No time to waste! - Greg Laurie - http://www.wnd.com/2015/10/no-time-to-waste/
Pastor Greg Laurie notes 'all things in moderation' is not universally applicable
Have you ever wasted your time? Or, let me restate the question: Do you have a smartphone? Seventy percent of the world's population now own a smartphone, which is effectively a pocket computer.
A poll was taken among Americans where 42 percent of those polled said they couldn't live without their cell phones. Maybe you've felt that way. Have you ever left home and suddenly realized you left your phone behind? If you're like most people, you probably went back for it immediately. We've become so dependent on them.
No one talks to anyone anymore. We just walk around, looking at our phones. We're standing in line to get some coffee, and we're looking at our phones. We're waiting at traffic lights, and we're looking at our phones. We're texting. We're tweeting. We're updating Instagram. On it goes. There is a lot of wasted time.
Then there is television. When I was a kid, we had three channels to choose from: ABC, NBC and CBS. Also, our televisions were black and white, and we had a very sophisticated, high-tech device on top of the television to help us pull down a better signal. They were called rabbit ears.
I remember when the first color TVs came out. When neighbors up the street bought one, we literally were looking through their window, marveling at the color.
Now we have all kinds of sophisticated technology, with flat-screen televisions, satellite dishes and a thousand choices for what to watch. You sit down and start flipping through the channels, and before you know it, you look at your watch and realize that an hour, maybe two hours, have gone by. You just wasted a bunch of time.
But even worse than wasting time is wasting a life - a life with potential, a life with God-given talent and giftedness. The Bible is replete with stories of people who had amazing potential but squandered it. Saul, the first king of Israel comes to mind, and so do Solomon and Samson. These people had great potential, but they wasted it.
In Matthew's gospel we find the story of a woman who was accused of waste, but in reality, she had done the very opposite of that. Things are not always as they appear. In fact, I'm convinced that when we get to heaven, we will see everything differently. Some things that we thought of as bad on Earth will be seen as good from a heavenly viewpoint.
This woman was Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. She perceived something that no one else seemed to understand. She understood that Jesus was going to the cross. At this time in the life and ministry of Jesus, his disciples still thought he would establish an earthly kingdom. In fact, they would argue about who would have the top spot in the kingdom. Although he spoke repeatedly about his death and resurrection and gave them everything they needed to know, it just went right over their heads.
Mary had a spiritual insight no one else seemed to grasp. She picked up what the others missed: Jesus would die on the cross. She wanted to do something significant for him, so she took the most valuable thing she owned, a bottle of fragrant anointing oil, and poured it on his head. Mary did what she could while she could.
Judas, with a first-century calculator in hand, instantly determined the value of what she had just done. The special oil, all of which she had poured out on Jesus, had a street value of $25,000 to $35,000. Judas declared, in effect, "What a waste!" Surprisingly, the others chimed in and parroted his statement.
This is typical of so many today. They want to give God the bare minimum and then get on with their lives. They will go to church once a week or maybe twice a month. They will read the Bible if they find the time in their busy schedules. They will pray briefly before meals and maybe before bed. They might put something in the offering, but in many cases, they will give more to a waitress than to the Lord.
All things in moderation might be a good motto for some things, but it isn't good for our relationship with God. We should not follow Jesus in moderation; we should follow Christ wholeheartedly.
Maybe this is why the world was changed by the early church, as modeled by Mary. There was a sense of abandon to them. They didn't play it safe. They took risks. God told Philip to go into the desert, and he went. God told Peter to take the hand of a disabled man and pull him to his feet, and he did it. The first-century church was willing to take risks for the kingdom of God.
When is the last time you took a risk for your faith? When is the last time you said or did something bold for the kingdom? You might be thinking, What if I fail?
What if you succeed?
Which do you want more in life: the approval of God or the applause of people? If you have God's approval, then you won't always have human applause. In fact, sometimes if you have God's approval, you will have human opposition. But when it's all said and done, which do you care about the most?
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