First Order Stuff

I love my church. I love the people, I love the building, I love the comfort. I love walking through the halls, knowing and being known. I love being called by name and having decades-old relationships with more people than I can count. I love that those people will call me out in my sin and love me through my pain. I love serving and being served, loving and being loved, praying and knowing I'm prayed for. My church is not the only great one out there; I bet yours is awesome, too. And I hope you love your church just as much as I love mine. There are so many churches out there worthy of being loved and attended. I love THE church, the body of Jesus in the world.

 I say all that because what I'm about to say might make it sound like I don't love the church. But I need you to promise me that you'll remember what I just said: I love my church and I love THE church. 

 But my topic today is one that you might have picked up incorrectly from your church or the church: making important what is important.

 I call it First Order Stuff: the most important, the primary, the immediately attended. First order stuff for owning a car would include putting gas in it and changing the oil. First order stuff for your phone would include keeping it charged and not dropping it on the floor.

 First order stuff in your Christian walk is not what you think it is.

 If you asked a hundred Christians what they thought should make the list of First Order Stuff, you'd likely hear them tell you to follow the Ten Commandments, obey, pray, attend church, worship, give, love, forgive, etc. And those are GREAT things.

 But they're not First Order Stuff. 

 I hear you: "But those things are so, so important to living the Christian life!" True. But not MOST important.

 What, then, actually makes the list of First Order Stuff?

 Consider what I highlighted in the following passages:

  • "Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you." (Psalm 9:10)
  • "We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God." (John 6:69)
  • "He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure." (Isaiah 33:6)

First Order Stuff involves your brain. It means knowing, seeking, trusting, believing, and fearing God. It's what you know of God, who you believe Him to be, and the authority you give Him not just on Sundays but every waking moment of your life. First order stuff shapes everything else: what you say, how you live, whether or not you obey. 

 First Order Stuff centers around a personal, one-on-one relationship with God. And there is one--and only one--source for a true, accurate, understanding of who God is: Your Bible. 

 Recap: First Order Stuff includes the Bible and your brain. Everything else is second order stuff. And that includes all the things that most Christians mistakenly THINK are First Order Stuff: obeying, praying, attending church, worshiping, giving, loving, forgiving, fasting, discipling and being discipled, sacrificing, and on and on. You can DO any of that second order stuff without the First Order Stuff, but it will be empty, draining, and will not last because you were trying to create a First-Order experience by doing second-order stuff. 

 That's backwards. It doesn't flow that way.

 First Order Stuff has to come, well, FIRST. And once your get the First Order Stuff in place, all the second order stuff comes as a result of the First Order Stuff:

 Because you know God, you want to live according to His standards.
Because you know His love for you, you choose to love and forgive others.
Because you know His heart and His passion, you can serve others freely.

 The church--remember! I LOVE THE CHURCH!--sometimes teaches this backwards: they teach second order stuff as the means to First Order Stuff. And, I am sorry, that's not how Jesus or the Bible present it.

 So if First Order Stuff must come first and the only source of First Order knowledge is your Bible, it's pretty simple to know if you are engaging in First Order Stuff at all: are you in your Bible every day? Because without God's Word in your hand each time the earth turns, the answer is NO.

 If you do not have a DAILY relationship with God through His Word, you are missing the First Order Stuff. And no amount of second order stuff can fill your mind with what it needs from the Lord through the Holy Spirit.

 I love MY church and THE church. You'll find me singing in the choir, teaching Sunday school, volunteering to bring food and help with Children's choir, leading worship teams, helping with Women's Ministry, and even more. 

 But Church stuff is second order stuff. I--and you--can do things with and for church in Jesus' name ONLY if the First Order Stuff comes FIRST.

 There is no better way to spend the first hour of your morning than sitting with the God of Angel armies, knowing Him through the Word divinely written through His Spirit and confirmed in His Son.

 First Order Stuff. First thing every day. 

 Oh--and here's a great article if you want a little more confirmation.

 @leslienotebook
myleslienotebook@gmail.com




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