Your Priority

What is important to you in this life? More stuff? Possessions? Bigger barns? Power? Control? What is tempting? What is enticing? Think about these words of Jesus.

Matt 16:24-28
Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."

Influence and authority is very appealing. But to what expense should an individual pursue such? Jesus had the opportunity to have all the earthly power, authority, and influence given to him by the devil during his desert temptation. Satan offered Jesus all the kingdoms of the world (Luke 4:5-7), all their splendor and all authority to rule over them, if only Jesus would bow down and worship Satan. But Jesus refused such an opportunity.

Can you imagine that? As Alicia Chole wrote in her book Anonymous", what we could do with such power. We could . . .

". . . end child prostitution,
. . . make sure no one ever died of hunger again,
. . . find a home for every homeless soul,
. . . protect the helpless,
. . . provide jobs for the jobless,
. . . pursue justice for the oppressed,
. . . channel money toward truly worthy causes,
. . . ensure the elderly were never abandoned,
. . . prosecute drug traffickers,
. . . create the best environment possible for those with special needs,
. . . offer a college education to every desiring student,
. . .make sure everyone had adequate medical care,
. . . create and enforce laws to detox the environment,
. . . protect our natural respurces,
. . . remove abusive world leaders, and
. . . end most wars before they began."

I can think of a few others to add to that list. So can you.

Yet, Jesus recognized something far greater than obtaining an earthly kingdom. He recognized that nothing was more important than his relationship with God. He refused Satan's bribe. Jesus answered with, "Worship the Lord your God and serve him only."

The kingdom of Heaven is of greater value to this world than all the kingdoms of this world is to itself.