Title: "Dare to be a Disciple."
Text: Luke 9:57-62
Date: September 30, 2007
Location: Sulphur Spring Baptist Church
I. First, let’s define the word Disciple:
The dictionary says that a disciple is a follower of a master or his philosophy. In other words a Disciple is a student of a teacher, or perhaps even an apprentice in learning a particular trade.
In the times of Plato and Aristotle and even during the days of John the Baptist it was customary for the Disciple to choose the master he or she wanted to follow. But Jesus took a different approach. He chose his 12 disciples. Let’s take a look at a few of the men Jesus chose to be his first Disciples.
1. Simon Peter was an uneducated fisherman. Life had always been difficult for Simon, nothing had ever come easy for him. He was a hard working man, his hands were callused, and after a long day on the water, he usually came home smelling like a fish. Simon had always been a very impulsive man, with a bad temper. Nobody knew from one minute to the next what Simon might do or say. If you and I had been on the search committee for the first disciples I’m sure we would have all agreed that Simon just wasn’t the kind of man we were looking for.
2. Next, there were James and John. Two brothers, who were also fisherman. They had built up a very profitable fishing business and really worked together as a team well. They always seemed to be able to catch more fish than any of the other fisherman. At first glance we might have been interested in these hard working, successful businessmen. But after talking to them for a few minutes, and finding out how conceited and arrogant they were, I’m sure we probably would have voted "No" on James and John as Well.
3. Then there was Matthew. He was a man that every good Jew despised. He was a traitor, A turncoat. He had turned his back on his Jewish heritage and was collaborating with the Roman authorities. He was a tax collector! He cheated people out their hard earned money and it didn’t even seem to bother him. No, I’m confident that Matthew would never have been selected as a disciple if we had anything to do with it.
So, Why did Jesus choose them? Why didn’t Jesus choose his disciples from the ranks of the priests or the pharisees. What qualities or characteristics did these 12 men possess that other men didn’t?
II. Let’s look for a few minutes at what Jesus himself said was required to be one of his disciples.
A. Sacrifices would have to be made.
(1) Jesus told the first man in our text that He had no home.
No place that he could go to after a long, hard day at work. No place that He could get away from everyone for a little while and rest.
Jesus was saying, "This job requires a lot of sacrifices, are you sure you are prepared to make the necessary sacrifices."
Apparently this man was unwilling to make those sacrifices. But the Bible tells us that when Jesus said "follow me." Peter, James and John, all dropped what they were doing and immediately followed Jesus. They were willing to make the necessary sacrifices to be one of His disciples.
B. Jesus also required complete and total dedication from his disciples.
He said, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." This kind of dedication and sacrifice can best be compared to that of a soldier.
During the Civil war, both Union and Confederate soldiers were called upon to give everything they had to insure victory for their cause. Their lives were filled with deprivation and danger that is hard for us to even imagine today. It wasn’t unusual for them to be forced to travel for 2 weeks at a time, in even the worst weather conditions.
These men were often thrown into the heat of battle just moments after reaching the front lines. They would engage in exhausting combat for days upon days. They endured many sleepless nights laying on the cold, hard ground.
While their willingness to endure these physical deprivations is almost incomprehensible to us, we have to admire the emotional strength of these men. They believed in their cause, whether Union or Confederate, and they committed their lives to it. Most believed and understood that they would not survive the war, but that was of little consequence. It is their dedication and willingness to sacrifice themselves for their beliefs that separates these brave men from the rest of mankind. Perhaps no better example of this has ever been written, than a letter from Major Sullivan Ballou of the Union Army. He wrote these words to his wife Sarah one week before he was killed at the first battle of Bull Run. He Wrote:
"The indications are very strong that we shall move in a few days--perhaps tomorrow. Lest I should not be able to write again, I fell impelled to write a few lines that may fall under your eye when I shall be no more...
I have no misgivings about or lack of confidence in the cause in which I am engaged, and my courage does not halt or falter. I know how strongly American civilization now leans on the triumph of the Government, and how great a debt we owe to those who went before us through the blood and suffering of the Revolution. And I am willing, perfectly willing, to lay down all my joys in this life to help maintain this Government and to pay the debt....
Sarah, my love for you is endless; it seems to bind me with mighty cables that nothing but Omnipotence could break, and yet my love for country comes over me like a strong wind and bears me irresistibly on, with all these chains to the battle-field.
The memories of all the blissful moments I have spent with you come creeping over me, and I feel most deeply grateful to God, and to you, that I have enjoyed them so long. And how hard it is for me to give them up and burn to ashes the hopes of future years, when, God willing, we might still have lived and loved together, and seen our sons grow up to honorable manhood around us.
If I do not return my dear Sarah, never forget how much I love you, and when my last breath escapes me on the battle-field, it will whisper your name."
Is this the level of commitment and sacrifice that the Lord expects from his disciples? Yes it most certainly is. And for many, including the three men in our text, the sacrifices were just too great to make.
C. Notice also that Jesus called upon his disciples to deny themselves .
In his book "Getting Serious about Your Faith," Vernon Grounds tells the story of a young woman named Mildred Cable. Mildred grew up in Great Britain and fell in love with a man who felt that the Lord had called him to be a pastor in that country. But, Mildred was convinced that the Lord wanted her to serve as a missionary in China. So, when the man asked her to marry him, she faced an agonizing decision. One night after much praying, talking, and weeping, she told the young man that she could not accept his proposal. With heavy hearts they said goodby and went their separate ways. Vernon Grounds writes, "That night she died to her own desires, her own hopes, her own humanly legitimate dreams. She died to her own will ( and chose) to carry out the will of God. She went to China where God blessed her with an extraordinarily fruitful ministry."
Just as Mildred Cable died to self, so we too must be willing to deny ourselves and follow Jesus, wherever he wants us to go. Whether that is Going to China as a Missionary, or walking across the street and sharing your faith with your next door neighbor.
D. Jesus also said that His disciples were required to follow his teachings.
In John 8:31-32 Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
and in John 14:15 Jesus said, "If you love me, you will obey what I command."
Which teachings you ask? Allow me to remind you of a few of Jesus’ teachings. Jesus said:
(1) You have heard that is was said, an "eye for an ey, and a tooth for a tooth." But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.
(2) And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.
(3) If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
(4) Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
(5) You have heard it said, "Love your neighbor and hate your enemies. But I tell you; Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.
(6) In the 6th chapter of the gospel of John Jesus was teaching his disciples about eternal life. He said, "I am the Bread of Life, and whoever eats of this bread will live for ever." He went on to say that unless they were willing to eat of his flesh and drink of his blood then they would have no life in them.
John 6:60 says, "After hearing this many of his disciples said, ’this is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?’ Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, ’does this offend you?’ Then in verse 66, John tells us that "from this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him." Jesus then turned to the twelve and ask them, "Do you want to leave me also?"
As usual Peter was the spokesman, and said, No, Lord we believe and know you are the Holy One of God.
Perhaps Jesus was referring back to this particular incident, when He made the comment in our text, saying, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the Kingdom of God." Luke 9:62
D. Jesus also required his Disciples to love one another.
John 13:34-35 says, "A new command I give you; Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
Illustration: Lee Iacocca once asked legendary football coach Vince Lombardi what it took to make a winning team. In one of his books, Iacocca records Lombardi’s answer
"There are a lot of coaches with good ball clubs who know the fundamentals and have plenty of discipline but still don’t win the game. Then you come to the third ingredient: if you’re going to play together as a team you’ve got to care for one another. You’ve got to love each other. Each player has to be thinking about the next guy and saying to himself: ’If I don’t block that man, Paul is going to get his legs broken. I have to do my job well in order that he can do his.’
"According to Lombardi, the difference between a mediocre team and a great team, is the feeling that the team members have for one another."
Over the years I’ve noticed that athletic teams that fight among themselves, and are jealous of one another, don’t win as many games, as teams whose members encourage one another, and use their individual talents to compliment one another.
This holds true for churches as well. Churches that fuss and fight among themselves all the time do not win as many souls for the Lord as those that love one another. We as a Church are a Team! We need to love and encourage one another. If one of us gets down or is hurting, the rest of us need to help them get back on their feet. We need to work together, using our different gifts and talents to compliment one another and to accomplish the Lord’s Will for our Church. Love......., or the Lack of it - will make, or break a church! So let’s remember Jesus’ command to "Love one another."
E. Jesus required His Disciples to share the good news of the gospel.
According to the 4th chapter of Acts, Peter and John were brought before the Sanhedrin and were told not to speak or teach "in the name of Jesus." I can almost see Peter and John as they stood before the Sanhedrin and said, "judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God. For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard."
Peter and John were not men that could easily be intimidated or silenced. Because their Lord had command them "to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to ends of the earth." Acts 1:8
illustration;
Peter Cartwright, a nineteenth-centruy circuit riding Methodist preacher, was also a man that could not easily be intimidated. He was a man of uncompromising principles. One Sunday morning before the service was to begin he was told that President Andrew Jackson was in the congregation, and that he should be careful not to say anything that would be out of line.
When Cartwright stood to preach, he said, " I have been requested to be guarded in my remarks this morning, because the President of the United States is present." He paused for a minute, and then to the shock of everyone in the congregation he said, "But I tell you the truth, Andrew Jackson will go to hell if he doesn’t repent of his sins."
Everyone wondered how the President would respond. After the service, President Jackson stood to shake hands with Peter Cartwright and said, "Sir, If I had a regiment of men like you, I could whip the world." As disciples of Christ we should never compromise our faith, or be afraid to share the good news of the gospel.
III. Finally, Why do some people refuse to become Disciples of Christ?
A. Some like the Rich young ruler say the sacrifices are just too great. This young man came to Jesus and ask what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus told him to follow the commandments. The young man proudly said, "all of these I have kept from the time I was a boy." Then Jesus said, "Go, then and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor. The Bible then says, that this young man went away saddened, because he was a man of great wealth.
Invitation: What about you! what’s your êxcuse? What’s keeping you from becoming one of Christ’s followers.
Many people today are like the rich young ruler. They are simply unwilling to give up the things of the world. Not only will these people go through this life unfulfilled, but they will spend an eternity seperated from the Love of God.
B. Some like two of the men in our text say, "Well not right now, maybe later."
Delay is one of the Devil’s favorite weapons. Don’t let him influence you and keep you from making the most important decision of your life.
Invitation: What about you! What’s your excuse? What is keeping you from becoming one of Christ’s disciples.
