What's the most important thing in life?
Money?
Good friends?
Family?
Or is it being happy, as some suggest?
Well, let's see how God answers that question
here today on The Road to Reality.
If Jesus came to you and said, I
want you to leave everything, come and follow
me, would you do it?
You know, the disciples of the first century
were willing, and they did, but there was
a rich young ruler who said no.
Now, how we answer that question really says
a lot about where we're at and who
we are serving.
Today on The Road to Reality, Brother K
.P. O'Hannon stresses the importance of giving
Christ the preeminence in all things.
He's to occupy first place in our lives.
Anything less is missing out on what's most
important.
This is the weekly radio ministry of Gospel
for Asia, and we're thankful to the Lord
for this time together with you.
We catch up with K.P. now in
Luke 24.
What a joy it is to have this
opportunity to talk with you again.
I don't know where you are, maybe in
your car or in your bedroom or kitchen.
Well, wherever you may be.
And, you know, times like this, and I
say, Lord, I am so blessed to have
this opportunity to talk to my brothers and
sisters.
Well, after all, before you know it, our
life on earth is over and we are
going to be with the Lord.
So here we are, pilgrims and strangers on
this earth.
And my part in this journey is sometimes
to talk to, you know, the people of
God like you and share what the Lord
put on my heart.
And I hope it will be an encouragement
to you.
You know, the other day I was talking
to our Gospel for Asia staff here.
You know, we have this Tuesday night prayer
meeting.
Our entire staff meet.
We have some 70, 80 kids and 105
families.
So it's a fairly large group of people.
And every Tuesday we meet for prayer.
And whenever I'm here, I share from God's
word, you know, before our prayer meeting starts.
And I was telling them, you know, it's
been, you know, over four decades that, you
know, I've been serving God.
And I was barely 17 when Jesus called
me to give my life and everything to
serve him.
I left my home, traveled 2,000 miles
North India and spent eight years serving him
along with other young people.
A few times I was beaten up and
abused and faced quite a bit of suffering
along with many others doing the Lord's work.
And it's been an incredible journey.
Then I told them also, it's interesting that
after 44 years of being in your so
-called full-time ministry, I took the first
vacation.
Now, believe it or not, I just didn't
know even how to do this thing.
My board members during one of the board
meetings said, you know, Brother KP, we are
really worried about you.
You need to take a break.
I said, yeah, what do you are talking
about?
Then they said, you know, we would like
you to take a week off and go
for a vacation.
And I was silent.
And I said, dear me, what a punishment.
And I know these dear brothers loving and
gracious and kind.
And I said, yeah, I will do what
you tell me to do.
In any case, you know, this is a
meaningful week.
My wife Gisela and my son Danny and
his wife Erica and the two little kids.
They have Esther and Jonah, the tiny boy.
Then, of course, my daughter Sarah and her
husband, Dr. Danny, they both are in India.
He's a medical doctor serving God, caring for
the children and suffering people.
Then, of course, their little boy.
So, I mean, it was a wonderful experience,
by the way, and I don't regret it.
Although it was kind of difficult for me
to adjust the first two days.
What I'm trying to tell you is that
my life, entire life, been one of perpetual
nonstop going after reaching the lost.
And I weep about it and I work
for it and dream about it.
There's nothing more significant in my life than
knowing my Lord and doing the one thing
that he's most concerned about, that is to
seek and save that are lost.
But then I said to my people last
night during the prayer meeting, you know, my
brothers and sisters, after all these years of
serving Christ, there is one thing of great
importance.
The only thing that is important to me
now than anything else, that is to know
the Lord Jesus intimately and to be his
so completely.
I said world evangelism.
Absolutely.
I work for it.
That's that's my life.
But that and everything else like that is
overshadowed by one thing.
I want to know him better.
And those are words I understand.
You heard those kind of words people talk
about and you read about it.
But how do we come to the place
of total abandonment?
There's nothing we seek for ourselves.
Our life completely his.
Please don't misunderstand me.
I'm not talking about some spooky mystical thing.
No, this is basic biblical teaching of the
New Testament.
Christianity in the Western countries, especially here in
America.
You will agree with me.
A lot of times for a lot of
people, it is what they can get.
Not what Christ is asking.
And Paul very well said this in second
Corinthians chapter five.
If you remember, since one died for all,
that is Christ died for you and for
me.
Now, those who live no more live for
themselves, but for him who died for you
and for me.
We are not our own anymore.
This I call it the radical Christianity.
This I call the most important thing in
our Christian life.
And so we have a passage like this
in Luke chapter 14, where, you know, lots
and lots of people want to be near
Christ.
Like we have mega churches, you know, huge
numbers of people gathering and being in one
place.
I mean, it's a wonderful thing.
I'm not against it.
I'm so happy for that also, because there's
an opportunity for people to hear biblical teaching,
provided the shepherd is teaching from God's word,
not, you know, whatever he, you know, think
about or interpret stuff.
But in any case, in verse 25 in
Luke chapter 14, you read these words, large
crowds were traveling with Jesus and turning to
them.
He said, if anyone comes to me and
does not hate his father and mother, his
wife and children, his brothers and sisters, yes,
even his own life, he cannot be my
disciple.
Anyone who does not carry his cross and
follow me cannot be my disciple.
Then in verse 33, in the same way,
any of you who does not give up
everything he has cannot be my disciple.
You know, it's a weird situation that our
preachers are spending so much time trying to
explain what Christ didn't mean.
Oh, no, no, no.
Jesus didn't mean that way.
It's like this.
And we are so worried about being so
politically correct.
We don't want to offend anyone.
For example, how many books you find in
the Christian bookshops that says that if you
divorce your wife or husband for any other
reason than this one reason of unfaithfulness, you
are living in sin.
I know this is not a popular theology.
And I'm not saying there is no forgiveness
of sin and there's no God's grace.
And I know people who've been divorced and
remarried.
God's grace is abundant and his mercy is
forever.
I'm not knocking at these kind of situations.
But what I'm simply saying, when will Christianity
and the shepherds that are set to lead
the people will come to the place where
they are more afraid of God than the
people they are speaking to.
Thank God there are prophets.
There are people who are willing to risk
all for the sake of Christ.
And these are people who don't seek anybody's
honor, reputation.
They don't care.
And I know quite a few people like
that.
And I'm so grateful that they are my
example.
But coming back to the subject we are
dealing with, what is the most important thing
in our life?
Answering that, I would say God will never
take the second place in your life.
If you don't give him the first place,
he says, I'm sorry, you are free to
go and do what you want to do.
That's exactly what happened in Mark chapter 10.
The rich young ruler came to Christ.
He was upright.
He was holding very significant position, recognized and
respected in the society.
But Jesus saw something deep down about his
own private longing and his attitude.
And Jesus said, oh yeah, I'm so happy
that you want to be mine and follow
me.
Oh, by the way, go and sell everything
you have and give it to the poor.
Then you come and follow me.
And the scripture says this fellow was quite
sad.
He was not mad and angry and said,
Jesus, you are crazy.
No, he said he was quite discouraged and
sad.
He didn't want to do it.
And Jesus didn't go after him and say,
no, no, no, just wait a minute.
Just wait a minute.
No, I didn't mean that.
And let's look at it.
Maybe he can take the first step and
then second and third.
And gradually we will work it out.
Don't get offended.
No, Jesus didn't go after him.
Then, you know, in the early chapters of
Mark, when Jesus saw this bunch of young
people quite busy with catching fish and he
said, hey fellows, come and follow me and
I will make you fishers of men.
And the next thing you read, they left
their boats, their nest and left their co
-workers with their, you know, other buddies and
parents.
And they simply walked away and followed him.
And they became the apostles.
Quite a contrast there between the apostles and
the rich young ruler.
The apostles were willing to leave everything, follow
Jesus.
And the rich young ruler, he wasn't.
Which of the two camps would you fall
into?
We'll get back to brother K.P. Yohanan
here in just a second.
Here on the road to reality, we're considering
what's important in life right now.
And maybe all of this has you thinking
of where you're at with the Lord.
And I'd like to recommend K.P.'s book,
No Longer a Slumdog.
In this book, K.P. will encourage you
to think less of yourself, more about God
and others.
You'll see the world through eyes of the
suffering children of Asia.
You'll share in their sorrow, rejoice in their
victories.
And in the end, you'll be left with
what's most important.
We'd like to send this to you absolutely
free of charge.
Just go to winasia.org and request No
Longer a Slumdog.
That's winasia.org.
I'll give you our phone number too, in
case you'd like to call us.
Toll free 866-WIN-ASIA.
That's 866-WIN-ASIA.
Now, for our friends in Canada, you'll want
to call us at 888-946-2742.
Or visit gospelforasia.ca on the World Wide
Web.
And K.P. is in studio today.
He joins us now once again with more
about what's most important in life.
Now, thoughts like this is hard to translate
into practical living, especially for us here in
the United States in the Western culture.
But I trust the Holy Spirit will give
you understanding.
You know, I met a man who actually
is a multi-millionaire.
He's still my friend.
He's extremely rich.
But in my private conversations with him, many,
many times I found out here is a
man who's so devout to Christ.
He walks with him so intimately.
I was in tears when he told me,
Brother K.P., I heard you talk about
having an alarm clock.
Not to wake me up so I can
go to my office, but rather it will
wake me up two in the morning, one
in the morning, so I can pray and
be alone, meditating, being with Christ, weeping over
a world map, taking the television news and
radio news and magazine news and reports as
prayer request.
And he just telling me how he makes
decisions about spending his money, decisions about people
that work for him, the way he spent
his time, and I said, Lord, I have
a long way to go.
You see, here is what you need to
know.
You have to stop comparing your life with
someone else.
And when the disciples try to figure out,
Jesus, well, you talk about him like this,
but what about me?
Jesus, it's none of your business.
If it's my wish for him to live
until I come back, that's not your problem.
But you come and follow me.
So to you, my sister, there in the
kitchen, my dear brother driving the car, or
in your bedroom, in the hospital room, or
wherever you are, please listen to me.
When it is all said and done, that
day when you and I stand before our
Lord, your wife will not be there, your
pastor, your bishop, and your archbishop, and your
friend, and your colleague, and nobody will be
there.
Basically, it's you and him.
And that's all that matters.
So now you must make a decision based
on the Lord's dealing with you, where you
are, as to what you must walk away
from.
For me, I remember the year I came
to the United States.
It was 1974.
The early years of my life here, I
kind of got lost in the world of
trying to be like an American.
Oh, what do you mean by that?
Well, one thing I learned to eat hot
dog, and I found out it was not
dog meat.
Well, a whole bunch of other things.
But then I found myself becoming more concerned
about my dress, the way I look, and
the way I pray.
Now believe me, I was in seminary, and
I was fully involved in Christian work.
Yet it took two years before I realized
that I couldn't cry anymore.
My eyes were dry.
My heart was cold.
The lost world, people by hundreds of thousands,
dying without Christ and going into eternity.
It was all facts and figures and numbers.
I couldn't feel the pain anymore.
And that's when I said, Lord, I am
so lost.
I know all the answers.
Please change my heart.
Take eternity and stamp on my eyes.
The strange thing, I mean, that few months
of what I call spiritual journey, learning about
a whole new chapter in my life again.
I realized that I was spending so much
time trying to figure out the kind of
clothes I wear, and this and that, and
all these external things.
And I said, Lord, what do you want
me to do?
The answer was very simple.
Son, you have to make those choices.
And I will say this to you with
much care.
For me as an individual at that time
in my life from 30 to 33 years
ago, it was to say no to a
lot of things that I was living for.
Expensive dozens and dozens of imported silk, neckties
and suits and library books and this and
that.
All these stuff that actually burdened me down.
And I said to my wife, you know,
I just want to keep a couple of
ties and a couple of jackets and a
couple of shoes and a few little things.
And one other thing the Lord had to
deal with my heart was my, although I
didn't think much about it, wasting my time
and life away for material things, being consumed
with music and books.
I was reading things that didn't have a
whole lot to do with meditation and contemplation,
being alone and being silent before the Lord.
So when Jesus says, sell all you have
and then come and follow me, I will
say this to you.
Jesus will never take the second place in
your life.
If in your life, if you want to
know, if you are a backslider, if you
are a half-hearted follower of Christ, ask
this simple question.
Is there anything, anyone more important in my
life than Jesus?
Jesus, Jesus and him alone.
And if there is something in between, someone
in between, I'm telling you, you don't need
somebody to come and convince you about it.
Your heart will tell you.
And so if you put money as a
priority in your life, and your job, your
career, your wife, your husband, your children and
your education and your future plans and your
girlfriend, your boyfriend and your fiancé, and if
your thoughts, your life is consumed with your
health and wealth and relationships, I'm telling you,
please don't misunderstand me.
I am not trying to condemn you.
Let the Holy Spirit give you understanding.
And the Lord is calling you to be
his, to follow him.
And when our relationships and what we have
and our job or even ministry, even being
in full-time Christian work, once they become
priority number one, once they possess us, I'm
telling you, we are in trouble.
And, you know, I don't know this is
true or not, but I read a study,
somebody did a research or whatever, that average
Christian in the United States spent less than
eight minutes a day in prayer.
That means there must be millions who don't
pray even.
Then pastors or priests or preachers spent less
than 12 minutes a day in prayer.
Now, if you are a priest or a
pastor or a minister or an elder, or
a deacon, I want you to know I'm
your best friend.
I'm proud of you.
The Lord gave you a very special call.
But as a colleague, a friend of yours,
may I plead with you, please understand, you
can be most useful to your people by
spending most of your time with the Lord
and be his.
Listening to him and then saying what he
says.
Then too, as a follower of Christ, wherever
you are and whatever you are called to
do, may I ask you, make Jesus the
most important thing in your life.
Not doctrines, not denominations, not what is good
for you or bad for you, no.
But knowing him and that is eternal life,
Jesus said.
The kind of life that overcomes all.
May the Lord bless you.
Amen.
Well, there's nothing more significant in life than
knowing the Lord and doing what he calls
us to do.
Seek and save those who are lost.
That's what life is to be all about.
And as we leave you today, I'd like
to share one of the ways that we
can do that.
Again, this is The Road to Reality with
Brother K.P. O'Hannan.
Well, can you believe it?
Christmas is close to a month away, and
no doubt some of you have already started
your Christmas shopping.
This year, would you prayerfully consider giving a
gift that makes a difference for eternity?
Gospel for Asia Christmas Gift Campaign is in
full swing, and we call it the Critter
Campaign.
This year, you can select from an even
wider variety of gifts.
For instance, you can give something helpful like
a goat, a sewing machine, a radio, Bibles,
even a pull cart.
And believe me, this will really bless a
family in Asia.
This Christmas doesn't have to be about getting
many things you really don't need.
Rather, it can be about giving to those
in need.
Go online to winasia.org and browse through
the Gospel for Asia Christmas Gift Catalog.
That's winasia.org.
Our friends in Canada, you can go to
gospelforasia.ca on the World Wide Web.
The Road to Reality, brought to you by
Gospel for Asia.
Be encouraged to live for what's most important,
and then join us back here next week
at this same time.