Sermons
Focused On First Things
Series: The Way Of The CrossFOCUSED ON FIRST THINGS
Sermon By Terry Siverd
Cortland Church of Christ / September 09, 2018
We've selected eight words (I chose six and you added two) to discuss what it means to travel the way of the cross.
We're not claiming that these eight words (dispositions/lifestyles/character qualities) are
all-encompassing, but they will help us greatly in defining and clarifying true discipleship.
Last Sunday we addressed the importance of sincerity.
If strong threads of sincerity are not deeply interwoven into all we do, we will not do what we do well.
This morning I want to speak about single-mindedness.
This topic is probably one of our most difficult challenges.
It is easy to title a sermon, “Focused On First Things” - - and doing so will likely evoke numerous “amens”.
But the hard part is deciding what FIRST THINGS really are.
A number of Scriptures come to mind when we think of single-minedness.
Here are three that we might readily recite:
Mt.6:33 / Seek first His kingdom and His righteous; and all these things will be added to you.
Col.3:2 / Set your mind on the things above, not on the the things that are on the earth.
Philp.3:13 / this one thing I do...
Here again, these Scriptures may be easy to quote, but they are not-so-easily implemented.
So what does it really mean to focus on first things?
What does it mean to seek first His kingdom?
What does it mean to set your mind on things above?
What is this one thing we are to do?
WHAT IS MEANT BY “FIRST” THINGS?
When I began my junior year at Harding University one of the first things (chronologically) I saw was Jeannie.
Our social club (fraternity) was the Knights.
In the interest of being chivalrous we had a custom of helping the girls move into their dorms.
For the most part, boys' dorms were off limits to girls and girls' dorms were off limits to guys.
This time of the year brought a rare exception, so we capitalized on the occasion.
In my particular case, the idea that “you never knew who you might meet”, was never more true.
Some might say it was a chance meeting.
Actually, I was helping some Ashtabula girls (sisters in Christ) truck their gear up a couple flights of stairs.
But it just so happened that a beautiful young lass from middle Tennessee was coincidentally assigned to
be one of their roommates. In retrospect, I would be foolish to rule out that this was the providence of God.
That incidental meeting took a few months to blossom into something quite serious.
But my point in all of this is to ask, “what this a FIRST thing”?
Was it okay (right) for me to focus on this first thing?
Two years earlier one of my first things was focused on getting into Knights.
And even before that one of the first things I had to do was to “declare a major”.
I decided to major in Bible and Psychology.
My point is simply this: life is full of first things and quite a few of them are important things.
It is dangerous (and sometimes foolish) to try to cubby-hole first things.
So from the outset we can ascertain that being focused on first things is not just a chronological undertaking.
And neither is it a solitary decision made is a vacuum void of numerous other things.
This leads us to a popular text (frequently referenced when talking about priorities) - - Lk.10:38-42
Now as they were traveling along, (Jesus) entered a certain village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into
her home. And she had a sister called Mary, who moreover was listening to the Lord's word, seated at His feet.
But Martha was distracted will all her preparations; and she came up to Him, and said,
'Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.'
But the Lord answered and said to her, 'Martha, Martha, you are worried about so many things; but only a few
things are necessary, really only one, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.'
I have used this passage often, but I have always had a few lingering questions.
Is Martha getting a bad rap?
She “welcomed” Jesus and she subsequently got busy with “all the preparations”.
This reminds me a bit of our covered-dish luncheons. On these Sundays our kitchen crew people often
leave the sanctuary early (after the sermon) to begin to get things in order. It's not that they don't like the
closing song and closing prayer, but they have some (important) work to do and they want to do it conscientiously.
I suppose, in light of this passage, if they skipped out during the sermon we would need to reprimand them.
One might conclude that Martha suffered from ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) or maybe even
ADHD (Attention Deficit Hypertension Disorder) - - she was “worried and bothered about so many things”.
But what about Mary?
Did Jesus not say that whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant (Mk.10:43)?
And didn't Solomon extol the virtue of diligence - - whatever you hand finds to do, do it with all your might (Eccl.9:10)?
And what did Jesus mean when He said, “only a few things are necessary?”
Which ones? A man has to eat, doesn't he?
And why did Jesus equivocate and then declare, “really only one!”
It seems to me that this is a case of “timing is everything”.
To focus on first things sometimes we have to block out (or at least, minimize) other things.
In this instance, Mary received a “gold star” - - she chose to sit at the feet of Jesus and listen.
Jesus once responded to one of Satan's temptations by quoting:
Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.
Jesus could have intervened using a different approach.
He could have said from the start, “I want to share some words of life with you, so if you don't mind,
please give Me you undivided attention and then later on we'll fix some supper and eat together.”
He could have told Mary, “Martha is right and you need to help her. Let's pause and we'll continue later.”
But He didn't. The story seems to be recorded with the notion that we've got to figure out what's really “first”.
John's gospel closes with an account of Jesus fixing breakfast on the seashore (Jn.21:9f), while the disciples were
fishing in their boats. It's not wrong to busy oneself with meal preparations.
The challenge before us how to stay focused in the midst of so many life events.
This past summer, I watched Sydney Jeanne overwhelmed at times with her little ones (Mia, Charlotte & Cienna).
As much as we would like it to be so, life is not linear - - multiple things happen at the same time.
The key question is this: “how do we stay focused on first things - - even in the midst of chaos?”
If you are looking to me to provide a simple and tidy answer to this question, you will be sorely disappointed.
There isn't one. Life is not simple and it is seldom tidy. We just have to find a way to do it - -
to stay focused on the things above while we are immersed in a life filled with things below.
Col.3:1 / If you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above...
Perhaps the most helpful image is that of a Christian mother.
Endless diapers to change … A never-ending pile of clothes to laundry … Dust bunnies that run rampant …
Carpet stains everywhere you look … A meal to prepare … A kitchen to clean up after the meal …
Another meal to prepare … School assignments to supervise … Baths to give … Kids to dress …
A mother's work is never done … but through all the distractions, the focus of it all is to raise up godly children.
In Eph.6:7-8, Paul writes words to slaves or servants. He admonishes them saying,
With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever
good thing each one does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether slave or free.
Sometimes as a minister, sermon prep time can become a struggle.
You block out time in your Daytimer specifically for sermon prep and then the interruptions seem to pour in.
I once read an essay on this and the writer noted that “the interruptions are what ministry is all about.”
Really, that is quite profound.
So when our lives seem to be overflowing with chaos and disorder, let us remember that
such present opportunities to hone our sense of priority and to clarify what we're all about.
Bubba Watson is a Pensacola native who is also a pro golfer (a lefty who has owns two green jackets (Masters).
He was born in Bagdad, FL. Played on the golf team of Milton High School.
He now owns an ice cream store in Pensacola and a Chevy dealership in Milton.
He is also part-owner of the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (a minor league baseball team).
He plans to one day run for office as the Mayor of Pensacola.
He describes himself in this way (notice the order):
Christian … Husband … Daddy … Professional Golfer … Underwear Model.
As disciples of Jesus, whatever we do we must FIRST be Christians.
Whatever you do in word of deed, do all in the name of the Lord, giving thanks through Him to God the father.
(Col.3:17)
If I were required to boil down what I have said this morning, it would translate into this.
Being focused on first things is not so much an emphasis on things in particular,
whether things chronological or solitary, it's more about the big picture.
It's cultivating a vision and a steady mindset to recognize that the things of Christ
are not only to be predominate, but that they are preeminent and chief.
Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things that don't really matter.
The words that we must all long to hear are, “well done, thou good and faithful servant” (Mt.25:21).
When people come to our funerals to pay their final respects, let us have so lived that any eulogistic
words or thoughts about us will reflect a clear recognition that our life was CHRIST-CENTERED - -
that in the midst of a life filled with many things, nothing was more important to us than following Jesus.
