FIRST THINGS FIRST

My Pastor spoke to us today, about making sure we have our priorities straight.  He used the illustration of a modern day genie who, because of inflation, could only afford to grant a single wish to those who rubbed his lamp.  The genie said the only wish he would not grant, was a wish for more wishes.  He then asked us what our wish would be if we found the genies' lamp. 

That was really a tough one!  There are so many things going on in the world which need to be stopped:  wars, famine, disease, poverty, murders, rapes, etc.; basically, our world is filled with total selfishness, lawlessness, and depravity!  Using my one wish to eliminate any one of these, would still leave a world filled with suffering. 

I could wish for everyone to begin loving everyone else, and that would certainly stop all of those things, except for perhaps disease.  Even so, without wars and crime, think of how much money would be available for medical research!  Like humanity at the Tower of Babel, there is no limit to what a united human race could accomplish (Gen. 11:1-6).

Even if mankind was able to eliminate all of its woes, man would still face the inevitable:  death.  That is why many in the congregation would use their one wish on getting their lost family members and friends saved.  Few would include their enemies in their wish for salvation; after all, not everyone will be saved on judgment day.  Even Jesus knew that regardless of how salvation was offered to the lost, many would reject it, and even though God's Word tells us that God wants none to perish, but for all to turn to Him from their sin (2 Pet. 3:9), we all know that the majority would reject His free gift of salvation (Mt. 7:13-14; Jn. 1:12; 3:16; Rom. 10:9-10; Eph. 2:8-9; etc.).

Pastor's sermon was based on Matthew 6:33, which says, "But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."  What I got out of it, was that before we try to fix a broken world, we need to make certain that we don't need to use our wish on ourselves!  We need to make sure we are acceptable in God's Kingdom, by receiving Jesus Christ and HIS righteousness (2 Cor. 5:21); our own righteousness, no matter how hard we try, is as "filthy rags" (Isa. 64:6)!  Once we are clothed in HIS righteousness, once we are in His Kingdom, once He is our King, we will want our every thought, word, and deed, to be pleasing unto Him!  AND, the lost will see Christ in us, and hunger for what He has given us!

Seek to be what others will desire to be!