The tension:

• One of the great tensions of the Bible is concept of divided loyalty
  • God or Baal
  • Hot or Cold
  • World or God
  • God or Money
• We all like to keep our options open!
• We all like a little taste of it all
  • Grandad with multiple pies
• God is wanting TOTAL DEVOTION

Matthew 6:24–34 (NLT) — 24 “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money. 25 “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? 27 Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? 28 “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, 29 yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. 30 And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? 31 “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. 34 “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.

Body:

1. Choose ONE Master
   1. Not a singular person can have two masters. You can’t focus on both wishes and make both happy..Reasons:
      1. They are diametrically opposed in values and you will have to compromise
      2. You don’t have the bandwidth
      3. Your heart will draw close to one and you will have no love for the other. 
   2. The options 
      1. Sin - Romans 6:16 (NLT) — 16 Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living.
      2. Flesh - Romans 8:6–7 (NIV) — 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.
      3. People - Galatians 1:10 (NIV) — 10 Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.
      4. Money - Matthew 6:24 (NLT) — 24 “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.
         
         
2. Choose ONE Outlook
   1. The Outlook of Fear
      1. Worry >
      2. Striving >
      3. Wrong priorities >
      4. False Security
   2. Worry
      1. Your worries don’t add a solitary minute to your life. 
      2. Your worry is a direct reflection of your lack of faith. 
      3. The mind of an unbeliever is dominated by worry.
   3. God as provider
      1. God the Father does a good job at providing all of those things. 
      2. He has immense value attached to you. You are precious to Him. You are NOT valuable to the god of mammon. 
   4. The Outlook of Faith
      1. Trust >
      2. Peace >
      3. Freedom >
      4. True wealth
         
         
3. Choose ONE Kingdom
   1. What is the Kingdom of God
      1. Friend who thought it was angels singing, maybe a castle? 
      2. “GOD IN CHARGE”
   2. What is the Kingdom of this world
      1. “PEOPLE IN CHARGE”
   3. Seek First the Kingdom of God
      1. Pursue most passionately His reign and rule in your life
      2. Seek most passionately that reality spreading through the world
         1. Bringing the culture of the Kingdom everywhere you go
         2. Bringing the power of the Kingdom everywhere you go
         3. Bringing the message of the Kingdom everywhere you go. 
   4. Practically
      1. People Saved - Harvest
      2. People Discipled - Demonstrators of the Kingdom
      3. People Sent - Multiplication 

Extra thoughts:

1. No one can serve two masters - This is a common sense statement, but many think they can serve two masters at the same time. Jesus is saying you’re not going to PLEASE two masters at the same time. 
2. What happens when you try to serve both, is one gets despised, and the other gets loved. 
3. You will either do the will of God, or chase a dollar. When you answer to money, you cannot really live to serve God.
4. Worry is an indicator that you are serving the wrong master. Another way to say it is worry forces you to serve the god money. Worry is like a bit in the horse’s mouth that pulls it into a direction, it will pull you back into serving Mammon. This is why the command to not worry is so important. Worry = Wrong Master!
5. Don’t worry about the bare necessities. Your father WILL TAKE CARE OF THAT STUFF!! 
6. The question of value arises. Jesus said you are valuable to the Father. Who you are not valuable to is the god Money. 
7. A lack of faith will also lead us back into slavery to the wrong master. When we don’t truly believe God will care for us, it’s an indicator that we are serving the wrong master. 
8. Worry, a lack of faith, will cause you to serve Money, the way you’ll know is your thoughts will be “dominated”. 
9. Right now, God knows your needs. This very second.