First in Everything

On Sunday night with Ginny Greer. God does not want your religion. God does not want your moral behavior. God does not want your ties and your offering God want your surrender.

He deserves the first place, you and are accepted by the free gift of Jesus, but he purchased us from death. What that means is because he's first and he went first. He deserved the first place in everything.

Not church.not the prayer stop song stopped. He wanted all my pastor. I'm your host Molly made a batch no. I think sometimes we view our faith as a bunch of checkboxes on the list we go to church on the weekends and check that box, prayer, dinner and check that box and move on with our day right now pastor Ginny reminds us that Jesus isn't one part of our life is first in everything. He's not only at the top of the list is actually the whole so that's what he titled today's message first in everything. Let's join the five week series.

Colossians called first.

Our hope in this season is that you will have a defining moment where you choose to put Jesus first in the area of your time, your talent and your treasures.

We are working away to the book of Colossians because Paul's theme in this great little letter is that Jesus ought to be first in our lives because Jesus was first in creation.

He literally created everything is God's way. First, in creation, then Paul explains he went first in salvation.

He sought us when we were looking for him. Therefore, Paul says he should be first in our prioritization. Jesus is first he went first.

Therefore, we should put him first.

Today going to see how Paul instructs the Colossians to put Jesus first in the 90% of their lives that don't take place in church or little I really have any religious overtones whatsoever. The first quarter. Colossians 3 what we saw was that Paul explains that the Colossians thought of their lives in buckets. Okay, so think of this is called the Jesus bucket Jesus bucket here and that's the bucket that no eternal salvation goes in men. Jesus is important in this bucket you have in the right place but then they had the everything else bucket and that was all the things outside of religion job security and prosperity in and us satisfaction and success in their relationship, and it's not that they take Jesus out of these things.

It's just that they thought of him as not that relevant when it came to those particular questions. What Paul explains in the book of Colossians. What is in the middle of explainer chapter 3 is that Jesus is actually the whole bucket right so everything else goes inside of Jesus and not to put Jesus first in everything means that he's first and not just the areas of eternal salvation religion but these first in every relationship and every decision that you make.

This has profound implications for us to take notes. I want you to write down the title of this message is simply first in everything person everything Paul is going to pick up in verse 12, where he is explaining that we have a new identity, a new identity that should redefine every interaction that we have here is what he begins to say in verse 12. Therefore, as God's chosen ones that see you holy and clearly loved put on compassion and kindness, humility, gentleness and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another. If anybody has a grievance against another, just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also are to forget that your new identity were people that have been deeply loved, forgiven, and therefore that you shape how you focus, or how you respond in any situation. Many Ghana gets to his conclusion. Number 17 where he says whatever you do whatever you do in word or indeed to everything. How many things everything, literally everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him in every interaction, not just the spiritual ones are the church lines of the religious one and literally everything that you do, you should be able to say in the name of the Lord Jesus, by the way a lot of Christians will close the prayers that they pray with this little phrase in Jesus's name amen little insider secret if you're new to Christianity. Most Christians don't have the foggiest idea what that means or why they say it if anything they think it's a way of signaling to God that you're about done with your prayer flexing TTYL over taxes like a calculator God just want you to know I'm into this prayer and I'm landing the plane that is not the point of saying in Jesus's name.

When you say in Jesus's name what you're saying is God. I'm acknowledging that I'm asking for these things. According to Jesus's will. I'm doing them for Jesus's glory and I'm going to accomplish them in Jesus's power. What Paul is saying is that we ought to be able to say that phrase over literally everything that we do with me to sit down at your desk chair in the open inbox to begin the day when you said that first email you can send it out. The subject line in Jesus's name you meet up with a friend for lunch. You can tell them the reservation that you to go under unity in Jesus's name, person tries to merge in traffic ahead of you. You can let them in. In Jesus's name.

You get off work early to go see a movie with a friend or play golf you can do that in Jesus's name literally everything that you do.

You need to be able say over it in Jesus's name. Now be clear I am not advocating that you actually start verbalizing that because that would sound weird your Starbucks.

Your Plan B will reset you like in Jesus's name.

Christians already are thought of as weird enough, don't start that because there were things were crazy or don't do that.

But the point is closing in literally every interaction you can do it in Jesus's name, which means everything that you know you can do first and foremost as an offering to Jesus and every word that you say every breath that you breathe every movement you make.

Yes, he's watching you and yes you can do it first and foremost for him.

Paul then goes on to unpack what that looks like in a series of honestly rather mundane, typical relationships that every Colossian would've had in their lives and that you have in your life for most of them. Alisa got wise with husbands and husbands with wives and children to parents and servants to Masters a master servant incident bullies the bosses and bosses to employees basically about it. Everybody is a friend of mine says everybody is going to participate in these kinds relationship and the point is, every interaction in every second of these relationship is done first and foremost to Jesus, you might look like you were doing things for that person into that person, but you're actually doing those things in first and foremost for Jesus because in your life you have an audience of one, and he is the first person you respond to anything we brings a section will really powerful close verse 23 when he says whatever you know, whatever you do from the heart is something done for the Lord and not for people knowing that you will receive the reward of inheritance from the Lord, because you you serve the Lord Christ at church will certainly their course in ministry.

We, yes, there also. But not just those places literally in every place every step, every word, every thought is first and foremost done as an offering to him when you are making a decision about how to respond to that person that cut you off in traffic, you are responsive. First and foremost to Jesus. You might feel like that person does not deserve your patience and they may not. But the question is what Jesus deserves and what you do is first and foremost an offering to him when you are pursuing your job.

Verse 22. You're doing it first and foremost as an offering to Jesus, your boss might be a jerk, a total jerk and he or she may not even recognize the value you bring to the company and may not pay you what you're worth. And there is certainly a time for you to take that up and address that with them later. What you are doing your work, your work is done first and foremost not for him or her.

It's done for Jesus, your boss may not deserve your best. Jesus always does when I'm figuring out how to respond to my wife.

Verse 19, who is been unfairly impatient with me all day.

I am responding. First and foremost to Jesus. I may not feel like she deserved a kind and tender response. He always does, she may feel like her husband does not deserve another day of her faithful patient service and love that he's taken her for granted again for the 1000 time and that he doesn't deserve any more patients, and that might be true.

But Jesus dies and she responds first and foremost to him not to me. Children verse 20 your parent or your parents may not be perfect. I can assure you, especially if your last name is Greer that they are not.

They are not perfect but they are the God appointed authority in your life at this time. What Paul is saying is how you obey them, and how you respect them is how you respect and respond to him.

You respond to to him first and foremost had only took them. Secondly, by the way, please understand that none of this. None of this that I'm going over is instructing you to stay in some kind of abusive relationship. If you are in one of those abusive types of relationship she got questions about that you let somebody know immediately. Enabling abuse is not loving to the abuser. It's not loving to you and it's not honoring to God. What Paul simply means is that in the course of normal relationships, normal relationships, we do what we do. First and foremost as an offering to Jesus that applies, he says literally to everything. Whatever you do whatever you do, do it from the heart.

Something done for the Lord, not for people. Whether it's your schoolwork or whether it's your your your your hobbies or your playtime or whatever. Do it for Jesus, not just the spiritual church parts of your life.

There is not one square inch of your entire life over which Jesus does not emphatically declare my told you before the dilemma of many people try to figure out what it means to serve Jesus in their jobs is applicable to some really crazy ideas I told you before 2004 Wall Street Journal article on American Airlines pilot window with his church on a mission trip to Guatemala all fired up for Jesus} company comes back in his hotel by the Jesus of his American Airlines pilot to their taxing on the runway you down there in Atlanta gets on the on the inner comedies. It will trigger surveys like hey folks on just want know will quickly take off your plane are born-again Christians painful people sort of you sheepishly raise her hand. He's like great he's I can't see you, but I'm sure there's some of you on the plane because I got a question for the rest of you if we will make it to our destination at this point blows up in midair.

Do you know for sure what can happen to you when you die rises.

If not, I would invite you to talk to one of these people to just raise their hand and asked him to explain you the way to eternal life not to commit to God for his zeal right we want to share Christ anywhere and everywhere. But that's not what we're talking about right.

Yes, you should look for places an opportunity to share Christ. Hi, I am not doing that. I'm just telling you that when Paul says to do what you do in the name of the Lord Jesus.

He's not only talking about that if I got on that you thought about that all what he's talking about is the way the choose your pilot take off in a way that you land in the way that you treat people what your flight and even the way that you try to train up other people to share the power and privilege that you have enjoyed that's all to be done in the name of the Lord Jesus, it's all to be done for him.

Is he here is the alternative again. The alternative is that you compartmentalize your life and you got a Jesus bucket and and will belong to Jesus goes there.

This is what the Colossians did at the salvation religious life bucket and of course Jesus comfort with any and all this other stuff, job satisfaction, relational success or just your happiness in life and you think Jesus is something that relevant. There can you not like you don't like rejecting them or denying them. You think he's not that important to be first, they think of them a little bit but not first the ball says no he is first used first in everything Jesus is. First he went first, and therefore he should come first in your life. You see, when you think of your life and buckets you tend to think of religion has this set of obligations that you gotta fulfill in order to have freedom and autonomy and blessing over in these areas and so you tend to think of questions like how much do I have to go to church in order to keep God happy.

What's like the new standard in our day. What I gotta do to keep God happy or you ask questions like how morally do I have to live much like gagging for God's good side jungle green curve so let's occur you make sure the rights of the bell curve to make sure that you get a passing grade. Or you think questions like how much of my money do I have to give in order to got off my back right meeting of your giving, like a God tax but you gotta pay to God to the jingle on the freedom and life. I met so I think about my normal taxes right I am you, I think. How much do I have to give the IRS what how much do I have to give so that they will leave me alone with the other part of the money that I have so people think of when they think of this Jesus bucket arrears of the got freedom over here.

Paul says no Christ owns it all because Jesus is first and he went first because he saved you. Therefore you ought to be doing his will you be coming first as much in these areas as he is in this one because ultimately everything is done in the name of the Lord Jesus is first and foremost as an offering to him you live for an audience of one.

You respond to one person is first he went first.

Therefore, he should be first in everything their story in the Old Testament of a man who exemplifies this buckets approach to God.

It is a man that you may recognize his name emphatically shares a name with the author of Colossians. Paul's previous name was Saul and I can prove you that Paul think about Saul hero clutches. Chapter 3, but he certainly could a man because Saul exemplifies what Paul is writing against. Colossians chapter 3 Saul's story is a very tragic one. He was the first king in Israel. It actually started out pretty awesome that he was chosen to be king because he was super good-looking and because of his outstanding moral character had a great reputation.

He literally stood head and shoulders above everybody else. He was the obvious choice for King humans all that there is "not a single person in all of Israel was surprised at first, things went awesome but he was happy his first hundred days were amazing. There a lot of victories. Everybody was thinking Saul's praises then we come.

The first Samuel 15 which epitomizes his wife Samuel who is the prophet of God. At the time says to King Saul thus says the Lord of host. I have noted what Amalek did Israel in opposing them on the way. When they came up out of Egypt. Verse three number would strike Amalek ago to destruction all that they have little historical context here. The Amalekites were the sworn and perpetual enemies of Israel. As you can see this versus him and all the way back to the Exodus when Israel was fleeing Egypt without a standing army.

They didn't have any weapons. They were vulnerable. They have enough food to make it throughout the day, the Amalekites, all them in this vulnerable position and thought let's go let's go take yourself so they cannot attack Israel will God delivered Israel from Amalekites, but God never forgot them taking advantage of the vulnerable and to make matters worse for the next three or 400 years more often than not what it was attacking the Israelites. He was always the Amalekites is about first same 15 godlike. That's it. I've had that's not this is a cruel violet and exploited people would discriminate.

It's over the Amalekites and finished so I want you Saul to go and take Israel's armies and I want you to destroy them right very important. This was not supposed to be a revenge war for Israel. This was divine judgment. God had simply chosen Israel to be his instrument and that judgment therefore God told Saul do not touch anything of the Amalekites. This nonsense get rich off this war. This was to be no spoils of war here. This is not about you. This is about me, this is my judgment against them.

You are simply the instrument don't touch their stuff think Saul goes and does what God says sort of verse seven, Saul defeated the Amalekites, but Saul and the people spared a gag that was the king of the Amalekites and the best of the sheep of the oxen and of the fat calves and lambs and all that was good thing that they like and all the nice clothes and their Air Jordan shoes and so I got it for themselves and they would not utterly destroy the notable textual notes here will move on to you my Miss Percival chair in a God was not an act of mercy. In those days to keep an enemy king in your dungeon alive was like a trophy that when you hunt you put in the deer head up on the walls of the like that little what I've conquered is a really cool jeans would have a bunch of other kings in their basements and their dungeons. So when at a party they can bring about midnight look at all we can get back I was always doing his equipment.

King's basement so that he could show everybody how awesome he is. Second, you can see this in English with that verb spared in Hebrew is singular. Even though Saul and the people would be plural. That would make sense in English but in Hebrew. It's always an indication that it applies to the first subject and not the second to what you're seeing is that this decision to spare a gag all the cool stuff was not the people's decision.

It was all Saul said this is all about him. Okay so first Tim Godfrey same his spokesperson and he says thing I regret that I made Saul king because he is turned back from following me and is not for my commandments to Samuel rises up early the morning to meet Saul and his sample gets close to her. Saul is it's told the same will Saul is going to Carmel get this goal you set up a monument for himself through Saul think this whole thing is about. I thought about God is about him. We set up a monument for himself. So Saul, here's a single coming out so Saul goes out to meet him and he says you think the money is turned into Blessed be the Lord, I have performed all the commandments of the Lord bless you in a minute. Aleta Samuel was more of a get right down to business, guy he just gets all the pleasantries and says well that if you have performed the commandment of the Lord which was to destroy everything that belong to the Amalekites, then what then is this bleating of the sheep in my years of not knowing of the oxen that I hear and kind as you have never Air Jordan's on your feet.

Where does come from Saul, and Saul says will hold all Donald Duck, they have brought them as they the people from Amalekites. Now you know why noted out monument to go to Saul that not good people, but solely it was them not make they brought in for the Amalekites for the people spared the best of the sheep and the oxbows of the demand they want to do and he didn't want to do it all the sacrifice of the Lord your God the rest. The rest of it. We have devoted to destruction.

Just like God said Some of the really good stuff back because Wanda wanted to tithe on it and so we gave God, his tax angle so don't worry about it. We give God is do we gave God the sheep and oxen, so I'm sure he's happy. Verse 16 and same, said Saul. It shut up the Lord since you want to missionary said go devote to destruction the center of the Amalekites and bite against them until they are consumed. Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord, why did you pounce on the spoil. Why did you treat what belong to God to belong to you. You stole it and now you know what was evil in the side of the Lord, why did you see for yourself. Anything that belong to God for salsa discriminate better to make you still understand.

I have obeyed the voice of the Lord. I went on the mission on which the Lord sent me. I did 98% of what he asked me to do and I viewed in high him on the rest of it in single said Saul Golden State always sent chills down my spine has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as interest obeying the voice of the Lord. This is what God wants Saul got us aboard and poured loan limit is up in heaven. You want some sheep and some oxen is that what it's about, behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and just listen to what God says is better than all the fat of rams. Know and then one of the most jolting verses in all of Scripture for rebellion is as the sin of divination, sorcery, or some your translations say witchcraft and presumption which means that you do with what you have what you want instead of what God wants presumption is as iniquity or idolatry, worshiping another godlike bow now know what I don't want to let this sink in for a minute to take any part of what belongs to God and act like it belongs to you is tantamount to worshiping the devil even if you tied on even if your super awesome moral person and you are the best of the best, even if you come to church every week. And even if you never miss small group because God does not want your religion. God does not want your moral behavior. God does not want your ties and your offering. God wants your surrender.

He deserves the first place is to thank God that you and I are no longer accepted like Saul thought he was to be accepted by how much you forgot you, and are accepted by the free gift of Jesus because he purchased us from death.

What that means is because he's first and he went first Peter serves the first place in everything.

Not the church.not the prayer stop. Another song stopped. He wanted all and Erin everything that I do in every relationship I have every step that I call my own. In every every breath that I breathe. I am obeying living board seeking to glorify him in everything I do observed in responding to him and whatever you do, Paul says whatever whatever you do do. It's in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to the father.

Whatever you do, do it from the heart is something done for the Lord and not for somebody else. Jesus told a story. The New Testament where he makes almost the exact same point very rich man could win a trip we choose three of the servants believes different amounts of money with how one of these five talents talent.

Think of it like $10,000-$50,000. One got to talents to the next guys $20,000.

When God gives $10,000 and since all of what you take this and what you invested in my kingdom and I want you to know what is money, and so the first guy goes and does what the master says 65 talents turns into 10,000 I got $100,000 so you got tickets to Georgia before the third got it with one count he scared because he's afraid to lose money. We did the holy berries. So master comes back and he gets from the first guy the 10 talents of these as well done good and faithful servant you did with what yourself. What I wanted it says a maintenance I got from the third Dr. God digs up a stop and to back them what Jesus says has always deeply disturbed me master looks at the servant and he says you wicked servant here's my question. What wicked thing. Had he done all he did was take the money and give it back.

The only conclusion that I can have it or you can have is that there's more than one way to be wicked in the kingdom of God.

Listen to this way.

Number one is you can be wicked through an egregious violation of the 10 Commandments right is a way to be with that is you don't use your time your talent in your treasures for the purposes for which God has given plaintiff Christ first airlines getting to know him through his word. Well, we had a new division of Scripture guide that will know God better as we navigate the difficult emotions that we deal with is called smoke from a fire and tomorrow is the last day to reserve your copy 10 day devotional and Scripture guide when you get today. The suggested level at $35 or more way of saying thanks for your financial support ministry possible to join our team of monthly gospel partners or get a one-time gift today and asked for your copy. 520-335-5220 or you can request new work but resource online here.com hi Molly for events and I'm so glad tomorrow is teaching theories through the collection here on Sunday night. Clear 90