Elm Street Community Church
The Spiritual Disciplines - Simplicity
In this sermon, pastor Steve continues the sermon series on the Spiritual Disciplines as he focuses on simplicity...
Locations & Times
Elm Street Community Church
264 Elm St, Fitchburg, MA 01420, USA
Sunday 10:00 AM
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For those who have been blessed and have the ability, we greatly appreciate your support in His Kingdom-building efforts here on Elm Street in Fitchburg!
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For those who have been blessed and have the ability, we greatly appreciate your support in His Kingdom-building efforts here on Elm Street in Fitchburg!
https://tithe.ly/give?c=394343
Video from Skit Guys- Rich Young Ruler
So what might the parable of the Rich Young Ruler look like in today’s culture? Might it look something like this?
The man is popular… he’s rich… he has a kind of legalistic holiness to him. In his mind, he has kept the law and the commandments of God. He is, in his mind, holy.
For those looking in the parable itself, the man asks Jesus what he is still lacking. It is believed that he is expecting Jesus to tell him that he lacks nothing, but that isn’t how it goes.
So what might the parable of the Rich Young Ruler look like in today’s culture? Might it look something like this?
The man is popular… he’s rich… he has a kind of legalistic holiness to him. In his mind, he has kept the law and the commandments of God. He is, in his mind, holy.
For those looking in the parable itself, the man asks Jesus what he is still lacking. It is believed that he is expecting Jesus to tell him that he lacks nothing, but that isn’t how it goes.
He came to Jesus expecting to be justified by his works, to be seen as righteous because of the things he had done, but Jesus saw where his heart was, and called him out.
I actually like how Tommy reacts as the rich man. He sees Eddie, who is playing Peter, as someone who really didn’t give up much. He was a fisherman, not necessarily a desirable job.
This man would have appeared to lack nothing. But he lacked humility. In this rendition, he is not looking to Jesus for help, he is thinking that he can help Jesus.
And giving up everything is not what Jesus asked of everyone, but Jesus knew his heart. He was all about the status. He was all about the appearance - the look.
He thought he knew it all. And he decided that he was important enough to work through things with Jesus… to help determine what is necessary moving forward. And how do we see this from the text? Because when Jesus told him what he needed to do, he walked away.
When push came to shove, his money was more important to him than God was. When he said “I can’t,” what he was really saying was, “I won’t.”
He bought into the lie of the importance of things… the importance of money. I wonder how many of us struggle with this as well.
Over the last 4 weeks we looked at the inner disciplines: fasting, prayer, meditation, and study. For those who are willing to, I would love for you to send me a text or email about how you have tried some or all of these 4 disciplines so far over the last 4 weeks, and the benefits you have seen and the challenges you have faced.
For today we are going to begin to look at the outward disciplines, and we are going to start with simplicity.
And in a sense, this discipline focuses on the difference between His kingdom and our stuff. At its core it is an issue of the heart, and it brings to light where our priorities are.
As we look at simplicity, Richard Foster points out that the “central point for the discipline of simplicity is to seek the kingdom of God and the righteousness of his kingdom first, and then everything necessary will come in its proper order.” P. 86
Simplicity is a kingdom first mentality. There are some who may just have enough for their daily bread, but the majority of us in America have more than just our daily bread. Many have leveraged their credit to take care of their wants, and there is often a displaced understanding of needs and wants.
I have had people come to me in need of financial help because they don’t have enough food to eat, yet they have multiple big screen TV’s from rent-a-center, cable with all the channels. I have had people who can’t pay their rent or mortgage because they got into houses that they couldn’t afford, or they need help because they also leased a luxury vehicle that they couldn’t afford.
And how is it that the data shows that the more people make, the lower percentage of giving to the church? Often those who make more, spend even more on things they desire, and in the end they actually have less to go towards His kingdom. You would think that the more God blesses us, the more we would want to use for His kingdom.
In Richard Foster’s book, he makes the following point (read from p. 80-81, starting at Because we lack a divine Center…)
When he speaks of lacking a divine Center, he means that Christ is not our center, we are…
And I love the comment he makes, “conformity to a sick society is to be sick. Ambition, prudence, industry… they all sound so good until you understand that without Christ as the center, without the Kingdom being first, they are sinful.
And this is seen throughout scripture, and especially in today’s text. Today’s text is found in the Sermon on the Mount, a teaching time that was as shocking back then as it is today.
We see many of the spiritual disciplines mentioned in the Sermon on the Mount. Fasting, prayer, giving, and now simplicity.
He came to Jesus expecting to be justified by his works, to be seen as righteous because of the things he had done, but Jesus saw where his heart was, and called him out.
I actually like how Tommy reacts as the rich man. He sees Eddie, who is playing Peter, as someone who really didn’t give up much. He was a fisherman, not necessarily a desirable job.
This man would have appeared to lack nothing. But he lacked humility. In this rendition, he is not looking to Jesus for help, he is thinking that he can help Jesus.
And giving up everything is not what Jesus asked of everyone, but Jesus knew his heart. He was all about the status. He was all about the appearance - the look.
He thought he knew it all. And he decided that he was important enough to work through things with Jesus… to help determine what is necessary moving forward. And how do we see this from the text? Because when Jesus told him what he needed to do, he walked away.
When push came to shove, his money was more important to him than God was. When he said “I can’t,” what he was really saying was, “I won’t.”
He bought into the lie of the importance of things… the importance of money. I wonder how many of us struggle with this as well.
Over the last 4 weeks we looked at the inner disciplines: fasting, prayer, meditation, and study. For those who are willing to, I would love for you to send me a text or email about how you have tried some or all of these 4 disciplines so far over the last 4 weeks, and the benefits you have seen and the challenges you have faced.
For today we are going to begin to look at the outward disciplines, and we are going to start with simplicity.
And in a sense, this discipline focuses on the difference between His kingdom and our stuff. At its core it is an issue of the heart, and it brings to light where our priorities are.
As we look at simplicity, Richard Foster points out that the “central point for the discipline of simplicity is to seek the kingdom of God and the righteousness of his kingdom first, and then everything necessary will come in its proper order.” P. 86
Simplicity is a kingdom first mentality. There are some who may just have enough for their daily bread, but the majority of us in America have more than just our daily bread. Many have leveraged their credit to take care of their wants, and there is often a displaced understanding of needs and wants.
I have had people come to me in need of financial help because they don’t have enough food to eat, yet they have multiple big screen TV’s from rent-a-center, cable with all the channels. I have had people who can’t pay their rent or mortgage because they got into houses that they couldn’t afford, or they need help because they also leased a luxury vehicle that they couldn’t afford.
And how is it that the data shows that the more people make, the lower percentage of giving to the church? Often those who make more, spend even more on things they desire, and in the end they actually have less to go towards His kingdom. You would think that the more God blesses us, the more we would want to use for His kingdom.
In Richard Foster’s book, he makes the following point (read from p. 80-81, starting at Because we lack a divine Center…)
When he speaks of lacking a divine Center, he means that Christ is not our center, we are…
And I love the comment he makes, “conformity to a sick society is to be sick. Ambition, prudence, industry… they all sound so good until you understand that without Christ as the center, without the Kingdom being first, they are sinful.
And this is seen throughout scripture, and especially in today’s text. Today’s text is found in the Sermon on the Mount, a teaching time that was as shocking back then as it is today.
We see many of the spiritual disciplines mentioned in the Sermon on the Mount. Fasting, prayer, giving, and now simplicity.
I actually like how Tommy reacts as the rich man. He sees Eddie, who is playing Peter, as someone who really didn’t give up much. He was a fisherman, not necessarily a desirable job.
This man would have appeared to lack nothing. But he lacked humility. In this rendition, he is not looking to Jesus for help, he is thinking that he can help Jesus.
And giving up everything is not what Jesus asked of everyone, but Jesus knew his heart. He was all about the status. He was all about the appearance - the look.
He thought he knew it all. And he decided that he was important enough to work through things with Jesus… to help determine what is necessary moving forward. And how do we see this from the text? Because when Jesus told him what he needed to do, he walked away.
When push came to shove, his money was more important to him than God was. When he said “I can’t,” what he was really saying was, “I won’t.”
He bought into the lie of the importance of things… the importance of money. I wonder how many of us struggle with this as well.
Over the last 4 weeks we looked at the inner disciplines: fasting, prayer, meditation, and study. For those who are willing to, I would love for you to send me a text or email about how you have tried some or all of these 4 disciplines so far over the last 4 weeks, and the benefits you have seen and the challenges you have faced.
For today we are going to begin to look at the outward disciplines, and we are going to start with simplicity.
And in a sense, this discipline focuses on the difference between His kingdom and our stuff. At its core it is an issue of the heart, and it brings to light where our priorities are.
As we look at simplicity, Richard Foster points out that the “central point for the discipline of simplicity is to seek the kingdom of God and the righteousness of his kingdom first, and then everything necessary will come in its proper order.” P. 86
Simplicity is a kingdom first mentality. There are some who may just have enough for their daily bread, but the majority of us in America have more than just our daily bread. Many have leveraged their credit to take care of their wants, and there is often a displaced understanding of needs and wants.
I have had people come to me in need of financial help because they don’t have enough food to eat, yet they have multiple big screen TV’s from rent-a-center, cable with all the channels. I have had people who can’t pay their rent or mortgage because they got into houses that they couldn’t afford, or they need help because they also leased a luxury vehicle that they couldn’t afford.
And how is it that the data shows that the more people make, the lower percentage of giving to the church? Often those who make more, spend even more on things they desire, and in the end they actually have less to go towards His kingdom. You would think that the more God blesses us, the more we would want to use for His kingdom.
In Richard Foster’s book, he makes the following point (read from p. 80-81, starting at Because we lack a divine Center…)
When he speaks of lacking a divine Center, he means that Christ is not our center, we are…
And I love the comment he makes, “conformity to a sick society is to be sick. Ambition, prudence, industry… they all sound so good until you understand that without Christ as the center, without the Kingdom being first, they are sinful.
And this is seen throughout scripture, and especially in today’s text. Today’s text is found in the Sermon on the Mount, a teaching time that was as shocking back then as it is today.
We see many of the spiritual disciplines mentioned in the Sermon on the Mount. Fasting, prayer, giving, and now simplicity.
He came to Jesus expecting to be justified by his works, to be seen as righteous because of the things he had done, but Jesus saw where his heart was, and called him out.
I actually like how Tommy reacts as the rich man. He sees Eddie, who is playing Peter, as someone who really didn’t give up much. He was a fisherman, not necessarily a desirable job.
This man would have appeared to lack nothing. But he lacked humility. In this rendition, he is not looking to Jesus for help, he is thinking that he can help Jesus.
And giving up everything is not what Jesus asked of everyone, but Jesus knew his heart. He was all about the status. He was all about the appearance - the look.
He thought he knew it all. And he decided that he was important enough to work through things with Jesus… to help determine what is necessary moving forward. And how do we see this from the text? Because when Jesus told him what he needed to do, he walked away.
When push came to shove, his money was more important to him than God was. When he said “I can’t,” what he was really saying was, “I won’t.”
He bought into the lie of the importance of things… the importance of money. I wonder how many of us struggle with this as well.
Over the last 4 weeks we looked at the inner disciplines: fasting, prayer, meditation, and study. For those who are willing to, I would love for you to send me a text or email about how you have tried some or all of these 4 disciplines so far over the last 4 weeks, and the benefits you have seen and the challenges you have faced.
For today we are going to begin to look at the outward disciplines, and we are going to start with simplicity.
And in a sense, this discipline focuses on the difference between His kingdom and our stuff. At its core it is an issue of the heart, and it brings to light where our priorities are.
As we look at simplicity, Richard Foster points out that the “central point for the discipline of simplicity is to seek the kingdom of God and the righteousness of his kingdom first, and then everything necessary will come in its proper order.” P. 86
Simplicity is a kingdom first mentality. There are some who may just have enough for their daily bread, but the majority of us in America have more than just our daily bread. Many have leveraged their credit to take care of their wants, and there is often a displaced understanding of needs and wants.
I have had people come to me in need of financial help because they don’t have enough food to eat, yet they have multiple big screen TV’s from rent-a-center, cable with all the channels. I have had people who can’t pay their rent or mortgage because they got into houses that they couldn’t afford, or they need help because they also leased a luxury vehicle that they couldn’t afford.
And how is it that the data shows that the more people make, the lower percentage of giving to the church? Often those who make more, spend even more on things they desire, and in the end they actually have less to go towards His kingdom. You would think that the more God blesses us, the more we would want to use for His kingdom.
In Richard Foster’s book, he makes the following point (read from p. 80-81, starting at Because we lack a divine Center…)
When he speaks of lacking a divine Center, he means that Christ is not our center, we are…
And I love the comment he makes, “conformity to a sick society is to be sick. Ambition, prudence, industry… they all sound so good until you understand that without Christ as the center, without the Kingdom being first, they are sinful.
And this is seen throughout scripture, and especially in today’s text. Today’s text is found in the Sermon on the Mount, a teaching time that was as shocking back then as it is today.
We see many of the spiritual disciplines mentioned in the Sermon on the Mount. Fasting, prayer, giving, and now simplicity.
You cannot serve both God and money. It is one or the other.
He starts by telling us not to store up treasures on earth, but focus on treasures in heaven. The treasures of this earth are fleeting, they are here today and gone tomorrow.
Jesus spells this out clearly in Luke 12 (read Luke 12:13-21)
He starts by telling us not to store up treasures on earth, but focus on treasures in heaven. The treasures of this earth are fleeting, they are here today and gone tomorrow.
Jesus spells this out clearly in Luke 12 (read Luke 12:13-21)
If we are not rich towards God, but choose to be rich for ourselves and our families, we are considered wise and prudent from a human standpoint, but foolish from a spiritual standpoint.
Today, life seems to be about money and possessions — things that make us look good. Some churches have even bought into it as they “sell” their prosperity gospel… the health and wealth gospel.
My daughter shared with me a link to PreachersNSneakers… it started by focusing on some of the crazy sneakers pastors were wearing while preaching or on their social media. Here are a few pictures. (Nike’s $1190, Luxembourg $710, Versace $995.
This isn’t even getting into the crazy expensive clothing, cars, houses, and even planes that some pastors show off as their favor from God. Is this really biblical?
And it isn’t just about pastors and religious leaders. We are called to be wise with our money, but ultimately we are too be looking at His kingdom first.
Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven. Utilizing words, deeds, and yes, even our money and stuff, should be for His kingdom first. If we aren’t focused on His kingdom first, then our hearts aren’t in the right place.
Where is our heart? One way to know if our hearts are right is to look at our focus on possessions. I think Foster is right when he shares that Jesus condemns money as a god that we sometimes put before the Lord.
As we look at this, we can begin by looking at what we have, and what we gravitate towards. Do we need things that appear to be the best? Are we reflecting a world viewpoint of status and prosperity?
Or do we do the opposite? We don’t want to move to legalism, where we expect everyone to give up everything. Jesus didn’t ask everyone to give up everything. Jesus looked into the heart and when pride, or greed, or covetousness was there, He called it out.
The goal, once again, is to make sure that we have the kingdom of God first in our lives.
Foster, in his book, looks at 10 principles regarding the outward discipline of simplicity. You can find them in detail in his book starting at page 89).
Buy things for their usefulness instead of their status. Cars, clothes, houses, etc. Why did we choose the ones we have. (Read from his section if time)
Reject anything that is producing an addiction in you. He speaks of drinks, food, TV, social media, money. “Simplicity is freedom, not slavery. Refuse to be a slave to anything but God.
Develop a habit of giving things away. When you are done with things and they are no longer useful, do you look to find someone who could use it or need it and give it to them? Can we bless other people in Jesus’ name through our abundance?
Avoid the need to have the next greatest thing. Do you need to constantly be upgrading things so that you have the latest and greatest when what you have works?
Enjoy things without owning them (borrow when you can, enjoy what you can that doesn’t require you to purchase it.
Develop a deeper appreciation for creation. God has given us much to appreciate that costs us nothing.
Try to avoid buy now, pay later schemes. This includes the rent-a-center trap that has you pay 3-4 times what an item is worth.
Speak plainly. Do what we say we will do, even if better offers come our way.
Reject anything that breeds the oppression of others. This especially includes purchasing things that were made inexpensively through the oppression of others.
Finally avoid anything that distracts you from the kingdom of God. Avoid good things for the better things, and the better things are those that are focused on His kingdom.
For this week, reflect on what you are have and don’t use, and see if there is a way you can bless the kingdom with it.
Look at your giving, and see what your giving to His body says about His place in your heart.
And is there anything that has mastery over you. Maybe it is a certain drink or food, maybe it’s TV or social media, how can you make your life simpler by removing things that are not of God that you recognize that you “have to have” on a regular basis, and begin the process of removing it, so that the only thing that has mastery over you is Jesus.
As we prepare to celebrate Holy Week starting next week, may we make sure that it is His kingdom we are focused on and promoting, and may we be willing to sacrifice for Him, since He sacrificed everything for us that first Holy Week.
Pray…
Today, life seems to be about money and possessions — things that make us look good. Some churches have even bought into it as they “sell” their prosperity gospel… the health and wealth gospel.
My daughter shared with me a link to PreachersNSneakers… it started by focusing on some of the crazy sneakers pastors were wearing while preaching or on their social media. Here are a few pictures. (Nike’s $1190, Luxembourg $710, Versace $995.
This isn’t even getting into the crazy expensive clothing, cars, houses, and even planes that some pastors show off as their favor from God. Is this really biblical?
And it isn’t just about pastors and religious leaders. We are called to be wise with our money, but ultimately we are too be looking at His kingdom first.
Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven. Utilizing words, deeds, and yes, even our money and stuff, should be for His kingdom first. If we aren’t focused on His kingdom first, then our hearts aren’t in the right place.
Where is our heart? One way to know if our hearts are right is to look at our focus on possessions. I think Foster is right when he shares that Jesus condemns money as a god that we sometimes put before the Lord.
As we look at this, we can begin by looking at what we have, and what we gravitate towards. Do we need things that appear to be the best? Are we reflecting a world viewpoint of status and prosperity?
Or do we do the opposite? We don’t want to move to legalism, where we expect everyone to give up everything. Jesus didn’t ask everyone to give up everything. Jesus looked into the heart and when pride, or greed, or covetousness was there, He called it out.
The goal, once again, is to make sure that we have the kingdom of God first in our lives.
Foster, in his book, looks at 10 principles regarding the outward discipline of simplicity. You can find them in detail in his book starting at page 89).
Buy things for their usefulness instead of their status. Cars, clothes, houses, etc. Why did we choose the ones we have. (Read from his section if time)
Reject anything that is producing an addiction in you. He speaks of drinks, food, TV, social media, money. “Simplicity is freedom, not slavery. Refuse to be a slave to anything but God.
Develop a habit of giving things away. When you are done with things and they are no longer useful, do you look to find someone who could use it or need it and give it to them? Can we bless other people in Jesus’ name through our abundance?
Avoid the need to have the next greatest thing. Do you need to constantly be upgrading things so that you have the latest and greatest when what you have works?
Enjoy things without owning them (borrow when you can, enjoy what you can that doesn’t require you to purchase it.
Develop a deeper appreciation for creation. God has given us much to appreciate that costs us nothing.
Try to avoid buy now, pay later schemes. This includes the rent-a-center trap that has you pay 3-4 times what an item is worth.
Speak plainly. Do what we say we will do, even if better offers come our way.
Reject anything that breeds the oppression of others. This especially includes purchasing things that were made inexpensively through the oppression of others.
Finally avoid anything that distracts you from the kingdom of God. Avoid good things for the better things, and the better things are those that are focused on His kingdom.
For this week, reflect on what you are have and don’t use, and see if there is a way you can bless the kingdom with it.
Look at your giving, and see what your giving to His body says about His place in your heart.
And is there anything that has mastery over you. Maybe it is a certain drink or food, maybe it’s TV or social media, how can you make your life simpler by removing things that are not of God that you recognize that you “have to have” on a regular basis, and begin the process of removing it, so that the only thing that has mastery over you is Jesus.
As we prepare to celebrate Holy Week starting next week, may we make sure that it is His kingdom we are focused on and promoting, and may we be willing to sacrifice for Him, since He sacrificed everything for us that first Holy Week.
Pray…