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1998-02-04 - Decisions, Decisions, Decisions
Ever wonder how many decisions you make in a day? Take a moment and think
about it. The obvious ones come to mind first -- what to wear, what to eat,
what work needs to be done first at home, school or in the marketplace. I
am not a big fan of grocery shopping (but sometimes I do it with an ulterior
motive of course, to get stuff I want!), but gee whiz, recently trying to
buy cereal for my Tuesday morning Bible study was a
decision-maker's nightmare. There is fat-free with sugar, fat-free low sugar,
low-fat, high sugar, wheat versus oat, and on and on! Then the milk, good
heavens -- .5%, 1%, 1.5%, 2%, 0% , whole milk, butter milk, milk with something
I can't spell added to it, and so forth. Argh! Decisions, decisions, decisions.
The above decisions are not life-changing or even monumental. What about
all the what I call the "defining moment" decisions? What about the seemingly
gray-area decisions that affect our walk with Jesus, and in my opinion more
importantly affect the people around us that may be less mature spiritually
or even just spiritual seekers? The kids around my church are wearing these
"WWJD" (What Would Jesus Do?) bracelets. And I think it is a great question
to ask before making any decisions, but gee sometimes, I ask the question
"what would Jesus do" and I get a cloudy answer. Maybe its because the answer
I get is not the answer I want to hear. : )
So, in studying 1 Corinthians chapter 10, three principles jumped out at
me and from these principles three decision-making questions stood out for
me. Let's take a look at them.
1 Corinthians 10:24 (NASB) Let no one seek his own good,
but that of his neighbor.
Paul is telling his readers, Live unselfishly. Don't live just to satisfy
yourself, but to seek good for your neighbor. It's the same thing you have
heard me say many times before, "Love God, Love People." We are all doing
the Lord's business 24 hours a day, and folks, the Lord grants no vacation
time from His business.
1 Corinthians 10:16-17 (TLB) When we ask the Lord's blessing
upon our drinking from the cup of wine at the Lord's Table, this means, doesn't
it, that all who drink it are sharing together the blessing of Christ's blood?
And when we break off pieces of the bread from the loaf to eat there together,
this shows that we are sharing together in the benefits of his body. No matter
how many of us there are, we all eat from the same loaf, showing that we
are all parts of the one body of Christ.
The principle here is that we must maintain our unity and witness in living
for Christ. God calls us to be separate from the world, to be holy. But God
does not call us to be monks or hermits living away from the lost sheep in
the world. God expects us to be His light and His salt. Salt standing alone
and tucked away in a cabinet does nothing. The salt must get along-side of
the food to make a difference. So should we. We must develop relationships
with our unchurched neighbors, co-workers, co-students, ect. But we must
never compromise our fellowship with the Cross. We communion with Christ,
we communicate with the world.
1 Corinthians 10:31 (NASB) Whether, then, you eat or drink
or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
This verse says it all for me. Whatever you do, not sometimes when you do
some things, but every time you do something, do it to the glory of God. We
should have a single-minded focus on glorifying God in all that we do. That
is our purpose in life in a nutshell, to bring glory to God.
So, what are the three questions I ask in addition to "WWJD" before making
a decision? Glad you asked.
- Is what I am about to do a stumbling block
to other people? Are my actions going to cause someone around me to have
a reason to slam Christianity? Are my actions going to cause a young Christian
to question the value of Christianity? The biggest beef non-Christians have
against us is that we are just a bunch of hypocrites. Let's don't prove them
right.
- Can I ask the Blessing of Jesus Christ on this action? Can you honestly
pray to Jesus and say, Lord bless this action I am about to take? For lack
of a better example let's say you are on a business trip, and you client
wants to take you to a "topless" bar. Can you ask Jesus to bless that? Heavens
no!
- Can I do this and glorify God? Will this decision honor God or dishonor
God? Will I be upholding the family name of being a Christ Follower by making
this decision in this manner?
Okay, there you have it. Three questions for all these decisions. My prayer
for you is to apply these questions to your life and honestly answer them
as you feel the Spirit leading you. Decisions, decisions, decisions. What
would Jesus do?
Father, we praise you and honor you on Sundays. Help us to bring Glory and
Honor to you Monday through Sunday, twenty-four hours a day. Forgive us for
missing the mark, for dishonoring You, for causing others to stumble and
for doing things the Jesus would never bless. Help us to be sensitive to
all our decisions and how they affect You. Father, thank you for this wonderful
road map for our lives called the Bible, and mostly we
thank You for Your Son Jesus who took our place on that Cross, so that we
may live, In His name, Amen.
David |
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