At a Glance
Series: Made for More
Scripture: Matthew 6:19-34
Summary: Made for More Than Scraping By is a sermon outline centered on Matthew 6:19-34. You Were Made for More Than Scraping By Made for More, Week Four. Review flags: dated-context.
Source: Adapted from Brandon Cox sermon outline notes from 2019. Transcript, audio, and video files were not used for this draft.
Review labels: dated-context
Sermon Notes
This resource draft preserves the outline movement of the source file and is staged for Brandon review before any public update.
Extracted Outline
You Were Made for More Than Scraping By
Made for More, Week Four
You were made for more than making money, but for too many of us, that’s what we live our lives for – getting the next paycheck and, hopefully, making the paychecks outpace our economic environment so we can retire well and die comfortable.
The Bible has plenty to say about how to handle your finances better. I usually sum up the Bible’s teachings about money in this way:
• Earn money honestly.
• Spend money wisely.
• Save money faithfully.
• Give money generously.
Ideally, if economic conditions allow, you want to live on less than 70% of what you make. With the other 30%, you give a minimum of 10% and save all the rest.
It’s okay to work hard, to earn more, to go for the promotion, to be entrepreneurial, etc. It’s okay to prosper financially.
But that’s still not the way to live beyond just scraping by.
Jesus had more to say…
Matthew 6:19-34 NIV
[19] “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. [20] But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. [21] For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
[22] “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. [23] But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! [24] “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
[25] “Therefore 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 than food, and the body more than clothes? [26] Look 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?
[27] Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? [28] “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. [29] Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. [30] If 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—you of little faith?
[31] So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ [32] For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. [33] But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. [34] Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
As long as your affection is for things that are temporary and fleeting, you’ll feel like you’re scraping by. It doesn’t matter how much money you have, it will never be enough.
How Do You Live Beyond Scraping By?
Set your affection and your attention on God’s kingdom purposes for your life.
Wherever your treasure is, that’s where your heart is.
You can’t serve God and money. Serving is about giving your time and attention to something or some one. You only get so much time.
YOU decide what you treasure.
That is, what you value the most.
What should be important to me in any given moment isn’t always what’s important to me. Sometimes I value productivity over people or possessions over relationships.
YOU decide what you focus on.
That is, what you think about the most.
What do you worry about? What problems do you try to solve?
Worry never pays you back for the time it wasted.
YOU decide what you give your time to.
That is, what gets the most of your energy.
Money is a great servant, but an evil master.
YOU decide where you find your significance.
That is, what has the most meaning to you.
Your life can be full when your bank account is not.
When I have nothing material, my life still has meaning.
But that’s only true when you’ve connected to the eternal God and have started a relationship with the Savior, Jesus Christ.