"Life At The Wood Pile"

The young husband was a troubled and he was going to a psychiatrist about

the problem. The doctor told him, "You don¡¦t have to let your wife bully you! Go home and show her you¡¦re the boss! The young man got home, slammed the door, shook his fist in his wife¡¦s face, and growled, "From now on, you¡¦re taking orders from ME! When I get home from work, I want my supper ON the table.

I want my clothes laid out.

I¡¦m will be going out with the boys.

Your will be staying home.

And another thing.

Do you know who¡¦s going to tie my tie

Yes she said: The undertaker.

Discussion:

Have you ever had to go to a wedding that you didn¡¦t want to? Several years ago I was the youth minister at a church in Bartlesville, Ok. A lady in the church was getting married and we hadn¡¦t been there very long. We planned on something else that afternoon ¡V but my nephew somehow got me invited ¡V we were expected to show up. Chris was very excited about the wedding ¡V he¡¦d never been to one before. On the way to the wedding I told him that he could go but would have to stay outside the church. He was mad ¡V because he really wanted to go. I told him that he couldn¡¦t go in because only married people could go to a wedding ¡V He looked at me ¡V I think he was 6 ¡V he said, ¡§But, uncle Jay ¡V I¡¦m too young to get married¡¨. He wanted to go to the wedding, but didn¡¦t want to pay the price.

¡§When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.¡¨ - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

If you get nothing else this morning get this ¡V Life is achieved not by clinging to it, but through loss or sacrifice. This is at the heart of the preaching of Jesus. You don¡¦t gain true life by holding on to this life ¡V you gain true life now ¡V when you let go. When you give, when you sacrifice.

Our scripture this morning tells us three ways to do what I call ¡V Living life at the wood pile ¡V we¡¦ll get to the meaning of that in a few minutes.

If you have your Bibles with you this morning turn with me to Luke 9:23-27 (Read) (Advance)

The first thing this text instructs us to do: (Advance)

I. Deny Our Lives (23)

¡§When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.¡¨ - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

a. Take up your Cross

The cross was literally a beam or a bar a person would lay across their shoulders to help them carry a heavy load.

When God calls you to follow him ¡V he wants you to give him everything.

i. Daily ¡V This word is added by Luke ¡V Matthew & Mark if you look at their accounts ¡V they don¡¦t have this word ¡§Daily¡¨.

The calling of discipleship is a calling to follow Jesus in the way of the cross. Daily means that we freshly approach this each day.

ii. And Follow ¡V (Advance)

1. When we follow him (Advance)

a. Our whole existence is patterned after Jesus on the cross. (Advance)

b. Our desires change (Advance)

c. Our thoughts change (Advance)

d. Our witness for him changes

Everything you do someone is looking at you. How do you conduct yourself when you get mad? How do you act when you are a winner at something? We must be clear about our calling to follow Jesus Christ as Lord. If he has called you to follow him ¡V regardless of the time, how long ago it was, or how recent it was ¡V it demands your everything, no matter the sacrifice that you have to make.

In the old testament ¡V God called his people to mourn for cities and groups of people who were following the wrong path ¡V people who are handcuffed to sin. At one point God called his people to place a mark on themselves and everyone else (Advance)

Ezekiel 9:4 ¡V and said to him, "Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it."

The mark looked something like this in Hebrew form -- ƒ«ƒnThe mark today would look like this: (Advance) X or a +.

See church, the calling for a difference in the person who follows God goes back to the old testament. God¡¦s people should be different than the world ¡V we should act different, our love should be different ¡V the things that entertain us, should be different ¡V what we do for enjoyment, should be different. The places where we find our hope, our joys, our peace, our satisfaction with life ¡V should be different.