What's More Valuable

1.  God's purpose is more valuable than popularity.

As Pharaoh’s grandson, the heir to the throne, that's a position of popularity.  But Moses wasn't impressed.  Don't ever sell your life out for popularity because it doesn't last.  One minute you're a hero, the next minute you're a zero.  It just doesn't last.  One of the things you have to learn as a leader is to hold in your hand lightly both praise and criticism.  Because one minute they love you and the next minute they hate you.  One minute you're doing great and the next minute you're doing lousy.  You must learn, if you're going to be effective in ministry, to live for an audience of one.  Really what matters is, What does God think about this?  Because you cannot play to the crowds.  

I make people happy all the time and I upset people all the time.  It's part for the course.  The pioneer takes the arrows.  If you're going to call the shots, you take the shots.  You hold both criticism and praise lightly.  Like chewing gum: You chew on it but you don't swallow it.  

2.  People are more valuable than pleasures.  

 Moses is on Easy Street.  He's got a royal lifestyle.  Any whim he wants is going to be satisfied.  Immediately.  But in order to do right, he had to choose discomfort over pleasure.  Do you realize that all the discomfort we've been through as a church, all the discomfort. Saying, I want to have a ministry without discomfort is like saying, I want to have a baby without my tummy getting big and going through labor.  It's an impossibility.  It's par for the course.  

Notice why did he give up for people.  v. 25 He chose to be mistreated "... along with the people of God rather than enjoy the pleasure of sin for a time."  He did it for the sake of people.  He said I want to do this to help others.  

That's why we put up with inconvenience in ministry – to help others.  That's called service.  The problem is a lot of people only want to serve God when it's convenient.  But a lot of ministry isn't convenient.  A lot of ministry isn't exciting.  It's just ministry, service.

3.  God's peace is more valuable than possessions.  

He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as greater value than the treasure of Egypt because he was looking ahead.  Moses knew that no possession could give inner peace.  Peace comes from doing God's will.  

Americans think it's life, liberty and the purchase of happiness.  There will be an awful lot of Christmas spending in the next couple of months.  I wonder if they'll still be elated in January when the payments come in.  It says, Don't worry about your possessions.  A man's life does not consist of the abundance of things that he possesses.  

It's amazing that Moses gave up the very things we spend our lives trying to get.  What motivated this man?  V. 26 “He was looking ahead to his reward.”  The reasons that he was able to have his values right – values are determined by perspective.  Or your values are determined by your vision.  And Moses was a man of vision.  So he had his eyes on the future reward, not on the measure, treasure, pleasure of today.