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Crossroads Community Church


Sunday September 13, 2015 – we joyfully congregated in God's presence.
Pastor Don shared announcements and prayed, “Dear Father God, we come humbly before you this morning praying for our ambitions to be focused purposefully on your will so that we may be the obedient disciples you have called us to be and further the spreading of the Good News of your Son, Jesus Christ. I pray, Dear Lord Jesus, that our ambitions not be self-centered, for personal gain nor recognition, but that our actions and motives be focused on leading people to you, giving you all the Glory, Honor and Praise. We pray all this in Jesus Glorious Name. Amen.
How would you describe the word “ambitious”?
Negatively? Perhaps bringing to mind the people who put rat in rat race?
Positively? Meditating on the Apostle Paul's eager desire to succeed (Philippians 3:14). Paul's goal was to know Jesus and be all Jesus had in mind for him.
Today we studied 1 Kings 1:5 – 2:24, focusing on Godly ambitions.
Fortunately, when we are distracted by the pressures or temptations of the world, the Lord seeks to guide us back, helping us to stay focused on, and ambitious for, Him.
First and Second Kings explains why God's people lost the land they fought so hard to win under Joshua's leadership. They stopped focusing on the Lord.
Deuteronomy 28:9 “If you obey the commands of the Lord your God and walk in his ways, the Lord will establish you as his holy people as he swore he would do.”
Deuteronomy 28:15 “But if you refuse to listen to the Lord your God and do not obey all the commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come and overwhelm you.
Jesus directed the focus and ambition of His Disciples in Matthew 6:33 “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need.”
To seek the Kingdom of God above all else, means to put God first in every area of your life.
What is really important to you?
It is not only important to be discerning in finding our focus, but equally important to conscientiously keep our focus, ensuring our ambitions remain in line with the Lord's purposes and are pleasing to God.
If we are fortunate, throughout our lives we are encouraged to be ambitious, successful and win the prize, however, we are not to be self-serving noting ungodly ambition revolves around self.
In 1 Kings 1:5-10 Adonijah boasted “I will make myself king” and he set about to achieve this with ungodly ambition.
1 Chronicles 28:5 God had told King David that he had chosen Solomon to succeed King David on the throne of Israel and to rule over the Lord's kingdom.
The prophet Nathan learned of Adonijah's selfish ambitions and informed King David and, in turn, King David had Solomon officially appointed King, the news of which instilled fear in Adonijah and his supporters (1 Kings 1:49-52).
In spite of Adonijah's selfish ambitions, King Solomon was merciful to him (1 Kings 1:53), however, Solomon's reprieve was conditional upon Adonijah proving himself worthy and remaining loyal to his brother Solomon as the appointed King.
There are many forms of warning signs which we may benefit from in our lives if we choose to heed them and in scripture God has warned many people. In Genesis, God warns Cain about killing his brother Abel. In the New Testament, Jesus warns Peter before Peter denies Jesus three times. And I believe God is warning us today about improper ambitions.
One of the marks of improper ambition is the unwillingness to follow God's will and when Adonijah stubbornly clung to his selfish ambition to be king (1 Kings 2:13-22) and was not loyal to King Solomon it cost him his life (1 Kings 2:23-25).
Jesus does not discourage our ambition but encourages us to focus on glorifying God and doing good to others because anything less dishonors God and sacrifices peace, harmony and love.
May God richly anoint these His words, here this morning and by God's grace, as followers of Jesus, may our ambitions be Godly and may our ears be tuned to hear heavens applause rather than the temporary praise of mankind. Amen.
Post date: 2015-10-09 20:24:04
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