Thought for Today
Proverbs 3:9 Honor the Lord with your substance and with the first fruits of all your produce;
Isaiah 44:6 Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god.
Mark 10:31 But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first."
Luke 10:25 Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he said, "what must I do to inherit eternal life? . . . " 27 He answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself."
Priority - the fact or condition of being regarded or treated as more important
Synonyms: precedence, preeminence, primacy (Word search)
The words ‘priority,’ ‘precedence’ and ‘primacy’ do not appear in the Bible. The word ‘first’ appears more than 400 times. If you have ever taken a time management course, you have been encouraged to make priority lists, to organize your life and your days to accomplish the most important things on your ‘To Do’ list.
We live in a complex, busy world. To be successful, in business or in life, we are encouraged to prioritize our lives. Of course, with all our discoveries in modern medicine, we are also encouraged to prioritize nutrition and sleep. Most of us have had those times in our lives when nutrition and sleep seem luxuries we cannot afford if we wish to accomplish those priority items on our list.
What comes first? Who comes first? What is most important and what can we let slide? How do we determine ‘most important’ as opposed to ‘more important’ or mere ‘important?” Obviously, none of us have interests, goals or anything else in our lives which we can ever consider unimportant? Except for those times when nutrition, interpersonal relationships and sleep must be sacrificed on the altar of accomplishment!!! For most of us, there are those days which seem so harried we don’t even have enough hours to make room to breathe.
Occasionally, turn off all your ‘devices.’ Power down the computer, the smart phone, the tablet, the television, the radio and everything else. Take a deep breath . . . then another and another and another. Breathe in and out slowly and regularly. Ease all the tension in your muscles. Just relax.
Then, ask yourself, what is truly most important? In your individual life, what must take top priority? Is closing that deal most important? More important than your family or health? Is getting that promotion more important than your personal relationships? Is anything more important than your place in eternity?
I think often of that lawyer in Luke’s gospel. From the account, he must have been a learned individual, a serious person. Luke describes him as νομικός (nomikos). My lexicon defines that word as meaning “(1) about law, pertaining to law (TI 3.9); (2) learned in law; substantivally . . . lawyer, legal expert (probably TI 3.13); predominately in the NT interpreter of Jewish religious laws.” Jesus answers his question by referencing Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18. Jesus tells that lawyer and all of us that the priority for all of God’s children is to love God with everything we have and with all we are. Our second priority is to love all of God’s other children.
In Mark’s gospel, in the chapter we have been looking at recently during worship, Jesus told his disciples “many who are first will be last, and the last will be first." Our priority in life is not self. Our priority in life is first God, then service to others. Titles, positions, power and wealth are all unimportant in terms of eternity. Admittedly, it is much more comfortable right now to have titles, positions, power and wealth. Money does not bring happiness, but it can buy immediate, physical comfort in this life. Money and the mindless pursuit of money, titles, positions and so on can become a blind obsession, forcing from one’s life any concerns about others or about God. Previously in Mark’s gospel, Jesus had said, "9:35 Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all." Think on that as you sit, quietly, breathing slowly and deeply.
Stay safe, prioritize God, trust God,
Pastor Ray