"FIRST THINGS LAST!"
Written and preached by David P. Nolte
MATTHEW 6:19-33
Erma Bombeck wrote this article: "When Mike was 3, he wanted a sandbox,
and his father said, 'There goes the yard. We'll have kids over here day
and night, and they'll throw sand into the flower beds, and cats will make
a mess in it, and it'll kill the grass for sure.' And Mike's mother said,
'It'll come back.' When Mike was 5, he wanted a jungle gym set with swings
that would take his breath away and bars to take him to the summit, and
his father said, 'Good grief, I've seen those things in backyards, and
do you know what they look like? Mud holes in a pasture. Kids digging their
gym shoes in the ground. It'll kill the grass.' And Mike's mother said,
'It'll come back.' Between breaths, when Daddy was blowing up the plastic
swimming pool, he warned, 'You know what they're going to do to this place?
They're going to condemn it and use it for a missile site. I hope you know
what you're doing. They'll track water everywhere and have a million water
fights, and you won't be able to take out the garbage without stepping
in mud up to your neck. When we take this down, we'll have the only brown
lawn on the block.' 'It'll come back,' said Mike's mother. When Mike was
12, he volunteered his yard for a camp out. As they hoisted the tents and
drove in the spikes, his father stood at the window and observed, 'Why
don't I just put the grass seed out in cereal bowls for the birds and save
myself the trouble of spreading it around? You know for a fact that those
tents and all those big feet are going to trample down every single blade
of grass, don't you? Don't bother to answer, I know what you're going to
say. 'It'll come back.''' The basketball hoop on the side of the garage
attracted more crowds than the Olympics. And a small patch of lawn that
started out with a barren spot the size of a garbage can lid soon grew
to encompass the entire side yard. Just when it looked like the new seed
might take root, the winter came and the sled runners beat it into ridges.
Mike's father shook his head and said, 'I never asked for much in this
life; only a patch of grass.' And his wife smiled and said, 'It'll come
back.'" Mike's dad had a problem with priorities, it seems. And, so, sometimes,
do we. It is a human tendency to put first things last. I want parents
of young children, especially, to pay heed to this text and to its lessons,
albeit it is apropos to all who have ears to hear.
WE OFTEN FRET ABOUT TEMPORALITIES:
VV19, 25, 27, 28, 31:
Temporalities are temporary things. They are the good and bad things of
just this world. They include
The tangible, material things which we can see and touch and handle.
Those things which are here today and gone tomorrow. The fleeting, passing
things. The things that wear out and break and get lost and stolen and
outgrown.
Things like education, health, social relationships, sports and other recreation
and amusements, our vocations and careers. Important as those are, they
are temporal!
Jesus did not even imply that these things are of no importance at all.
Surely we all have financial concerns: bills to pay, purchases to make,
obligations to meet. We all have meals to fix and eat, clothing to take
care of, houses in which to live. And Jesus would expect us to be prudent
but not anxious in those areas of life. But there is a major difference
between prudence and anxiety in our use of these things.
Prudence causes us to use circumspection, wisdom, proper management skills.
Anxiety causes us to freeze up, to panic, to despair, to worry and fret.
Jesus wants us to
Be managers of all these things, but not managed by any of them. He wants
us in control of all these commodities, but under the control of none!
Be aware of these things but not to make them the center of our attention.
He wants us to keep them in their proper perspective.
Fretting about temporalities is like the congregation that remodeled the
youth building, painted the walls, put in new carpet and told the Youth
Minister he'd have to quit bringing in youth or they'd ruin the carpet.
Can you imagine them saying to the Lord in judgment, "We took good care
of your carpet, but we have no idea where the young people are!"
Mike's father had focused primarily on the grass and yard. Things that
under the best of care would only last awhile anyhow. Grass is temporal.
The Bible says about grass: it sprouts, it flourishes, it withers and it
fades. It's temporal. Mike's father focused on the temporal and needed
to establish an interest in something far more lasting. So should we.
WE NEED TO SET ETERNAL PRIORITIES:
V20, 33:
We are so easily caught up in this world of time and space that we tend
to forget the world to come. But it is that new world that truly matters.
Focus on treasure in this world ought not cost us treasure in heaven. Emphasis
on even good things which are only important in time, should never cost
us that which is important in eternity.
Jesus said, "For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and
forfeit his soul?" Mark
8:36. The world:
temporal, the soul: eternal.
Here are some priorities that have eternal merit:
Doing the right thing even when there is so much pressure to do the wrong.
Fixing our eyes on Jesus and running with endurance the race set before
us though it would be easier to quit.
Pleasing God even when it means displeasing others.
Honesty, truth, integrity and uprightness even when lying and cheating
would be easier.
Giving and sharing and serving when we'd rather be given to and served.
Forgiving and reconciling when revenge would be so sweet.
Loving people and using things, not using people and loving things.
Putting our spiritual grooming and health above that of the physical.
Realizing that our citizenship is in heaven and we are only aliens in this
world and living like it.
A lady visited in a home and saw the children playing with their toys.
She asked, "Are these your treasures?" The eldest, about 9, said, "No,
ma'am, these are not our treasures. These are our playthings. Our treasures
are in heaven." Wisely taught. They knew the difference between the temporal
and the eternal.
Mike's mother realized, wisely, that grass goes and then comes again, but
you only have one shot at raising a son. She knew what was fleeting and
what lasted. She knew what to put second, and what to put first. She remembered
what we ought to remember..
WE SHOULD REMEMBER THAT FIRST THINGS LAST: VV20, 33:
First things last! That is they endure, they stand the test of time, they
abide through all things.
The only treasures that are permanent are those we deposit in heaven.
The only kingdom that will survive through eternity is God's Kingdom, the
church.
The only righteousness that will pass muster in judgment is that which
He gives those in Christ.
Those are the foremost issues; the first things. Those are the first things
that last, that endure, that stand for time and eternity.
Concerning things that last, God said,
Psalms 19:9 "The
fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord
are true; they are righteous altogether."
Psalms 33:11 "The
counsel of the Lord stands forever, The plans of His heart from generation
to generation."
Psalms 45:6 "Thy
throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of uprightness is the scepter
of Thy kingdom."
1 John 2:17
"And the world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does
the will of God abides forever."
So it is well to remember that first things last ... and last and last
and last.
As we think of things that last, recall the words of a missionary who said,
"No man is a fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he can
never lose." We will always lose the temporal, but the first things are
eternal. As long as we are in Christ we won't lose those things.
Erma Bombeck concludes her article, "The yard this fall was beautiful.
It was green and alive and rolled out like a sponge carpet along the drive
where gym shoes had trod, along the garage where bicycles used to fall,
and around the flower beds where little boys used to dig with iced tea
spoons. But Mike's father never saw it. He anxiously looked beyond the
yard and asked with a catch in his voice, 'He will come back, won't he?'"
His priorities had changed. Now he longed for Mike to come home more than
he desired a fine lawn. What are your priorities today? How will you guide
your children as they grow and form their priorities? How will you order
your lives each day? Listen, friend, none of the activities, or possessions,
or relationships of this earth can take you to heaven, don't let them take
you to hell. They can't save your soul, don't let them cost your soul.
Instead of putting first things last, put first things first. Jesus said,
"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things
shall be added to you." Matthew
6:33. Put
Jesus first, ahead of all else, and everyone else and He will give you
whatever else you need in this life and the one to come. Join Rhea Miller
who wrote, "I'd Rather Have Jesus Than Anything!" Let that be your song
this morning and your priority for life daily. Sing it, mean it, and live
it. Put Jesus first and get from Him what will last forever.
Story from Erma Bombeck and others from various unidentified sources