THE POWER OF ONE
OUR DEVOTION TO THE “ONLY” ONE
Matthew 6:24, “No onecan serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.”
There is only ONE God worthy of our devotion. Matthew sheds light on the truth that we cannot say we love God but remain devoted to the world. We must choose to follow God, or follow the world. It is impossible to serve both. As we learned from Pastor Teresa, even the smallest amount of drift will take us completely off the narrow road we are called to walk as followers of Christ.
Joshua 24:15, “But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whomyou will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.”
When Joshua took leadership of Israel from Moses, he presented them with achallenge. Were they going to continue to drift away from God and all He had done, or were they going to make the choice to serve God alone? If you have been straddling the fence, with one foot in the world and one foot following Christ, maybe it is time to make a choice — because truthfully, if you are not fully devoted to God, then the devil has you right where he wants you. Choose today whom YOU will serve!
Deuteronomy 6:4-9, “Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”
Moses reminded the Israelites that devotion to the “Only” ONE means ALL. ALL our heart, ALL our soul and ALL our strength. He instructs them to repeat these commands constantly and to speak about them at all times knowing that people are fickle and that if they did not keep them front and center, they would drift. We see in the Bible that Moses’s concern and reminders were warranted, because Israel did forget and drift.
Ephesians 2:2-3, “You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world,obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.”
Devotion to the “Only” ONE is put on display by our obedience. Paul explains in his letter to the Ephesians that when God becomes the object of our devotion, our lives will reflect that choice. In the same way, when we drift, and our devotion to God wavers, it is evidenced in our disobedience to God’s call.
WE LEARNED THROUGH PASTOR TERESA’S MESSAGE THAT GOD IS COMPLETELY DEVOTED TO US, HIS CHILDREN. NO MATTER HOW FAR WE DRIFT, HE IS THERE. LET US TAKE THIS MESSAGE AND ALLOW IT TO MOTIVATE US TO PURSUE THE “ONLY” ONE, KEEPING HIM FIRST ABOVE ALL ELSE IN OUR LIVES AND REMOVING ANY AREAS WHERE THE ENEMY MIGHT HAVE A FOOTHOLD. STEP INTO THE FULLNESS OF BEING THE OBJECT OF GOD’S DEVOTION TODAY.
Colossians 3:5, “So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking withinyou. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.”
We combat the drift by being intentional about what we pursue. If we want to be successful in steadfastly pursuing Jesus, we have to completely remove those things that bring out our tendency to drift. Paul is encouraging the Colossians in this chapter to remove the earthly pursuits that lead us astray and replace them with pursuit of things that draw us closer to God our Father.
PUTTING THIS INTO PRACTICE
One degree. That is all it takes to senda ship miles off course, so weare foolish if we think that one bad decision cannot do the same thing. Pride can be our one decision, our one degree that sends us spiraling out of control and away from God’s plan.
Read Ezekiel 28:1-19.
What in this passage gives you pause?Can you see how when our focus falls to the gifts instead of the gift giver, we become prone to drift? Re-read Ezekiel 28:11-19. This description can be symbolic of the fall of Satan. Think about that. Satan saw God in all of His glory, and was given gifts beyond measure - but those gifts became his downfall as they took root in pride. If we are not diligent, even God’s good gifts can cause us to drift if those gifts become more important than the gift-giver. Can you think of some good gifts that can lead to drift? Discuss with your small group.
Take some time to journal gratitude for the gifts that God has given you and as you do, ask Him to help you never forget that He is the source of those gifts. Look for a passage of Scripture to post as a reminder of His goodness and provision in your life.
The closer we are to God, speaking with Him through prayer, reading theBible and following Him in obedience, the better we are at resisting drift. As we grow in our faith God helps us to identify the areas of our lives where we are most easily led astray.
Growth requires time and effort. Take some time to read and meditate on James 4, which in the NLT is entitled “Growing Close to God.”
What guardrails do you need to put up in order to help you to have undivided loyalty to the things of God? What else is God speaking to your spirit through this passage? Discuss with your small group.
If there is a stronghold in your life that continues to trip you upresulting in drift, ask God to bring an accountability partner into your life to help you combat this stronghold. Take some time to journal a specific prayer as you ask Him to lead you to someone that you can be real with, who will not judge but also hold you accountable and help you to succeed and grow. Take time to keep this prayer in front of you through this week.
God created us and He is the ONLY one who can fill the “God-sized” holes in our spirit. No idol that we create can ever fill us as He will.
Read Isaiah 44:6-20.
How is God speaking to you through this passage about the worthlessness of idols and the satisfaction that only comes from His presence? What are your thoughts on how the same piece of wood could be used to make idols as well as heat food? Can you think of something similar in your own life, something you can use for a good purpose but also turn into something you worship? Take those thoughts to your small group and see what insight others have gleaned.
Select one passage of Scripture either from the message (sermon notes available on the Anchor app) or from Deep Dive that made an impact upon you. Write it down, post it where you can see it daily and commit to memorizing it. Take a minute to ask God what He wants you to glean from that passage, and then when He answers, step out in obedience and do whatever He is calling you to do as you continue to grow in living a life of devotion to the “Only” ONE.
