At this time, let's see. Do we have we don't have any children here this morning, do we? Well, that's a shame. So if you have your Bibles, take them out, turn if you would to Matthew chapter 16. Matthew chapter 16 this morning.

Matthew 16. And in a moment, we're going to begin reading from verse 21. Matthew chapter 16 and verse 21. Question this morning. What is keeping you from being all that you should be for Christ?

What is keeping you from being all that you should be for Christ? I want you to understand when I get up here to preach these messages, when I study from God's word to prepare, the vast majority of the time before I preach to you, I preach to me. And I have to ask myself this question. What is keeping me from being all that I should be for Christ? And as I thought about that, what what keeps God's children from being all that we should be?

Well, one obvious answer is, well, sin does. Sin does not belong. It is a foreign element in the life of the child of God. It is it doesn't belong. Writer of Hebrews said we need to cast off the sins and the weights which do so easily still beset us in the Christian life and keep our eyes on Jesus running the race with patience that is set before us.

But I was thinking in particular, some particular issues that keep us from being what we ought to be. One is fear. I think fear keeps Christians from being all they should be for Christ. Fear of failure, fear of man, a fear of God that you shouldn't have. Now, there is a fear of God that you should have, but that there's a fear of God that you shouldn't have.

As children of God, I am being kept. My salvation is being kept by the power of God. I do not have to fear eternity. I do not have to fear the great right throne judgment because my name is written in the what? In the book of life.

I do not fear God as my judge, but I do respect him and reverence him and fear him as such as my father. But often the fear is the fear of man that most trips us up. Fear what other people will say, what other people will do, how other people react. Another thing that I I think trips us up is a lack of faith. Really, you know, Christ said if you have faith as a what?

A mustard seed, then you can say to that mountain move and it'll move. In other words, if you have just the tiniest bit of faith, God can move mountains with it. Not not so much literally. It's more of a figurative metaphor there. Problem is a lot of times we don't even have faith as what?

As mustard seed. Our faith is weak. We just don't trust God as we should. And if we don't have the trust in God that we should, when God says go do that, we go, I don't know. That shouldn't be our response.

Because if we trust him, we can just what? We can just go. Trust and obey. If you really trust him and you really trust that he knows best, then obeying isn't gonna be so difficult. But it is oftentimes and that's because our trust is not what it should be.

The third thing, the thing I'm going to focus on this morning is selfishness. The me first syndrome. Me first. I think this plagues Christianity today, particularly me and among the last couple generations. When it comes down to it, we're just we're just too selfish.

Self is just too much on a pedestal in our world today, in our society today, in our heart today. It's in a place where God ought to be and it affects our effectiveness for Christ and our walk with Christ and our joy in Christ. In Matthew chapter 16, we're going to begin reading in verse 21. From that time forth began Jesus to show unto his disciples how that he must go into Jerusalem and suffer many things to the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and be raised again the third day. Then Peter took him and began to rebuke him saying, be it far from thee, Lord.

This shall not be unto thee. But he turned, Jesus turned and said unto Peter, get thee behind me, Satan. Thou art an offense unto me for thou savers not the things that be of God, but those that be of men. Then said Jesus unto his disciples, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.

For what is it what has a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Let's go to the Lord in prayer once more. Heavenly Father, thank you for your word today, for the opportunity to proclaim it, for those that have come to hear it and to receive it. I pray that you would open up our hearts to receive it today, that we would heed it, that we would not block it out, that we would not make excuses, but that we would be honest with you, and that we would surrender to follow you today that you might make us more like Jesus our savior and more effective witnesses and servants of the Lord.

In Jesus' name, we do pray. Amen. What is Christ saying to his disciples in these verses? Well, you have to go back to verse 21. If you start at verse 24, you miss a little bit of the context and what's going on here.

What did Christ say in verse 21? He began to show his disciples how he must go into Jerusalem to suffer many things to the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and be raised again on the third day. I'm sorry to say I don't think the disciples, particularly Peter, listened to the entire dialogue. When they got to the part where he said suffered and killed, they quit listening because they didn't want to hear those words. That was not Peter's plan concerning Christ, to suffer and to die.

Peter's plan was one of glory and honor and not suffering and death. His pride tripped him up and as Peter was known for opening his mouth without thinking a whole lot, he did again and stuck his foot in it. Why? Well, he was thinking only of who? Himself and his own aspirations.

He wasn't even taking time to see the bigger picture. The bigger picture included suffering, death, and resurrection, okay? But he didn't get to that part. His ears closed off when he heard suffering and death. And I imagine I might have done the same thing.

Suffering and death are not words we wanna hear. And so Peter shut down and and then responded without thinking, Lord, no, that that can't be. Furthermore, Peter was insinuating that his plans and aspirations were the same as Christ's, which were certainly not the case. Not at this time because Peter wasn't there yet. He would be.

Christ came to die. That was his aspiration. That was his purpose, a very unselfish one. Based upon a need that superseded his temporal comfort, popularity, power. He gave that up to come to earth to die for me and for you.

Peter wasn't there yet, but Jesus was always there. If Peter was going to amount to anything in the service of Christ, he too would have to look past personal wants and aspirations to a bigger picture. Not a self centered one, but a God centered one and an others centered one. For that was the picture Jesus was looking at. He would have to deny that part of him which which placed self above all other things.

You know, Christ said the second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor as your it doesn't even say love your neighbor more than yourself. Just if you'll just love your neighbor to the extent that you love yourself, the fact is you don't have to be commanded to love yourself. We live in a a world today says, well, people don't love themselves. They need to love themselves. The problem is we love self too much, not that we don't love self enough.

We love self so much that self becomes all important. My popularity, my looks, my my likes on my phone. That's all about who? It's It's all about me. And if I don't get what I want, I don't get the attention I want.

I I don't like how this is going in my life, then I get depressed and all down in the dumps and so we tell teenagers, well, you just don't love yourself enough. That's not the problem. The problem is we're a very self centered and selfish people. And while God doesn't say, do not love yourself, what he says, you need to love your neighbor as yourself, and you need to love your God more than yourself. Peter would have to be willing to sacrifice self for the good of others and for the cause of Christ.

That is the Christian way. That's what Jesus did for us. Peter would. Peter would do that. He would, according to church history, one day be crucified upside down because he was will unwilling to deny the name of Christ and unwilling to die in the same fashion as his Lord because he was not worthy.

Peter would get there by God's grace, but he wasn't there yet. God is working in us to make us more like Christ, but even as Paul admitted, he had not yet apprehended, still pursuing. And so are we. One of the things that tricks us up trips us up is selfishness, putting self above the Lord and other things. What a change God would make in Peter's life.

Peter found his life. He found his purpose, his calling, and his reward, not in following his own heart selfishly, but in following his saviors to the cross and to the crown. But the crown went through the cross. How do you find your purpose in calling, your joy, and your reward in Christ by following Christ, by learning to set self aside for things which are greater. That is not easy to do for our human nature is proud.

But we have a new nature in Christ which needs to shine. Selfishness gets in the way. Peter, who found his purpose in calling and reward in following Christ and setting self aside, the Bible tells us Peter's name will be written on the foundation of the eternal city. And all who go in and out will see the names of Peter and John and James and of his apostles, his 12 disciples who gave of themselves unselfishly for him who turned the world as they were accused upside down for Jesus. Their names are written on that wall.

Peter's name is written over and over again in the eternal word of God. Here today, two thousand years later, we're talking about Jesus, but we're also talking about who? Peter. In Sunday school, we're teaching out of two bit two books, two letters penned by who? By Peter.

Two letters preserved by God himself that will never pass away. When all other books are gone and forgotten, this book, it endures forever. And the letters of Peter, written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, are gonna be here forever. In losing his life for Christ's sake, he found it. How about you and me?

Christ isn't only speaking to Peter, he is also speaking to us. And I'm afraid we are failing, in many cases, to be all we can be, to affect the world the way we should be, to succeed in Christ's service as we would be, to lay up treasures in heaven as we can be because our choices are so often all about me. What is easiest for me? What pleasure it will bring to me? What glory or money or temporal benefit is in it for me and not for Christ who died for me.

I'm afraid oftentimes we have those two things backwards. What must come first is Christ and then me, and not the other way and not the other way around. We are far too selfish. Why did Christ invoke the name of Satan? He said to Peter, get thee behind me, Satan.

Why did he say that? Because Peter was not thinking like Christ. Peter was thinking like who? Satan. He was allowing his pride to dictate his choices and his ambitions.

And he was tempting Christ to do the same. Oh, no, Lord. No, no, no. That's not for you. When we give into pride and we put self above the Lord, we're not following Jesus.

We're following that old human nature powered by Satan and sin that trips us up. Just think what we could do for Christ or be for Christ if we would learn the lesson Christ is sharing here to abandon pride and selfishness as the criteria for our decisions and replace them with love, compassion, faith, loyalty to the cause of Christ like Peter would one day do. What the Lord can do in your life and mine if we would put self in its place, and we would exalt Christ to his place. Selfishness, allowing the ambitions of self, the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life to guide us rather than the example and desires of Christ will cause us to waste our life and have nothing to show. If self is the basis for our decisions, then what we will do is waste what we have been given.

And on that day, have nothing to lay at his what? To lay at his feet because self ruled and not Christ. Now if you're a child of God, there's much of your time decisions you make that that Christ is where Christ ought to be. But there are times when he is not. There are times when we allow selfishness to rule, and it is an obstacle in our path.

It was an obstacle in whose path? Peter's past path. Thus Christ said, if you'll come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. What does that mean? Quit being so selfish, so self centered that you don't look at the bigger picture.

I was thinking about some ways in which selfishness kind of reveals itself in us, in our attitudes and interactions. One of those is laziness. Laziness. We know what we should be doing, but don't you hate that little word, but? We know what we should be doing, but we don't do it.

We would rather lounge about. We would rather watch some more TV, get a few more winks of sleep because we are what? Lazy. This may not be the way selfishness rears its ugly head in your life, but it is a plague on our society today and in the lives of many Christians who just can't get up and get going because it's all about self, you see. I need a little more amusement, a little more rest, a little more time, a little more fun.

I'll get to that. I'll get around to it. And sometimes we never get around to it. Miss Judy Bashore that used to play our organ, she passed away a couple of years ago. I miss miss Judy.

I asked to have one thing from her house. I was we were invited over there to to look through some things of by her children if we we wanted something. I said there's only one thing I want from miss Judy, and that is I want her round to it. She had a magnet on her refrigerator. It was round.

I think it was purple. I have it somewhere, and it's around, and it says to it. It's her round to it. And so I have her round to it. And it's a reminder to me to not procrastinate so much that I never get around to it.

But I'm afraid that is a struggle that many of us face, and it is rooted in what? It is rooted in selfishness because it's my time and I'll get to it when I wanna get to it. I remember when I was a kid, my mom would come to me and say, are you gonna take take out the trash? I'd say, okay, I'll take out the trash. Thirty minutes later, you know, I've watched a program on TV.

You know, the trash was going to be there. I could do it later. You know, so, she got thirty minutes later. You're to take out the trash? Yes, I'll take out the trash.

Just just wait a bit at the getting finished with, I'll take out the trash. Okay. So now the program's over thirty minutes later, she comes back. Have you taken the trash out? No.

No. I'm I was just about to get up to do that. You know, I was just I was getting to my feet and here you come and say, have you taken the trash? And I'd get irritated because I was gonna do it. But it wasn't her problem, that was whose problem.

That was my problem. Because I said, okay, I'll do it. And I didn't what? I didn't do it. Why?

Because whatever was on that television was more important than doing what I was asked to do. And that is called laziness, and that is rooted in in selfishness. Another another area in which selfishness reveals itself is in pleasure seeking or hedonism. Pleasure seeking. Pleasure seeking is akin to laziness.

In other words, it's allowing the pleasures of life to take precedence precedence over the fulfilling of the responsibilities of life that God affords us. Allowing pleasures of life to take precedence over the responsibilities of life that God has given to us. Hedonism. Is that a problem in our world today? Oh, it is.

Many people serve the God of hedonism. That's all they live for. If you're a Christian, that's not all you live for because you have a God and a savior. But sometimes, sometimes you let pleasure become more important than God. Pleasure and enjoyment in life is not all evil, but selfishly placing pleasure over obeying and serving God, that is.

Selfishly ignoring God's boundaries when it comes to pleasure, That is. Pursuing pleasure above all else? Certainly is. And what is pleasure seeking rooted in? Selfishness.

Selfishness. Lord, my pleasure at this moment is more important than what you have asked of me. Hedonism. It has no place in the life of God's child. God needs to come what?

First, not pleasure. James told those to whom he wrote in James four that it was the reason that their prayers were not being heard. Look here, James four verse three. Ye ask and receive not because ye ask amiss that ye may consume it upon your lusts. Now, there are at least two words translated lust in the New Testament.

One of them means desire. Okay? It can be good or bad. It it means desire. Oftentimes in scripture, it's used in a negative context.

Love not the world, neither things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes, the pride of life is not of the father but is of the world. That word lust there is the word for desire. The desire of the eyes, the desires of the flesh.

This is a different word here. This word could be translated pleasure. This word in Greek is the word hedone from which we get the term hedonist. James is saying to the Christians he is writing, the professing believers that God's not hearing your prayers because you're praying selfishly. You're praying selfishly.

You're not thinking about the big big picture. You're not thinking about others. You're not thinking about the cross of Christ. If you're praying if if if I prayed and asked God to give me that 1964 cherry red hardtop convertible Corvette Stingray that is my favorite car, I would be praying what? Selfishly.

Why? Because why do I need a Corvette Sting 1964 Corvette Stingray? I don't need one. I don't need one. Doesn't I mean, if it was the only car that was made and I needed one to get from here to there, yes, I would need a Corvette Stingray.

But it isn't the only car that is made. My Mazda works just fine to get me from here to there. We see this hedonism clearly in our world at large. Young people go off to college. They join fraternities and sororities and spend their weekends partying it up.

That's hedonism on display. Some young and some not so young spend their time filling up the bars and drinking up the liquor. Fathers abandoning and neglecting their families, mothers aborting their babies or neglecting their children for more and more personal pleasure. Is that not true? Is that not why abortion happens for the most part?

Because pleasure is more important? Because we're selfish. Las Vegas is rightly called sin city for all the immorality and robbery under the guise of entertainment which takes place there, And it never lacks for guests. The casinos never have a hard time filling up the casino. Oh, if we only had the same problem with church.

Pleasure is king. Entertainment and entertainers in our society are king. We are willing as a society to spend exorbitant amounts of money on them, worship at their feet, and waste all of our time at their altar. I'm afraid as Christians, we spend too much time there too many times. Selfishly throwing away day after day of life on things which are passing away and bringing no long term satisfaction.

I enjoy a good movie. I enjoy a good ballgame. I watched Virginia play Louisville yesterday, and I much enjoyed it because they blew them out. It was fun. But I also spent an hour and a half with Pedro at the hospital yesterday and doing a few other things that were important also.

Life for those things live for those things, those pleasures, and lose your life, you will have nothing to show for it later. I mean, I enjoyed that ballgame. I remember it today. A month from now, I won't even remember it. Who did they play?

I don't know. That satisfaction and pleasure only lasts for a very what? Brief time. Those who are living for it, they just have to keep piling it on because, hey, that's all they have. But in Christ, we have something better, don't we?

And while we sadly understand those blinded by sin living this way, our savior expects much differently of us. Is he getting it? Are we just a little less selfish or a little more self controlled than our lost peers? Is that really enough? Will we regret it later?

Maybe we could learn from Moses. Hebrews eleven twenty five, choosing rather to suffer the affliction suffer affliction with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. Which was more valuable? You know the story of Moses, you tell me. If he would have stayed the the son of Pharaoh, you probably wouldn't know his name.

How many Pharaoh's names do you know? Ramses? I don't know. How many people know Moses? Lot more.

His name is written in here forever. Be like Moses. Quickly, just a couple more. Don't be selfish, lazy, pleasure seeking. Stop playing it safe.

It doesn't sound like that great of advice, but let me explain. And by that, I mean an unwillingness to step out in faith and follow our Lord. Trusting him to give the increase, give the joy, keep us safe. How many people was God called to the mission field who didn't go because, well, you know, how am I gonna provide for this or provide for that? Or what about the snakes and the spiders and the mosquitoes and the lizards that crawl on our ceiling?

I thought that was really bad until I moved to Florida and I wake up in the morning and I see a lizard crying on my ceiling and thought, I guess that isn't as bad as I thought. Still, I'm not really big on the tarantulas or the snakes living beside me. But quit playing it so safe. You know, the safest place to be is where God wants you to be. And if you're there, you're safe.

You're in God's hands. Nothing can happen to you he doesn't allow. And the worst thing that can happen to you is to go to heaven, and that isn't a bad thing. Matthew six thirty three, Jesus said this, but seek ye what? First, to see, here's the issue.

First, first, the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you. God says, if you'll follow me, if you'll if you'll follow where I lead, if you'll pick up your cross and follow me, if you'll set aside your ambitions for mine and just trust me, I'm going to take care of you. In the end, his disciples struggled a bit but in the end, they got it right. All their names are going be written on that foundations of that city one day. Do you believe the Lord?

I remember when I was in high school, the Lord called me into full time ministry and I struggled with that. I I did go forward in a service as a junior between my junior and senior year in high school. I went to camp and there was a call, an invitation for full time service and and I just knew God was calling me and I walked down that aisle which I was not want to do very often. And I said, Lord, I don't know what you want me to do. I don't understand this.

I cannot say my name. I I could sing a song up in front of people, but don't ask me to say my name, I'd forget it. I was scared to death. But God makes no mistakes. It took me a couple years of college to finally fully surrender to that.

You need to open your mouth and share Christ. You need to commit to that ministry that he has called you to. It may be to pray for your neighbor. That's a ministry. But whatever ministry that is, you need to give up that evening to help that person in need.

Yes. It may require more of you than you think you can give. Yes. It may get in the way of other plans or ambitions. But who do you trust?

And who is more important? What's the big picture? Is it worth it? It's worth it. It really is.

And then finally, don't be selfish. Don't be lazy, pleasure seeking, playing it safe, and quit being so stubborn. Selfishness also reveals that just being stubborn. And and that was a problem with me in that whole scenario was just stubbornness, lack of faith and stubbornness. This is what Samuel said to Saul.

God sends Saul out to kill all of the Amalekites. He had good reason. He's God. That's his prerogative. He sent Paul out.

He said, I want you to destroy them, what? All. Every last one. You're not supposed to bring anyone, anything back. That civilization is that that that pagan civilization is to be wiped out, God said.

Paul Saul said, okay, I'll do it. He went, he conquered, but he didn't what? He didn't do it. He brought back the king. Why?

The king was a trophy. Look what I did. I destroyed his people. Here's the king. He's my what?

My trophy. Selfishness. He brought back all the livestock. God said don't do that. Saul said, well, it wasn't me, it was the people.

You know, they they said, you're the king. What do you mean it's the people? So Samuel said this, hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? You tell me which? We gather rather you just obey him or disobey him in sacrifice.

I think he just rather you did what? Obeyed him. Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft and stubbornness is iniquity and idolatry. Those are pretty, you know, high up there sins in our mind.

Idolatry, witchcraft, selfishness, stubbornness. Thus, Samuel said to Saul, because thou has rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king But Saul did what God said. He went and he conquered the people. He killed most of them. He only kept the animals.

He was stubborn. He only obeyed God to the point at which it conflicted with his own what? Selfishness. And then God had to take a back seat. Let that not be you and me.

If we would learn to truly deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow the Lord, what we could do for Christ as individuals, as a church, as Christians in this world. Give it up. Acknowledge your sin before the Lord and let him have his way with you. There are just two choices on the shelf, pleasing God or pleasing self. There's a counselor at the camp, the Wilds, where I took the kids when I was a youth pastor and that was his counseling model.

He had a why. Why? You know, fork in the road on a sheet of paper. Here's you. Here's your choice.

Pleasing God or pleasing self? That's your two choices. Which are you going to please? Let God be the driving motivation behind your choice and not pleasing who? And not pleasing self.

If self is in line with God, hey, you don't have a choice to make. That's easy. What's hard is when the two are not what? Are not together. Paul said, walk in the spirit, you'll you'll not fulfill what?

The lust of the flesh. Pleasing God or pleasing self. Or maybe you're here this morning and God is calling you to trust Christ as Lord and be saved. Forgiven to become his child, to be rescued from sin and hell. Christ made his choice.

He unselfishly came and he died on the cross for your sins so that you might be redeemed and rescued. Now, it's your choice. Do I choose Christ or self? Listen to the words of our savior, verse twenty five and twenty six. For whosoever will save his life shall what?

Lose it. And whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. For what is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own one? So, how do you gain your soul? How how do you keep your soul?

How how does your soul survive? By giving it to who? By entrusting it to Jesus who unselfishly gave his life for you. Will you trust him today? Will you trust him with your soul?

He can be trusted because he gave his life for you, because he rose again from the dead and he ever lives to make intercession for you, because he went to prepare a place for you if you will receive his invitation today. Choose you this day whom you will serve. I hope you will choose to serve the Lord. Dear heavenly father, thank you Lord for all that you have given us and all that you've done for us. Lord, I pray that we would see the self our selfishness as the sin that it is and the obstacle that is in our path.

We would confess it before you today that you might give us victory and cleanse us from all iniquity. I pray, Lord, that our lives would more and more be filled with a love for Christ and the cause of Christ and not so much the love of self. Lord, I pray if there's one here today that is yet to receive Christ as the Lord and savior of their life, they'd come today As we sing this hymn of invitation. In Jesus' name we do pray. Amen.