What Matters Most

 

Get a degree; then another one, and another one. Get a good job. Make lots of money. Live in a nice area and get a nice house. Drive a fancy car. Hang out with prestigious people. Be successful. Retire young and move to a beach house on a golf course and spend your evenings on a yacht. The demands of society are many.

Pastoral translation: Go to Bible college. Go to seminary. Get your masters; then your PhD. Speak in Greek and Hebrew. Pastor a church and make it grow to the tens of thousands. Write a lot of books. Speak at the most prestigious conferences. The demands of business-model-pastoring are many.

In and of themselves these are all fine aspirations; some of them very good things. But let us remember the example of Jesus and not forget what matters most: who we are in the sight of God. Amidst the demands of here and now, let us keep at the forefront of our minds that life after death is much longer than our brief moments here. I have two main thoughts on this.

1. Our Identity

While societal success and achievements may get us into doors and improve our standard of living, they don’t actually increase our value. As human beings made in the image of God, there is not a single one of us worth a penny more than another – regardless of what our bank accounts may read. A man with his degrees framed on his office wall is of no more worth than a man with no office at all. If who we are in the sight of God is what matters most, then we must know what God looks at. Does God look at your bank account or what’s in your garage? Of course not; He looks at the heart. Does God look at your ministry resume of church attendance and books authored? Of course not; He looks at the heart.

 

But if God looks at the heart, should we not all be afraid, then – since our hearts are full of evil (Ecclesiastes 9v3)? So we should. This should be our main concern. Let us look then to Christ. It is Christ who makes new creatures (2 Cor. 5v17). It is Christ who stood and stands in our place, as our substitute, satisfying the justice of God. Let our being in Christ, be our main concern.

 

2. Heed the Warnings

Let us be wise and heed the warnings of riches that the Bible gives us. The rich young ruler walked away from Jesus because he held tighter to his riches rather than to Christ. By holding tight to his riches, it was his riches that held him a prisoner. Let us not be prisoners of worldly acclaim.

 

No matter what value society may slap on you, remember that in Christ, God values you as His son or daughter. In Christ you are a royal heir to eternal riches in the new heaven and new earth. In Christ, you’ll be rich forever.

Think on these words from JC Ryle: “To have a place and a title and a position in society is not nearly so important as people think. It is a great sin to be covetous and worldly and proud: but it is no sin to be poor. It matters not so much what money we have, and where we live, as what we are in the sight of God.”