A Greater is Here
Matthew 12:42
"The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here."
Can you imagine the privilege of having Jesus in your presence? You would think that those who heard Jesus would cherish every minute they had with the Saviour. Yet, we find that even those who had the very presence of Jesus took Him for granted. They had the Creator of the Universe in their presence, and they took Him for granted. They had the Word of God in their presence, and they took Him for granted. They had the Master of all in their presence, and they took Him for granted. Sadly, those people would take for granted the presence of the One Who could help them forever.
Yet, everyday we are all guilty of taking for granted what we have. God has blessed each person with the presence of greatness, and if we are not careful we will become so used to their presence that we will take what they have to offer for granted. I find from the verse above some things we must be careful about taking for granted.
First, don't take preaching for granted. The people in the verse above heard the preaching of Jesus, but they took His preaching for granted. I have found that many Christians take for granted the preaching they have heard. If you are not careful, you will come to the point where you will think you have heard it all. Let me warn you that you better enjoy every sermon you hear and grab every truth from each sermon, for what you hear is not heard by many and will one day be gone.
Second, don't take for granted the wisdom others give you. The people in Jesus' time heard the wisdom from the Source of wisdom, and they took it for granted. There are people who you have around you that are filled with wisdom. Don't waste your time with them and not glean from their wisdom. Ask them questions, for their wisdom may not always be available to you.
Third, don't take for granted the people whom God has placed in your life. The people in Jesus' time never understood Who they had in their presence. Likewise, you don't know who you have in your presence, so don't take one person for granted. Cherish every minute you have with people. Don't let things be more important than the presence of the people around you. You only have people with you for a short time, and you may miss their greatness if you let things pull your attention away from them.
Everything that God has given you should be cherished. You will never know if you have greatness in your presence until it is gone; therefore, absorb every thing you can and every minute you have with those whom God has placed in your life. By doing so, you will not have to look back and wish that you would have done more with the greatness God placed in your presence.