No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other.  You cannot serve God and wealth…But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.  Matthew 6.24-33

Don’t waste your life.  That is one of the messages I hear from Jesus in Matthew 6.  Matthew 6 is our place of focus this Advent season for our Sunday morning teaching time.  Your life is worth so much and you only have one to live for the glory of God.  So, trade in the idea of pursuing and chasing the things of this world for the pursuit of God’s kingdom and His righteousness.  God is looking for a mighty minority of traders to show Him strong.

With the life God has granted to us we really have two options, either serve wealth or God.  We must choose between one or the other and the one we choose will be the favorite.  Jesus desires for us that God would be first.  We must pursue Him as our greatest and first priority over the chase and pursuit of money.  If we think we can do both Jesus says, it will not work.  As Jim Wallis says, You cannot serve two masters at the same time; they make rival claims on our lives, time, energy and resources.

No doubt, Jesus is speaking to a crowd of many who did not have much and disciples who would not know where their next meal would come from, or where they would lay their head to sleep at night.  Most of us don’t necessarily struggle with eating I would imagine or clothing ourselves or struggle with finding a place to stay.  For the majority of us, our worry or concern is about choosing where we will eat, what kind of clothes we will wear, and what kind of house we will have.  Our concern is more a fashion issue or how much I will eat issue, not whether or not I will have clothes or food at all.  For us it is an issue of excess and over indulgence.  We can get so worried and concerned, spending our time and energy on so many earthly and worldly things. 

Is not life more than eating, drinking or what you wear?  Eating, drinking and clothes are not bad, for Paul says, do it all for the glory of God (1 Cor. 10.31), but worrying and making them of a troublesome concern is, especially if you are making these things a means to gain attention or interest from others, then it is not being done for the glory of God, but instead to please others or self.  When we worry or have the type of concern that Jesus is talking about here it is that which has control over us and we lack faith.  It is a lack of faith in that God will provide.

We are the pinnacle of God’s creation.  You are worth so much to Him.  So, much so that if he will care for the birds of the sky and the flowers of the field the way He does, would He not care that way and even more for us?  Of course.  God cares so much for us that He sent Jesus, His One and Only Son to come to earth and dwell among humanity.  This is what Advent is all about.  We celebrate this season the coming of Christ; that He came, died for us, rose again, ascended into Heaven and that He is coming again for those who love Him.  So, not only does God meet our daily needs, but in sending Jesus, He meets our greatest need. 

Worry and such troublesome concern does not add to our life, but instead takes time away.  It is wasteful.  There is no gain to you or to your life.  It is wasteful to be troubled by such.  God will provide.  We must trust Him and not be troubled or worry about what we will eat, drink or wear.  When we worry we lack faith.  Worry is when we somehow think that the means or outcome of something is solely or completely up to us, instead of resting in God and trusting that He will do what He is going to do and that He is our strength.  Instead of worrying or being concerned about what we don’t have or need we trust God to provide exactly what we need, exactly when we need it.  I love how Jim Wallis puts it in his book, The Call to Conversion.  He asks, Do we finally know ourselves to God’s children at such deep levels that we can trust God for our material needs?  This part of the cost of discipleship.  That cost is to trust in God.  Following the master means sharing his life, foregoing worldly securities for the treasures of the kingdom. 

In this passage, the Gentiles stand for unbelievers.  Jesus says, the world and unbelievers pursue and chase after food, drink and clothes.  It is what they live for. They chase after all these things.  They believe they will be satisfied and filled with happiness with such earthly pleasures.  But Jesus Himself says, your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  Why be concerned and make our life about such earthly things when God knows exactly what we need and He provides exactly what we need and when we need it?  Life is about so much more than what we eat, drink or wear.  Life is about so much more than what we need.  It is not about you and me.  That is why Jesus says, But seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you (Matthew 6.33).  When we continually put God’s kingdom first it means we seek to know and live out God’s priorities above the things of this world, including the chasing after food, drink and clothes. 

God has blessed those He has joined in a covenant relationship with Himself with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ (Eph. 1.3)For what purpose has He done this?  For our comfort?  No.  In Genesis 12.2-3 God speaks to Abram saying, And I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing; and I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse (God promises to have his back).  And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.  We have been blessed with every spiritual blessing to be a blessing to others.

It is to these, who are blessed by God, so they may bless others, who will hear the words of King Jesus say, Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.  Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink?  And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You?  When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’  The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me (Matthew 25.34-40)’.  We have been blessed by God to be a blessing to the disciples of Christ who are in need, and the least of these, the poor, the down and out, the hungry, thirsty, homeless, naked, orphans and widows.  We are not blessed with the blessings of the kingdom to simply enjoy comfort, a risk-free life, getting fat with our feet up on the cruise ship to heaven.  We have been blessed to bless the least of these.  What a thought, instead of seeking for and worrying about drink, food and clothes for ourselves, which is mentioned by Jesus in Matthew 6, we are to instead, as said by Jesus in Matthew 25, to feed and clothe others, being concerned about where they lay their head; what they are eating, drinking, and wearing; and their physical and spiritual well being.

God is looking for a minority of traders to show Him strong.  He is looking for those who will exchange earthly pursuits for kingdom priorities.  Pray this Advent season with your eyes fixed on Jesus, the Great Trader of heaven for earth to dwell among us, about what it is God is calling you to trade in for His kingdom priorities.  Maybe it is free time you have to mentor a student in need of guidance.  Maybe it is money you are spending on Starbucks that you trade for giving to the church’s Advent giving.  Maybe it is Christmas gifts for caring for a family in need.  I know of one in our church who is selling old music CDs to give the proceeds to the church’s Advent giving this season.  Be a trader.