- Overcomer Literature Trust
- Swindon
- Wiltshire
The Christian Objective
By T.J.Spier.
"One thing I asked of the Lord” (Psa. 27 v4)
“One thing is needed” (Luke 10 v42)
“One thing I do” (Phil. 3 v13).
Whatever God does is simple; what man does is usually complicated. To God “one thing” is essential; with men it is “many things".
The complicated programme of the church today is evidence that man is pretty much in control. The work and function of the church is anything but simple, and it becomes increasingly involved. What a contrast to the beginning days of the church. Not only is the work of the church complicated with the “many things", the life of the individual is too involved.
There are three very simple, refreshing texts. In them is found no involved theology, nothing hard to understand, just basic truth regarding successful Christian living. They come to us from the heart of the psalmist, from the teaching of the Lord Jesus and from the passion of the apostle, and the message is really one.
Jesus could say, “My yoke is easy, and my burden is light” because of the one purpose of His life. He said to His disciples at the well of Sychar,“My food is to do the will of Him who sent me and to finish His work” (John 4 v34). This was more important to Him than what we call the necessities of life, more important even than the food and drink that they were offering Him. Jesus quoted, when He was tempted by Satan, “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4 v4). To do the will of God and to finish the work of God was His purpose. And Jesus would have us to know that that is not as hard as we may think. A single purpose is never as hard as a divided one. “My yoke is easy" said Jesus, “and my burden is light”. It is always the mixed motive that makes life difficult.
Psalm 27 is a beautiful psalm. Doubtless David was encouraging himself as he composed it. He could well have had many fears. He could have been disturbed over his many enemies. They were planning to overthrow him. They were encamping round him, preparing for war. He realised that the secret of his salvation, his security and victory, was not so much through combat with the enemy as in his relationship to God!
The Church could well learn from David. Too many times we try to plan against the inroads of the enemy, but the secret of our victory is always found in our relationship to God. The church, as well as the individual, needs to be sure it is in the will of God and in touch with God, with the anointing of the Holy Spirit upon its every endeavour.
David says, “Even then will I be confident”. And I believe he refers to verse 4, “One thing I asked of the Lord, that is what I seek : that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple”. To sum it up, his desire was to dwell consistently, behold constantly and enquire continually. The one requirement for success and victory is found in abiding, constantly abiding, in Christ.
In our second text we are taken to Bethany. Jesus was received into Martha’s house. She was the outspoken one, the active one. It was “her” house and she ran things. The failure of the Church comes too often from putting this type of person into office instead of the one that spends time sitting at the feet of Jesus. Things were going at top speed when Jesus arrived, and Martha was anxious to make quite an impression before her honoured guest. But she could not arouse enthusiasm in Mary. Mary wasn’t impressed with the activities, she was captivated by the presence of Jesus.
Martha resented Mary’s not going along with her programme. Mary was not “practical" enough. Finally Martha went directly to Jesus about the matter, hoping for His approval. ‘Don’t You even care about all I’m doing? Why don’t You say something to Mary about helping me?’ She was having a hard time with her programme and she tried to get Jesus to bless it. “Martha, Martha”, the Lord said, “you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed, Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10 v41-42).
We all know something about the pressure of activities that keep us from Jesus’ feet. Sometimes we are not understood by our brethren when we refuse to be overloaded with responsibility and activities. But most of us, Christian workers and Church leaders, know little of this all-important thing. We have active churches and lively programmes, but how few times do we cancel all the activities and just wait before the Lord? This is the one all-important, needed thing. It is the “better” and from the person with purpose of heart it “will not be taken away”.
The life of Paul was filled with busy activity but the secret of his success lies in the fact that he had spent much time with the Lord before he even began his public ministry. He definitely had one purpose in his Christian life and ministry. There were many things that Paul did not understand concerning the love of God toward him and the purpose of God for him, but knowing that all the fullness of the God-head is found in Jesus Christ (Col. 2 v9), Paul had one passion - Christ. He sums it up in Philippians, chapter 3, “That I may gain Christ, and be found in Him . . . I want to know Christ” (v8-10). His ambition included knowing the “power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death”.
“One thing I do”, said the apostle. His one goal, his one aim, “the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus”. He wanted fellowship with Christ to the fullest degree that he might attain to the height of His glory.
To-day we have an intellectual Christianity that is made up of complicated doctrinal teaching. We have our forms of systematic theology. But we learn only “about” Christ. Paul did not say he wished to know more “about” Christ, he desired to know Him. According to Philippians, chapter 2, the Lord Jesus gained His exalted position by successive steps downward in humility and suffering. To know Christ and to attain to His exalted place we must go by the way of the Cross.
To many in the church to-day the Cross is only an emblem, and we have forgotten the “suffering and shame". It costs to “know” Christ, and this Paul fully realised. He wrote to the Philippians, “Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life, or by death". How different he was from many we have in churches to-day. If service requires suffering or inconvenience, we are not interested. If the Cross of Christ is to lead onward there must be those who are willing to be crucified, who are willing to pay the price of knowing Christ.
Combining our three texts, we have a splendid motto, “One thing I asked . . . One thing is needed . . . One thing I do".
To dwell with Christ, to worship at His feet, to triumph with Him in His eternal glory. With the world and fleshly service it is “many things", divided interests, dissipation of strength. In the will of God it is one thing - simplicity, concentration of time and effort. It doesn’t mean that we won’t be able to do many things if we observe the one needful thing. It will keep us from being “careful” and "cumbered”. It will lift us from the drive and pressure. We will no longer get up in the morning anxious and fretting about what we have to do. We will remember the one needed thing. We will take time to wait upon God, to sit at His feet, listen to His Word as Mary did - then go out to face the day.
We worry about so many things, family problems, church difficulties, the future of our health, world conditions. But one thing is needed. Keep in tune with God and in touch with God. Keep your eyes on Jesus. Dwell in Him. Behold Him constantly. Inquire of Him continually. Be found in Christ. Follow on to know Him. Bow in deep humility at His feet. We cannot please everyone, but let us be sure that we please Him. We cannot do everything we are asked to do or co-operate with every programme found within and about the Church, but we can and must do everything He would have us do.
That is the one needed thing. That is the Christian's single simple objective - Jesus Christ and Him alone.
“One thing I asked - one thing is needed - one thing I do".
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