Today, my topic is “Keeping Your Life In Balance,” or maybe I should have called it “How To Keep All Your Plates Spinning.” Life is complex these days and each of us has many hats to wear. We have our role in our families, our roles at our jobs or in our schools, we have our role in our church and a myriad of other responsibilities to keep us busy. And somewhere in the mix, we try to keep God in it all. Unfortunately, sometimes we only have time for God on Sunday. That’s not so good, that’s not a life in balance.
The way to keep your life in balance is to balance God’s five purposes for your life. Those five purposes are summarized in two important Scriptures that Jesus spoke, The Great Commandment and the Great Commission, which we’re going to look at in more detail today. These passages do not just give us guidance for Sunday mornings, but for every day of our lives. First, let’s look at the Great Commandment, NIV Matthew 22:37-39 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ Someone had asked Jesus what the greatest commandment in the Bible was and this was Jesus’ reply. Love God, the purpose of worship and love your neighbor, the purpose of ministry to others.
The second statement of Jesus that we’re going to look at today was spoken by Him just before He was taken back to heaven, it is some of Jesus’ last words on the earth. NIV Matthew 28:18-20 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Here Jesus gives His disciples of all ages instructions on how to live and keep their lives in balance. The third purpose of your life is to “go and make disciples”, the purpose of outreach, telling those who don’t know God about Jesus and the truth.
The next purpose is related to Jesus’ instruction to baptize new believers. Baptism is a sign that the new believer has become part of God’s family in the church and is the purpose of fellowship. The last purpose referred to in the Great Commission is to learn and practice God’s Word, the purpose of discipleship. In the Great Commandment and the Great Commission, we have God’s five purpose for your life summarized. As you and I learn to live lives balanced with those five purpose, we will have effective, fulfilled lives as we serve God. So, let’s look in some more detail, how these five purposes apply to our daily lives.
To hear more about this topic, listen to my November 12, 2006 message entitled Keeping Your Life In Balance