Commitment to God
I. Introduction
A. Let us consider a "four letter word" in our society today
1. No, it's not normally considered an expletive
2. Our society does not seem to mind expletives anymore
anyway
B. The "four letter word" does not have four letters per se,
but a whole lot of people cringe at it!
C. The word: commitment!
D. "Commitment" is not a favored concept anymore
1. Commitment in marriage is woefully lacking
2. Commitment to children even has suffered
3. Commitments among employers and employees exist only as
long as it is advantageous for both
4. In many respects, "individual freedom" is preferred to
"commitment," which requires more endurance and
responsibility, not subject to whim
E. No less true in religious terms
1. Religious commitment is sorely lacking!
2. Many have no intention of committing to even having a
particular belief
3. Many are willing to commit to a belief, but do not commit
to doing much about it
4. Many commit only to seeing what they can gain from
God/the church, and are not so interested in committing
to working for God/the church
5. Many others are willing to commit to doing certain external
actions, and believe that such is sufficient to justify
them
F. What does God think about commitment? What will truly please
Him?
G. Let us consider the matter
II. Commitment to God
A. God indeed desires us to commit to Him!
1. Romans 6:17-18
2. We are to be committed to God and His teachings!
B. This is not just when it is convenient or for our advantage!
1. Matthew 6:33
2. 1 John 2:1-6
3. Romans 12:1-2
4. Galatians 2:20
5. Commitment to God is all-encompassing!
C. David speaks regarding the need to commit to God in Psalm 37:5
1. Commit: Hebrew galal
2. Basic meaning is "to roll"
3. Idea: rolling a burden to be carried by another
4. Thus, we are to "roll our way" to God, and let Him
establish our paths!
5. Similar to the Christian and the cross of Christ
(Matthew 16:24)
D. English word "commit"
1. From two Latin words, cum and mittere, literally, "to
send with"
2. If you are sent with something, you are entrusted with it:
it is your responsibility
3. If you are one who claims Christ, you are entrusted with
the responsibility of glorifying His name through His
Gospel (Matthew 5:14-15, Romans 1:16)
E. Commitment, then, supposed to be a part of our lives
III. Why Commit?
A. Why should we commit to God?
B. We should commit to Him since He has been faithful with His
promises!
C. The Flood/Rainbow: Genesis 9:12-16
1. Are we still here?
2. Has a flood destroyed the world since?
D. Abraham and his s seed: Genesis 12:1-3
1. Was God faithful in bringing Israel into the land?
2. Are we not the true seed of Abraham, the children of the
promise through Christ (Galatians 3:16)?
E. Christ
1. Was He not prophesied of through the prophets?
2. Did He not fulfill the prophecies made (John 19:30)?
3. Has not God been faithful about remitting our sins as we
confess them (1 John 1:9)?
F. If God has made commitments to His people, and has been
faithful in completing them, is it not a small thing to commit
to Him and be faithful?
G. We ought to commit to God because God has been committed to us!
IV. Committing to God
A. How is it that we commit ourselves to God?
B. There is no need for commitment if there is nothing to
commit to
C. Thus, what are we committing to when we commit to God?
D. Making God the first priority
1. Matthew 6:33
2. If His kingdom and His righteousness are put first,
everything else falls into place
E. Matthew 10:34-39
1. It is not just about putting God first...
2. ...if necessary, we are to forsake all for Christ!
3. Our commitment to God is to be greater than our
commitments to our spouse, our children, our family--
even to ourselves!
F. 2 Corinthians 10:5
1. Commitment is not just about action!
2. We must also commit ourselves in our thoughts!
3. cf. Philippians 4:8
G. When one has committed him or herself fully to God, this will
be evident by their deeds (Matthew 7:16-19, James 3:11-12)
H. Demonstrations of commitment
1. Works of the flesh/fruit of the Spirit: is it manifest that
you avoid the works of the flesh and are working to manifest
the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:17-24)?
2. Assembling: do you assemble as often as possible with the
saints (Hebrews 10:25)?
3. Study: are you diligently examining the Bible and your
lifestyle, to see if you truly are acceptable to Him
(2 Corinthians 13:5, 2 Timothy 2:15)?
4. Love: does the love of Christ shine through you? Do you
love your fellow brother? People of the world?
(1 Corinthians 13:1-8, 1 John 2:9-11; 4:7-21)
5. Evangelism: do you promote God's truth, or by your words
and deeds do you indicate that you are ashamed of the
Gospel (Romans 1:16)?
6. A few examples; there could be many more that could be
considered
I. In the end, the committed Christian will always look to do
what is right and what ought to be done, and will do so
cheerfully
V. Conclusion
A. We have considered commitment today
B. Even though commitment is not valued often in society, it is
quite important to God!
C. Let no one be deceived: God will only commit you to eternity
with Him if you have committed yourself fully to Him!
D. How is your commitment level to God?
1. Do you even commit to a given belief about God?
2. Do you only commit to a belief, and nothing else?
3. Are you like the multitudes that are infrequent
churchgoers?
4. Are you a Sunday morning only or a Sunday only
Christian?
5. Or are you committed to God-- committed to living a life
pleasing to Him, committed to the path of Heaven--
as you ought to be?
E. Let us devote ourselves as fully committed disciples of
Christ!
F. Invitation/songbook