"Don't Hold Back"
Matthew 26:36-39, 28:1-10; Not A Fan Series- 3/31/13

Introduction: I want you to think for a moment about Jesus’ last few days here on the earth. He met with the disciples and instituted the Lord’ Supper on Thursday, then He went out to pray in the garden. While in the garden He began to think what His next few hours would hold. Arrest, trial, flogging, more trial, conviction, and crucifixion. In the anguish of what He was about to experience, He cried out to the Father: “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me…” Jesus was overcome by what He was about to do. Jesus was fully contemplating the commitment He had made to the Father, and to you and me.

            Fortunately for us, Jesus’ words don’t stop there. He completes His thought by saying: “…yet not what I want but what you want.” This is exactly what we need to say as followers of Jesus. Not what I want, but what Jesus wants. This is where so many people get confused about what it means to follow Jesus. They want to follow Jesus on their terms, and in their choices. They are not willing to stand strong when things get difficult.            Easter Sunday is about recognizing the full commitment that Jesus made to us. Easter Sunday is about understanding that as Jesus held nothing back, so we should hold nothing back for Jesus!

I.                   What About That?- (Luke 9:61-62; 1 Kings 19:19-21; Psalm 106:19-20)

a.      Not this- The last couple of weeks we have been looking at people who

thought they wanted to be followers, but when it came down to it, they chose to be just fans. The first man told Jesus he would go wherever Jesus went, but when Jesus told him it would mean he would be homeless, he couldn’t make the commitment. A second man called Jesus Lord, but in the end made an excuse of why he couldn’t follow Jesus right away. He told Jesus now wasn’t a good time.

            This morning we look at a third man who tells Jesus he will follow Him. It comes from Luke 9:61, “Still another said, ‘I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.’” Again, it seems that this man wants to be a follower. “I will follow You, Lord,” he says. There are some similarities between this man and the man we talked about last week. This man agrees to follow Jesus, but not right at that moment. Like the man before him, he says to Jesus: “First…” He first wants to say goodbye to his family.

            The request doesn’t seem out of place. The man knows he will be busy with his training with Jesus, and with his traveling with Jesus. What is wrong with going home and telling the family goodbye and giving them a quick hug?

         If you look at the custom back then of saying goodbye to your family when you were leaving somewhere, you see that it requires numerous farewell parties that last a period of weeks. Jesus tells the man in no uncertain terms, in verse 62, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

Jesus knows that this man’s request reveals where his heart truly lies. It’s not that this man didn’t have a desire to follow Jesus, it is that following Jesus was not his top priority. Jesus tells the people around Him, and tells us today, that if you are not willing to leave everything behind, it won’t work to follow Jesus. If you’re not willing to go “all-in,” then there will always be something that pulls you away from truly following Jesus.

In fact, you might see that happen in your life from time to time. You make a commitment to go to church every week, but then things come up on Sunday that you have to do instead. You want to be more prayerful and connected with God’s word, but all the responsibilities of life keep you from giving much time to those things. We tend to allow things to become more important than following Jesus if we are not fully committed followers.

Ex. There was a practice that was allowed by the church way back when. If someone who belonged to the Knights of Templar became a Christian and was to be baptized, during the immersion they would hold their sword above the water while their body went under the water. It was their way of saying to Jesus: “You can have control of me but you can’t have this. I’m all yours, but the sword is not part of the deal.”

Is there something that you haven’t given Jesus control over? Have you said to Jesus, “You can have me, but not this?”

b.      Surrender everything- Jesus doesn’t want followers who have a

divided affection or a split allegiance. Jesus points to those things that we value most and asks us if we are willing to give them over to Him. Not too long ago we sang the song “I Surrender All,” and this is what Jesus wants from followers.

            Let me give you some examples that might challenge you in this…

For Jean Jesus was asking, “What about food?” For years she had turned to food rather than Jesus as her source of comfort and satisfaction. To Joe Jesus asked about his entertainment choices. Would he give up movies and TV shows that didn’t honor God? Jesus says to Stephanie: “What about your kids?” Her life revolved so much around her kids that she couldn’t find time for Jesus.

            There’s a great story in the Old Testament, in 1 Kings 19, where Elijah is told to go and choose Elisha as his successor. When he finds him, Elisha is plowing the field with twelve yoke of oxen. Having 12 oxen meant that Elisha was doing pretty well for himself. Elijah offers the call to Elisha, and at first Elisha says: “Let me first kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.” That sounds kind of familiar, doesn’t it? Like what the man said to Jesus in Luke 9:61. Elijah responds by indicating that is not how following is to be done. In the end Elisha realizes that he can’t keep even a part of his business on the side, so he slaughtered his oxen and burned his equipment, and then he followed!

            We need to understand that Jesus loves us so much that He died so that we could have a relationship with Him, and He could have one with us! He will not let you share your heart with anyone or anything. He will settle for nothing less than complete devotion. He made no comprises when He came to this earth to give up His life. He expects us, when we choose to be followers, to make no compromises.

            When we surrender those things that might have a higher place in our lives than Jesus, we will discover the satisfaction that comes from being a true follower. When we make this full commitment, we will see what we were missing when we were holding back on Jesus.

            Jim Elliot, the famous missionary who gave his life trying to reach the Auca Indians of Ecuador put it this way: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”

            Psalm 106:19-20 reflects back on the Israelites worshiping a golden calf while Moses was on the mountain receiving the Ten Commandments from God. Here’s how the psalmist explains what they did: “They made a calf at Mount Sinai; they bowed before an image made of gold. They traded their glorious God for a statue of a grass-eating bull.” I don’t know about you, but when I read that, I realize they did not make a good trade. Often we don’t understand the trade we are making when we allow something or someone else to have a higher place than Jesus!

II.                No reserves, no retreat, no regrets- (Psalm 37:4)

a.      Don’t hold back- The things that make this life so amazing, also can

be the biggest roadblocks to our following Jesus. Have you exchanged obediently following Jesus for a car that can really handle the corners? Have you exchanged following Jesus for a job that pays a little more than what you were making, but requires much more time? Have you exchanged obediently following Jesus for a weekend of fun? These are not good exchanges. Too many times we allow these good things to become God things. Too many times they become too important to us and keep us from following Christ with our whole hearts.

            I’ve noticed that at Memorial services one of the most powerful times is the sharing of stories of the person’s life. It is wonderful to hear the fun and meaningful things they have done with their life. It is nice to see how this person is remembered for the way he or she lived their life. And yet, the most meaningful thing that can be shared about the person is that they loved Jesus. Even more, that they served Jesus. Those services I do where the person gave their life fully to Jesus is the service where there is the most fulfillment of a life well lived.

            What is it that is competing for your allegiance to Christ? How do you need to let go of the plow and move forward to follow Jesus? If you can do this, then you will come to know the joy and satisfaction that finally comes when you go all-in.

            EX. William Borden was a multi-millionaire. He was born in the late 1800’s; an heir to a family fortune. He was an Ivy-league graduate, having earned an undergraduate degree at Yale and a graduate degree from Princeton. But more importantly to William Borden, was that he was a follower of Christ. He chose to leave his millions and follow the call of Jesus to an unreached Muslim group.              Long before he had made this decision to go to the mission field he wrote these two words in his Bible: NO RESERVES. He knew that for him to do this well he had to make a complete commitment to Jesus. During his time at Yale he had worked with the homeless and hurting in the streets of New Haven. He founded and personally funded the Yale Hope Mission in an effort to rehabilitate alcoholics and addicts. At this time he wrote in his Bible the words: NO RETREATS. He knew that to follow Jesus meant that he couldn’t look back.    Before going to the mission field William Borden went to Egypt to learn the Arabic language to prepare for his ministry to Muslims. While in Egypt he caught spinal meningitis and died one month later at the age of twenty-five. There could be some that would say he didn’t make a good trade. He gave up much to serve Jesus and follow the call he had received. He died before he could even reach the mission field. But this man sparked a revival at Yale and ministered to hundreds through his Mission. He also inspired thousands of missionaries by his complete commitment to Christ. After his death there were three phrases in his Bible: No Reserves; No Retreats; No Regrets. William Borden chose to not hold back in his following!

b.      Your story- I want you to imagine for a moment that your life has

ended, but before you get to heaven you find yourself in a movie theatre. As the movie begins to play you see familiar faces: your friends, your parents, your family, your spouse, your children. Then you realize that you are the star of the movie; it is your story. You see the meanings behind your decisions. You chose to hang out with friends who weren’t Christians, and this kept you from going to church… Then the scene replays itself, but something different happens. You choose to go to church and choose a new group of friends. You commit yourself to Christ because of this.

            Now I could go on and on with this scenario: the choice you made verses the choice you should have made. How often have you made a choice that was not for Christ, but for you, and it didn’t bring you closer to God? How many situations in your life would you do over again and make a different choice? If you thought like a follower, and not like a fan, what might be different in the way you lived your life?

One of the most common reasons that people give for not following Jesus is they want to get their lives together first. It sounds noble, but the truth is that the only way you can get your life together is to give it to Jesus. When Jesus invites you to follow Him, His invitation comes to you right where you are. He doesn’t want you to wait until tomorrow in hopes that you will finally be heading down the right path; He wants you to say yes today and He will lead you out of where you are now to the right path.

            When you get to the end of your life, will you be able to say to Jesus: I lived with no reserve, no retreat, and no regret? What would it take for you to be able to say that? Our lives will not be perfect, but they sure can be going in the right direction most of the time. This will happen if we choose to follow Jesus without concern, without excuse, and without hesitation. The life we will live when we follow Jesus will indeed be a life with no regrets. As Psalm 37:4 says, “Take delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” As your desires come in line with God’s desires, He will lead you to live a life of fulfillment, purpose, meaning, and fruitfulness. When you are done living, this world will not be the same because you spent time here living for the Lord!

Conclusion: Many cars today have a GPS. To use this GPS you put in the address where you are going, and the car will direct you as you drive. It will give you the path you are to follow to get to your destination. The Bible is our GPS for our lives. We need to know that our destination is with God in heaven. The Bible tells us how to do this in a way that is faithfully lived: follow Jesus.

            What is even better, is that Jesus has shown us the way. He came to this earth and lived a life that is worthy to follow. He also died so that we could not have to be slaves to sin, but slaves to God. He was resurrected on Easter Sunday so that He is now in heaven, at the right hand of God the Father. He is alive. He is alive to empower us. He is alive to guide us. He is alive to offer us forgiveness and restoration. Let us give thanks and praise to Jesus, for being our Savior, AND for being our Lord. For dying for us, and for being raise from the dead. Let us understand that this is a sign of new life. New life spiritually, and new life for our church. In Jesus, when we follow, all will be well, wherever we may go. Amen.

"No More Excuses"
Luke 9:59-62; Matthew 4:18-20
Not A Fan Series- 3/24/13

Introduction: Last week we looked at a “fan” in Luke chapter 9 who thought he wanted to be a follower. When Jesus spoke to him about what it would mean to follow, and how it would mean he would be homeless, the man was not able to give himself fully to Jesus. He did not want to make the commitment it would take to be a follower, even though he had initially told Jesus that he would go “wherever” Jesus went.

            This week we see how another person comes along and seemingly wants to follow Jesus, but when challenged with what it would require, he offers an excuse. Excuses are something we all do, some better than others. There is actually a website called The Mother of All Excuses. On this website are many excuses of why people missed work. Let me read a few of them to you….

·        I won’t be in today because I came down with Spring Fever.

·        I will be late to work because the pharmacy is mixing together a special ointment.

·        I can’t get to work today because the city is paving my street and I can’t get out.

·        Can’t make it in. I have a chance of filling in for someone on jury duty.

The excuse the man gave to Jesus of not being able to follow Him right away is that he had to go and bury his father. It seems this man has agreed to follow Jesus, but in essence he is telling Jesus he will do it later.

I.                   I Will Follow Tomorrow- (Luke 9:59-62; Matthew 4:18-20)

a.      Now is not a good time- At first glance, this man seems willing. It appears that he wants to accept the invitation to follow. He starts off by calling Jesus "Lord." It is the same title that a slave would give his master. But then his tone seems to change as he says to Jesus, the word "first." Here comes the stipulation. He wants to take time to go and bury his father. It sees to be a reasonable request. Isn't family important? Shouldn't he take care of his family obligations first?
             Yet, what he is really saying is that he wants to follow Jesus, but now is not a good time. He is giving Jesus an excuse to put Him off for a while. Jesus doesn't seem to be interested in this man's excuse, as Jesus tells him to let the dead bury the dead. Does this sound a little harsh to you? Is Jesus being inflexible? Looking at the tradition closer, we see that what the man is really saying is that he will follow Jesus after his parents die. When they are dead and buried, then he will make time to follow Jesus. 
               There could be reasons he is saying this to Jesus. Maybe this is because they would not approve of their son following Jesus. Maybe he was expected to carry on the family business. Maybe he was waiting to get his share of the inheritance. Whatever the reason is, the essence of his excuse is that he is not quite ready to follow Jesus. He is telling Jesus that he will follow Him tomorrow; he will follow another day.
               Let's compare this to those whom Jesus first called to follow Him. Let's read again from Matthew chapter 4: "As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 'Come, follow me,' Jesus said, 'and I will make you fishers of men.' At once they left their nets and followed Him. Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him."

            The words that are important for us to notice here are “at once,” and “immediately.” That is the kind of commitment that Jesus is looking for. That is the kind of follower Jesus desires. Simon, Andrew, James, and John did not tell Jesus they would follow tomorrow. They could have, for they were right in the middle of doing their job; they were with their father. Yet, they followed Jesus right away!

            How often do you have something on your “to do” list, but you don’t get it done, so you put it off for tomorrow? I have an in box on my desk, and in the “in box” are several folders. There are a couple of folders where I have things/ I might get to/ at sometime. They are my “to do tomorrow” folders.

b.      Check engine light- For the fans who are always telling Jesus

“tomorrow,” you can see that tomorrow only comes when there is some kind of great struggle or tragedy that happens in their life. They have put Jesus off for so long, that it takes something significant happening in their life to think about giving their life over to Jesus!

            At first, Jesus maybe just speaks the words “follow me.” Then as time goes by He speaks it a little louder. Then in time, for you to hear it at all, Jesus needs to shout it. EX. It’s like driving a car. There is routine maintenance that you have to do. Change the filters, get the oil changed, change the wipers, etc… However, some people let time go by, not taking the time to do this maintenance. Then one day the “check engine” light comes on, causing the person to HAVE to do something.

            Think about this, what if you put a piece of tape over your “check engine” light. Then you wouldn’t see it, and you wouldn’t have to do anything about it. Right? WRONG. Just ignoring it, or covering it up isn’t going to make the problem go away. At some point ignoring it could even cause the death of your car.

            The “check engine” light is a warning to let you know that you have to fix the car. In essence we have a “check engine” light in our life. This light is that still small voice that says to us that things aren’t right. Maybe you are not experiencing peace in your life. Maybe you feel lost and have no real direction. Maybe you feel like your life is out of control. Maybe you have experienced great heartache. These are all signs that are there to get your attention so that you will turn your life fully over to Jesus!

            Ex. I remember when I first accepted Jesus as my Savior and Lord. Well, the truth is I just accepted Him as my Savior, I didn’t allow Him to be my Lord. I was in high school, and was going to our youth group each week. But I hadn’t given myself fully over to Him. If I had, I wouldn’t have done what I did next. I began to hang around some kids who were making bad decisions. I began to make some bad decisions as well. Not all the time, but some; enough to cause me to stop going to church. I then got a job cleaning an office, and that happened to be on Wednesdays and Sundays; the two days I had gone to church. Every week my friend would call and invite me to church, and every week I had the same excuse: I had to work! One day I found out I got fired from the job because they said I stole an ashtray from one of the desks (which I hadn’t). The NEXT DAY my friend called and invited me to church, and this time I didn’t have an excuse. I went, and the Holy Spirit convicted me of my sin, I re-dedicated my life to God, and began to poor myself into being His disciple. How different my life is now because I made that choice to follow!!

II.                Later Becomes Never- (Hebrews 3:15)

a.      Hitting the snooze button- The most dangerous part of following Jesus

tomorrow, isn’t what you will lose between now and then. The worst thing that can happen is that tomorrow might never come. The truth is, the longer you put Him off, the more likely it is that following Him will never happen!

            Saying “tomorrow” to Jesus is like hitting the snooze button on your alarm. Do you do this, hit the snooze button? Why do you do it? To get a few more minutes of sleep. Often times, people who hit the snooze button/ get into a pattern where each day it happens a little bit more. Meaning, the first day the alarm goes off, you hit the snooze button, 5 minutes goes by, the alarm goes off again. And you get up. The next day you might hit the snooze button two times. The day after that, three times. The more you hit the snooze button, the harder it is to hear because you begin to teach yourself to sleep right through it.

            Jesus tells you to “follow me” but you in essence hit the snooze button, telling Him “five more minutes.” The more you put Him off the less likely He is to get your attention the next time.

            We are creatures of habit. So, when we begin to form our behavior and decision making patterns, that behavior stays with us in our life. What we do today we will probably do tomorrow. The only way this will change is for us to have some very intentional behavior modification, with the help of friends and/or loved ones to change our patterns. We have to teach ourselves to not hit the snooze button. And then practice this over, and over, and over again, until we have developed new patterns of behavior.

b.      Do not harden your heart- The writer of Hebrews tells us in Hebrews

3:15, “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.” The best time for us to make a commitment to follow, is today; right now! We have this tendency to harden ourselves/   against that which we don’t want to deal with. Whether it is a sin, or learning how to be generous, or talking to others about Jesus, or making Christ the number one priority in our life, the time to do it is now.

            Every once in a while I decide to re-read over some of my journaling. This last week I did just this, and this is the first page I turned to:

            “Good morning Lord. Today I think about relationships and pattern of living. The relationship I am most pleased with is my relationship with Jesus Christ. Without Jesus, my life would be quite different. I know that before I let Jesus guide my life, I followed friends who were not connected with Jesus! This led me to experience many problems in my life.

            I also think about the daily rhythm of my life. I realize that when my daily rhythm is not rooted in You, Lord, then I can get too comfortable with my life and not serve You or follow You faithfully. It can lead to boredom or monotony. Help me to see this day as an opportunity to live for You. Help me to rest in You. I pray that You would pour Your Spirit into me so that I might live for You. So I give You this day, as I know that You are the One who gives it to me.”

            When I journal, I seek to hear the voice of God. I seek to allow God to chip away at any hardness in my heart that might keep me from following Him. I try and allow God’s Spirit to give me perspective on what I am doing well in following Jesus, and where I need to follow better.

Conclusion: If we are not careful, we become like the man who didn’t want to follow Jesus today. If we are not careful, we will make excuses that keep us from being a follower of Jesus. If we are not careful, we will not allow following Jesus to be our priority. When you think about where your priorities should be, let Your heart and mind be drawn to Jesus.

            I want to challenge you today to not allow one more day to go by, but make a commitment to follow Jesus fully today. I challenge you to look at your life, and see what you need to give to Jesus. Let it be today. Don’t hit the snooze button, but like the first disciples, choose to do it immediately; choose to do it now.

            Jesus says to us: Follow Me. Jesus says this not as a suggestion, but as a command. We would do well to listen to the voice of Jesus, knowing that Jesus understands what is important in this life, what is important for our lives. Don’t allow yourself to stand on the sideline and be a fan. Get yourself into the game. Let’s follow Jesus with great zeal, this day, and every day. Amen.

"What About There?"
Luke 9:57-62
Not A Fan Series- 3/17/13

Introduction: Have you ever had anyone say to you: If you need anything, let me know? These words sound great. Often times they are said with the intention of letting a person know that they want to be there for them. But do they really mean anything? What if you asked them to give you their car? Or their child? That would be a bit much, wouldn’t it? They don’t really mean anything, even though they said anything!!

            As we continue today in our Not a Fan Series, I want us to think about what we say to Jesus, and whether or not we really mean what we say. If we are making a commitment to Jesus to be more than a fan, but to become a follower, then whatever we say, we need to follow through on. We need to make sure that our words are meaningful and truthful. James 5:12 says, “Above all my brethren do not swear, either by heaven or by earth, or with any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no so that you may not fall under judgment.”

I.                   Wherever- (Luke 9:57-62)

It is easy to put aside Jesus’ call of “follow me” as something we do just at church on Sunday; or in those moments when we have a little extra time to give to Jesus. But we will soon see that this isn’t the case at all. Jesus expects us to follow Him at all times in our lives.

In Luke, chapter 9, we are introduced to someone who initially seem to want to follow Jesus, but as he begins to understand what this means, he begins to make excuses. As he tries to negotiate the terms of his commitment to Jesus, it becomes clear that he was really just a fan.

a.      Do you mean what you say?- We meet a man in verse 57 who

approaches Jesus. He is walking along and encounters Jesus and His disciples. The verse says: “They were walking along the road, a man said to Him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’” This man is walking along, and it seems that without any provocation from Jesus, without any formal call, the man offers to be a follower. His words sound very impressive, as He tells Jesus He will follow wherever Jesus wants him to go.

This man seems to know what Jesus is wanting from him. Maybe he had heard about the way how Jesus had called the other disciples. Maybe he wanted to be one of the select. So he offers himself to Jesus. He seems to do so with no restrictions: WHEREVER. That certainly sounds like a follower. It sounds like someone who wants to commit to Jesus. But let’s look at verse 58…

“Jesus replies, ‘Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.’” Jesus wants to make sure the man knows what he is getting himself into. Jesus wants the man to understand that to follow Jesus means that he will be homeless. Jesus has no home; no temple He belongs to; no office or place of business. Jesus’ life is one of a traveler. To follow Jesus would mean that he would be going from town to town and staying wherever they might find a place.

Jesus is also challenging the man’s comfort zone: as Jesus will often do! Following Jesus means that he would leave what he knows and go where Jesus goes. It is not some poetic statement, but a statement of reality. The man must come to grips with what he is asking to do: follow Jesus!

Think for a moment about the hymn “I Surrender All.” The words say: “All to Jesus I surrender; humbly at his feet I bow. Worldly pleasures all forsaken; take me Jesus take me now. I surrender all.” These words speak of what it means to follow Jesus; to SURRENDER ALL.  Bow at his feet, He is your Lord. Give up worldly pleasures, they just keep you unfocused; give all to Jesus, because that is what is needed if you ever hope to be a follower. Surrender your pride, your money, your plans, your family, your lustful thoughts, your desire for power, your thinking of career advancement. Surrender it all to Jesus.

Here is an important question: Where is one area you struggle to surrender over to Jesus? Could you say these words and mean them: I will go wherever you go? Are you demanding, when you should be patient? Critical, when you should be encouraging? Apathetic, when you should have zeal for the Lord?

b.      Taking your cross out into the world-  It is easy to say that you will

take up your cross wherever you go, but you must first take it out of your house. You cannot leave your cross in your home, or on the front porch. You must take your cross with you!

            When you go to work, your cross is to be there with you. You cannot get to work and leave Jesus in the car saying, “You wait here, I’ll be back in a while.” In your life, do you justify greed, and call it ambition? Are you able to rationalize your dishonesty by saying it is shrewd business? Do you stay quiet about your faith in the name of tolerance?

            Story- There is a story of a woman who asked her pastor to pray for her because she wanted to take seriously this challenge to follow Jesus. She wanted to be bolder about her faith. She said that there was this co-worker whom she had become friends with, but had never talked to her about her faith. She was planning on inviting her co-worker to a special event at her church, and then talk to her about her faith. So, the pastor began to pray for her. A few weeks went by when the pastor got an e-mail from this woman. She said that when she went to her friend and invited her to the event at church her friend laughed. Her friend said: “That’s where I go to church, and I was going to invite you!”

            Think about this, for seven years these women had worked next to each other, and neither of them realized that the other was a Christian. They called themselves followers, but they weren’t following at work. Shouldn’t we take Jesus to work with us?

            When you think of taking your cross out for Jesus, shouldn’t you take it to the movies, the game, the neighborhood? For some it might mean picking up where you are now, and going somewhere else for Jesus.

            Story- Anne Judson was the wife of America’s first foreign missionary, Adoniram Judson. Adoniram was 24 when he decided to leave America and sail to Burma. Burma didn’t have a single missionary and was an extremely hostile environment. Adoniram had met Anne and decided he wanted to marry her. So he wrote to her father the following letter asking for her hand in marriage:

“I have not to ask, whether you can consent to part with your daughter early next spring, to see her no more in this world; whether you can consent to her departure, and her subjection to the hardships and sufferings of missionary life…Can you consent to all this, for the sake of Him who left His heavenly home, and died for her and for you; for the sake of perishing, immortal souls…? Can you consent to all this, in hope of soon meeting your daughter in the world of glory, with the crown of righteousness?”

            Her father told Adoniram that it was her decision to make. She decided that she was indeed willing to follow Jesus wherever He would take her. So they got married, and in 1813 they left for Burma. They would experience one hardship after another. In 1824 Adoniram was put in prison. He was there for 18 months. At night his feet were tied and hoisted up so only his shoulders and head rested on the ground. When Adoniram went to prison Anne was pregnant, but she walked 2 miles every day to plead for him to be released. His daughter Maria was born while he was in prison. Eventually Adoniram was released. Not long after that Anne died at the age of 37 from spotted fever.

            Now you might hear this and be disheartened by it. You might wonder if their sacrifice was worth it. You might think that you would never do anything like that. But because of Adoniram and Anne’s efforts, the entire Bible was translated into Burmese. Today there are 3700 congregations that all trace their beginning to when Adoniram and Anne Judson said to God: “Wherever.” God pointed to Burma and asked: “What about there?”

            The man in Luke 9 was happy to say wherever, until God said, “There.” One of the reasons we don’t follow Jesus wherever, is that when He ways “there,” we take that as more of a suggestion than as a command. We think that Jesus will make us go to Burma, or Russia, or somewhere we don’t want to be. If we say “wherever,” God will prepare us for where that wherever is. Often times God puts the desire into our hearts before He asks!

II.                Did I Say Wherever?-

a.      What if- The way Jesus answers this fan in Luke chapter 9 reveals

some of the reasons it is difficult to tell Jesus, “Wherever.” Jesus speaks of follow Him as a journey of risk and uncertainty. If the man decided he was going to follow Jesus, he didn’t know where he would be going, or if he would even have a place to stay. He says no to following Jesus in part because he is afraid to say yes. Whenever we are afraid of what a commitment will lead to, our instinctual response is to say no. Fear always asks the question: “What if?”

            What if Jesus wants me to share my faith with other people? What if he points me to my neighbor’s house?

            Psychologists tell us that the number-one way people deal with fear is avoidance. If a place or a person causes us to be anxious, we will avoid the place or the person. Think for a moment about Jonah. Jonah was told to go and preach to the people in Ninevah. They were a wicked and sinful people. This call caused great fear in Jonah. So he decided to avoid the call at first! We are told that Jonah ran away from God. It was an active decision on Jonah’s part to run away.

            Another reason the man in Luke 9 seems to say no to Jesus is because Jesus calls him to something uncomfortable. We talked about last week how people tend to be more comfort seekers than cross bearers. We know that if we say “wherever” to Jesus, He will point us outside of our comfort zone. To follow Jesus we have to learn how to say “no” to ourselves.

            Some of you might remember the Fosters. They are missionary friends of mine and Tami’s who came here a number of years ago seeking support for their missions work in Africa. A few of us chose to help sponsor them. Think about their saying “yes” to Jesus, and then Jesus directing them to South Africa. To say yes they had to say “no” to staying by family and friends in America. To say yes to Jesus meant for them to have to learn a new culture and language. To say yes to Jesus meant for them to raise their kids apart from their grandparents. To say yes to Jesus meant that they would have a very different life.

            If you think about all of this, you realize that saying yes to Jesus meant for them to say no to comfort. And in our society today, comfort is a big thing. I once heard someone say: “I love having kids, because they can do things for me.” I kind of laughed at this thinking that this person was short sighted. But then the other day I was sitting in my recliner, when my son walked by. I said to him: “Tyler, will you get the remote control for me?” It actually dawned on me what this person had meant. I did not want to disturb my comfort by having to get up, so I had someone else do what I should have done! Even more, he was getting me the REMOTE CONTROL!! How many items of comfort do we have in this life?

Microwaves. Automatic garage door openers. Remote controls. Cruise control on the car. Cell phones. And on and on it goes. We are constantly inventing more and more products that will make our lives more comfortable. All the while, we are getting farther and farther away from what it means to take up our cross for Jesus. We are making it harder and harder for us to follow Jesus. We are blocking our willingness to be able to say to Jesus: “Wherever you want me to go, I will go for You.”

b.      Defining Wherever- Think about how this man in Luke 9 stood before

Jesus and says “wherever.” As you look closer, you have to see that he didn’t understand what he was really saying. He didn’t really what would really be asked of him. So when Jesus defines “wherever” for him, he does catch a glimpse that it will be traveling from town to town with Jesus. He does see that he will be living as a homeless person. He then wonders: “What am I getting myself into?”

            It makes me think of doing marriage counseling with couples who are on the verge of divorce. For them, marriage meant all fun and play and excitement. They didn’t understand what they were getting themselves into. They didn’t understand that marriage is work. They didn’t understand that marriage is compromise. They didn’t understand what they would have to give up for the other person. They didn’t understand what it meant to make a commitment to the other person in this sacred relationship of marriage!

            Think about the commitment, the vows that are made:

FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE: It sounds so poetic when you say it, but what does it mean? I have known couples that have had to deal with losing a child. Dealing with an affair. Having a child arrested. Dealing with sickness. Putting up with each other when you aren’t always getting along.

FOR RICHER OR FOR POORER: When you don’t have much to live on, but find creative ways to do fun things together. When you are stressed because you can’t pay all your bills, but you are at peace because you have each other. When you wonder if you will be able to save enough for your kids college or for retirement.

IN SICKNESS AND IN HEALTH: In regards to this one it always draws me back to Bruce and Helen. They were married for 74 years! They were committed to each other in the good times and bad. When Helen couldn’t see well anymore, Bruce would care for her in whatever she needed; including putting on her make-up each day.

            The most literal way to define a “Follower of Jesus” is “Someone who goes where Jesus goes.” How can we call ourselves followers if we refuse to go where Jesus went? I don’t think we can. If we are following Jesus “wherever,” He will take us towards a sinner that others wouldn’t want to be seen with. If we follow Jesus there will be times when we do things our families will think is crazy.

Conclusion: Where are the places you would never want Jesus to take you? Why would you not want to go there? Because it will make you uncomfortable? Because it will cause you to do something you don’t think you can do? Because it will mean you have to give up something you have now? We have to understand that Satan often deceives us in ways that cause us to choose comfort over service. Let Jesus direct you in your life. Let Jesus cause you to live a life that is godly.

            When we say to Jesus, I will go wherever, it is a life that will be rich and fulfilling; purposeful and fruitful. It will mean the difference between doing okay, and doing tremendous. It will be the opportunity to change the world by changing the lives of others. Wherever is an important word, because it frees you up from worldly cares, and sets you on a path that is Christ-driven. This is what a follower should do. This is where a follower should be. Let us join all the more in this journey, today and every day. Amen.

"What's Your Slogan?"
Not A Fan Series- 3/10/13
1 Corinthians 15:31-34; Luke 9:23

Introduction: Most businesses, when they first get started, try to come up with a slogan. The slogan they want is one that is memorable, and that draws people to their business. The right slogan can not only bring the company name to the customers mind, but also create a desire for the product. Let me see how you do with some company slogans. I’ll say the slogan, and you guess the company…

            Melts in your mouth, not in your hand….M&M’s

It’s everywhere you want to be….Visa

            The ultimate driving machine….BMW

Just do it…..Nike

            It’s keeps going, and going, and going….Energizer

You’re in good hands with….Allstate

            I think you did pretty well, which means that the companies have done a good job of choosing their slogan. These companies have worked hard to pick the right slogan that will be appealing to attract as many people as possible.

            Along with their slogan, companies also create a symbol that represents the company. Many of these symbols are as recognizable as their slogan. A while back my daughter got a game on her Itouch that had you guess the symbol of each company. I was surprised how many I knew off the top of my head!

I.                   Symbol of Humiliation- (Luke 9:23; Philippians 2:5-8)

With this in mind, let us think for a moment what might be the slogan and

symbol for followers of Christ. We actually find it in the verse we have been studying over the last few weeks: Luke 9:23- “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” The slogan for followers of Christ could be stated in these three words: Come and Die.

            Now I know that death is not an attractive subject. For the most part, we don’t even like the word death. It is a sad word. It is a word that brings grief and heartache. It is a word that stirs up our loved ones who are no longer with us. It might even bring about feelings of loneliness.

Now, while that might not be the most attractive slogan, it does get your attention! It’s not exactly the kind of slogan that draws people in, but it is one that speaks to the root of being a follower of Christ. In this slogan, we are not hidden in any way of what God expects and asks of us!

            So if the slogan is come and die, what might the symbol for followers of Christ be? It is the Cross. The cross, which is an instrument of torture and death. Now we might wonder, why didn’t Jesus go with a dove, a symbol of peace? What about a shepherd’s staff? It is a symbol of protection. Or a rainbow? It represents hope.

            Jesus chooses a cross. A cross was a symbol of humiliation. Crucifixion required four soldiers and a centurion to oversee. Crucifixion was a way to publicly humiliate the person being crucified. When someone was crucified, the authorities were making a public statement that the person had no power and no standing.

            This is very true of Jesus’ crucifixion. The soldiers mocked Jesus, spit on Jesus and removed all His clothes. They purposely humiliated Him. Here is Jesus, the Creator, Savior, and the King of Kings, allowing Himself to be humiliated. Why? Because Jesus was making Himself nothing so that we could be made something! If we are going to follow Jesus, then we must humbly take up a cross and make ourselves nothing.

            We are told this very clearly by the Apostle Paul, when he says in Philippians 2:5-8, “In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: ⁶ Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; ⁷ rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. ⁸ And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!”

II.                Symbol of Suffering- (Luke 6:22; 2 Timothy 3:12; Philippians 1:29)

The cross was also a symbol of suffering. Before crucifying a criminal, it was

common for the Romans to beat them the way they did Jesus. It is called a “scourging.” For this scourging, the man was stripped of his clothing, and his hands were tied to a post. This would stretch out the flesh on the body. The number of lashes administered were not important, rather, they would beat a person just to the edge of death.

      After this beating, the cross was put on their back and they were expected to

carry this 125 pound beam to the place of crucifixion. It’s no wonder Jesus had a difficult time carrying the cross in his beaten and exhausted state! Jesus stumbled down the narrow roads of the Via Dolarosa (or the Way of Suffering)…. Taking up your cross and following Jesus can and will bring pain and suffering.

      There is no comfortable way to carry a cross, and it wasn’t meant to be easy.

This was to add to the humiliation and suffering of the one who was to be crucified. Likewise, there is no easy way to be a true follower of Jesus Christ. Many think that if there is suffering in their lives, it is because they are not following Jesus. However, the opposite is true, when we are truly and faithfully following Jesus, Satan will bring many trials and tribulations into our lives. Suffering can actually be evidence that you are following Jesus.

      When people say “yes” to following Jesus, they are agreeing to carry a cross;

a cross that at times will be painful. There are a number of scriptures that talk about this cost: Jesus says in the Beatitudes, in Luke 6:22- “Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man.”

      2 Timothy 3:12- “Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be

persecuted.” Notice it doesn’t say might be, but will be. Philippians 1:29- “For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him.”

      So here is an important question: “Are we really carrying the cross if there is

no suffering and sacrifice?” Carrying the cross of Christ will cost us. It will cost us when we stand up for what is right. It will cost us when we make decisions based on what God would have us to do, rather than what the world would tell us to do. It will cost us when we choose to do the right thing, not the comfortable thing! 

     III.             Symbol of Death-

Ultimately the cross was a symbol of death. When Jesus got to Golgotha, the

place of the skull, the soldiers took the beam He was carrying and nailed Him to it. After Jesus’ death, a spear was thrust into His side to confirm His death…. Jesus invites followers to die to themselves. We are to die to our own desires, pursuits, and plans. When we become followers of Jesus, that is the end of us, as Jesus invites us to die.

            Jesus makes it clear that following Him means taking up your cross and dying to yourself. This is what a follower is committing to. This is not easy to hear, and even harder to carry out. This is why so many say they are followers, but aren’t true followers, because they don’t die to themselves. It is too difficult to give up the comfy life they know.

            Story: There is a story of a man whose daughter was about to be married to an atheist. This greatly concerned the father, and so he went to his minister and asked the minister if he would meet with this man’s future son-in-law. The minister agreed and promptly set up an appointment. This surprised the minister some that the young man would meet with him, but he was glad to have the opportunity to talk to him about Jesus. The minister had an amazing conversation with the young man, and by the end of the lunch the man confessed his sins and prayed to accept Jesus. They then went their separate ways. A few weeks went by when the minister got a call from the father-in-law. The father-in-law was upset because he felt his son-in-law had now gone too far in his faith. The young man was taking seriously the area of tithing, and the father-in-law felt he was giving too much of his money away to God!  In fact the father-in-law had told the young man: “I’m really glad you’ve become a Christian, but Jesus never wanted you to become a fanatic.”

            Yet, it was the father-in-law who had it all wrong. Jesus does want us to take up our cross and give ourselves totally to Him! In fact, we see how Jesus’ followers gave themselves up to death for Jesus. Matthew was killed by a sword in Ethiopia. Mark died in Alexandria, Egypt, after being dragged by horses through the streets until he was dead. Luke was hanged in Greece. Peter was crucified upside down. Thomas was stabbed with a spear in India during a missionary trip… And on and on it went. Jesus’ disciples, dying for their faith.

            A decision to follow Jesus is a decision to DIE to yourself.

IV.              Take up your cross- (James 3:1)

Now much of what I am saying goes against 21^st century American Christianity.

What I’m talking about takes away the thinking that you can be a Christian and live a life of comfort. Most people work hard to make their lives as comfortable as possible. They seek to have the nicest of houses, cars, and accessories. People are by nature comfort seekers, not cross bearers. And this is where the challenge comes!

            The problem with thinking that we have to be comfortable in life, is that anytime we face discomfort, we begin to question God. God, why are you allowing this to happen to me? We might not think that God is holding up His end of the bargain, forgetting that God never promised for things to be easy and neat.

            Illustration- There was an amazing story back in 2002 about a pharmacist named Robert Courtney. He was convicted of diluting the medication of cancer patients in order to make a profit. He diluted the medicine of over 4200 patients, at least 17 of which died. He actually made about 19 million dollars from the fraud. Here is a man who had been entrusted with the responsibility for handing out lifesaving medication, but instead he diluted it to the point where it couldn’t help people!

            James 3:1 tells us, “Let not many of you become teachers my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment.” Why is there a stricter judgment to those who teach the word of God? Because God expects that we will teach what His word says, not what we want it to say. God does not want us to dilute the message. God wants us to preach the truth and power of His word! When we dilute the word of God, we make it so that it doesn’t give any help at all. It actually causes people to be fans, and not followers.

            In the book Mere Christianity, by C. S. Lewis, Lewis puts it this way:

“Christ says, ‘Give me all. I don’t want so much of your time so much of your money and so much of your work. I want you. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half-measures are any good. I don’t want to cut off a branch here and a branch there. I want to have the whole tree down. I don’t want to drill the tooth, or crown it, or stop it, but to have it out.’”

            The slogan “Die Daily,” and the symbol of the cross. That is the message we are to hear from Jesus. That is the message we are to wrestle with until we can accept it and follow it. Think about this, once a person dies, they are no longer concerned with what clothes they are wearing, or how much money they have. Death is the ultimate surrender. When you are dead you are no longer concerned with your life.

V.                 I die daily- (John 10:18; 1 Corinthians 15:31; Luke 9:24)

a.      Choosing Death- When Jesus calls us to follow Him, He says, “Take

up your cross…” The word “take” is telling us that we are called to make a choice. We are called to choose to die. Now that might sound odd because we don’t normally think of death as something we would choose. Death usually happens against our will. It is in our will to fight to stay alive. This is the “survival instinct” that we have in us. When our lives are threatened, self-preservation can drive us to extreme measures. So as we think about the slogan “Come and Die,” and we think about the cross, we must understand that they are not only counter-cultural, but counter-intuitive. They go against our very survival instinct.

            When I was in my late teens there was a time when I was playing softball, golf, and basketball almost every week. I was very active. I loved sports. I loved to compete. I loved to participate in those things that challenged me physically. If I tried to do all three of those each week now I think I would not be able to move after the first week!

            We would never choose to make ourselves less. We want to be the best. We want to be capable of doing things as well or better than others. However, Jesus asks us to choose to take up our cross. It is not forced on us, but rather asked of us. We choose willingly as Christ did. In John 10:18 Jesus tells us, “No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.” As Jesus chose to die for us, so we must choose to die to ourselves for Jesus.

b.      Daily- Not only are we called to take up our cross, but we called to do

this DAILY. This word daily is very important. It is a word that reminds us that we don’t just make this choice to die to ourselves once, but each and every day. Every day we are challenged with the things of the world drawing us away from God. Every day we are fighting against our sinful and selfish nature. Every day we must make the choice to die or not.

            In 1 Corinthians 15:31 the apostle Paul says: “I die daily.”

That’s the hardest part of carrying your cross and dying to yourself. It is to be done daily. Each morning we need to ask God for His grace, and strength, and wisdom so that we might be able to take up our cross and die. That is the only way we will follow Him every day. That is the only way we can make this tough choice.

            But there is good news in the dying. In Luke 9:23 we are told to take up our cross and die to ourselves daily. But let’s listen to what Jesus has to say in Luke 9:24: “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.” The good news is that when we die to ourselves, we actually discover our true selves. In dying, we find life. When we die to our sinful ways, we are led to become the person we were meant to be if sin had not taken us away from God. Dying to yourself doesn’t make sense unless you understand that dying is the secret to living.

             

Conclusion: The hymn we will sing in a minute , I Am Thine, O Lord, talks about the cross of Christ. The refrain says this: “Draw me nearer, nearer, blessed Lord, to the cross where thou hast died. Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer, blessed Lord, to thy precious, bleeding side.” The cross doesn’t represent defeat, but victory. The cross is there to bring guilt, but to be an image of God’s grace. The cross shouldn’t condemn, but bring you freedom from your sin which condemns you. Instead of thinking of the cross as something that represents pain and suffering, look at it as an image of healing and hope! The cross isn’t about death as much as it is a symbol of that which brings life. The cross may not be attractive, but to the follower of Christ it is beautiful.

            Taking up a cross and dying to myself sounds bad. It sounds hard. It seems unattractive. Such a decision could very well make us miserable. However, I propose to you that when we die to ourselves and completely surrender to Jesus, there is a surprising result. In this dying we discover true life. As we give up our lives, we are given the life we are so desperately seeking after. Most people are not that happy in life because they are living a life they were not meant to live. SO, decide today to take up your cross, die to yourself and receive the fullness of the life God Himself gives to us. Amen.