The God of our Pulpits

"The God of many a present day pupit is an object of pity rather than of awe-inspiring reverence. To say that God the Father has purposed the salvation of all mankind, that God the Son died with the express intention of saving the whole human race, and that God the Holy Spirit is now seeking to win the world to Christ; when, as a matter of common observation, it is apparent that the great majority of our fellow-men are dying in sin, and passing into a hopeless eternity: is to say that God the Father is disappointed, that God the Son is dissatisfied, that God the Holy Spirit is defeated. We have stated the issue badly, but there is no escaping the conclusion. To argue that God is "trying His best" to save all mankind, but that the majority of men will not let Him save them, is to insist that the will of the Creator is impotent, and that the will of the creature is omnipotent. To throw the blame, as many do, upon the Devil, does not remove the difficulty, for if Satan is defeating the purpose of God, then, Satan is Almighty and God is no longer teh Supreme Being." A.W. Pink "The Sovereignty of God"

Thoughts?

What matters most

Recently, I've been confronted with the issue of what matters most and becoming what matters most. The confrontation was met in the book of Genesis as I read of Abraham being told to offer up his son, Isaac, as a sacrifice to God. As a father, with a 1 1/2 year old son I can identify with the turmoil that must have come over Abraham (Abram) when he was asked to do what God asked him to do. However, my son wasn't promised for many years before He arrived; Abraham, on the other hand, not only had to give up a son, but was told to give up the son that he had been promised and waited for for many years. In our day and culture if we were asked what matters most to us, we could quickly respond with "our children" or maybe "family". Abraham was asked, by God, what matters most to you? What do you value most? Do you value your child or do you value your King? Fortunately, this story has a happy ending, but the ending is not necessarily happy because Isaac's life was spared, but because God was valued more than anything by Abraham. What a tremendous perspective this gives us as we read through the pages of scripture and hear God saying "I am of the utmost VALUE"!!!!!!!
The challenge that screams out through the voice of God's word is to be and pursue what matters most. Its a sobering gut-check when I ask myself if I value Christ enough to offer up my son, my unborn daughter, my wife, hobbies, etc... all for the glory of God. Do I value my King enough to forsake it all? I would submit to you reader, if you're going to be what matters most in life, you must be willing to forsake it all for the one who matters most. The world says that you are a great dad if you do this or that, but if what you do is not for the glory of God than you're fatherhood is wasted. If what parents do and how they teach their children is a cultural norm but a transgression of God law than their parenthood is being wasted. If you're a student and your primary concern is to make the best grades, but your efforts are all self-centered rather than Christ-centered than you've wasted it. Suffice it to say, that in all that we do, we should do for the glory of God.
One indictment on Christianity today is the fact that we suffer from displaced value. We value our net worth, our social status and all other idolatrous indulgences more than we value the King. If the Lord asked you to give up your CEO status for His glory would you do it? If the Lord said stop looking for love in your high school dating scene and find true love in Me, could you do it? What if the Lord said pull your kid out of athletics on Sundays so that he/she will understand that I am more important, could you do it? What do you value most?
Do what matters most, be what matters most and pursue the one who matters most.