[0:00] It's an honor and a privilege to be here with you once again. For those of you who may not know me, my name is Jonathan Hoffman.! I am a current graduate, or recent graduate, of the apprenticeship program that we have here at Christ Family Church.
[0:16] And so, in part, that is a reason why I have been invited and given this privilege today. So, it is quite an honor for me to be allowed this opportunity.
[0:30] And, just to share something with you that has been in my heart.
[0:45] I moved up here to North Georgia in order to go to Bible college. I was converted, became a Christian about almost four years ago.
[0:56] And, God has so powerfully moved in my life since then. And, I moved up here with the mindset of, I want the rest of my life to revolve around these truths that I had found.
[1:14] That my eyes had been open to. And, so, I have come to feel the sense of calling into the ministry.
[1:26] A burden to preach God's Word because I believe that it is the only thing, as Scripture says, that has the power to save. And, so, it is a privilege to be given this opportunity.
[1:44] But, at the same time, I moved up here and I left my dream career of law enforcement because it had become an idol. And, I believe it was Calvin.
[1:58] Calvin, I could be wrong. But, a whole theologian once said that the heart is an idol factory. We create gods by the dozens, by the thousands even, in our hearts.
[2:11] And, so, while I was going through Bible college, Tripp McConnell, for about a year, one of the greatest convictions that has come upon me of my own sin is my battle with my pride.
[2:31] It is a tremendous, tremendous battle that I have to fight with my pride. And, it is why I left law enforcement. And, while I was going through Bible college, and even now, my pride is still an issue to where I felt like I am constantly in danger of giving myself over to my pride in my learning now.
[3:01] You know, I am going through Bible college, and I am learning all these great things and these great truths. And, my fear is that I am doing it for the wrong reasons.
[3:16] I constantly keep that in check. And, God has given me a lot of grace in battling that. And, so, I tell you that because I believe that even preaching can be turned into an idol.
[3:32] And, it is my greatest fear this morning and for my future that I will turn preaching into an idol. Because I can write a good paper, or because I can use eloquent words, or so on and so forth.
[3:51] And, so, that has been my greatest battle in preparing for this sermon is to make sure that my pride is at check.
[4:03] So, that I will be able to preach in power through the Spirit. That I would be as a clean vessel for His Word to come through me. And, so, I pray this morning and I ask you, I ask every one of you to pray along with me.
[4:22] That, that would be the case. And, I ask that every one of you would pay attention. Pay close attention because there are waiting matters at hand here this morning.
[4:38] And, so, pray for yourselves as well. That God would soften your hearts. And, that we would be changed by what we learned today. And, so, I hope that that is the case this morning.
[4:54] If God would see it fit, that that would be the case. So, please turn with me to the book of Colossians chapter 3. Colossians chapter 3.
[5:05] And, just to give you a quick review for those who have not been with us for the last few weeks. We have been going verse by verse through the book of Colossians.
[5:16] The book of Colossians is a letter that the Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Colossae. And, now, Colossae was a city in modern day Turkey.
[5:28] And, it was about 100 miles east of Ephesus, the city of Ephesus. Now, Paul had never visited Colossae. And, so, it is believed that the church there was started by a man by the name of Epaphras.
[5:44] Epaphras, who was converted during a visit to Ephesus where Paul, the Apostle, was ministering there for three years. And, Colossae was primarily a Gentile city but had a fairly large Jewish population.
[5:59] And, so, as the gospel spread and the church at Colossae was established, it consisted of a mixture of Jews and Gentiles. A dangerous heresy then arose in the church.
[6:13] And, this heresy contained a mixture of Jewish mysticism and pagan, or Jewish legalism, I'm sorry, and pagan mysticism.
[6:24] It began to cause division in the church. And, Epaphras, being so concerned about the people of that church, made a journey to Rome to ask for Paul's help in combating this heresy.
[6:42] Now, Paul was, at the time, in Rome in prison. He was in a Roman prison. And, it was around the same time that Paul wrote the letter to Philemon, the letter to the Ephesians, and the letter to the Philippians.
[7:03] And, this one in particular was primarily for that initial purpose of combating this heresy. And, so, in the last few weeks, we have been going through the book of Colossians, and we have now reached chapter 3.
[7:20] And, in the first two chapters, we have seen that we have been given a lot of doctrine. The first two chapters are a lot of doctrine.
[7:33] And, this seems to be a pattern with Paul in his letters. First, he gives us doctrine, and then he follows it by practical exhortations or application.
[7:47] And, so, it is the case here. And, one of the reasons for that is because good life application must be founded upon good doctrine. And, so, our text this morning will be Colossians chapter 3, verses 1 through 4.
[8:04] Colossians chapter 3, verses 1 through 4. And, as we begin to look at the practical application portion of this letter, I would like to actually start reading from chapter 2, verse 20.
[8:17] So, please look with me at chapter 2, verse 20 of the book of Colossians. And, God's Word, which is inerrant, infallible, and sharper than any two-edged sword, reads, If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations?
[8:43] Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch, referring to things that all perish as they are used, according to human precepts and teachings.
[8:54] These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body. But they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.
[9:06] If, then, you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
[9:18] Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
[9:29] When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Pray with me. Father, we thank You this morning, Lord, for Your work, Lord, that You have achieved, accomplished.
[9:53] Lord, for sending Christ to die for us on the cross, Lord, that we might be reconciled to You. Lord, that we may receive of this free gift of salvation, conversion, Lord, where You give us a new heart, with new desires and an ability to understand Your Word and to love You and follow Your ways.
[10:15] Lord, I pray that Your Spirit will be at work within me this morning, and within all of those who are in this building.
[10:27] Lord, that You would bring about conviction. Lord, that You would change hearts. Please, Lord, we pray for that. Illumine our minds, Lord.
[10:39] Change us. Please, change us. Lord, we thank You, we praise You, and we love You. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen. It was R.C. Sproul, who is currently a pastor for St. Andrew's Chapel in Sanford, Florida, and the founder of Ligonier Ministries, who once said of modern Christianity, and I quote, It is a dangerous thing for the Christian's mind to be trapped within the confines of the terrestrial horizon.
[11:23] Close quote. It is a dangerous thing for the Christian's mind to be trapped within the confines of the terrestrial horizon, to be earth-grounded instead of lifted up.
[11:36] And it was, for example, for this reason, that the Lord Jesus Christ rebukes Peter so harshly. In Matthew 16, verse 23, as He says to His beloved disciple, Peter, who would become a giant contender of the faith, a leader amongst Christians, one whom the book of Revelation, in chapter 21, verse 14, says that His name will be written on the foundation stones of the wall of the New Jerusalem.
[12:06] It is to this apostle Peter that Jesus rebukes by saying, Get behind me, Satan. Why? Jesus goes on, Because you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.
[12:28] Peter, a true Christian, at that moment had his mind trapped within the confines of the terrestrial horizon, and our Lord called him Satan for it.
[12:39] It is a hindrance upon the believer to be effective in kingdom work. It is a serious and dangerous place to be, and from it arise many of our maladies today, such as depression, covetousness, pride, strife, idolatry, etc.
[13:00] The Christian should have his mind set on the things that are above, not on the things of the earth. And in our text this morning, we will see the difference between, and the implications of, earthly and heavenly mindedness.
[13:17] And so I have divided this text into four sections, or four headings. And for our first heading, I want you to notice the subject of the exhortations.
[13:30] The subject of the exhortation. Beginning in verse 1 of chapter 3. If then you have been raised with Christ.
[13:43] Now stop right there. Who are the subjects of this exhortation? If then you have been raised with Christ, it's Christians. It is true born again believers that the Apostle Paul is addressing here.
[14:02] Now it is the true condition of the church. In our day, as much as it was in Paul's day, that not everyone who attends church services, and not everyone who goes to Sunday school, and not everyone who even becomes a member of a church, or reads their Bible every day, or does all sorts of activity in the name of Jesus, is a true Christian.
[14:35] And for the purpose of our text this morning, this truth has massive implications. Why? Well, let's look first at the purpose of the exhortation.
[14:46] What is the reason behind this text that we are looking at this morning? Verse 1. If then. The if then here can also be translated, therefore, if.
[15:01] The therefore is a conjunction connecting the last paragraph of chapter 3, or of chapter 2, to the first paragraph of chapter 3.
[15:12] And so that's why we started reading from chapter 2, verse 20. So let's read that again, starting in verse 20. If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations?
[15:26] Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch, referring to those things that all perish as they are used, according to human precepts and teachings. These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion, and asceticism and severity to the body.
[15:41] But. But. Now here is the purpose of the exhortation that is to come in chapter 3. They are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.
[15:58] The main purpose of this exhortation is for the true Christian to be given the key to stopping the indulgence of the flesh.
[16:10] And so it is important to understand that Paul here, first of all, is saying that you must be a Christian if you are to attain any degree of this truth with any value.
[16:26] Otherwise, all you have is someone in the flesh trying to stop the indulgence of the flesh, which kind of reminds me of a saying of our Lord, and if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself, how then will his kingdom stand?
[16:45] It is these people who in the power of the flesh try to stop the indulgence of the flesh that Paul warns us of and warns us against. Those who try to mortify the flesh through self-made religion, asceticism, and severity to the body.
[17:02] And even Paul says that these things appear to be wise. If you look at these people, you might think to yourself, wow, how righteous they are, what piety, what discipline.
[17:15] But behind the smoke and mirrors, there is no true power. Kyle taught us last week some about this. He said that these people practice these things to try to reach a higher level of spirituality by reducing earthly comforts.
[17:34] But in reality, it is a practice of self-righteousness, not self-denial. And this, at its core, is idolatry. These people who try these have created a God in their image, in their own mind, to suit their own desires.
[17:56] And they try to gain God's favor and even salvation through their works. Now, these false doctrines have been widespread all throughout history.
[18:07] And it is true of just about every religion that is not Christian. And it is also the case in those who entitle themselves to be Christian, but are not really Christian.
[18:22] I say that of such religions as such as Mormonism, Jehovah's Witnesses, and yes, even the Catholic Church. Now, let me give you just two quick examples of this asceticism.
[18:37] Now, Paul wrote this letter in about 60 to 62 A.D. And in A.D. 52, at the age of 16, the historian Josephus wrote about three major sects or philosophies amongst the Jews.
[18:53] Now, Pastor Nathan quoted this portion a few weeks back where Josephus says that the first were the Pharisees, then the Sadducees, and the third were the Essenes.
[19:07] Now, the Essenes were a group that were dedicated to asceticism. And Josephus writes of them, and I quote, I contended myself with hard fare and underwent great difficulties and went through them all, nor did I contend myself with these trials only.
[19:27] But when I was informed that one whose name was Banus, who was an Esseni, who lived in the desert and used no other clothing than that which grew upon trees and had no other food than what grew of its own accord, and bathed himself in cold water frequently, both by night and by day, in order to preserve his chastity.
[19:54] I imitated him in those things and continued with him for three years. Did you catch that? That man, Banus, tortured himself with cold water multiple times a day in order to stop the indulgence of the flesh.
[20:13] But there was no power. There was no true power. And Josephus, thinking this lifestyle to be wise, imitated him for three years. Now here's another example.
[20:27] Historian Edward Gibbon, in his book, The History of the Decline and the Fall of the Roman Empire, writes of a Roman Catholic monk, Dominic Loricatus, and how he tried to gain God's favor and forgiveness of sin.
[20:43] And listen to what he writes. I quote, It is a maxim of the civil law that whosoever cannot pay with his purse must pay with his body.
[20:55] Now this law, by the way, came from the Catholic Church. In the practice of flagellation, that being the practice of whipping or lashing oneself for the purpose of mortification, asceticism or penance, was adopted by the monks, a cheap though painful equivalent.
[21:21] He continues, by fantastic arithmetic, a year of penance was taxed at 3,000 lashes.
[21:32] And such was the skill and patience of a famous hermit, St. Dominic of the Iron Curios, that in six days, he could discharge an entire century by a whipping of 300,000 stripes.
[21:49] His example was followed by many penitents of both sexes. And as a vicarious sacrifice was accepted, a sturdy disciplinarian might expiate on his own back the sins of his benefactors.
[22:07] Close quote. They thought that they could get forgiveness of sins through these works. And even worse, they thought that they could get forgiveness of other sins by their own works, by whipping themselves.
[22:25] And many looked up to this guy, Dominic, as a saint. They thought it was wise what he was doing. They thought there was power and value behind it.
[22:39] And even the Catholic Church venerated him as a saint. This has the appearance of wisdom but there is no power.
[22:51] It is of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. And so in order for there to be any value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh, there must be power from on high.
[23:06] And so in order for there to be power, you must be a true Christian. Christian. Now I'm very thankful for this church and for our pastor because the true gospel is preached here on a regular and consistent basis.
[23:25] But I do have a fear that some of you may believe yourselves to be Christians this morning simply because you come to a very biblical church.
[23:39] church, you know the terminology. You know what to say. You know how to act. You know how to answer questions of the faith. You may even know your Bible, but inside you are not truly changed.
[23:57] You have not been born again. And so you do not know Christ and Christ does not know you. And so I ask every one of you this morning to please examine yourselves, examine your heart, test your heart, make sure that you are truly in the faith.
[24:21] Because my biggest fear is that some of you are comfortable in your deception and are just playing church and going through the motions.
[24:33] And may one day open your eyes to the torment that is hell for eternity. So please examine yourself. There is so much at stake. So much at stake.
[24:46] And so in direct correlation to Paul warning against heretical teaching, let's look at some characteristics of what a true Christian is. If you would turn with me to Philippians chapter 3.
[24:58] Philippians chapter 3.
[25:13] And look at verse 2. The apostle Paul says, look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh.
[25:27] Now in this context, one of the major heretical sects that Paul was combating here were the Judaizers, who were all about works and external things.
[25:37] Do not touch, do not handle, do not taste. they clung to ceremonial laws and insisted on such things as circumcision. Paul is saying here, look at verse 3, now what he says to that, for we are the circumcision.
[25:58] Paul is saying we are the true circumcision. Who what? Who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh.
[26:16] And there is a characteristic of a true Christian who worship by the Spirit of God. Who worship by the Spirit of God.
[26:26] If you are a true Christian, if you are a born-again believer of the supernatural working of the Spirit of God, the rest of your life from the moment of conversion will be marked by Spirit-drawn, Spirit-filled, Spirit-empowered worship.
[26:49] And what I mean by this is not that you come to church and sing songs and go to Sunday school or Bible studies or listen to the Christian radio on your way here.
[27:01] God what I mean by this is have your eyes truly been opened to the reality of what Christ has done to what he has accomplished for you to what he has saved you from to the blessings and promises that have been poured out on you that all you desire for the rest of your life from that moment that you were converted is to worship him and to order the rest of your life in such a way as best to please him.
[27:37] It isn't something that you are forced to do for the sake of religion but rather the Spirit of God within you softens your heart that you come to love him and thank him and want to know more about him and long for him and you long for his return and you long for him to be honored and for his name to be glorified and proclaimed in all the nations is this true of you?
[28:06] Do you ever just fall flat on your face and worship and weep out of your love for him in remembrance of what he has done for you?
[28:21] Are you a true Christian? Here's another characteristic of a true Christian. Do you have a new relationship with sin?
[28:36] Have your desires changed? Do you now hate your sin? Do you see it more than ever before? Or do you just hate the thought of people finding out about it?
[28:52] Have you in your innermost being been changed? Spurgeon, the prince of preachers, a British pastor from the 1800s, used to describe conversion with an illustration that went something like this.
[29:07] Say you have two plates and you set them on the ground and on one plate you have some of the finest cuisine of the land and on the other you have a bag or correction you have just a contents of a bag from a household trash can and you get a pig and you let this pig go to eat which plate is he going to go to?
[29:35] The two plates are sitting side by side. More than likely nine out of ten times that pig will go to the one with the trash.
[29:47] It's a pig. It likes trash. Now say that in one instance while that pig is pigging out to this trash you by a supernatural working are able to convert him into a man what will happen?
[30:13] That man who is currently eating that trash will be disgusted by what he's eating by what he has put in his mouth and he will spit it out and be ashamed that he ever went to that plate.
[30:31] His relationship with that plate will change forever. I promise you he will hopefully go to the fine cuisine from that moment on.
[30:43] But if he ever were to return to that other plate that relationship is different though he may have enjoyed it at one time if he tries to eat of that trash this time as time progresses he will be more and more repulsed by it.
[31:02] The relationship with it is different because he has been changed and that is an illustration of conversion. It is a powerful thing.
[31:14] It is a supernatural work of God. God, have you experienced this change? Friend, if you do not have some measure of this, it could be because you are walking the wrong path.
[31:31] You could be on the road that is broad that leads to destruction. And so I urge you and I beg you to repent, to put your trust in Christ for he alone can save you.
[31:45] There is nothing in and of yourselves that you could ever do, anything that could come out of your mouths to justify you before a holy God. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.
[32:00] Turn from your sins. Forsake those things which you love, that you know are wrong. Because they are going against God.
[32:12] Sin is transgression of the law. It is a crime against God. It is a crime against the one who gave you life, who gave you everything that you have, who cares for you, who created all things.
[32:32] Flee from the wrath to come. Please do not harden your hearts. Do not harden your hearts. Repent. Trust in Christ.
[32:43] Believe the gospel today. Right now. Repent. And if you are one who has been playing church, please, please let someone know.
[33:01] Let someone know there is so much at stake here. I promise you that there would be no condemnation from whoever you go to. If you have not experienced any degree of this, please, what every one of us desire is your salvation, because we love you and care for you.
[33:22] Please, let someone know. Now, I don't want to bring unnecessary doubt to some of you true Christians.
[33:33] Some of you could simply be struggling against apathy. and your fire just needs to be rekindled. Preach the gospel to yourself.
[33:44] Remember, cling to the promises. Remember what He has done for you. Now, a reason for this apathy and lack of zeal could be the result of earthly mindedness.
[33:58] So now, we are looking at this a little backwards, but our next heading, our second heading for this morning is simply earthly mindedness.
[34:12] So if you would look at verse 2 of Colossians chapter 3, verse 2 of Colossians chapter 3, notice our second heading, earthly mindedness. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
[34:31] Now, turn back to Philippians chapter 3 with me for a moment. And look at verses 17 through 19.
[34:46] And Nathan just read this this morning, so good to hear it again.
[34:59] Paul writes, beginning in verse 17, Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us.
[35:13] For many of whom I have often told you and now tell you with tears walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their God is their belly, and they glory in their shame with minds set on earthly things.
[35:31] So what is earthly mindedness? I have defined it as when the actions of the will or the affections of the soul are anchored to and driven by the things of this world.
[35:49] And by things of this world, I mean anything that is of this world, material or not. It could be pleasures, it could be comforts or things derived from them, honor, power, pride.
[36:03] Now it is important to understand that it is not inherently sinful to enjoy or make use of earthly things, or even have an abundance of earthly things. even God himself knows that we have need of things and he provides them for us.
[36:19] Now I don't have much time, so just quickly I'm going to give you some characteristics of earthly mindedness and we will move on. So first, you are earthly minded if you look at earthly things as the greatest things of all and believe that happiness happiness will be derived from the possession of them.
[36:46] So this could be anything, relationships, comforts, homes, cars, money, or anything that makes you think to yourself, if I just had that thing, I would be happy.
[36:57] If I just had that thing, this earthly thing, I would be happy. If that is part of the state of your mind, then you could be earthly minded.
[37:12] Second, you are earthly minded if the sum of or the majority of your thoughts revolve around earthly things. Proverbs 23, 7 says, As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.
[37:30] And in Matthew 15, 18 through 19, Jesus says, What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person? For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, and slander, and all of these things being indulgences of the flesh.
[37:55] So in your innermost thoughts, in the secret chambers of your heart, what is most sweet to you?
[38:12] Where do you find your happiness? If the things of earth reign in your heart in this manner, then you are earthly minded.
[38:24] Third, you are earthly minded if your purpose, drive, and goal in life is only the accomplishment of earthly endeavors.
[38:41] There is no concept of doing what you do for the Lord. You only mind those temporal things which will one day perish, and you are even angry or afraid at the thought of losing any of these worldly things that your mind is set on.
[39:03] And fourth and last, for the sake of time, you are earthly minded if you are predominantly earthly in spiritual things.
[39:15] Meaning all spiritual or religious activity that you partake in is nothing but a means to earthly ends. The intentions behind your actions are simply horizontal in the confines of the terrestrial horizon.
[39:35] They are not vertical pointed to the things above. And so I give you those four things and from that the opposite could be said encompasses what it means to be heavenly minded.
[39:53] And so for our third heading heaven mindedness please look at the second half of verse one to the first half of verse two back in Colossians chapter three.
[40:08] So Colossians chapter three verse one second half of verse one notice our third heading heaven mindedness. Seek the things that are above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God set your minds on things that are above.
[40:30] And for the sake of time as I said you can probably deduce what heaven mindedness is just by applying the opposite of what it means to be earthly minded. But very quickly let's just look at a few things and implications of heaven mindedness.
[40:46] First those who are heaven minded are those who live with an eternal perspective an eternal perspective.
[40:56] It was Jonathan Edwards an American preacher from the 1700s who is widely acknowledged as one of America's greatest preachers greatest theologians and greatest intellectual who cried out to God Lord stamp eternity on my eyeballs.
[41:17] And it is from a similar disposition that Paul could cry out in Romans 9 that he had great sorrow and unceasing anguish in his heart for lost souls because he knew and kept at the forefront of his mind the fact that multitudes were on their way to eternal punishment.
[41:43] And it is from this disposition of our perspective that love and passion to seek out those who are lost is birthed from.
[41:57] In 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verses 16 and 18 Paul says says, for the things that are seen are transient but the things that are unseen are eternal.
[42:40] The man who can say this is heaven minded seeking the things above. He does what he does for God for the kingdom for souls.
[42:53] So let me ask you this question. What you do where you work the life decisions that you make do you make them in light of eternity?
[43:06] Do you make decisions for the service of the kingdom of God? Do you have an eternal perspective?
[43:19] Second, heaven mindedness is pursuing godliness. Pursuing godliness. In 1 Timothy chapter 4 verses 7 through 10 Paul says, have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women.
[43:39] On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness. For godliness or for bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.
[43:59] It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance for it is for this we labor and strive because we have fixed our hope on the living God. It does take a certain level of discipline and sometimes hard work to be godly, to live in righteousness.
[44:19] But the heaven-minded Christian learns that alongside of this discipline there is a fountain, a fountain of joy and sweetness unspeakable.
[44:33] And it is this Christian who is heaven-minded that can learn, as 1 Timothy 6.6 says, that godliness with contentment is great gain.
[44:47] it is for this reason that the apostle can say in Philippians 4.11 I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.
[45:03] So this leads us to our fourth and final heading, the reward of things above. The reward of the things above.
[45:16] Starting in verse 4, when Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
[45:28] Now what are the things above? What is it to seek those things? things? It is simply this, Christ.
[45:39] It is simply Christ. It is to seek him. It is to cling to the promises that he has given us, that we will one day appear with him in glory, that one day every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father.
[46:05] Paul writes in Philippians 3.20-21, and actually I think this is what Nathan read, not in the last text, but Paul writes, for our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly await for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of his glory, by the exertion of the power that he has, even to subject all things to himself.
[46:44] Oh, that our hearts would learn what our mouths proclaim when we sing songs that have lyrics such as, nothing in my hands I bring, simply to the cross I cling.
[47:03] Seek him, get to know him, cling to him, and live the rest of your life in that pursuit.
[47:16] That we could all one day point, be able to say, alongside of Paul, what he says in Philippians, I count everything as rubbish compared to the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord.
[47:37] Have you come to understand a portion of what it means when Paul says to live is Christ, to die is gain? you know, when I first became a Christian as a young believer, one of my friends at the police department, one of the few Christians who worked at this police department, a very mature believer, would often say things like, I just wish that Christ would come back today, I wish I would die right now, like I'm done with this, and I was just like, what?
[48:19] Like, this makes no sense, why? Why? You know, it's like, why? Don't you want to live? Do you not enjoy life? Why would you want to die? It made no sense to me. As I have matured in my walk with Christ, now it makes perfect sense.
[48:37] It makes clear sense. To live is Christ, to die is gain. I long for that day and I have now since then had moments where I just have this overwhelming sense and I pray that Christ would just come back right now because I'm tired of this, because I do not belong to this world.
[49:01] I am not of this world. Do you have this in your life? Do you have this? Do you long for his return, for him to be glorified?
[49:12] God? Is this true of your heart? In conclusion, earthly mindedness is idolatry.
[49:25] James 4.4 says that friendship with the world is adultery and enmity against God. The apostle Paul says that it leads men to fall into temptation and a snare.
[49:42] Ezekiel 33.31 describes it as covetousness. My friends, nothing is more contrary to the work of grace in a believer than earthly mindedness.
[49:57] John Calvin, a pastor and theologian from the 1500s, once said, and I quote, the whole soul ensnared by the allurement of the flesh, seek its happiness on the earth.
[50:13] To meet this disease, the Lord makes His people sensible to the vanity of the present life by constant proof of its miseries.
[50:28] There is no medium between the two things. The earth must either be worthless in our estimation or keep us enslaved by an intemperate love of it.
[50:43] Close quote. The Lord Jesus Christ warns us that one cannot serve two masters. And likewise, a man cannot both look up to heaven while he's looking down on earth.
[51:00] choose this day whom you will serve in the direction that you will fix your eyes upon.
[51:12] Let us pray. let us let us let us