Spending Time with God
by Pastor Mark Mahan
Mark Mahan is the pastor of Community Baptist Church in Altoona, Pennsylvania
“And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?” (Genesis 3:8-9)
Of course, God knew where Adam was. I’m not so certain Adam knew where Adam was. God had a perfect radar system. Adam was on God’s radar system. God knew where Adam was. Adam didn’t know where Adam was. Adam was lost. Notice what it says in Genesis 3:8, “...the voice of Lord God walking in the garden...” That’s the first mention of God walking with man and man walking with God.
I hope when you think of the Bible, you think of several things. The Bible is a wonderful, marvelous Book. The Bible is God’s Book. When you think of the Bible, think of this. The Bible is inspired of God. It’s an inspired Book. God in Heaven has breathed the words, breathed the truth that is contained in its pages. Second Timothy 3:16 says, “All scripture is given...” It’s a gift of God. “...by inspiration of God,...” God breathed it.
The Holy Bible must have been
Inspired of God, not of men.
I would not if I could believe
That good men wrote it to deceive,
Nor would I believe, if I could,
That bad men could write a Book so good.
Definitely no crazy man
Could ever conspire such a wondrous plan,
So then pray tell what other groups of men
Doth not these three comprehend.
So then it must be that God inspired
The words that souls and prophets fired.
How else could we explain the miracle of this Book, except that God breathed it? Suppose the pastor stood up and said, “On Monday night, Brother Corle is going to preach on Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.” I’m not sure what the attendance would be, but it would be an interesting thing if he stood up and said, “On Tuesday night, he’s going to come back and preach on The Jumping Frog of Calavaras County.” I love Mark Twain. It’s one of my besetting sins, I guess.
But do you see what would happen to the attendance? You could not do that week after week. Because sooner or later, there is only so much about Tom Sawyer that you and I can learn. How else could we explain
that, for thousands of years, people from all over the globe have gathered to read the pages of this Book, to preach the pages of this Book, to study the truths of this Book, to draw comfort and strength and sweetness from the words of this Book? How else could we explain that except that we say, “God inspired it.”
We have a perfect Book. Not only is the Bible inspired, the Word of God is infallible. That means there is no error in it. There is no mistake in it. There is no taint of corruption in it. It is infallible. We have a wonderful Book. Not only is it inspired and infallible, it is indestructible. Popes, bishops, religious leaders, tyrants, and dictators have sought to ban its pages, but it stands, because it’s God’s Book. How else could we explain its endurance? Despite all its enemies, it endures. How it that? Because it’s God’s Book, my friend. God inspired it. God has preserved it, and it lasts forever.
Now in Genesis 3:8, we see the Lord God, the great Creator of Heaven and Earth, we see Him walking in the garden. Also it says, “And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden...” That leads
me to think that God was walking in the garden and God there talked with Adam and with Eve in the garden. They had a personal, individual relationship. They knew the Lord and walked with the Lord in the garden.
It also says, “...in the garden...” That’s the place where they met with Him. They had a place that they met with God individually. Where was that? It was in the garden that God had made. God had formed that garden for God and man to have a place to commune together.
Notice this also, not only WHERE they met with God, but WHEN, in the garden in the cool of the day. That’s when they met with God. It seems that there was a place that they met with God, and there was a time that they met with God. There was a where and a when. They met with God, and walked with God. They talked with God in the cool of the day. When it says ‘the cool of the day,’ I’m not sure if that means in the evening, or in the morning, but I do know this. They met God in the cool of the day because in the heat of the day, Adam would have been busy dressing and keeping the garden. Look at Genesis 2:15. “And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.” During the daylight hours, Adam was
in the garden, dressing and keeping it. You see, God had a work for Adam to do. He was doing that work during the day.
Jesus said, “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day:...” (John 9:4) The best times for a person to walk with God is the before they do their work and then after they do their work. I’m not sure if God was meeting with Adam early in the morning. That’s what I like to think. I’m not sure if God was meeting with Adam and Eve late in the evening in the cool of the day after the sun had set, but I do guarantee you this. There was a time and there was a place where they met with God and walked with God. They were in the garden doing that. That means during the daytime, I’m supposed to be at work. I’m supposed to be earning a living, making my own way in this world. I’m not dependent on somebody else to provide for me.
The Bible says to drink water out of my own cistern. That’s similar to a well. That means I’m supposed to dig the well, find the water, and drink my own water. I am not to be dependent on another person to provide for my needs. Adam was working in the garden during the day, but in the morning he and his wife would meet with God and God would talk with them. After his work in the evening, they would meet with God and God would talk with them.
When we see Genesis chapter two and three, we see two kingdoms. We see the spiritual kingdom, or the kingdom of God, and we also see the physical kingdom, the kingdom of this world. If you look at life, you can divide life into two kingdoms, the kingdom of God, the spiritual kingdom, or the kingdom of this world. We could say that’s the work that you have to do. Because God intends for everybody to work. Everybody has a purpose and a work they are supposed to do.
When we talk about walking with God, we would talk about these things. When we talk about the spiritual kingdom, first of all, the kingdom of God, the things of the Spirit, they are to come first in my life. The spiritual kingdom is more important than the physical kingdom. How do I know that? Let’s look at Matthew 6:33. “But seek ye first the kingdom of God,...” If we are going to walk with God, we take the truth of God’s Word and make our lives disciplined by God’s priorities. God’s priorities, God said in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God,...” God’s kingdom comes first. God’s kingdom is more important than the kingdom of this world. Once we have that in place, we can begin to walk with God.
The kingdom of God is more important, and the physical kingdom is less important. How do I know that? Look at Luke 12:16-20. “And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man
brought forth plentifully:” That’s the kingdom of this world, the physical kingdom. He had a lot when it came to the physical kingdom. His ground, “...brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool,...”
You see, the problem with this man in this parable was that he had the physical kingdom ahead of the spiritual kingdom. He had a lot of stuff, but the Bible says in verse 21 that he was not rich toward God. He had taken the physical kingdom and put it ahead of the spiritual kingdom. He had a lot of stuff. He had big houses and nice cars. He had plenty of money and possession, but he was not saved, and in God’s sight he was not rich; he was poor. Don’t make the terrible mistake of putting the physical ahead of the spiritual. Because the physical kingdom is not as important as the spiritual kingdom is.
Let’s look at Daniel 6. Once again we’ll divide life into two areas. Divide your life into the spiritual kingdom and the physical kingdom. Put the things of God and the things of the Spirit of God ahead of the
things of the physical kingdom. Daniel 6:25-26 says, “Then king Darius wrote unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto you. I make a decree, That in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, and his dominion shall be even unto the end.” If you are going to walk with God, you make your life disciplined according to God’s priorities and say, “I will put the spiritual ahead of the physical.” That’s what Darius was saying here. Darius was saying, “I’m a king and here is my law, that God is to be first. God’s kingdom, the spiritual kingdom is over my kingdom, which is the physical kingdom.” The spiritual kingdom is more important than the physical kingdom.
When we think about the spiritual kingdom and the things of God, that can also be divided into two areas. It can be divided into time spent with God, and then time spent for God. First of all there is time with God. In the spiritual kingdom, which is above the physical kingdom, there is time with God and then there is time for God. There are two divisions in that spiritual kingdom. What are they? Time with God and time for God. That comes ahead of the physical kingdom. In the time that we spend with God and for God, here is God’s priority. Time with God comes ahead of time spent for God. Time with God is more important than time that is spent for God. Everybody that is a servant of the Lord has to do both of those things to please the Lord. You have to spend time with God and you have to spend time for God. You’ve got to be a person of priorities if you are going to please the Lord. You’ve got to order things according to God’s order, and God said to seek the kingdom of God first.
In the time that we spend with God, we have the foundation for time that we spend with God and time that is spent for God. Prayer is the foundation to spending time with God. Reading the Bible is the foundation for time spent with God. Praise and worship is the foundation of the time that is spent with God. If I don’t have that foundation in place, my service and work for God will never go very far, and never be long lasting. Because here is the spiritual kingdom. It’s over the physical kingdom. In the spiritual kingdom, the time spent with God is more important and above the time that is spent for God.
I go soulwinning an awful lot. All over the country now, God has allowed me to go soulwinning. Sometimes we’ll pull over. We’ll just be in some old city like Shamrock, Texas. There is nothing much in Shamrock, Texas. One motel that is $25 a night and another motel that’s $70 a night. You get your choice and a Taco Bell. John R. Rice used to pastor in Shamrock, Texas. I was travelling through Shamrock, Texas. I pulled into town and I said, “I know a man that I’m awfully fond of. He used to pastor First Baptist Church in Shamrock. Do you know where that is?”
A lady said, “Yes, sir, go straight down the street and you’ll see First Baptist Church.”
I said to my wife, “Honey, let’s go find First Baptist Church.” We went down the road about three-quarters of a mile. Over on the right hand side sat First Baptist Church. Out front is a stone monument that has the list of all the former pastors of the church. There on that stone monument it said John R. Rice. My heart was thrilled because I got to see the place where Dr. Rice used to pastor. Then I turned around and there were three Spanish speaking fellas walking down the street behind me. I stopped them and I said, “Hey, fellas, wait a minute. I want to give you a tract.” They didn’t speak English, so I started witnessing to them and shared the Gospel with them in Spanish. I saw those men put their hand on my Bible, bow their heads and call on the Lord Jesus Christ and ask Him to come into their heart and be their Saviour. After they did that, I looked up to Heaven and thought in my heart, “Hey, Dr. Rice. It’s still working in Shamrock.”
But I’ll guarantee you, for every time I do that, there are countless hours I spend alone with God. I spend more time with God than I ever spend for God. The foundation of prayer, Bible study, meditation, praise, worship, and thanksgiving, that’s the foundation for soulwinning, church attendance, Sunday school, buses, and doing the work of God. There are two divisions to the spiritual kingdom. Time with God comes before time for God. How do I know that?
Look in Mark 3:14. “And he...” That’s the Lord Jesus. “...ordained twelve,...” Those would have been the apostles. He ordained them, chose them personally. Here is His purpose. Why did He ordain them? Why did He choose them? Why did He set them aside? “...that they should be with him,...” There it is. There is the purpose of the Lord. He didn’t just need 12 preachers or 12 Sunday school teachers or 12 bus workers. He didn’t just need 12 servants. He wanted 12 people to be with Him. Then it also says, “...and that he might send them forth to preach,” Time spent with Him comes before time spent for Him. I’ll guarantee you today, if you spend time with Him, then you’ll want to spend time for Him. You spend time in the Word of God and spend time thanking Him for His goodness and for loving you, thanking Him for shedding His blood and dying for you. I promise if you spend time with Him, pretty soon you’ll say, “I’ve got to tell somebody that He’s so wonderful, because I’ve been with Him.” It’s a dead, stale service for God that doesn’t first spend time with God. He ordained 12 that they should be with Him first, and that He might send them forth to preach.
What other reasons do I know that time with Him comes before time for Him? Let’s look at Psalms 4:3. “But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the Lord will hear when I call unto him.” There it is again. Time with God. I’m set apart for Him. Revelation 4:11 says that I was created for Him and for His pleasure. So my time with Him comes ahead of time spent for Him. My friend, if you are going to walk with God and please Him, you’ve got to divide your life into those areas. Take the spiritual kingdom and put it above the physical kingdom. Take time with God and put that above time for God.
Here are some things you should do in your time with God. The first thing that I do is Psalm 51, confess my sins. Confession. I’ll get a little piece of paper, (or depending on how much time I spent with Pastor Higgins I’ll get a big piece of paper) and write down the things that I did that were wrong. I’ll write down, I was on the turnpike yesterday and angry as the devil at that girl behind the cash register that took forever to ring up my Diet Dr. Pepper at the service plaza. The worst run road in the entire nation is the Pennsylvania Turnpike. I’ll write down ‘God, I was angry.’ I’ll write down a whole list of my sins.
You say, “I can’t think of a lot of things I’ve done wrong.” First of all, I think you are being dishonest, so you can write down lying. How about TV? How about some of those ‘R’ rated movies that you watched? How about some of America’s sins? How about the pornography that goes on in our country? How about the thousands of abortions today? We are part of that nation. God just doesn’t give us a blank check and say, “Well, you are My people, so it’s all right. I know all the filth that is going on in the country, but it’s all right. I’ll just give you a blank check.”
Ask Isaiah about that. Isaiah said, “...Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips:...” (Isaiah 6:5) This is my nation and it’s sinful and I’m part of it. So I’ll write down some of America’s sins. Like the abortions and the murders, and the apostasy in our churches. Some churches don’t even preach repentance and the new birth anymore. I’ll write that down and I’ll say, “Dear God, I was so angry in that rest area yesterday and I got mad and frustrated and I stormed out of there.” I’ll say Psalm 51. “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.” I’ll say, “God, the things that I thought, God forgive me. The sins of America, God please forgive those sins. Have mercy on me, God.” I’ll just read all those sins off and confess those sins. Time with God is ahead of time for God.
Here is an easy formula to spend 15 minutes with God. I think you should spend more than that, and I do spend more than that every day. I spend at least an hour in prayer most every day. But friend, here is an easy formula to get yourself jump started in spending time with God. Set out to spend five minutes confessing your sins. Then sit down and spend five minutes in thanksgiving. I’ll quote some of Psalm 51 to God when I confess my sins.
Then I’ll spend some time in thanksgiving. Psalm 136 is a great chapter on thanksgiving. I never pray without my Bible. I never praise the Lord without my Bible. I’ll find Psalm 136 and start writing down things that I’m thankful for. This could jumpstart your Christian life, the time that you spend with God. I’ll write down things that I’m thankful for. “Thank you, Lord, that I’m saved. I could have died and gone to Hell, but mercy and grace found me, and Christ died for me.” I’ll look up to Heaven and I’ll say, “Thank you, God, that when I was a worthless 17 year old, long-haired devil, You reached down in mercy. Thank You for saving me. Thank You for Calvary. Thank You for Your suffering and the shed blood. Thank You for the empty tomb.”
Then I’ll write down my wife’s name. I’ll say, “Thank You, Lord, for Tracy Lynn. Thank You for a helpmeet. Thank You for a Christian wife. Thank You, Lord, that I’m married and You made her just for me. Thank You, Lord, for that.”
I’ll write down, “I’m called to preach.” I am a Gospel preacher. I’m not a great orator. I’m not a Jack Hyles or a John Rice or a Dennis Corle, but bless the Lord, I am a Gospel preacher. God is not so interested about what I’m not, as in what I am. God made me and I was called of God to preach. I’ll write that down and look up to Heaven, and I’ll say, “Thank You, God, March 28, 1981 I sat in the Calvary Baptist Church and You spoke to my heart. That short red-headed preacher stood up and preached and said, “Evangelize, evangelize, evangelize,” and you called me to preach. Thank You, Lord, for that call.
Then I’ll write down on my list, “I’m an American. I live in the greatest country on the face of the earth. I’m free.” When I came from Pennsylvania to New Jersey, there were no guards at the border. It’s going to be a different story when we go back across and have to give them three bucks to go across the Ben Franklin Bridge to go into Pennsylvania! Another $15 to have the privilege of driving on the turnpike. I say, “God, I live in America, the greatest country on the face of the earth.” Patriots have shed their blood for it, a nation founded on Christian principles. I’m free. I’m an American. Thank You, Lord.
I’ll write down, “Lord, I’m healthy today. I can walk and talk. I’m alive today. God has given me life today. Thank You, Lord, for that.” Then I’ll read Psalm 136. “O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. O give thanks unto the God of gods: for his mercy endureth for ever. O give thanks to the Lord of lords: for his mercy endureth for ever. To him who alone doeth great wonders: for his mercy endureth for ever. To him that by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy endureth for ever.” So spend some time confessing your sins. Spend some time in thanksgiving. Just five minutes, can you do five minutes? Yes, you can.
Then I want you to set out to say, “I’m going to start spending 15 minutes alone with God confessing my sins, thanking Him, and praising Him.” It came to my attention not long ago, that I wasn’t as thankful and rejoicing as I should be. I read the book of Psalms and said, “Man, there is something missing in my life.” I want to be happy. I work on myself more than I ever work on anybody else. Far more time I spend on myself, trying to get my heart right. I said, “There has got to be a way that I can rejoice more.” I just started reading through the book of Psalms and looking for things to rejoice in God over. When I thank God, I thank Him for what He does. He saved me. That’s something He did. He called me. That’s something He did. When I praise Him, I’m thanking Him for Who He is. Psalm 20 is a good place to start with praise. I read through the book of Psalms at least once or twice a month.
Psalm 20 is a good one and it’s an easy one. “The LORD hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee; Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion; Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice; Selah. Grant thee according to thine own heart, and fulfil all thy counsel. We will rejoice in thy salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners: the LORD fulfil all thy petitions. Now know I that the LORD saveth his anointed; he will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand. Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God. They are brought down and fallen: but we are risen, and stand upright. Save, LORD: let the king hear us when we call.”
You are going to take your life and set some priorities in place. You are going to put the spiritual kingdom ahead of the physical kingdom. In the spiritual kingdom, you are going to make two divisions and say time with God comes before time for God. You’ve got to have both to be right with the Lord. Psalm 20:1 says, “The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee;” Now I’m looking through the Psalms for reasons to praise the Lord. I look up to Heaven and say, “I praise You because you hear. I praise You because You answer prayer. I bless You because You hear me. I bless You, Lord, because You hear my prayer in the day of trouble. Lord, there are a lot of people you can try to call on in the day of trouble, and they won’t give you the time of day. Lord, in the day of trouble I can call upon You.” I’ll praise Him because His name is the God of Jacob, the God of His people. I look up to Heaven and say, “I praise You because You hear me and I’ll praise You because You are the God of Your people. I praise Your name because Your name is the God of Jacob.
“Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion;” In verse two, what would I praise Him for? Because He sends help. I’ll look up to Heaven and I’ll say, “Thank You, God, for all the times You’ve helped me. I praise You because You are my help.” In verse two, “I praise You because You strengthen me.”
In verse three, I praise because You remember me. You’ve never forgotten me, God. My name has never slipped your mind. Spend at least five minutes going through Psalms trying to get your old heart warm. That is the foundation for time for God.
Everybody that I see here this morning spent some time getting ready for church. I don’t see anybody here that looks like the cat dragged them in. We had a kitten that used to bring mice up to the second floor window in the middle of the night. She’d scatch and meow. I’d open the window and try to let the poor thing in and she’d have a mouse all chewed up. I don’t see anybody in here that looks like a cat dragged you in this morning. Do you know why? Because you took the time to get ready.
The problem with that is, if you didn’t spend time with God, you put the physical kingdom ahead of the spiritual kingdom. That’s a sin. Getting your priorities out of order, that’s a sin. There ought to be some people that would say, “God, I’m going to start spending some time alone with You. I’m going to walk with You in the morning and in the evening. Before and after I do my work, I’m going to walk with You. I’m going to confess my sins. I’m going to thank You and I’m going to praise You.”
Maybe you haven’t had a daily devotional life and weren’t sure how to get started. I’ve tried to show you how simple it can be to actually be spending time with God every day. It’s a real relationship, and we need to put it first. No matter what we do for God, we first need to spend time with God. I promise that if you will put this into practice every single day, your life will never be the same. It can jump start your spiritual life. Let’s get serious about spending time with the Lord.
Of course, God knew where Adam was. I’m not so certain Adam knew where Adam was. God had a perfect radar system. Adam was on God’s radar system. God knew where Adam was. Adam didn’t know where Adam was. Adam was lost. Notice what it says in Genesis 3:8, “...the voice of Lord God walking in the garden...” That’s the first mention of God walking with man and man walking with God.
I hope when you think of the Bible, you think of several things. The Bible is a wonderful, marvelous Book. The Bible is God’s Book. When you think of the Bible, think of this. The Bible is inspired of God. It’s an inspired Book. God in Heaven has breathed the words, breathed the truth that is contained in its pages. Second Timothy 3:16 says, “All scripture is given...” It’s a gift of God. “...by inspiration of God,...” God breathed it.
The Holy Bible must have been
Inspired of God, not of men.
I would not if I could believe
That good men wrote it to deceive,
Nor would I believe, if I could,
That bad men could write a Book so good.
Definitely no crazy man
Could ever conspire such a wondrous plan,
So then pray tell what other groups of men
Doth not these three comprehend.
So then it must be that God inspired
The words that souls and prophets fired.
How else could we explain the miracle of this Book, except that God breathed it? Suppose the pastor stood up and said, “On Monday night, Brother Corle is going to preach on Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.” I’m not sure what the attendance would be, but it would be an interesting thing if he stood up and said, “On Tuesday night, he’s going to come back and preach on The Jumping Frog of Calavaras County.” I love Mark Twain. It’s one of my besetting sins, I guess.
But do you see what would happen to the attendance? You could not do that week after week. Because sooner or later, there is only so much about Tom Sawyer that you and I can learn. How else could we explain
that, for thousands of years, people from all over the globe have gathered to read the pages of this Book, to preach the pages of this Book, to study the truths of this Book, to draw comfort and strength and sweetness from the words of this Book? How else could we explain that except that we say, “God inspired it.”
We have a perfect Book. Not only is the Bible inspired, the Word of God is infallible. That means there is no error in it. There is no mistake in it. There is no taint of corruption in it. It is infallible. We have a wonderful Book. Not only is it inspired and infallible, it is indestructible. Popes, bishops, religious leaders, tyrants, and dictators have sought to ban its pages, but it stands, because it’s God’s Book. How else could we explain its endurance? Despite all its enemies, it endures. How it that? Because it’s God’s Book, my friend. God inspired it. God has preserved it, and it lasts forever.
Now in Genesis 3:8, we see the Lord God, the great Creator of Heaven and Earth, we see Him walking in the garden. Also it says, “And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden...” That leads
me to think that God was walking in the garden and God there talked with Adam and with Eve in the garden. They had a personal, individual relationship. They knew the Lord and walked with the Lord in the garden.
It also says, “...in the garden...” That’s the place where they met with Him. They had a place that they met with God individually. Where was that? It was in the garden that God had made. God had formed that garden for God and man to have a place to commune together.
Notice this also, not only WHERE they met with God, but WHEN, in the garden in the cool of the day. That’s when they met with God. It seems that there was a place that they met with God, and there was a time that they met with God. There was a where and a when. They met with God, and walked with God. They talked with God in the cool of the day. When it says ‘the cool of the day,’ I’m not sure if that means in the evening, or in the morning, but I do know this. They met God in the cool of the day because in the heat of the day, Adam would have been busy dressing and keeping the garden. Look at Genesis 2:15. “And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.” During the daylight hours, Adam was
in the garden, dressing and keeping it. You see, God had a work for Adam to do. He was doing that work during the day.
Jesus said, “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day:...” (John 9:4) The best times for a person to walk with God is the before they do their work and then after they do their work. I’m not sure if God was meeting with Adam early in the morning. That’s what I like to think. I’m not sure if God was meeting with Adam and Eve late in the evening in the cool of the day after the sun had set, but I do guarantee you this. There was a time and there was a place where they met with God and walked with God. They were in the garden doing that. That means during the daytime, I’m supposed to be at work. I’m supposed to be earning a living, making my own way in this world. I’m not dependent on somebody else to provide for me.
The Bible says to drink water out of my own cistern. That’s similar to a well. That means I’m supposed to dig the well, find the water, and drink my own water. I am not to be dependent on another person to provide for my needs. Adam was working in the garden during the day, but in the morning he and his wife would meet with God and God would talk with them. After his work in the evening, they would meet with God and God would talk with them.
When we see Genesis chapter two and three, we see two kingdoms. We see the spiritual kingdom, or the kingdom of God, and we also see the physical kingdom, the kingdom of this world. If you look at life, you can divide life into two kingdoms, the kingdom of God, the spiritual kingdom, or the kingdom of this world. We could say that’s the work that you have to do. Because God intends for everybody to work. Everybody has a purpose and a work they are supposed to do.
When we talk about walking with God, we would talk about these things. When we talk about the spiritual kingdom, first of all, the kingdom of God, the things of the Spirit, they are to come first in my life. The spiritual kingdom is more important than the physical kingdom. How do I know that? Let’s look at Matthew 6:33. “But seek ye first the kingdom of God,...” If we are going to walk with God, we take the truth of God’s Word and make our lives disciplined by God’s priorities. God’s priorities, God said in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God,...” God’s kingdom comes first. God’s kingdom is more important than the kingdom of this world. Once we have that in place, we can begin to walk with God.
The kingdom of God is more important, and the physical kingdom is less important. How do I know that? Look at Luke 12:16-20. “And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man
brought forth plentifully:” That’s the kingdom of this world, the physical kingdom. He had a lot when it came to the physical kingdom. His ground, “...brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool,...”
You see, the problem with this man in this parable was that he had the physical kingdom ahead of the spiritual kingdom. He had a lot of stuff, but the Bible says in verse 21 that he was not rich toward God. He had taken the physical kingdom and put it ahead of the spiritual kingdom. He had a lot of stuff. He had big houses and nice cars. He had plenty of money and possession, but he was not saved, and in God’s sight he was not rich; he was poor. Don’t make the terrible mistake of putting the physical ahead of the spiritual. Because the physical kingdom is not as important as the spiritual kingdom is.
Let’s look at Daniel 6. Once again we’ll divide life into two areas. Divide your life into the spiritual kingdom and the physical kingdom. Put the things of God and the things of the Spirit of God ahead of the
things of the physical kingdom. Daniel 6:25-26 says, “Then king Darius wrote unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto you. I make a decree, That in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, and his dominion shall be even unto the end.” If you are going to walk with God, you make your life disciplined according to God’s priorities and say, “I will put the spiritual ahead of the physical.” That’s what Darius was saying here. Darius was saying, “I’m a king and here is my law, that God is to be first. God’s kingdom, the spiritual kingdom is over my kingdom, which is the physical kingdom.” The spiritual kingdom is more important than the physical kingdom.
When we think about the spiritual kingdom and the things of God, that can also be divided into two areas. It can be divided into time spent with God, and then time spent for God. First of all there is time with God. In the spiritual kingdom, which is above the physical kingdom, there is time with God and then there is time for God. There are two divisions in that spiritual kingdom. What are they? Time with God and time for God. That comes ahead of the physical kingdom. In the time that we spend with God and for God, here is God’s priority. Time with God comes ahead of time spent for God. Time with God is more important than time that is spent for God. Everybody that is a servant of the Lord has to do both of those things to please the Lord. You have to spend time with God and you have to spend time for God. You’ve got to be a person of priorities if you are going to please the Lord. You’ve got to order things according to God’s order, and God said to seek the kingdom of God first.
In the time that we spend with God, we have the foundation for time that we spend with God and time that is spent for God. Prayer is the foundation to spending time with God. Reading the Bible is the foundation for time spent with God. Praise and worship is the foundation of the time that is spent with God. If I don’t have that foundation in place, my service and work for God will never go very far, and never be long lasting. Because here is the spiritual kingdom. It’s over the physical kingdom. In the spiritual kingdom, the time spent with God is more important and above the time that is spent for God.
I go soulwinning an awful lot. All over the country now, God has allowed me to go soulwinning. Sometimes we’ll pull over. We’ll just be in some old city like Shamrock, Texas. There is nothing much in Shamrock, Texas. One motel that is $25 a night and another motel that’s $70 a night. You get your choice and a Taco Bell. John R. Rice used to pastor in Shamrock, Texas. I was travelling through Shamrock, Texas. I pulled into town and I said, “I know a man that I’m awfully fond of. He used to pastor First Baptist Church in Shamrock. Do you know where that is?”
A lady said, “Yes, sir, go straight down the street and you’ll see First Baptist Church.”
I said to my wife, “Honey, let’s go find First Baptist Church.” We went down the road about three-quarters of a mile. Over on the right hand side sat First Baptist Church. Out front is a stone monument that has the list of all the former pastors of the church. There on that stone monument it said John R. Rice. My heart was thrilled because I got to see the place where Dr. Rice used to pastor. Then I turned around and there were three Spanish speaking fellas walking down the street behind me. I stopped them and I said, “Hey, fellas, wait a minute. I want to give you a tract.” They didn’t speak English, so I started witnessing to them and shared the Gospel with them in Spanish. I saw those men put their hand on my Bible, bow their heads and call on the Lord Jesus Christ and ask Him to come into their heart and be their Saviour. After they did that, I looked up to Heaven and thought in my heart, “Hey, Dr. Rice. It’s still working in Shamrock.”
But I’ll guarantee you, for every time I do that, there are countless hours I spend alone with God. I spend more time with God than I ever spend for God. The foundation of prayer, Bible study, meditation, praise, worship, and thanksgiving, that’s the foundation for soulwinning, church attendance, Sunday school, buses, and doing the work of God. There are two divisions to the spiritual kingdom. Time with God comes before time for God. How do I know that?
Look in Mark 3:14. “And he...” That’s the Lord Jesus. “...ordained twelve,...” Those would have been the apostles. He ordained them, chose them personally. Here is His purpose. Why did He ordain them? Why did He choose them? Why did He set them aside? “...that they should be with him,...” There it is. There is the purpose of the Lord. He didn’t just need 12 preachers or 12 Sunday school teachers or 12 bus workers. He didn’t just need 12 servants. He wanted 12 people to be with Him. Then it also says, “...and that he might send them forth to preach,” Time spent with Him comes before time spent for Him. I’ll guarantee you today, if you spend time with Him, then you’ll want to spend time for Him. You spend time in the Word of God and spend time thanking Him for His goodness and for loving you, thanking Him for shedding His blood and dying for you. I promise if you spend time with Him, pretty soon you’ll say, “I’ve got to tell somebody that He’s so wonderful, because I’ve been with Him.” It’s a dead, stale service for God that doesn’t first spend time with God. He ordained 12 that they should be with Him first, and that He might send them forth to preach.
What other reasons do I know that time with Him comes before time for Him? Let’s look at Psalms 4:3. “But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the Lord will hear when I call unto him.” There it is again. Time with God. I’m set apart for Him. Revelation 4:11 says that I was created for Him and for His pleasure. So my time with Him comes ahead of time spent for Him. My friend, if you are going to walk with God and please Him, you’ve got to divide your life into those areas. Take the spiritual kingdom and put it above the physical kingdom. Take time with God and put that above time for God.
Here are some things you should do in your time with God. The first thing that I do is Psalm 51, confess my sins. Confession. I’ll get a little piece of paper, (or depending on how much time I spent with Pastor Higgins I’ll get a big piece of paper) and write down the things that I did that were wrong. I’ll write down, I was on the turnpike yesterday and angry as the devil at that girl behind the cash register that took forever to ring up my Diet Dr. Pepper at the service plaza. The worst run road in the entire nation is the Pennsylvania Turnpike. I’ll write down ‘God, I was angry.’ I’ll write down a whole list of my sins.
You say, “I can’t think of a lot of things I’ve done wrong.” First of all, I think you are being dishonest, so you can write down lying. How about TV? How about some of those ‘R’ rated movies that you watched? How about some of America’s sins? How about the pornography that goes on in our country? How about the thousands of abortions today? We are part of that nation. God just doesn’t give us a blank check and say, “Well, you are My people, so it’s all right. I know all the filth that is going on in the country, but it’s all right. I’ll just give you a blank check.”
Ask Isaiah about that. Isaiah said, “...Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips:...” (Isaiah 6:5) This is my nation and it’s sinful and I’m part of it. So I’ll write down some of America’s sins. Like the abortions and the murders, and the apostasy in our churches. Some churches don’t even preach repentance and the new birth anymore. I’ll write that down and I’ll say, “Dear God, I was so angry in that rest area yesterday and I got mad and frustrated and I stormed out of there.” I’ll say Psalm 51. “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.” I’ll say, “God, the things that I thought, God forgive me. The sins of America, God please forgive those sins. Have mercy on me, God.” I’ll just read all those sins off and confess those sins. Time with God is ahead of time for God.
Here is an easy formula to spend 15 minutes with God. I think you should spend more than that, and I do spend more than that every day. I spend at least an hour in prayer most every day. But friend, here is an easy formula to get yourself jump started in spending time with God. Set out to spend five minutes confessing your sins. Then sit down and spend five minutes in thanksgiving. I’ll quote some of Psalm 51 to God when I confess my sins.
Then I’ll spend some time in thanksgiving. Psalm 136 is a great chapter on thanksgiving. I never pray without my Bible. I never praise the Lord without my Bible. I’ll find Psalm 136 and start writing down things that I’m thankful for. This could jumpstart your Christian life, the time that you spend with God. I’ll write down things that I’m thankful for. “Thank you, Lord, that I’m saved. I could have died and gone to Hell, but mercy and grace found me, and Christ died for me.” I’ll look up to Heaven and I’ll say, “Thank you, God, that when I was a worthless 17 year old, long-haired devil, You reached down in mercy. Thank You for saving me. Thank You for Calvary. Thank You for Your suffering and the shed blood. Thank You for the empty tomb.”
Then I’ll write down my wife’s name. I’ll say, “Thank You, Lord, for Tracy Lynn. Thank You for a helpmeet. Thank You for a Christian wife. Thank You, Lord, that I’m married and You made her just for me. Thank You, Lord, for that.”
I’ll write down, “I’m called to preach.” I am a Gospel preacher. I’m not a great orator. I’m not a Jack Hyles or a John Rice or a Dennis Corle, but bless the Lord, I am a Gospel preacher. God is not so interested about what I’m not, as in what I am. God made me and I was called of God to preach. I’ll write that down and look up to Heaven, and I’ll say, “Thank You, God, March 28, 1981 I sat in the Calvary Baptist Church and You spoke to my heart. That short red-headed preacher stood up and preached and said, “Evangelize, evangelize, evangelize,” and you called me to preach. Thank You, Lord, for that call.
Then I’ll write down on my list, “I’m an American. I live in the greatest country on the face of the earth. I’m free.” When I came from Pennsylvania to New Jersey, there were no guards at the border. It’s going to be a different story when we go back across and have to give them three bucks to go across the Ben Franklin Bridge to go into Pennsylvania! Another $15 to have the privilege of driving on the turnpike. I say, “God, I live in America, the greatest country on the face of the earth.” Patriots have shed their blood for it, a nation founded on Christian principles. I’m free. I’m an American. Thank You, Lord.
I’ll write down, “Lord, I’m healthy today. I can walk and talk. I’m alive today. God has given me life today. Thank You, Lord, for that.” Then I’ll read Psalm 136. “O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. O give thanks unto the God of gods: for his mercy endureth for ever. O give thanks to the Lord of lords: for his mercy endureth for ever. To him who alone doeth great wonders: for his mercy endureth for ever. To him that by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy endureth for ever.” So spend some time confessing your sins. Spend some time in thanksgiving. Just five minutes, can you do five minutes? Yes, you can.
Then I want you to set out to say, “I’m going to start spending 15 minutes alone with God confessing my sins, thanking Him, and praising Him.” It came to my attention not long ago, that I wasn’t as thankful and rejoicing as I should be. I read the book of Psalms and said, “Man, there is something missing in my life.” I want to be happy. I work on myself more than I ever work on anybody else. Far more time I spend on myself, trying to get my heart right. I said, “There has got to be a way that I can rejoice more.” I just started reading through the book of Psalms and looking for things to rejoice in God over. When I thank God, I thank Him for what He does. He saved me. That’s something He did. He called me. That’s something He did. When I praise Him, I’m thanking Him for Who He is. Psalm 20 is a good place to start with praise. I read through the book of Psalms at least once or twice a month.
Psalm 20 is a good one and it’s an easy one. “The LORD hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee; Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion; Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice; Selah. Grant thee according to thine own heart, and fulfil all thy counsel. We will rejoice in thy salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners: the LORD fulfil all thy petitions. Now know I that the LORD saveth his anointed; he will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand. Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God. They are brought down and fallen: but we are risen, and stand upright. Save, LORD: let the king hear us when we call.”
You are going to take your life and set some priorities in place. You are going to put the spiritual kingdom ahead of the physical kingdom. In the spiritual kingdom, you are going to make two divisions and say time with God comes before time for God. You’ve got to have both to be right with the Lord. Psalm 20:1 says, “The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee;” Now I’m looking through the Psalms for reasons to praise the Lord. I look up to Heaven and say, “I praise You because you hear. I praise You because You answer prayer. I bless You because You hear me. I bless You, Lord, because You hear my prayer in the day of trouble. Lord, there are a lot of people you can try to call on in the day of trouble, and they won’t give you the time of day. Lord, in the day of trouble I can call upon You.” I’ll praise Him because His name is the God of Jacob, the God of His people. I look up to Heaven and say, “I praise You because You hear me and I’ll praise You because You are the God of Your people. I praise Your name because Your name is the God of Jacob.
“Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion;” In verse two, what would I praise Him for? Because He sends help. I’ll look up to Heaven and I’ll say, “Thank You, God, for all the times You’ve helped me. I praise You because You are my help.” In verse two, “I praise You because You strengthen me.”
In verse three, I praise because You remember me. You’ve never forgotten me, God. My name has never slipped your mind. Spend at least five minutes going through Psalms trying to get your old heart warm. That is the foundation for time for God.
Everybody that I see here this morning spent some time getting ready for church. I don’t see anybody here that looks like the cat dragged them in. We had a kitten that used to bring mice up to the second floor window in the middle of the night. She’d scatch and meow. I’d open the window and try to let the poor thing in and she’d have a mouse all chewed up. I don’t see anybody in here that looks like a cat dragged you in this morning. Do you know why? Because you took the time to get ready.
The problem with that is, if you didn’t spend time with God, you put the physical kingdom ahead of the spiritual kingdom. That’s a sin. Getting your priorities out of order, that’s a sin. There ought to be some people that would say, “God, I’m going to start spending some time alone with You. I’m going to walk with You in the morning and in the evening. Before and after I do my work, I’m going to walk with You. I’m going to confess my sins. I’m going to thank You and I’m going to praise You.”
Maybe you haven’t had a daily devotional life and weren’t sure how to get started. I’ve tried to show you how simple it can be to actually be spending time with God every day. It’s a real relationship, and we need to put it first. No matter what we do for God, we first need to spend time with God. I promise that if you will put this into practice every single day, your life will never be the same. It can jump start your spiritual life. Let’s get serious about spending time with the Lord.
