How Eternity Brings Focus to What Really Matters - II

The following message from Pastor Greg Laurie is made possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God, to find out how to know God personally go to know God.org KNOW know God.org he would you do me a favor sure this message was someone who needs to hear it. What is why the way exist. Why am I here a loser here to pursue pleasure.

I'm here to pursue God. When we search for the wrong short Pastor Greg Morris is our live shortage.

When you seek your creative, for which is no more a boy and worship God, you will find the happiness you been seeking God from seeking happiness but seeking you to go together. They play the job they frolic.

When was the last time you grow up, get some education happiness is left behind. Author Ernest Hemingway said happiness and intelligent people is the rarest thing I know today of a new beginning.

Pastor Greg Laurie shows us will find real joy by seeking God and keeping an eternal love my messages how eternity brings focus to what really matter and so were going to be looking at Revelation chapter 4 Colossians chapter 3 so Mark both of those and that's original land Revelation for Colossians 3, you know, it sometimes said oh you're so heavenly minded you're no earthly good.

My greater concern is that I would be so earthly minded.

I would be of no heavenly good. I think our belief in the afterlife has a lot to say and how we live in the before life. How we live in the here and now, that brings us to a text that I want to look at with you that tells us what our focus as Christians ought to be.

Colossians chapter 3 verses 1 to 2. Let's read that that's one of the positives we turn to Paul Wright.

Since then, you've been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

So let's ask ourselves the question why are we here in the first place. Why am I taking up space. Why am I breathing air why the way exist. What is my purpose to get an answer as to how I should live on earth after take a quick trip to have. So let's see that no one Revelation 4 read verses 4 to 8.

What were witnessing is heavenly worship service populated by magnificent and mysterious angelic beings and 24 unnamed elders were sick, the four living creatures, each had six wings. There were full of eyes around and within. They don't rest day or night. These are angelic beings. By the way saying a holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him and sits on the throne who live forever. The 24 elders fall down before you move sits on the throne and worship him live forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying you are worthy of the Lord, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they exist and were created.

There hard to wrap our minds around this. I don't know who the 24 elders are maybe 12 patriarchs of the Old Testament and the 12 apostles from the New Testament, but clearly these elders are people that once lived on earth who had died and now have gone to heaven and one of a doing in heaven.

There were shipping wise and important to us because Jesus said, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is where what happens in heaven should affect me honor. So what's happening in heaven or there's a whole Lotta worship going on the site should also be worshiping the Lord. They even tell us that in verse eight, you created all things and bar your will be exist and were created. So let me come back out of the question I raised earlier why the way exist. Why am I here in this earth. Answer I'm here on earth to bring glory to God.

Let's say it out loud together.

I'm here on this earth to bring glory to God there. This is your marching orders.

I'm not here to pursue pleasure. I'm here to pursue God.

The purpose of the universe is God's glory. Not my personal happiness.

This comes as a surprise to some think the world should revolve around them. They want to rule their own little private universe. They want to be the main character in their novel within suffering and pain interrupts their plans and they don't know why. Here's the bottom line when you seek to fulfill the purpose you were created for.

Which is to know glorify and worship God, you will find the happiness you been seeking the Lord, not from seeking happiness, but from seeking God.

The Bible says happy are the people whose God is the Lord some 16 says in his presence there is fullness of joy and on his right hand there are pleasures for evermore. Yes, God created you for his glory. Isaiah 43, seven says God speaking. Everyone was called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed in May. Ephesians 111 says God shows us from the beginning for all things happen just as he decided long ago.

God's purpose was that we who were the first to trust in Christ should praise our glorious God sees it. Well, I don't understand what that means is that mean that I have to be in a field.

24 hour worship service, no singing songs to God is not the only way we worship. Let me put it another way, it's entirely possible to sing songs to God and not worship at all.

Worship is not just about singing it's about the movement of the heart to the Lord when I could, I could sing song from the sound of music in and be about as close to God as some Christians are when they sing praise songs because there's no thought of God whatsoever because what is worship really what we sing its prayers that the song when I'm worshiping the Lord. That's one way to glorify him, but there's many other ways to glorify God, but then told over and first Corinthians 619.you know your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, you were bought with the products therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's first Corinthians 1031 says whatever you do, do it for the glory of God is and whatever you do in life.

Glorify God with get academics, sports, business, music, you name it. Fill in blank care. Let me put it another way, if you can't write how would be thy name over what you're doing and don't do it anymore. My glorifying God and the work that I do my glorifying God and the free time that I have my glorifying God and the friends that I choose to hang out with my glorifying God with my time.

My glorifying God with my money. My glorifying God with my existence, because that's what I've been put here on this earth. You know when you're doing that thing that God made you to do.

You can feel his pleasure. Can't you is called finding the sweet spot. If you play tennis, you know, there's a sweet spot in a racket and if you hit the sweet spot because you maximum impact on the ball and we have a sweet spot in life. Don't wait work when you do this one thing for God's glory. This ailment I feel is leisure doing this because you're wired to do that thing. That's why you're here are all here to do that so I think that we should all consider how well we are fulfilling our purpose here on earth because our belief in the afterlife to them form our choices in the before life.

Greg Lord will have the second half of this message in just a moment. It's reassuring when we read letters and emails from listeners who been helped by the ministry of Greg Loring and a new beginning grain every morning on my way home from dropping my husband at work helped me to my hardest times. I am a little boy was moderate and I lost my mom's cancer unit. My soul has been so heavy every day you help me realize that God is claiming more than anything and he will take care of the rest has been and send now love listening to you in the car. Thank you for helping millions of people just like us were so grateful to hear how Pastor Greg's teachings of help this young long if you have a story to tell. I hope you'll contact us today. Email Pastor Greg at greg@harvest.org again, that's great harvest.org now. Pastor Greg continues his message called how eternity brings focus to what really matters.

Let's listen. What is it mean to be heavenly minded.

Okay, let's go back now to Colossians 3 that we already alluded to, but I want to read the next verse. It because now we go from, why don't want to see the sublime to the practical. But in a way that sums it up.

This is all practicably when you get down to it, but really what it does is it shows us how our belief in the afterlife affects us in the before life.

Colossians 3 verse five.

Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth, fornication and cleanest passion, evil desire, covetousness which is idolatry. Because of these things around. The God is coming on the sons of disobedience in which you yourself once walked when you lived in them.

Now you yourselves put these anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth goal, I want to another, since you put off the old man with his deeds in a put on the new man which is renewed in knowledge. Much of the notice Paul startled the word therefore whatever you see the word therefore find out what it's therefore Paul's drawing on what he is already said what are the say hey set your mind on things above. Think Kevin pursue heaven.

Now, in light of this, don't pursue these other things and he identifies three sins that keep us earthbound. If you will. Three sins that keep us from being heavenly minded number one sexual sin keeps us earthbound. Paul mentions the word fornication verse five from the root word Cornelia this speaks of sexual immorality in general. It refers to any form of illicit set extramarital sex premarital sex, homosexual sex, let me simplify it for you.

God's order for sex. One man one woman monogamous Mary.

End of story. That's it. I know that's not politically correct this DNA to say, but it gospel through but this isn't just the person who is sexually immoral, but it's a person who builds their mind with this stuff, you know, you might find yourself in the fact that you don't want to do those things like never been unfaithful to my spouse or I didn't have sex before marriage will great fantastic, but you fill your minds with pornography, do you fill your minds in your lives with all this sexual stuff and fantasize about it all the time I Jesus told us that we look at a woman to lust after her flight committing adultery with her policy. Don't let sex control your life.

In this way.

Number two. Idolatry keeps us earthbound idolatry. He says covetousness which is idolatry. You know, a lot of us don't even know would cover the unit and made the top 10 for the 10 Commandments thou shall not covet believe that with all my heart. You shall not covet what is it me the covet I am annoyed should not do it when the Bible finds for us to work, covet, come from to root words to have and more.

Basically they have more it's a person always wants more. The coverages person is never satisfied with what they have. They want with someone else had that make sense and then when they get it they don't want it anymore. It's a thrill of the hunt. If you don't know what I'm talking about just get a bunch of kids together and watch them play. I have four granddaughters and one grandson.

By the way my grandson holds his own hangs in there with these girls over quite a bit older and you know the sin of their cute little dollhouses and all the accessories and he comes in with a hammer now and explain I didn't give him a hammer.

It's a plastic camera from a little toy I give all you pound balls in the whole. You know, but he's done counting the balls. Now he wants to pound other things because walking out with a hammer and here's all the little that accessories five areas walks off. You know, doing going. He's a boy.

But what some kids fight over something. One child grabs a toy. Any toy, then the other child immediately wants that toy.

Another finding over the toy and you say no.come on you guys are all these toys fighting over the toy. One child, usually the stronger one prevailed Toy Walks off, Looked at Her for a Couple Minutes Drops It on the Ground and Moves on. It Was Never about the Toy. It Was about Getting Something That Someone Else Had.

I'm Sure Glad We Outgrow That, Aren't You the Only Know We Know This Goes Right to Life for Many People and so Were Being Told Don't Let That Control You. You Know You Can Avalon Instill One More. You Have so Many Things That I Want More More.

Some People Have Very Little Materially Speaking in a Completely Content, Hebrews 13, Five, Visit Let Your Light Be without Covetousness, Be Content with Such Things As You Have, for He Has Said I Will Never Leave You or Forsake You Contentment Does Not Come from What You Have It Come from Who You Know If You like David Can Say the Lord Is My Shepherd, You Will Also Be Able to Say I Shall Not Want Your Contentment Is in Your Relationship with God, Let Me Turn This around.

It's Not Always Bad to Once More.

I Encourage You Want More More of Jesus.

More Opportunities to Glorify God More Spiritual Fruit More Not Enough. You Want More. That's a Good Thing. Finally, Number Three, Anger, Meanness, and Slandering Others Keeps Us Earthbound Anger, Meanness, and Slandering Others Keeps Us Earthbound Verse Eight Anger.

Rather, Malice, Blasphemy, Filthy Language. Keep It Out Of Your Mouth Were Negative for Exhibits Settled on Habitual Anger with the Thought of Revenge. We All Get Angry at Times Were Not Human. If We Don't That Some of This Is Talking about All That May Be Angry. This Is a Settled Anger. This Is a Person That Says I Don't Get Mad, Get Even. This Is Speaking of a Person That Has That Deep-Seated Anger and It Also Speaks of a Person That Flies off the Handle.

Here's an Interesting Twist That You Might Know from Reading This Translation Work Blasphemy As You Think You Don't Blessing God Actually in Context and the Original War That She Was Is Not Speaking of Blossoming God Speaking of Blaspheming or Speaking Ill of Other Is Called Gossip.

By the Way Our Culture Trades and Gossip.

There Are Websites Dedicated to the Latest Gossip We Hear It We Tweeted We Texted We Email It. We Posted on Our Facebook Page Is a True I Don't Know What It's Josie's Fine Unless You're the Person That's Been Gossiped about Unless You're the Person Being Lied about Gavin Acronym for You in This Coming Year and Acronym That You Can Use As a Grid to Run Things through. When You Hear Something about Someone Else before Your Repeated Think of This Acronym.

Think THINKT Stands for.

Is It Truthful H Stands for. Is It Helpful.

I Stand for. Is It Inspiring and Stand for Is It Necessary Case Stands for. Is It Causing before You Repeat That Information. Are You Sure This Is True As an Enemy Helpful Signal Inspired Someone. Is It Really Necessary and Isn't Trying My Responsible. Greg Five Pie That Acronym to My Life. I Wouldn't Say Anything. Amen. Do Us All a Favor and Shut up. If You're Spreading That Kind of Information the Best Way to Turn Away from One Thing to Find Something Better Is One Old Minister Put It, It's the Explosive Power of a New Affection. I Love That Phrase, the Explosive Power of a New Affection Coming Back to Kids You Want to Get a Kid to Let Go of Something.

Get Something.

What about This Did and Then You Know You Get That Other Thing Out Of Your Hand like the Hammer or Whatever. If You Really Start Thinking More about and Seeking Heaven, Which Is to Say, Putting the Lord First in Every Area from the Font You Think to the Friends You Choose to.

The Way You Use Your Time. It Will Transform You Listen You Are a Child of God of Your Christian and Then Meijer's Citizen of Heaven, It's Time to Start Acting like One Wife Because Light Comes in Go so Quickly. Before You Know It You'll Be Standing before God. But Here's the Good News. If We Have That Explosive Power of a New Affection. If We Put God First in Our Life Will Look Very Fulfilling Lives Are on Earth and in Life Comes to an End and I Gotta Tell You Something.

All the Health-Food Solutions Are Not Going to Extend Your Life One Day You Can Eat Your Free Range Chicken and Your Organic Vegetables and All the Tofu. Your Heart Desires and You Live As Long As God Wants You Live As He Appointed the of Your Birth. He Appointed Day of Your Death. Then Comes Eternity and Then What Happens.

Listen Heaven Is Not the Default Destination of Every Person. Heaven Is the Destination of the Person Who Has Their Ticket so We Mean This Ticket. I'm Talking about You of Your Reservation. You Know You're Going There. You Put Your Faith in Christ That Your Assured You Will Go to Heaven When You Die, How to Get This Ticket You Might Ask, How Much Will It Cost Me or You Couldn't Afford It. All the Good Works All the Religiosity All the Rituals Will Get You This Ticket. This Is a Blood Bought Ticket but with the Blood of Christ As He Hung Them across, and Died in Our Place, and Rose Again from the Dead, but You Know What He Loves to Get This Ticket out. He Loves to Extend His Forgiveness so He's Holding That Back Is in Him and I Want You to Take This Ticket. It's Your Right about Somebody You Just Want a Lottery Ticket Worth A Lot Of Money Was Is Lien under a Pile of Leaks. I Don't Know the Person That I Don't Want This. And I'm Not Advocating Buying Lottery Tickets. It's Just an Illustration from the Biggest Waste of Your Money to Buy Lottery Tickets but That's Another Story for Another Day. But Here's Something of Great Value Discarded under a Pile of Leaves and That's How the Gospel Is for Many People There.

It Is the Greatest Offer of All the Turning Going on with the Fun or Tell You What. When Life Comes Due and Then You Realize That the Most Important Thing of All.

Jesus Died on the Cross He Rose Again from the Dead, He Stands Now, the Door of Your Life and If You Hear His Voice and Open the Door He Will Come in If You Want to Know You Go to Heaven When You Die If You Want to Walk with the Confidence I You Can Live Your Life to the Best of Your Ability for the Glory of God and Be Ready to Medium Whatever That Date Is or If You Follow the Way of the Lord, and You Want to Come Back to Him Again like You to Respond to This Invitation, No Extend As We Close down Prayer Solve Our Heads.

Father, Thank You for Your Word to Us. Thank You for Your Love for Us Now. I Prefer Anyone Here That Does Not yet Know You, They Don't Have the Hope of Heaven, but They Wanted Help Them to Respond Now in Jesus Name I Pray You'd like to Make a Change Relationship with the Lord. Pastor Greg Laurie Will Help You Do That in Just a Moment.

We Stay with Us and If You Missed Any Part of Today's Addition of a New Beginning. You Can Hear What You Missed by Going Online to Harvest.org You Can Stream the Program from Start to Finish Online or Even Download an MP3 of the Study Is Called How Eternity Brings Focus to What Really Matters Is Free, but Thanks for Remembering That Your Support Makes These Daily Studies Possible.

Again, Find the Study online@harvest.org then we have a great set of children's books that we want to make available and today is our last opportunity to mention it hears Pastor Greg to talk with our special guest, and now were going to have a lesson on how to speak like a British person because I think that when British people say it, it always sounds better so I agreed out and I with Sally Lloyd Jones is an expert because she is indeed British aren't you, Sally.

Yes I am and I I'm very very printing shafts and as I get more pretentious eyes right time to do my best version of speaking like a British person. Are you ready I'm ready brace yourself right people to know top of the date. She is in all that I'm being a bit possible right now know I'm going to go over to more of a liver pulley that said hello up with her. Talk to you you and also a couple of birds over the wheel the day in the sum of the Dragon. So how did I do Sally. I went wide spread to a little Wesleyan. I thought it was brilliant and I think you're very good at doing that yes you did get a bit posh. Then he went to Lesbos and then you went to that party and thank you very much, so now define the following terms to us and confuses as Americans we traveled to England okay. What is a windscreen windshield went to windshield. What is a bonnet. What it could be a hat. Yes, all might be at when the engine as of yet bonnet and porridge is porridge is is like a male, but it's better so there's your lesson on speaking like a Brit. And speaking of speaking like a Brit. She writes like a Brit to because she is one, and she's written two books for children because she is a prolific children's writer and it's a set that were offering right now to all of our listeners.

It's called found and loved by Sally Lloyd Jones you just heard from and it includes an original keepsake print it's illustrated by a fantastic artist named jog a really really good. As an artist I can tell you I really appreciate of the design and art in these books and then written just perfectly by Sally. In fact, here's a little sample of what you will find in one of these books God is my Shannon and I and his little lamb he feeds me he guides me he looks up to me I have everything I need inside my heart is very quiet.

This client is lying still in soft green grass and imagine management stream even when I walk through the scary lending places I went be afraid because my ship it knows where I am is here. He keeps me safe. He rescues me he makes me strong and brave.

He's getting wonderful things ready for me, especially for me.

He fills my heart so full of happiness can't hold angel inside whenever I can.

I know God's never stopping navigating up on breaking always love okay to mess Sally Lloyd Jones, our special guest who is just written a great picture book said that we want to make available to parents and grandparents. It's called found and loved found is a look at the 23rd Psalm. Love looks at the Lord's prayer. They come as a two books set in an attractive storage box and your kids are going to love the illustrations and we want to send a sure way to say thank you for your partnership in keeping these studies coming your way back if you can help us on a regular basis. We hope you will ask about becoming a harvest partner. These are special friends who invest in this outreach each month, but with your first gift as a harvest partner would like to send you found and love and today is our last opportunity to mention this resource so writers at a new beginning. Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or go online to harvest.org or call 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300 West Greg you spoke today about having a relationship with the Lord. Yeah, someone can enter into that kind of relationship with God right now can't yet they really can. That's the amazing thing. I think people are surprised that it doesn't take years to become a Christian. It doesn't take months.

It doesn't take weeks. It doesn't take days, it doesn't even take ours you can believe on the spot and I would like to lead you in a prayer where you can ask for his forgiveness. A prayer where you can receive Jesus Christ into your life as your Savior and Lord. So if you want Christ to come in your life if you want him to forgive you of your sin if you want a second chance in life. If you want to go to heaven when you die, stop what you're doing and pray after me these words Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner and I'm sorry for my sin and I turn from it now and I choose to follow you from this moment forward as Savior and Lord is God and friend.

Thank you for loving me and calling me and for giving me in Jesus name I pray, amen man lesson if you have just prayed those words with Pastor Greg and mentor them. Sincerely, the Bible assures us, your sins have been forgiven and we want to welcome you into the family of God. We want to censor resource materials to you that will help you in your new relationship with the Lord we call our new believers growth packet and will send it without charge.

If you pray for the first time today with Pastor Greg, just ask for when you write a new beginning. Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or call 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300 one next time. Pastor Greg and his wife Kathy invite a couple of special guests into the studio. They traveled a rough road trial and challenge, and they are eager to share the hard learn lesson God taught them along the way. That's next time you're on beginning possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God sign up for pastor grades free daily email, devotions@harvest.org