We saw yesterday how Jesus said one goal mattered more than even day to day concerns like food and clothing: his kingdom.  He said, “seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added to you.”  What does that mean?

First of all, it doesn’t mean seek only God’s kingdom as some spiritual distant concept and ignore the realities of day to day life.  Jesus doesn’t meant we should never eat or sleep, or that those things are inherently bad.   He says quite clearly, when we seek first the kingdom, “then all these will be added to you.”  He knows we need them, and wants to be the one to give them to us, but in their proper perspective.

For example, consider food.  We need food to live, and good food is an enjoyable part of living.  But that good thing can be made into an ultimate thing, and when that happens, it becomes a very bad thing.  When we elevate food to become more than it was meant to be, and it becomes our source of comfort, emotional stability, we are in both physical and spiritual danger.

Instead, Jesus challenges us to seek kingdom of God.  God is the creator sustainer of the whole world, including its food sources.  He created, called it good, and wants us to enjoy the world’s sustenance so we can do our daily work and enjoy his provision.  When we find our true satisfaction in God, then we can enjoy good things for what they are…we don’t have to overdo it, and we don’t have to hate it.  This applies to food, and any number of other good things God created.

In the Christianity 101 course, we sometimes illustrate this with a wagon wheel.  The hub is special – it’s particularly strong, and has a unique shape to do its job.  The spokes are meant to be all connected with, and delivering power from the hub to the rim.

If we try to remove the hub and replace it with a spoke, you know what happens, it all falls apart.  It’s the same with our lives.  We were made to have God at the center of our lives, providing meaning and purpose to the whole.  Unfortunately the human race tried to remove God from the center long ago, and have been trying to shove spokes in ever since, whether it be money, career, sexuality, power, or any other good thing God created that can be abused.  This is a good definition of sin: When we take good things, try to make them our ultimate good, and that’s ultimately really bad for us.

Question: Make a list of good things in our world that can be abused.

Reminder: We are reading the Bible in sync as one community – so check out today’s reading here.

Reminder: The best way to grow spiritually this year is to join our Christianity 101 in the Cafe Course in Pickering starting tonight. Register for you and a friend today!

Read the Bible in Sync Today

Ryan Sim - February 5, 2014

Wednesday - Change It - Reset: Money

This week we’re trying to see the difference between a follower of Jesus, and someone else, in terms of how we see and use money. Maybe you’ve seen a video going around the Internet with Kevin O’Leary, of Dragon’s Den, saying it’s just fantastic that the richest 85 people in the world have as much wealth as the 3.5 billion poorest. He says it’s fantastic because it will inspire the poor to get rich themselves. We’ve attached it if you’d like to watch. The Bible thinks quite differently about the relationship between rich and poor, in the passage that immediately follows what we read yesterday: As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life. (1 Timothy 6:17-19 ESV) Paul uses the same language Jesus is known for using – he refers to storing up treasure in heaven. When we are generous, sharing with those in need, we are actually doing something of real value and eternal value that Paul calls a good foundation for the future. That is truly life. When others hoard, they are missing the point. They are living a false life with limited value and longevity. Finding that balance is of course always hard. How much is enough to gain, save, and give? Yesterday’s reading set a low bar: But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. I have always liked a sermon preached by John Wesley centuries ago on the topic of money, that could be summed up as: Gain all you can, save all you can, give all you can. In isolation, each part would bring destruction, but together they make sense. You have to make money to be generous, but if you pursue making too much, you will crash or lose faith. You also have to save money to give money – wisely spending to have some left over, and by having stability in order to help others. Question: How else do you think a follower of Jesus looks at money differently from someone else? How does gaining/saving/giving all you can impact retirement, debt, etc. Why?

From Series: "Reset"

When our computers get bogged down and unmanageable, we know to hit a reset button to simply start over. Wouldn't a reset button be great in life? We know it would be complicated, with all our responsibilities and routines to consider, but imagine the freedom and refreshment of a new start in life! What would you do differently? What would you pay more attention to, and what would you ignore? How would you avoid getting bogged down and broken again? The great news is, in coming to earth as Jesus Christ, God has begun to "reset" our universe, our world, and even us. We're invited to start over with him, in what he calls his kingdom. We're invited to start a new life with a clean slate. What gets wiped clean, and lived differently, when God resets our lives? We'll explore how God resets these key areas of our lives: Reset: Goals Reset: Time Reset: Money Reset: Work Reset: Body & Food Reset: Sex & Marriage Reset: Family Reset: Compassion Reset: Nature Reset: Society Reset: Death Join us for the next several weeks, and invite God to reset your life.

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