“Now to him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us” (Ephesians 3:20 – King James Version) My genuine hope and primary purpose for the Ephesians 3:20 Faith Encouragement and Empowerment Blog is to assist all people of faith, regardless of your prism of experience, to grow spiritually toward unconditional self-acceptance and develop personally acquiring progressive integrity of belief and lifestyle. I pray you will discover your unique purpose in life. I further pray love, joy, peace, happiness and unreserved self-acceptance will be your constant companions. Practically speaking, this blog will help you see the proverbial glass in life as always half full rather than half empty. I desire you become an eternal optimist who truly believes that Almighty God can do anything that you ask or imagine.

Monday, July 25, 2011

God, The Ultimate Concern


“Faith is the state of being ultimately concerned: the dynamics of faith are the dynamics of man’s ultimate concern.”  The systematic theologian, Paul Tillich, begins his enduring classic, Dynamics of Faith, with those compelling words. 

In layperson’s terms, a vibrant faith means God is our ultimate concern.  In accordance with “The Great Commandment” which Matthews 22:34-40 records, He is the number one priority.   No one is able to usurp God’s place.  We serve Him with whole hearts and minds.  We direct time, talent, treasure and temperament to expansion of God’s kingdom on earth. 

To become great people of God, we prioritize our relationship with God above everything else!  God will not settle for a niche in our schedules of daily and weekly busyness.  Disciples live under the Lordship of Jesus Christ who graciously and liberally gives abundant and eternal life.  In the next life, God will sanction the choices we make in this life throughout eternity.  If we do not make Him the ultimate concern of in this life, we will not enjoy His eternal presence in the next life. 

Nothing will truly change for the better until we put God first in our lives!  Notwithstanding personalities, music, length of service, sermon delivery or attendance rates, if we do not commit truly to seeking God, we continually flounder in spiritual aimlessness.  The lure of the world’s fleeting riches and misty fame usurps God.  Apparently, we commit to everything but our relationship with God, spiritual growth and personal development.  We rarely miss a social function.  Work easily becomes a priority.  Church attendance and service subordinate to any moneymaking opportunity.  When we come to church, we expect entertainment as if we are in a nightclub, comedy club, symphony, theater or other secular venue.  These personal preferences simply cloak the hard-core reality that God is not the ultimate concern of our lives. 

In Matthew 6:33, the Lord Jesus Christ says, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.”  It saddens the heart of God because we spend the overwhelming majority of our time and energy pursuing temporal riches.  Instead, we desire Him with our whole hearts.  It, furthermore, troubles Almighty God that He is merely one item on our “to do list.”  We pencil Him in on our calendar once or twice a month.  In some instances, we check in with Him once every six to eight weeks.  Some of us consult with Him on the semi-annual plan.  Nonetheless, I believe God cries at the utter waste of our spirits in search of worldly riches and fame.  He straightforwardly promises us everything the world offers, if we seek Him first and foremost.

The first commandment, Exodus 20:2-6, tells us God is a jealous god.  He will have no other gods before Him.  God allows stress and dissatisfaction when we put other people and things in front of Him.  We cannot expect abundance in any aspect of life when we subordinate Almighty God to our personal preferences.  He will not idly accept second place. 

Rather, He allows the consequences of our choices.  We do not receive joy and fulfillment in worship.  The psalmist exhorts us, “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.”  God did not design worship to be an absorptive experience.  We bring an offering of praise and thanksgiving.  Interestingly, we receive only if we first give.  Worship is a time in which we personally and communally give God praise for His steadfast love and enduring faithfulness.  Moreover, we gather to affirm unequivocally that Jesus is Lord and therefore our ultimate concern.

It is my heartfelt prayer we actualize “The Greatest Commandment.”  In Matthew 22:34-40, Jesus answers a query about the furthermost law.  He says, “Love the Lord your God with all of your heart and with all of your soul and with all of your mind and with all of your strength.  This is the first and greatest commandment.”  Nothing and no one should be able to displace his primary place in our affections. 




Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)