In the history of our nation, when a new town was established, the church was the center of activity and was located in a place easily accessible for the populous.  There was a time when Sunday was a day set apart from the business world.  Businesses were closed  so that the citizens could attend church services or have Sunday as a day of rest. "Nearly all the American colonies passed laws to prohibit commerce on Sunday.  In several colonies, church attendance was mandatory and violators were subject to fines." (historycollection.com).  Having grown up in Pennsylvania, I remember 'blue laws'  which caused the closing of all but 'essential' businesses, so that everyone would have a chance to attend church services and have a day of rest.  According to www.law,cornell.edu>wex>bluelaw, 'blue law' was a "colloquial term for state statue or ordinance that forbids or regulates entertainment and commercial activities (ex sale of liquor) on Sundays or religious holidays."  Blue laws originated in England.  Interestingly, despite centuries of change, a level of 'blue laws' remain in effect in 28 states today. 

We see the impetus for 'blue law' coming from the Word of God.  Genesis 2:2 and 3 states, "On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work. 3 And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from all his work of creation."

Exodus 20:8-11 reads, "Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 You have six days each week for your ordinary work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the LORD your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, and any foreigners living among you. 11 For in six days the LORD made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy."  This is the fourth of the Ten Commandments given to Moses for the people.

Thinking of the history of our nation, we see that comparatively today, the commandment of the Lord has pretty much been forgotten and everyone does whatever they desire without considering the Lord.  Today, businesses are open, sports activities are scheduled, and entertainment is a priority for many.

It is no wonder we find the condition of our world as it is today.  Receiving blessings require that we seek God first and obey His Word. 

Deuteronomy 4:5 and 6, "Look, I now teach you these decrees and regulations just as the LORD my God commanded me, so that you may obey them in the land you are about to enter and occupy. 6 Obey them completely, and you will display your wisdom and intelligence among the surrounding nations. When they hear all these decrees, they will exclaim, 'How wise and prudent are the people of this great nation!'"  I encourage you to read Deuteronomy 28 verses 1 through 14 which informs us of the ways God blesses us for obedience.

When we obey God, we are doing His will and we will be blessed.  Look at Joshua 1:8, "Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do."  What is the instruction given?  Study this Book of Instruction (the King James Version says, 'This Book of the Law' or the Word of God), meditate (haga in the Hebrew, meaning: to speak with oneself, murmuring in a low voice, to mutter) on it day and night so you will obey everything written in it.  The benefits of obedience given in this verse are amazing - "you will prosper and succeed in all you do."  Who doesn't want that?

Ephesians 5:15-18, "So be careful how you live. Don't live like fools, but like those who are wise. 16 Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. 17 Don't act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do. 18 Don't be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit"  Doing God's will, (being obedient to His desires) is to be wise.  Note then, verse 18 states, 'Be filled with the Holy Spirit.'  "The tense of the Greek for "be filled" makes clear such a Spirit-filled condition does not stop with a single experience, but is maintained by continually being filled, as commanded here," (New Spirit Filled Life Bible commentary).

Let me ask you a question.  What is it to put God first?  What does it look like?  What does it mean in regard to actions, behavior, and attitudes?  The Word of God gives us a clear picture of what it means.

We will begin with Matthew 22:37, "Jesus replied, "'You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind."  Love is the Greek word 'agapao'.  When agapao is used of love to God or Christ, the word involves the idea of affectionate reverence, prompt obedience, and grateful recognition of benefits received.  Love with all your 'soul' - psyche, the seat of the feelings, desires, and affection, and with all of your 'mind' - the faculty of understanding.  We are to love God with our whole being.

We are to love God more than our wealth.

Matthew 6:21, "Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be."

Luke 16:13, "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 both God and money."

We are even to love God more than family, as we see in Matthew 10:37-39, "If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine. 38 If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. 39 If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it."  Verse 39 indicates there is nothing so important to you that you refuse to give Him preeminence over it, even your life.

We see an amazing example in the Old Testament of what it is to withhold nothing from Him.  Genesis 22: 1-18, "Some time later, God tested Abraham's faith. "Abraham!" God called. "Yes," he replied. "Here I am." 2 "Take your son, your only son--yes, Isaac, whom you love so much--and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you." 3 The next morning Abraham got up early. He saddled his donkey and took two of his servants with him, along with his son, Isaac. Then he chopped wood for a fire for a burnt offering and set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day of their journey, Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 "Stay here with the donkey," Abraham told the servants. "The boy and I will travel a little farther. We will worship there, and then we will come right back." 6 So Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering on Isaac's shoulders, while he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them walked on together, 7 Isaac turned to Abraham and said, "Father?" "Yes, my son?" Abraham replied. "We have the fire and the wood," the boy said, "but where is the sheep for the burnt offering?" 8 "God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son," Abraham answered. And they both walked on together. 9 When they arrived at the place where God had told him to go, Abraham built an altar and arranged the wood on it. Then he tied his son, Isaac, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. 10 And Abraham picked up the knife to kill his son as a sacrifice. 11 At that moment the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!" "Yes," Abraham replied. "Here I am!" 12 "Don't lay a hand on the boy!" the angel said. "Do not hurt him in any way, for now I know that you truly fear God. You have not withheld from me even your son, your only son." 13 Then Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught by its horns in a thicket. So he took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering in place of his son. 14 Abraham named the place Yahweh-Yireh (which means "the LORD will provide"). To this day, people still use that name as a proverb: "On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided." 15 Then the angel of the LORD called again to Abraham from heaven. 16 "This is what the LORD says: Because you have obeyed me and have not withheld even your son, your only son, I swear by my own name that 17 I will certainly bless you. I will multiply your descendants beyond number, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will conquer the cities of their enemies. 18 And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed--all because you have obeyed me."

To understand the magnitude of Abraham's faith and obedience to the Lord, we need to understand some things about Isaac.  Isaac was God's promise kept, that a son would be born to Abraham and Sarah.  The Lord gave Abraham and Sarah a promise of their own son being born, through whom, Abraham would become the Father of many nations.  It had been a 25 year wait for the promise of his birth to be fulfilled.  Abraham knew that Isaac's birth was God's will and the key to God's promises for Abraham's future and legacy.  Yet, God tested Abraham to see if he would sacrifice, in obedience, even that one he knew to be God's will and promise to him! 

We see in Hebrews 11:17-19, " It was by faith that Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice when God was testing him. Abraham, who had received God's promises, was ready to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, 18 even though God had told him, "Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted." 19 Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. And in a sense, Abraham did receive his son back from the dead."  Abraham by faith was willing to trust God with all that he had.

We also have our own 'Isaacs'.  We have those things that God has promised us, those things we know to be God's will for our lives.  It might be our families, our homes, our careers, ministries, financial blessings, or even our health. (when we consider Job).

To put God first might mean, as it did for Abraham, that you are willing to sacrifice even those things you knew were His will and promise to you.

The day existed when God's will and man's will were in unity, in the Garden of Eden.  Man chose his own will over God's when the serpent (devil) tempted him.  God's desire, still today, is to restore, through Scripture and Jesus' sacrifice, the unity of His will and our will.

Jesus is coming back for a church (His bride) that has been restored to walk in God's will.  John 17: 20 and 21, " I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. 21 I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one--as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me."

We are encouraged to always put God and his will first in every part of our lives.  1 John 2:15 -17, " Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. 16 For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. 17 And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever."  Then we see in Matthew 6:33 (NKJV), " But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you."  'First' in the Greek is the word proton which means, first, before anything else is done.

When we put Him first, we will walk in the intimate relationship with Himself, that He has created us for.  What a tremendous thought!

God, as Creator of all, has given us all things.  Would you be willing to give it all back to Him if He would ask you to?

Nothing in this world should be so sacred ( untouchable, exempt, not to be violated or tampered with, highly valued and important) to us that we would be unwilling to give it back to God. 

Actually, if we hold something as more important than God, it is idolatry!  Hmmmm....a thought for another day.

Have a great week.  Till next time, continue to walk with God and be encouraged by His love!