Time’s Up

Today on Summit life was JD Greer.

Jesus gives you the key to freeing yourself from the most wearisome toilsome tyrant ever walked the face of the earth money. Think about how much of your personal heartache. How much relational conflict in your life has come from money when it be awesome to be free of any kind of bondage emotional bondage to that terrible tyrant. After dating okay let's be honest you ever ask yourself why does the church have to talk about money so much as a legitimate question. I think back with a legitimate answer today. Pastor JD begins a new teaching series on why God should be first in our lives and he helps us see that to become a committed disciple must understand how to have the right relationship with money when we do biblical truth about money and what we should do with it will not be burdensome instead set us free and help us find joy in getting so grab your Bible and settlement here is Pastor JD survivalist with you Bible, but if you have it open it to the book of Luke Luke 16 we are going to dive into something just a little bit different, something that will just freely acknowledge you as the potential to be slightly awkward. I will note that I know awkward moments anywhere like awkward moments in church.

I've been a part of a number of them. I have created a lot of them during one of my summers in college I was involved in this really really small I got a formal church for the summer and service on Sunday and I you pastors up there doing something, and I also got really quiet.

I think he was looking for some banner for what came next. But it just got really quiet and I noticed that my friend beside me was not paying any attention. But you don't think it really quiet you know like it's on the get your attention, and he looks up and I can tell you just arouse back and I saw how Deborah Emison, the pastor is calling you to pray and he's not really as a guide to call you right now breakthrough stands up and just start spraying it over the whole congregation Bible is one of my best and most awkward moments that I've ever created in church Brian Moritz tells a story about his dad, Crawford Larissa resubmit when his dad was a kid. His dad grew up in church, like I did, where they were back then we didn't have like your cool children's church and kids ministry things with airplanes hand out the ceiling and I, stuff like that.

It was just just at the church right at three full services a week.

Sunday morning Sunday night Wednesday night I sat there just adult shirts, Tom and I was three years old and so you came up with all kinds of ways to entertain yourself how you die. I knew how many titles are on the ceiling of my church I would you count two days on blue airwaves and whatever it took to be able to maintain my interest will Crawford conduct� He was like that and I said I was a pretty rambunctious kid. He said that one Sunday McLean read you got was it was a once in the morning the bridge was out there preaching his heart out and the whole time I was consumed by one thought what would happen if I told the preacher to shut up. My secret even touch the ground in front of the pew about couldn't get this thought out of my mind. I just kept thinking about it and thinking about it and think about it until I thought maybe the Lord wants me to do this final piece. He said I just had to do it though.

I waited for a very somber moment in his message and I belted out, shut up, Crawford says that pandemonium ensued in the church. He said everybody in the church thought it was hilarious but his mom was sitting right next to them in this very discrete way just reached our recent returns and pinched a huge hunk of flesh out of my arm and whispered in my ear boy when I kiss you all Crawford says I can you say the rest is constant change and I don't you calling CPS on my mom to a crawl process. It was my most awkward moment in church this morning. I want to create about a 40 minute awkward moment inserts because I want to talk about what what what you're mouthing sex and no I'm not going talk about sex today I want to talk about money. Everybody's favorite sermon series is always about money know me tell you three reasons I am not preaching on this. First, this is not some kind of passive aggressive way that I'm asking for a race. This church takes fantastic care of me and I got no complaints. Second, I'm not doing this because this church is behind budget and I got beat the bushes and try to make ends meet and back. I'm very happy to be able say to you, I'm just full of thanks to God and to you that that that that because of your generosity were doing great.

I'm sure there are a lot of things that we believe God has for us in the future and their faith goals. Rosson we want to go there in order to do that we gotta go together and for God to use our obedience and sacrifice to get there but were not approaching the subject like God needs us to raise money for him. God is never in that position. Thirdly, I'm not doing this because I'm trying to get you to buy into something you can live your best life now you get rich quick church Ponzi scheme where you give here. I get a private jet and I promise you that when you do that that brand-new Range Rover. The 26 inch rims will just materialize in your in your driveway and the Phillies in your table transmogrified a gold and then you'll just be happy living your best life now. We do not give me make this clear. We do not give you get back from God. If that is why you did you not given the God given to yourself. Scriptures does say it does say that God will often multiply our resources when we give, but he does so if you read the contacts he does so that we will have even more to give another what do we do have to get back so we can give even more so if those are the three reasons were not doing this. Why would I take time to go through this. Well, it's because one of our values here. The summit church is that we want to make disciples not just converts we want to raise up a generation of fully committed disciples not just gather a large group of attenders each weekend and this is one of the most crucial dimensions of discipleship. Did you know that Jesus talk more about our relationship with money. Then he did prayer and faith combined. He told more about this subject. Many did heaven and hell combined.

He brings this subject up in more than 40% of his parables, and 40% of his teachings on the kingdom y'all if I preached on money as often as Jesus did, it would be every third sermon just say Jesus is most dire warnings were about money the implies again and again throughout the Gospels that a selfish spirit will keep us out of heaven. It's a huge theme and Luke will work where we are going to spend some time today. He says, for example in Luke 18 it's easier for a camel to go to the eye of a needle than it is for a rich person in the kingdom of God know there is nothing else. He says that that kind of thing about it's easier for a camel to go to the eye of a needle than it is for rich person which obeys brings about a way of what all of us to go into the kingdom of God. He tells listeners.

In Luke 14.

In your view does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple get even talk that way about anything else. In order for you to be his follower, you have to renounce control of every single resource that you have and you've got to say none of it is mine anymore all belongs to you is the only thing that he talks about those kinds of terms tells people. Luke 12 watch out, watch out. Be on your guard against greed. Again, there's something he never talks I got about adultery never talk that way about lying that I don't know any place reasons be on guard against adultery be on guard against line.

Why do you think he doesn't talk that way about those things. Why think it's because with those sins. You know you cross the line when you cross it.

But greed is subtle. Usually we don't realize that we cross the line until we are miles beyond the interesting studies done in the American church so that we Americans will freely admit all kinds of sins when we were free say I struggle with would provide a solid philosopher with anger. I struggle with prejudice a try with bitterness toward people, but almost none of us it's almost kind of crazy look at the statistics, almost none of us say we have any problem with greed at all.

In Luke 16 are passes for today is what Jesus says that it is, no one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one I love you the mutually exclusive. If you love one you're going to hate yellow and if you devoted to the one you to despise the other.

You simply cannot serve both God and money again. Jesus doesn't talk that way about anything else were one level one forces out the love of the other.

This way, this subject has a way of getting to the heart like nothing else does to the primary reason that we do. This is not fundraising it is because you simply cannot be a disciple without dealing with this because this issue gets at the heart of what you love and what you worship what kingdom you live in for your following like nothing else does in fact it is to the point that I've told you that even if we had no financial need at this church. If this morning over the apex campus underneath the first time just can't they discover an oral reserve writers will black seepage and up from the ground comes a bubbling crude in the Mexican overall millionaires. If that happens, we will still do this every November. Why, because we know it's not about supplying God's financial needs.

God does this because he knows this gets at the heart of what we really love and follow more than anything else does.

It's also why tell you that this is a struggle for you to sit here and here. This maybe you grew up somewhere that you saw this abuser that you can't get past thinking this is some kind of manipulative way were I try to get money out of your pockets and in the mine what I tell you, and I say this almost every time and I'm very serious about this. If that's you, and you can't get past thinking that way. Why don't we just for the next few weeks. Why don't we take giving to the summit church off the table and why don't you respond to this, not by giving sheer but once you respond to this by giving into the kingdom of God somewhere else because I do not want that cynicism, or that that that that difficult situation that you were there. I don't want that to become an insurmountable obstacle for you. Becoming an actual disciple of Jesus. And so� I am asking that you write on your night. This I thought I want to get up. LET'S just right now. Take giving the summit church all the day.

And yes I've had church consultants tell me it is crazy for me to say that and I do not say that I'm saying okay because it is more important for me that you become an actual disciple Jesus, I'm trusting God to take care of us and yes obviously God calls you to search you should be a church. We love and trust in God you can be part of and feel good about where you're giving and if that's not this way.

She's about somewhere else. So yeah, nothing is a healthy place to be long-term but what I'm saying is right now if you e.g. if you just can't get past this. Take giving to the summit. Turns out the table. Can you apply everything that I'm saying that given generously somewhere else good is more important for me that you become an actual disciple of Jesus than it is for you to let that obstacle keep you from becoming a disciple and cause you to miss the kingdom of God right so that's what I want you here on this route, we got this right. So what Jesus says here Luke 16 about no man can serve two masters that gets repeated verbatim in both Luke's gospel, Matthew's gospel, but interestingly, as part of two different sermons. The same point different sermons so you met me. I because I think once about Jesus disability. Okay, so interestingly, two different sermons with two different points of focus lesson you'll hear me out. Okay, I think you can find these next two weeks really liberating. Not a finger to be burdensome because in these passages you'll Jesus gives you the key to freeing yourself from the most wearisome toilsome tyrant ever walked the face of the earth money. Think about how much of your stress.

Think about how much of your personal heartache. How much relational conflict in your life has come from money when it be awesome to be free of any kind of bondage emotional bondage to that terrible tyrant. Now you should merely say will pass JD. I added II got some financial problems thing about generosity. Just not on what I get to that.

Toward the end� Doing this with an open heart and say God how do you want to free me, generosity is not something you want from me. It's something you got for me. Listen with that with with that filter. Luke 16 I Jesus makes a statement about the mixer to Masters at the end of the sermon to really like the very beginning of the sermon and look at how it develops you ready. Verse one. Jesus told his disciples, was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possession; a man asked him what is this that I hear about you give an account of your management because you cannot be manager any longer because you're such a bad manager yourself/and you don't get up till 11 o'clock and you are the ones everyday except for the manager said no cell, no, we just got fired. What I do get his two week notice my master taken away my job. I'm not strong of the day. These nice, manicured nails and I got these, you know, Dennis Austin hands and not, say the bag well will do I know about it so that when I lose my job here. People will welcome into their houses so we call the needs of his master's debtors. And yes, the first one people to notice your master money how much you are my master 900 gallons of olive oil he bought were what your question is how the world could you get in debt to somebody for 900 hours.

Although I was cooking you actually do.

I don't understand that but that's what it manager told Patsy what your 900 take down right now, sit down, take out your checkbook make a 450 but he has to cite one how much you owe thousand bushels of wheat, he replied. I told him that your bill and make it 820% discount today, and today only what is that I mimic what is a modern terms. In case you like the 900 gallons oil you dislike internal accounts manager for a really rich guy is given us two week notice. Basically he's fire but is yet to be tough and the job goes home and in despair.

He says his wife.

Wife one of my tentative. I had used to drink in my five dollars Starbucks latte's everything the day sitting up in first class. No way I'm going back to Maxwell House out of the camp and sit back in economy class on that airplane. When I get to do and then he has a brilliant idea. Each closable of balsa clients. He still owes boss money is SASE here. You are my boss hundred thousand dollars to you what, sit down right here right now. Write out a check for $25,000 and I will give you an official debt settled certificate and will just call it even. Because technically those days the gospel had the authority to do it when you were an account manager you have the power of attorney you had the seal and so you technically just got a legal technicality still has the ability to do this. So when he releases them from their debt, their free and he does that with every single person who owes his boss money right so after he's fired. Now he's got a huge bunch of people who feel like they own the big huge favor because every time he releases my from the daddies. I just remember, just remember you. We should take care of you.

You know, and I got to man. I got to take care of. Then Jesus in a really surprising twist in the story. Verse eight the master who just gotten hosed by the way. Okay, the master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. I mean, seriously, you never read the Bible before, did you see that coming here is the son of God like and that is a really really smart manager right Jesus is such a great storyteller. Then Jesus explains the surprising lesson. You see, the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than all the people of the light. In other words, Jesus the same. If you know if you know that your current reality is coming to an end wouldn't be wise to use whatever moment you have left to prepare for the next reality if you got your two week notice in it wise to use whatever remaining time you have in that window to get ready for that. The reality that you're about to go into. Should you be making friends for the next reality to what is that mean Jesus asked for the money and the resources that God has made you manager over I tell you. Verse nine.

Use worldly wealth again friends for yourselves in eternity so that when it is gone you will be welcome into internal dwellings.

Jesus continues.

Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with very much reverence, dishonest, very little will also be dishonest with much so if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth trust you with real riches and if you'd not been trustworthy with somebody else's property. Who in the world to give you property of your own. Jesus explains here that in some mysterious way that I'm not sure I totally understand but some mysterious way our faithfulness with our resources here is going to determine both our responsibility level and our enjoyment level and the life to come. The point is that God gave us what he gave us down here to steward steward is a word that just mean somebody you manager something up on somebody else.

When you're steward you're not the owner you're the manager you all realize write that as God sees it every single resource that you have all of your money doesn't really belong to you write me understand that right was what's in a Will Smith interview the Fresh Prince of Bel Air got the interviewer asked to visit Windsor kids learn that they were rich Will Smith and Roger said, let me just stop your either I'm rich. My kids or not. I let them use some of my money, but it is not there as it is mine every parent said they man right. Same thing with us and God. God gave us what he gave us and has a purpose for them. My question for you is be honest. Is that how you see your resources. Do you see your resources as fundamentally yours or fundamentally God who really owns them, because if you see your resources as yours. You will ask how much of this. Do I have to give to God so that he will curse me and I will feel guilty, but if you see your resources as fundamentally his.

You ask not. About 10% of it but about 100% of its what does he want me to do with this and what are the internal purposes that he gave me these things for Jesus said you are a manager you're steward you're not an owner God gave you these things to leverage to prepare for eternity soon and very soon you get a minute give an account of every single one of those things and those who are wise realize that and will arrange their lives. Accordingly, I may think about friends is just common sense right. If time on earth. The short boarding and giving your two weeks notice and you have in write your two week notice is your looming death on me feel depressing and here, but that's right America stole studied on percent shows no sign of waning your two week notice may last you know they may last 60 years. It may last, literally two weeks but all must've been serving two week notice and if that two weeks however long it actually is about two weeks compared to eternity is a short as eternity must demand that it be, how should we be using that last two weeks just common sense. One of my favorite songs as written by Melba David Bubba Moses, Psalm 90 and Psalm 90 Moses prays a prayer that I have prayed regularly since college.

Psalm 90 verse 12. Teach us to number our days, so teachers a number days carefully so that we may develop wisdom and arts notice that is that the connection between numbering your days in the developing of wisdom.

However, Martin Luther translated Everson the German men we translate back in English and my reader teach us to think daily about death so that we might finally learn how to live. It is only by thinking often about the brevity of life, but you're ever going to develop the right attitude toward the days that you have, how long friend is eternity and how short his life. I remember when I was in middle school. My youth pastor using an illustration that just I don't know why it stuck with me.

But still, think again like him so I still like this when I think about eternity. This McPherson possum. I use it is a silly innocently that it helps me the money for some said okay.

Is this a math you birds fly 150 miles an hour yoga bird a said he said so. If a bird flew 50 miles an hour and picked up a grain of sand and fluid to Pluto, which, when I was a middle school still planet but has since been demoted is rock floating in space. He said if you flew a grain of sand to Pluto at 50 miles an hour taking �25,565 to get there and then he dropped out the grain of sand flew back and pick up another gray sand and flew back 25,506, five years in about 30 minutes and then flew back $25,000 in five years and did that until every grain of sand on every beach in the world was now all of her than on the Pluto is that we finally finish that assignment. That would be the first day of eternity. How long is eternity and how do you not look at your life like James says in James four. That is just like the morning paper that comes on your mouth when it's a cold morning and you blow out and it just appears for a moment, he says, and then it is gone only when you learn to think that way we develop the right attitude toward life where the hearing you're listening to pastor JD Greer on Senate life pastor JD you emphasize that we can have both God and money in our lives. We can't serve them both.

One of them will be at the center. One of them will be our body. So how does the discipline of memorizing Scripture or any other spiritual discipline, for that matter, how best to make sure that God is first and that he is the center of our lives.

For most of us problem.

Molly is not that we don't know how valuable the Bible is a problem is we've never brought our practice, we never considered her practice and whether it's in line with our beliefs, I've always love what Moses said in Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 3247.

These are not idle words.

Moses says it is your life and your ability to live spiritually your ability to know God. Your ability that could guide others around you into life is directly related to how well you know this book will be done as we put together a pack of 50 memory pushcart for you some of my most cherished versus it comes with a magnet so that you can switch them out in your refrigerator, your filing cabinet and say it to yourself until it becomes a part of your not sure Hartmut, your consciousness and love. I would invite and there are very few things that our listeners can do that would would would do as much for their spiritual life is this, I would love to give you a copy this you can go and reserve yours@jdm.com and we celebrate this fat and 50 memory verse cards and matching magnets are our way taking our appreciation for tangible. This will be a resource that will take you through the entire year in behind let's get back to you today is perfect to use as a weekly memory verse to carry with just his daily encouragement, you can share with all things new memory verse cards comes with our thanks when you donate today to support this ministry help more people into the gospel each and every day and request that I one more time at 86635 that when you donate online Greer.com, and Molly motivates you to listen again Tuesday as we dive deeper into Luke chapter 6 on Senate life with teeny rearing