers – food, clothing, travel, power, influence, etc. 

Third, Moses had at his disposal the treasures of Egypt.  Here are examples of what he would have rejected…

He could have had all of those things to wear, possess and experience.  Why did he refuse those kinds of things?  For this reason - Moses considered the reproach of Christ as the greater treasure and wealth of life here on earth. 

He did not boast about his chances to have them and it is clear that he just did not care about them, they did not hold his interest because he was captured by something so far greater and magnificent.

It then says that he was looking to the reward, the kind of reward that cannot be found in the dirt of this place.

            Paul

Paul wanted nothing of this life here but the glory of God and the joy of living for the Gospel.  He just wanted Jesus no matter what the cost.  I will let him speak for himself… 

Galatians 6:14 But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

Philippians 3:7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— 10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

1 Corinthians 2:2 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.

Both of these men model the life I want and need. Love for God poured out of their lives for their life was Christ.  The love of the world had been crushed and disposed in them so that nothing else mattered but Jesus!

This is my prayer:

God free me of any grip this world has upon my mind, heart, feet, ears, eyes, and hands so that I know the full life I can have in you.

I want to boast in you alone as I have been crucified to the world and the world to me so that all my life says that I value is the GLORY of YOUR NAME!

Amen