"in order to" vs. "for the sake of"
Solution 1:
The phrase in order to connotes enabling
I work in order to have the means of survival.
The phrasing is fairly stiff in most cases, and the same concept can usually be expressed with to
I work to have the means of survival
The phrase for the sake of indicates benefit or support
I made my comments for the sake of harmony.
My comments won't necessarily cause harmony, but should help.
There are cases where either construction might work, but there are at least subtle differences. I don't think that there is a temporal distinction.