Deal Or No Deal: The Choice Is Yours - It's Not My Talent . . . It's His

Now, I don’t know if you have paying attention to this, but we have opened and revealed all but TWO cases on this stage – CASE #13 and CASE #7. And, as we’ve discussed, week after week, we have been persuaded to pass by all other temptations – to choose God’s Way in every decision in how we use our life, time, treasure, temple, and testimony, and talent. It is usually NOW, after you have demonstrated a level of commitment, endurance, and perseverance in the faith, where temptation seems to always come in like a flood…to take one more opportunity to trip you up.

And if you watch the game (DEAL OR NO DEAL), this call is coming from the banker…whose job it is to get us to settle for less or quit the game early…let’s see what he has to offer us.

Well, the banker’s offer is for us to deviate from our INITIAL choice that we had held onto throughout the entire series (CASE #7)…and swap it for the unknown possibility in CASE #13 (we must decide before seeing the outcome!

a. DEAL OR NO DEAL!?

b. OUR RESPONSE: It has always been our INITIAL decision to follow God and live life God’s Way. With God’s Word, we KNOW that ANY DEVIATION from His way will cause destruction! The number #7 case represents “God’s Way” with our Time, Talent, Treasure, Testimony, and TemplE. “Plus, we don’t need to open that case in order to see what the result would be – because ANY deviation from God’s Word leads to destruction, right?” So, OUR RESPONSE is “No Deal!”

Well, we stuck with our conviction, let’s open up case #13, and see what we passed up !

“1,000,000.00!”

One million dollars? What! You may be thinking: Wait a second, THAT case isn’t supposed to have the million dollar prize because THAT’S THE ULTIMATE! That’s what we have wanted to receive!

Listen my friend, the world may say THIS case contains the best prize! But let me remind you of what Matthew said as a testimony of a man who had everything but still felt lost:

Matthew 16:26 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

That may seem like the ultimate prize in this world…but that’s nothing compared to God’s plan:

“Abundant Life”

John 10:10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

The only life that truly provides the quality of life, true peace, the abundant life that God intended for us is to STICK TO OUR CHOICE TO LIVE LIFE – GOD’s Way with our Time, Treasure, Temple, Testimony, & Talent!

So, the question is raised one more time – as it has for the last six weeks of this series –

DEAL OR NO DEAL: THE CHOICE IS YOURS! How are you going to live your life? How are you going to use everything that God has placed in your care? Are you going to be a good steward of God’s best in your life?

This is a heart issue. It goes right to the very core of our being. Realizing that this is not my life, it’s His! But you can never truly live that kind of life, make that kind of choice, until you have truly given Him your life. Until you have given Him your heart.