Discipleship

Opening Video Illustration: Sermoncentral.com – Are you Ready (4:15 min)

Theme: Time Management

“Desire that your life count for something great! Long for your life to have eternal significance. Want this! Don’t coast through life without a passion.”

? John Piper, Don't Waste Your Life

Thesis: The world we live in knows the importance of Time Management but where they miss the mark is on what they prioritize - which usually is some of following: personal gain, financial success, fame and power. The Bible also speaks about Time Management but God through His Word prioritizes things differently than our world. His big four in regards to Time Management are faith in Him, fellowship with Him, relationship with others and sharing your story with others.

God wants us to use our precious time wisely and not foolishly. You may be thinking how do we do this? We do this by using our time wisely by investing it in eternal things rather than temporal things – those temporary things will rot a way, fade away and in the end have no eternal value. The goal of time management according to Jesus and His parables is to use your time wisely and not waste it on the wrong thing. We need to be focused on the Kingdom of Heaven/The Kingdom of God in our Christian lives. We need to build things that have eternal value and reward - not waste our precious time on things that have no real value.

So what is effective time management according to Jesus?

Paul answers that question for us in Colossians 3: 23-24: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

T.S. - Our current sermon is based on Jesus Parable and learning how to effectively use our time for the Kingdom of Heaven.

Sermon: Discipleship

Scripture Text: Luke 14:25-35:

25Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said:

26“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.

27And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

28“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it?

29For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him,

30saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’

31“Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand?

32If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace.

33In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.

34“Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?

35It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out. “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

Luke 14:25-35 “The Message”

25One day when large groups of people were walking along with him, Jesus turned and told them,

26“Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of father, mother, spouse, children, brothers, sisters—yes, even one’s own self!—can’t be my disciple.

27Anyone who won’t shoulder his own cross and follow behind me can’t be my disciple.

28“Is there anyone here who, planning to build a new house, doesn’t first sit down and figure the cost so you’ll know if you can complete it?

29If you only get the foundation laid and then run out of money, you’re going to look pretty foolish. Everyone passing by will poke fun at you:

30‘He started something he couldn’t finish.’

31“Or can you imagine a king going into battle against another king without first deciding whether it is possible with his ten thousand troops to face the twenty thousand troops of the other?

32And if he decides he can’t, won’t he send an emissary and work out a truce?

33“Simply put, if you’re not willing to take what is dearest to you, whether plans or people, and kiss it good-bye, you can’t be my disciple.

34“Salt is excellent. But if the salt goes flat, it’s useless, good for nothing. “Are you listening to this? Really listening?”

Thesis: When Jesus speaks about counting the cost to be his disciple he made it clear that following him would cost us our life of ease, our money and our time. To be a disciple of Jesus means we are the salt the preserving force in this world in which we live in. If we fail to preserve our society for the Kingdom of Heaven then what good are we?