1. TRUST JESUS FIRST.
Allow Him to be your Lord and Savior. The apostle Paul mentions a lot of spiritual blessings a believer in Christ receives, then, in Ephesians 2.12, 13 he said,"That we should be to the praise of His glory, who FIRST trusted in Christ. In Whom, ye also trusted, after ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in Whom after ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise."
What happens when a man trusts Jesus? Ephesians 1.4 and following verses declare these: he is chosen, predestinated, adopted, accepted, redeemed, forgiven, and sealed with the Holy Spirit. These, and many more spiritual blessings come to the person who places his complete trust in the person and finished work of Christ at the Cross of Calvary. FREE, AND PAID IN FULL. May I invite you to PRIORITIZE this in your life. 2nd Corinthians 6.2, "...now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation."
2. SEEK GOD FIRST.
From the writings of Saint Matthew elsewhere in chapter 6: Our Lord Jesus mentioned things most people prioritize. They are food, shelter, clothes. The bottom line is: people must have cash to acquire all these. Jesus said that God would love to provide all these, but He continued, "But seek ye FIRST the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you."
We may not see God, but we can seek God, and when we seek Him first, it would be very easy for Him to provide all these things. He will provide. Trust Him. He will provide you people, friends and loved ones to give you your needs, yes, even people whom you have not met; yes, even people that are contrary to what you believed. He may even provide you the job, the skills, the knowledge, the wisdom, and the good health just so your needs are met. What should we do? Seek Him first. His righteousness first.
3. LOVE GOD FIRST.
Mark 12.30 "And thou shall love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength. This is the first commandment." This is coming from the mouth of our Lord Jesus Christ. He says, "This is the GREATEST COMMANDMENT!" Do you love God? How can we love God Whom we have not seen? Well, we can love His Words, cherish His promises, and obey His commands written in the Bible. We can love Him heartily, psychologically, mentally, and love Him physically. When we love God, we can are motivated to love our friends and loved ones, love His Church, love our neighbors, and to love our responsibilities. "...For love is of God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love God does not know God, for God is love." I John 4.7, 8.
4. THE GOSPEL MUST FIRST BE PUBLISHED AMONG ALL NATIONS.
(Mark 13.10) In the economy of God, publishing the Good News is number 1. The gospel is the good news. God planned this even before the foundation of the world. That is why He sent His only begotten Son into this world, not to condemn sinners, but to saved them. This is the reason why Jesus Christ came to seek and to saved the lost. (Luke 19.10). The apostle Paul said, "For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness, but unto us who are saved, it is the power of God." (I Corinthians 1.18). In Romans 1.16, Paul declared, "...I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes..." Now, God wants His saved people to publish the gospel. Let us declare it, preach it, teach it, sing it, print it, post it, tweet it, and live it.
5. DEDICATE YOUR BODY TO THE LORD. (II Corinthians 8.5). "And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God." From this passage of Scripture, the apostle Paul illustrated to the wealthy Corinthian Christians why the poor Macedonian Christians excelled in serving the Lord. They were experiencing great trials in life, but they were very joyful. They were in deep poverty, yet they were very gracious in supporting the Missionary work. They enjoyed praying, fellowshipping, and ministering...why? It was their priority to dedicate their bodies as living sacrifices. They wanted their services to be holy and acceptable unto God. (Romans 12.1). The challenge is: If the Macedonian Christians of long time ago can, why can't we? Let us present our bodies as a living sacrifice...this is our reasonable service.
6. DO NOT LOSE YOUR FIRST LOVE.
Revelation 2.4,5, "Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember, therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place---unless you repent." The Lord Jesus issued these words to a church located in Asia Minor (Turkey) circa 95 A.D. This assembly of believers in Christ had all the great credentials (Revelation 2.1-3), but our Lord said that they were losing their FIRST LOVE. It is possible that these Christians have fallen in love with the activities of the Kingdom, but not with their King. Remember when we were babies? We loved the warmth of our parents' presence...and their tender loving care...and the rich nourishment...and the lullaby songs...and the often-repeated stories...O how we loved those precious moments! Remember? But when we were grown up, we began falling in love with other people, events, objects...and neglected Who and What was valuable to us. The solution: Remember, repent, do the first works, listen to the Holy Spirit, and overcome. Rev.2.1-7.
7. BE RECONCILED WITH YOUR BROTHER FIRST IF YOU WANT YOUR OFFERING TO BE BLESSED.
(Matthew 5.23-25). The Lord Jesus issues a strong statement here telling us to always seek reconciliation with an offended brother/sister when bringing an offering to the altar of the Lord's temple. He said, "Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison."
Please do not entertain these thoughts:
1. It will soon be forgotten...
2. Everybody does it...
3. I was offended first...
4. God has been blessing me, why bother?...
5. It's embarrassing...
6. He will not sue me, He's a Christian, you know...
NO EXCUSES, NO ALIBIS, PLEASE. Let us just obey what our Lord tells us to do.
8. THE FIRST COMMAND WITH A PROMISE.
"Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise. That it may be well with you, and you may live long on the earth." (Ephesians 6.1-3). God says, "This is right!" He promises something great to obedient children: 1. WELLNESS, physically, mentally, socially, financially, spiritually. 2. LONG LIFE, quality life, a life filled with value, productive life.
9. THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK COMPARED WITH THE SABBATH.
"Upon the first day of the week let every one of you..." (1st Corinthians 16.2). The apostle Paul instructed the Corinthian Christians to assemble together. Saint Matthew wrote concerning the resurrection of Jesus on first day of the week (Matthew 27.1). The Hebrew writer stated in Hebrews 13.15, "By Him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name." In Acts 2.42, and 46, we noticed, "And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine, and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers...And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple...and...from house to house..." We can conclude from these passages that the Early Christians worshiped and serve God from Sonday to Sonday, all week long starting from the first day of the week to the Sabbath or Saturday.
God gave us the guideline in Isaiah 58.13, 14 whenever we go into the House of the LORD.
1) HONOR HIM.
2) DO NOT DO YOUR OWN WAYS.
3) DO NOT FIND YOUR OWN PLEASURE.
4) DO NOT INSIST ON WHAT YOU LIKE TO SAY.
5) DELIGHT YOURSELF IN THE LORD.
10. HONOR THE LORD WITH YOUR FIRSTFRUITS.
Our Jehovah God commands His people to bring the firstfruits of all their increase every year (Exodus 23.14-19). King Solomon learned this great precept from his father, King David, and wrote it in Proverbs 3.9 that giving the firstfruits is God-honoring. God is highly exalted! Obedience to God and to His Word brings protection (Exodus 23.20-22), enlarges their borders (Exodus 23.30) and enhances the ministry of the House of the LORD (Nehemiah 10.35-39). Giving the firstfruits promotes godly prosperity, and satisfaction to the cheerful giver (Proverbs 3.1-10).
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It must be done in the power and leadership of God, the Holy Spirit.
"It is not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the LORD of
Hosts." (Zechariah 4.6).
