Moving Up

The plain truth is that in one way or another, we are always moving up.

In one way or the other we are always moving up. Growing up, I shared a bedroom with my two brothers. Mike and I slept on a set of bunk beds and shared half a dresser and half a closet. My oldest brother, Chris, had the whole other half of the room to himself. My spoiled younger sister had a full bedroom all to herself.

I spent my childhood longing for that day when I would move up! At college I had a whole half of a room to myself, a whole closet and dresser, a desk and lamp, and even my own refrigerator and microwave! No more bunk beds! But I had this roommate who was a manager at McDonald's. He would return late each night, usually frustrated, tired, and moody. He had this infected, diabetic toe that he would treat each night when he came back home. Our room reeked of the smell of his feet. After the semester, he moved on and I got a new roommate, then another, and another. I mastered the art of being an intolerable roommate. It was the only way to get space for myself.

What a relief it was during my senior year to finally get a room all to myself. In one corner of the room, I put my computer. In another corner, an enormous pile of dirty clothing. In still another corner, my microwave and refridgerator fridge. I had it made!

Then I graduated and moved up into a glass fish bowl. I mean, a church parsonage. How awesome! I had a whole house to myself. Three bedrooms, a garage, dining room, family room, bathroom, kitchen, and full basement. I counted it one time and I think about twenty thousand people had a key to my house, but I didn’t care. But then, right before Lara and I got married, a woman in the church was telling people how much she liked our new bedroom set and furniture. It kind of freaked us out because she had come in the home when no one was there and looked over all our stuff. So I called an emergency meeting and told the board to change my locks or else! Or else, Lara was probably going to kill me!

Marriage was pretty cool. But suddenly I realized that I no longer had three bedrooms, a kitchen, bathroom, dining room, or family room. In fact, I didn’t even have a half or a quarter of those rooms. Lara had the house. And I had the church. Whenever I needed to use the bathroom, Lara would tell me to walk next door to the church because we only had one bathroom.And it was hers! Hey, anything to keep my attractive new roommate happy!

Then we moved up to Springfield! Finally, a house all our own, owned only by us. We have two and a half bathrooms now, so I no longer have to drive over to the church unless... oh never mind! That extra bathroom saved our marriage. I’m kidding!

What of value am I leaving behind while I am moving up?

We spend our lives moving up. But what are we leaving behind, in our wake? In The Learning Channel's show "Moving Up", couples get the opportunity to return to their old homes to see what the new homeowners did with all the blood, sweat, and tears they’d invested over the years. Did the new homeowners love their work? Or did they rip it all out without much thought? Most often, couples discover their blood, sweat, and tears were shed in vain and that the new homeowners had very little appreciation for their efforts.

What if we got this same opportunity? An opportunity to one day see what people made of all the blood, sweat and tears we’ve shed throughout our lives? Did they love the legacy we left? Or did they rip it all out without much thought? A lot of times we are more concerned with the excitement of moving up. But what if we were equally concerned with what others will be moving into?

Okay, you’re moving into that spacious new home in that new neighborhood. But what did you leave behind in your old neighborhood? Did you establish deep friendships there? Did you demonstrate God’s love there? Did you love your neighbor as yourself? Did you take time to visit with that elderly couple? Did you reach out to that couple going through a divorce? Did you host that neighborhood gathering? Or will people hardly notice you’re gone?

Okay, you are being offered that exciting new job promotion. Finally, you’re moving up the corporate ladder! But what are you leaving behind in your old department, at your old desk?Did you conduct yourself with integrity? Did you raise the bar for performance? Did you show respect and concern for your co-workers? Did you share your faith in Jesus Christ with them?

So you have just graduated from eighth grade, high school, or college. What kind of student were you? Were you an honest student? Did you respect your teachers? Were you salt and light, or did you always cave in to peer pressure? Did anyone become a Christian because of your example of faith and love?

So you are retiring! You’ve worked your whole life. You’ve earned it! You’ve got that second home away from home and you are spending more time there. Or you’re expanding your business. Or your kids have finally moved out. Or you are having your first child, second, or third. You’re a grandparent! A great grandparent! In God’s eyes, it doesn’t really matter what we are moving up to. What matters is what we are moving away from. It’s what we leave behind for others.

What are you being remembered for among the students you graduated with? Among the neighbors who lived next door to you? Among the people who worked for you or with you? Among your family as you move to that retirement community? Among fellow believers as you move from one church to the next? Among the living as you pass from this life into the life to come?

What is your lasting legacy?

We are so busy moving up in life that we don’t consider what we're leaving behind. Have you ever taken the time to step out of the rat race for a few moments, and reflect on the legacy you are leaving to others? It’s never too late to begin thinking about this. I remember visiting my hometown of Herscher a few years ago. My mom asked me to run down to the IGA Foodliner and pick up some bread. I happened to get in line behind an old friend I hung out with in high school. He was so excited to see me! He invited me to a beer tent that they had set up downtown. A bunch of the guys from our graduating class were getting together.

I’ve never drunk an ounce of liquor during my entire life. But as I stood there, I was convicted by how little impact I had been for Christ among my old friends. I had so many opportunities to tell them about Jesus Christ, opporunities to be salt and light. But to them, I was just another guy going with the flow, living in the world. Come to the beer tent! I cannot change the past, but what about the present? What can I leave of value now, before I move up, so that that people are better off for having known me?

To leave a lasting legacy, we must have hearts for Jesus Christ.

One of my heroes of all time is the apostle Paul. The apostle Paul was an extraordinary individual who said and did extraordinary things. I’ve included four verses in your outline this morning for your consideration.

The first statement is found in Philippians 1:21-26 (NIV). I’ll give you a little more context. Here Paul says, "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me."

In these verses Paul is confronted with the prospect of moving up, literally, to heaven to be with Jesus Christ for eternity in heaven and to see the living God face to face! For Paul, dying meant gaining Christ, being with Christ, and receiving the reward for his faith. But as exciting as the prospect of moving up and being with Christ was, what was Paul most concerned with? He was concerned with what he was leaving behind. Would others have the same joy in Christ Jesus he had found? Would others continue and progress in their faith as he had done? Paul could only find peace in moving up by leaving something of value behind. His faith.

To leave a lasting legacy, we must have hearts for righteousness.

Consider that second statement Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 11:1(NIV). He tells the Corinthian Church, "Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ." I can imagine few things more important than following the example of Jesus Christ. Peter tells us that Christ left an example for us that we might follow in his steps. 1 Peter 2:21 (NIV) says, "To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps."

I spend a lot of time thinking about Christ’s life and thinking about how he would respond if put in the same circumstances I find myself. As the now famous slogan says, "What would Jesus do?" (WWJD) The apostle Paul was consumed with following Christ’s example. But he was equally consumed with bringing others along with him in following Christ’s example.

Paul didn’t want to leave the Corinthians in the dust as he moved up. "Come with me", he pleaded. "Follow me as I follow Christ. Let’s take this hill together. Let’s pursue righteousness together. Let’s imitate God together. Let’s be holy together." The furthest thing from Paul’s mind was abandoning the Corinthians in their immorality, divisiveness, and worldliness. And likewise with the Philippians. The furthest thing from Paul’s mind was abandoning the Philippians without them knowing the same joy he’d discovered in Jesus Christ.

To leave a lasting legacy, we must have hearts for God's family.

What if we were just as concerned with what we are leaving behind as with where we're going? To the church at Colossae in Colossians 1:28-29 (NIV) Paul again speaks with conviction. He writes, "We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me." He continues on in Collosians 2:1-2 (NIV), "I want you to know how much I am struggling for you and for those in Laodicea, and for all who have not met me personally. My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge."

The only thing worse than having treasure is not having anyone to share it with. What good is it to possess the full riches of complete understanding and to have all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge hidden in Christ, but to keep it to yourself? Paul wasn’t just consumed with knowing God. He was consumed with making God known. What would happen if every time we learned something new and exciting about Jesus Christ, we immediately shared it with two or three others? And what if, like Paul, we struggled with all God's energy in order to make Christ known? To present everyone perfect in Christ?

Folks, life is not about moving ourselves up. It’s about moving others up! It's parents moving their children up. Grandparents moving their grandchildren up! Employers moving their employees up! Teachers moving students up! Friends moving friends! Co-workers moving co-workers! Neighbors moving neighbors! The body of Christ, building itself up in Christ, so that no child is left behind. And no, I am not running for president!

To leave a lasting legacy, we must have hearts for God's world.

To demonstrate the intensity of Paul’s desire, look no further than Romans 9:1-5 (NIV) where Paul says, "I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit— I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race, the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption as sons; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen."

In Paul’s lifetime, many of his Jewish brethren had rejected Jesus as the Christ. Even today the Jewish people have rejected Jesus Christ as the messiah. The Buddhists, the Muslims, the Hindus, the Mormons--- billions have rejected Christ asthe Son of God and the only savior from our sins. Billions!

For Paul, it was never about his own personal salvation. It was about the salvation of the world, starting with his Jewish brethren who had rejected the good news of Christ. In Romans 9:3 (NIV) Paul says, "I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers." How many of us would ever say such a thing of the billions who don’t know Christ? And in Romans 9:2 (NIV) Paul says, "I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart." There is so much indifference about the people outside these four walls.

My admiration for the apostle Paul is surpassed only by admiration for Christ himself. As Jesus prepared for his death and anticipated his resurrection from the grave, he sought to leave a lasting legacy among his followers. He established the celebration we call the Lord’s Supper. He took the bread and broke it. He took the cup and shared it. For Jesus it wasn’t about moving up or ascending into heaven to be at his Father’s side. His concern was that we would follow him there. His concern was that we would acknowledgeJesus as the way, the truth, and the life.

His concern was that all humanity share in the same ultimate destination we like to call heaven. Are you moving up? Are you also moving others up?