You cannot serve two masters. Jesus told us that. He said we cannot serve God and Mammon.
“No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate one and love the other, or else he will be be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” Luke 16:13
Despite this warning people often have mixed motives in what they do. This probably contributes to many of the problems people encounter in their work and relationships.
People get on with life, fitting into their circumstances, abiding by the rules and doing as they are told, but they often carry deep-seated personal agendas and ambitions, which they secretly worship and serve.
We have an example of a secret personal agenda in the servant of Elisha. When Elisha healed the Syrian commander, Naaman, of leprosy, he was offered riches. Elisha turned them down but his servant, Gehazi, was greedy to get the wealth. Gehazi crept away and talked with Naaman, getting some of the riches for himself.
As Elisha’s servant his duty was to serve his master, but Gehazi also wanted to serve himself. He was not single-minded about his responsibility, but put his own desires into the mix, and even ahead of honouring his boss.
That kind of self-interest is quite common. Most employees don’t love their boss and may not even like their job. They work for the income and toward their career development. It is fair to say that in general employees work firstly for self-interest, not for the good of the company. The income, working conditions, suitability to their desires and aspirations, and so on, are given serious consideration when someone considers taking a job. If there are very few jobs, then just having an income is a high priority.
Despite the high level of self-serving that goes into our lives, the warning from Jesus still has great significance. We need to think carefully about the consequences of having mixed agendas and not being single-minded in our commitment.
God wants us to make up our minds who we serve and what our commitments are, and to stick with our word and the choice of our heart, with single-minded focus.
“Let your Yes mean Yes, and your No mean No, or else you will fall into judgment.” James 5:12
We are warned that if we are double-minded we will be unstable.
“A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.” James 1:8
I found an interesting commentary on the Chinese view of contractual arrangements. Westerners are to take care that the Chinese view such agreements as flexible, while we might think they are more binding. The quote goes: “From a Chinese point of view, if situations change during the course of your business relationship, naturally you’re not going to be bound to the initial agreement.”
(quoted from: http://www.businesspundit.com/7-deadly-perceptions-about-doing-business-with-china/)
That’s the attitude many westerners take in such serious matters as marriage and family. They make a vow to be committed “for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health” but then abandon that commitment “if situations change” along the way.
They might argue, “You were supposed to make me happy”, or “You weren’t supposed to be so difficult”, or “You make things uncomfortable for me”. Those changed circumstances cause many westerners to not feel bound to the initial agreement.
But doesn’t that suggest being double-minded? A single-minded person has made a commitment, and nothing can change their mind. We change our mind because we are also committed to other things, such as self-interest, ambition, desire for care-free living, pursuit of happiness, and so on.
I reflected recently on a strange example of single-mindedness I saw many years ago. An American-based Christian ministry organised an event in Australia and a number of Americans came over to support the event. They made a number of local connections and encouraged many people to attend.
As I arrived at the venue people were arriving in dribs and drabs, a few at a time. In the foyer of the conference centre, near the registration table, stood a man dressed in somewhat outlandish jacket and hat, whistling a constant string of bird-calls.
He was waiting to meet someone who he would not recognise. He had arranged to make himself obvious by his dress and his bird calls.
With less than half a dozen people in the entry area at any one time his efforts were way over the top. He was glaringly obvious in his clothes, without needing the bird calls. Yet he faithfully and persistently kept up his whistling.
I was immediately embarrassed for him. He seemed so desperately out of place and so desperately out of context with the small attendance at the event. His approach may have been needed in a huge conference in the USA but was way overdone in a modest meeting in Australia.
I long remembered the man with a note of censure, that he did not need to be so over-the-top. Yet I then realised he was being single-minded about his purpose. He had told people what to look out for and he faithfully delivered the quirky presentation he promised. I have no doubt the person looking for him would have found him.
He wasn’t put off by the inappropriateness of his plan or the strange looks he must have received from people who thought he was out of place.
Many of us would shrivel if scorned, or would die of embarrassment if we had made an inappropriate arrangement. The single-minded will stick with their word and their plan, putting self secondary to the purpose they pursue.
We can’t serve two masters, because at some point or other we will have to choose between them. If we are serving self first, we will deny God. If we are serving self-interest, we will cheat on our other commitments. If we are ruled by pride, greed, lust, ambition, or a bunch of other such motivations we will be unstable and changeable, as we chase opportunities, forget our responsibilities, abandon commitments, destroy relationships and change our minds and our direction at whim.
You have chosen to make Jesus Lord of your life. He is your master. You cannot serve Christ and self or all the other things you hope will make you happy. It just can’t be done. So you’d better sort yourself out right now. Affirm your commitment to Christ and ask Him to help you abandon all those other things you have fallen in love with along the way.
And may you live for Him, with all the joy of being God’s child, and all the blessings that come as you are Single-Minded.
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