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"THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS - OR HOLINESS?"
GOSPEL SCRIPTURE TEXT:
MATTHEW 6:25-33
LOS ALAMOS 1ST UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
DAVE RING, PASTOR
SUNDAY MORNING, APRIL 25, 2010

SCRIPTURE TEXT: 25Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? 28And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

PRAYER: Father-God, we are anxious about many things. We want to be happy, but we really don't know how. Show us the way, Lord. Show us Your way. Amen.

MESSAGE: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights - that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." This is the opening sentence to the second paragraph of one or this nation's most revered documents, the "Declaration of Independence." Forthrightly and succinctly it sets out principles to which Americans, then and now, deeply adhere. Probably nowhere else is the dream - and the promise - of the United States of America more clearly stated. We believe in - and we strive for - life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

"So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." These words are a significant portion of the principles of the Christian faith, as enunciated by its founder, Jesus of Nazareth. They're recorded in the one and only lengthy public address he made which has been preserved in the Holy Bible. Those of us who profess to be Christians are supposed to be committed to these principles. We are to look for the fruition of the Kingdom of God in our lives. If we believe the truth of Jesus' words, we should therefore seek - diligently seek - his kingdom and its righteousness.

I am an American, a citizen of the USA. Most of you are the same, either by birth or by choice. I love my country and I believe in its principles. I am also a Christian, by God's choice and my acceptance of his loving grace, offered in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Most of you would likewise profess to be the same. Basically that means we're all in the same figurative boat. And we're all, therefore, faced with the same basic dilemma. The social principles which energize our nation propel us in one direction - the pursuit of happiness. The Lord Jesus points us toward a different goal - the Kingdom of God. Are these two directions, goals, priorities compatible with one another? Can we seek earthly happiness and put the Kingdom of God first in our lives? Or are they mutually exclusive, requiring that a choice be made between them?

If, in fact, a choice must be made, then my experience with life in the USA for 60-plus years leads me to believe that most American Christians have already made such a choice, either by intention or by default. Most of us have decided to follow the principle of our nation's Declaration of Independence - to pursue happiness. Almost everyone in America is dedicated to and consumed by the passion of trying to be happy, to feel good. Virtually everything we do is evaluated by this criterion. We "fall in love" and marry because romantic feelings are good feelings - they make us happy. We go shopping because buying a new dress, or a new car, or a new house excites us and makes us feel happy. We get a haircut or a beauty treatment because we feel fresh, exhilarated, happy by how we look when we emerge. We go to church because, when we leave after singing the hymns and sharing the fellowship and hearing the sermon, we feel uplifted, good, happy. We use drugs and alcohol to get a buzz - a high - a moment of happiness, no matter how short or chemically artificial.

It may seem sacreligious to juxtapose church attendance and drug abuse in two successive sentences, but it's deliberate and, I believe, an accurate analogy here. Both practices, for contemporary Americans, represent attempts to achieve the same goal - happiness. If it feels good, do it. Get married! Take a trip! Have children! Eat a gourmet meal! Volunteer at the hospital! Go on a shopping spree! Party hearty! Go to church! Get drunk! Find a higher paying job! Whatever it takes, however it's approached, the goal is the same. Americans are united in their passion for -- the pursuit of happiness.

Pursuing happiness is one thing. We all do it. But achieving the goal is a lot harder. Finding happiness is something most of us have yet to do. It's elusive; fleeting. On Friday night, you may be satiated at the completion of a bacchanalian feast. But early Saturday morning all that remains is a case of heartburn. You can marry the most perfect mate on earth - the man or woman uniquely made to complete your life. Six months later, after the latest shouting match, you wonder. What went wrong? Teens come back from church camp, having discovered the perfect consummation of their lives in a new-found relationship with Jesus Christ. Two weeks later, who's he? Yes, we engage, all of us, in the American dream - the pursuit of happiness. But very few of us find it. And even when we do, it's all too easily lost. Then, well, we're back on the same treadmill - pursuing happiness all over again.

Let's move back to the original issue raised today. The quintessential American goal is the pursuit of happiness. Jesus Christ invites us, rather, to seek not happiness - but the Kingdom of God. Is there a problem with this? Can we do both? I believe that the answer is - yes.

I want to offer to you this morning the best of all possible solutions - one that allows you to fulfill the American dream - to not simply pursue, but to find happiness and also to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ regarding the primacy of the Kingdom of God. You don't have to make a choice - in this arena you can have your proverbial cake and eat it, too. Like the motto of 1980's women, you can have it all. You can seek the Kingdom of God - and find happiness - all in the same direction. Today, I want to invite you to engage in the pursuit - of holiness.

The pursuit -- of holiness. What is holiness? It sounds serious, heavy, maybe even negative to some of us. How many Christians do you know who are actively pursuing lives of holiness? Are you? What does it mean to be holy, anyway?

More than two decades ago I became involved with a group of about 20 persons at St. Mark's United Methodist Church in El Paso, Texas in a Monday night Bible study entitled, "The Pursuit of Holiness." And I was very surprised, as I think you'll be, to discover what holiness, as defined in the Bible, really is - and what it isn't. Holiness neither especially nor particularly refers to moral purity. Some of the holiest individuals in the Scriptures - Abraham, David, Deborah, Samson, Mary Magdalene, Paul and quite a few others - were individuals whose moral character exhibited serious flaws from time to time. But they were still holy. They were holy because they were set apart by God to accomplish God's purposes in the world. They actively pursued God's agenda for their lives. A synonym for holy in the Scriptures is the word sacred, which also means - set apart for God's use.

To pursue holiness, a Christian must actively seek to do God's will, in this world, through his or her actions. Knowing that he or she has been specially designated by God for God's purposes, a Christian pursues holiness by regularly and continuously attempting to discern - and to do - God's will in all situations. Becoming a Christian is one thing - that's a gracious gift from God. In the simplest sense, becoming a Christian is a passive situation - you merely receive what God lovingly offers. Pursuing holiness is much more. It's actively seeking to honor God in response to God's great gift to you.

The pursuit - of holiness. The simplest way to begin this pursuit is to ask yourself, when you get up tomorrow morning, "What would God have me to do, to God's glory, today?" When you start out for work, or begin school, or start to change the grandbaby, ask again, "What should I be doing for you now, Lord?" When you engage in conversation with anyone else - a friend, a relative, a stranger - ask yet again, "What would you have me say to this person now, Lord Jesus?" Whenever you are unsure of a course of action, ask afresh, "What now, Lord?"

Asking - continuously asking - God's direct guidance for your life is one way to pursue holiness. In addition to asking, however, you must utilize the means which God has already provided to answer as many of these same questions as you are able. Putting 100% of the burden for the pursuit of holiness on God results in laziness, not holiness. Many answers as to "what to do," "where to go," and "how to proceed" in the pursuit of holiness are already supplied in the Scriptures. A Christian who is pursuing holiness is one who studies the Word of God regularly and diligently. Another source of answers to how, what, and where in the pursuit of holiness is in the fellowship of other believers - the Church. Despite the mystique of monasticism, truly holy lives are seldom solitary lives. Thousands of nominal Christians are to be found chasing the white ball on golf courses and climbing mountain trails in the Jemez every Sunday morning. Those seriously seeking holiness are most often found in the company of other believers, seeking to learn and employ the collective wisdom of the Body of Christ in their pursuit.

The pursuit of holiness. Ask God, continuously, what to do. Seek to know God's will through God's Word and Christ's Church. And then - get on with it. Believe that you have received God's direction - and act. Do the will of God for your life. Do it - and keep on doing it. At first you may be unsure. Act on the best guidance you have - trust that God really is honoring your pursuit. Trust the Holy Spirit not to lead you astray. Pursue -- act - do. Pursue - act - do. Get on with it - the pursuit of holiness.

The pursuit of holiness. The most interesting aspect of the pursuit of holiness is this: It results in happiness. You can pursue happiness, as most Americans do, for an entire lifetime - and find it only fleetingly. Most of the time, as the Scripture lesson we began with warns, you'll be preoccupied with worry: "Where will I get food? How will I earn money? What if I get sick?" But when you pursue holiness, there's a payback. God meets your legitimate needs. Holy people are happy people. Survey after survey of Americans shows that the happiest people in our nation are those who take their faith the most seriously. Happiness, in truth, is a by-product. If you seek it directly, it will elude you. But if you seek the Kingdom of God, you'll find happiness along the way.
The pursuit - of holiness. "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life….But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." The pursuit - of holiness. Amen.

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