Introduction
1. I don’t know if you have ever “felt torn” between 2 decisions...
perhaps you are planning to go out for supper...
you may feel torn whether to go to chinese or mexican...
if you end up at the chinese restaurant...
you might feel torn between ordering the moo goo gai pan...
or the Kung Po Chicken...
Another way of talking about it is “riding the fence”...
At some point, we will be electing a new president...
and you may be “riding the fence” on who you should vote for...
Still another way to describe it is “mixed feelings”...
We are trying to decide what to do for our summer vacation...
We feel like we should go to Indiana to see our relatives...
But we don’t really like the long drive...
So, Kay and I have mixed feelings about what we should do.
2. I’m sure that all of us have had “mixed feelings” about something...
at sometime or another...
During those times...it’s nice to finally come to a decision...
And then to feel like you chose wisely...
the Chinese Restaurant had a special deal that day...
Or you greatly enjoyed your family vacation..and where you went...
Or the president you voted for led the country in the way that you approve of...
3. Certainly it’s appropriate to be indecisive at times...
and there’s nothing wrong with riding the fence on certain issues...
But there are some things that are very important...
In fact, they are of crucial importance...
and on those things...
we can’t afford to be “riding the fence”...
we must be decisive...
we must choose and choose wisely...
under the leadership of the Holy Spirit...
4. In our continuing study of the Biblical ABCs...
We come to the letter U...
U stands for “undivided”...
According to the dictionary...
1 not divided, separated, or broken into parts.
2 devoted completely to one object:1
If the student is staring out the window and the beautiful spring day...
it is unlikely that he is giving his teacher his undivided attention...
5. Undivided is only found 4 times in the Bible...
and we will look at each of the 4...
and we will find that these 4 verses speak to 3 things that are NOT to be divided or separated...
(we will read the text as we come to it)
Text: 1 Chr 12:33, Ps 86:11, Eze 11:19, 1 Cor. 7:35
1. Undivided Loyalty (1 Chr. 12:33)
A. 1 Chronicles 12:33 says, “men of Zebulun, experienced soldiers prepared for battle with every type of weapon, to help David with undivided loyalty--50,000”
Saul grew jealous of David and David’s success...
eventually, Saul tried to kill David...
David had several opportunities to kill Saul...
but he wouldn’t do it...
But he certainly welcomed the support of anyone who would support and defend him...
B. In 1 Chronicles 12:17, David tells the men, “If you have come to me in peace, to help me, I am ready to have you unite with me. But if you have come to betray me to my enemies when my hands are free from violence, may the God of our fathers see it and judge you."
David needed people he could depend on...
He didn’t need people who were riding the fence on whether to support Saul....or David...
He needed people who were loyal...
The fact that he had 50,000 men who were undivided in their loyalty to David...
I’m sure that was great relief to David...
C. We value people who are loyal to us...
if you have a spouse who is faithful to you...
that is a great blessing...
but if you have a spouse who is UNfaithful to you...
then that is very painful...
2. Scripture also talks about an Undivided Heart (Ps 86:11, Eze 11:19)
A. In Psalm 86:11 David says, “Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.”
David, as a Soldier and as a king...
would value people who were loyal and devoted to him...
And David recognizes the importance of that same loyalty being offered to God...
He prays to the Lord and asks that God give him an undivided heart...
He wanted his heart to be completely sold out to God...
He didn’t want to “feel torn” about his relationship to God...
He didn’t want to “ride the fence”...or have “mixed feelings”...
He didn’t want to serve God when he was in the Temple...
But when he was with his friends he would act differently...
He wanted to serve God when everything was going great...
and he wanted to serve God when it seemed like the whole world was against him...
And, there were times in David’s life that it felt that way...
Some of David’s Psalms express David’s great pain about seemingly everyone turning against him...
But David also takes great care to always praise the Lord too.
B. James Dobson and Gary Bauer, in their book, “Children at Risk” tell this story...
One of the most tragic events during the Reagan Presidency was the Sunday morning terrorist bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut, in which hundreds of Americans were killed or wounded as they slept. Many of us can still recall the terrible scenes as the dazed survivors worked to dig out their trapped brothers from beneath the rubble.
A few days after the tragedy, I recall coming across an extraordinary story. Marine Corps Commandant Paul X Kelly, visited some of the wounded survivors then in a Frankfurt, Germany, hospital. Among them was Corporal Jeffrey Lee Nashton, severely wounded in the incident. Nashton had so many tubes running in and out of his body that a witness said he looked more like a machine than a man; yet he survived.
As Kelly neared him, Nashton, struggling to move and racked with pain, motioned for a piece of paper and a pen. He wrote a brief note and passed it back to the Commandant. On the slip of paper were but two words -- "Semper Fi" the Latin motto of the Marines meaning "forever faithful." With those two simple words Nashton spoke for the millions of Americans who have sacrificed body and limb and their lives for their country -- those who have remained faithful.2
C. What a powerful story!!
We value our men and women in uniform who serve our country with undivided hearts!!
Who serve faithfully...giving of life and limb...
Do we serve GOD with the same kind of devotion that many of our men and women in uniform serve their country?...
Semper Fi is a great motto for the marines...
But it would also be a great motto for us in our relationship with the Lord...
forever faithful...no mixed feelings...no riding the fence...
not just faithful when times are good...
but ALWAYS faithful...
D. God certainly values people who have an undivided heart toward Him...
In Ezekiel 11:19, God says, “I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh.”
David prayed for an undivided heart...
and in Ezekiel, God tells us that He will give people an undivided heart...
May we pray that same prayer...
“God, give me an undivided heart to serve You”!!
3. Finally, Scripture talks about Undivided Devotion (1 Cor. 7:35)
A. In 1 Corinthians 7:35 Paul says, “I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord.”
Now, in this passage of Scripture, Paul is talking about how people who are unmarried are able to devote all their attention to serving the Lord...
They don’t have a spouse and children to occupy their time...
So they are able to better serve the Lord...
But I feel that Paul words are good for everyone...
Married or single...
God wants us to be devoted to our children and spouses...
and there is plenty of Scriptural support for that...
But we must be careful that we don’t neglect God...
If we are completely devoted to God...
then we will also be devoted to our wives, husbands, and children...
In fact, I dare say, that the husband or wife who is completely devoted to God...
is much more likely to be completely devoted to their spouses and their children...
Conclusion
1. Well, as we are winding down our Biblical ABCs...
we come to the letter U...
U is for Undivided...
God’s Word tells us 3 areas where we need to be undivided...
We need to be undivided in our loyalty...
We need to pray with David to have an undivided heart toward God...
and we need to be undivided in our devotion to the Lord.
2. It’s okay to ride the fence...or feel torn 2 ways... or have mixed feelings...
about where to eat...
or who to vote for...
or whether to take the Interstate or use back roads...
or where to go on vacation...
But, when it comes to your relationship with God...
May we not have mixed feelings...split loyalties...
may we not be lukewarm...
May we be UNDIVIDED in Loyalty...in Heart...and in Devotion
1 Compact Oxford English Dictionary
2J. Dobson & Gary Bauer, Children at Risk, Word, 1990, pp. 187-188.
