The Next Best Thing - Audio
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Morning. Turn your Bible to Luke chapter 9. We're going to begin in verse 27 today. Luke chapter 9 verse 27. The title of my message is The Next Best Thing. The Next Best Thing. We're always looking as a society for the next best thing. Are we not? We are always looking forward, forward, forward. What's going to be the next best thing? We have so many things in technology and so many things in the world of celebrities and the sports world and we're always on pins and needles wondering what's coming next? What's going to entertain us next? What's going to be the next best thing? My daughter Mallory is notorious for wanting to know what the next best thing is. You see, this summer we kept saying as we were coming up to summer vacation, my wife kept building it up and building it up and saying, Mallory, it's going to be summer vacation. And when it's summer vacation, we're going to have so much fun. We're going to do so many fun things. And sure enough, Mallory was very excited awaiting summer vacation and as summer vacation arrived, sure enough, we ended up doing some fun things as a family. We would do things like go out swimming. And we would swim and swim and swim. And at the end of swimming, right as we got dried off and got in the car, she would say, "What are we going to do next?" And then we would say, "Okay, you know, hold on, Mallory, we're going to figure it out. We have time. Don't worry, the summer's long." And so sure enough, maybe a week or two later, we would take the children to the aquarium. And we went to the aquarium and we looked at all the fish and all the beautiful, beautiful things of the sea and they were having a glorious time. Bennett loved looking at the sharks and Mallory loved looking at the turtles and on and on it went. And by the end of the day, we got back in the car and Mallory looks at us and says, "What are we going to do next?" We went camping a week, no, excuse me, four days of camping up at Big Sur up in near the, with the Redwoods in California, glorious, glorious setting. We had so much fun. I want to go back every year. I hope to go there every year. It's so amazing. We go camping. We have a glorious time, so much fun playing and just enjoying nature. And the moment we left that campground, Mallory said, "What are we going to do next?" What's the next best thing? I want the next best thing. Can't even enjoy the moment because you're thinking about the next best thing. Jesus in Luke 9 is going to say, "Look, the next best thing is coming." The kingdom is coming, but it's not ready and full just yet. And while you wait for the next best thing, don't just sit idly by complaining that it's not here yet. Live now. Live now in the present. Live well in the present as you wait for the next best thing. As you wait for the kingdom of God, don't skip over the here and now while you wait for glory. This present life is part of the journey. Part of the journey I have for you, says the Lord, and as long so live as I've called you to live in the here and now knowing that it will make the next best thing that much sweeter when you get there. Live in the here and now. Live as I've called you, Jesus says, knowing that the next best thing, it'll be even sweeter when you get there. Luke chapter 9, beginning in verse 27, let's stand as we begin to read from this portion of the gospel of Luke. And I might add we're intentionally beginning today in verse 27, despite the fact that some of your Bibles may have this verse as the tail end of the previous story we looked at. Some translations and Bible versions will have verse 27 with the previous story. Other translations and Bible versions will have it with the present story. I take it more with the present story and there's a reason for that. So beginning in Luke 9, verse 27, all the way to 36, the word of the Lord. Jesus speaking here. He says, but I tell you truly speaking to the disciples. I tell you truly disciples. There are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God. Now it came to pass about eight days after these things that he, Jesus, took Peter, John, and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And as Jesus prayed, the appearance of his face was altered and his robe became white and glistening. And behold, two men talked with him who were Moses and Elijah who appeared in glory and spoke of his decease, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. But Peter and those with him, they were heavy with sleep. And when they were fully awake, they saw Jesus' glory and the two men who stood with him, then it happened as they were parting
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Pastor Neil discusses our predilection for desiring "the next best thing" and encourages us to be attentive to living well in the present, knowing that we'll find "the next best thing" even sweeter when we've followed the path directed by the Lord.