March 29, 2009
Morning Worship
Text: Luke 9:23
Subject: The Cross
Title: If Anyone Would Come After Me
For the last four weeks some of you have been attending the community Lenten services at the various churches. I think it is kind of funny that some of our churches that participate in those events don’t even follow a liturgical calendar and those don’t even observe Lent and many of the churches that do are not participating. One of the things that I have noticed during this time and through my years in a church that did observe lent is the infatuation with the idea of “giving up” something for lent as if somehow that would make you better prepared to celebrate the Resurrection. One of the recurring themes of the Lenten services is just that – what are you willing to give up, or how much are you willing to suffer, or how pitiful a Christian are you willing to be at this time?
I participate in those services, not because I observe lent, but because they are community services. I want to be out in the churches. Who knows when somebody might get the Holy Ghost and will need to know what to do with it! They’ll at least know there is someone they can go to in order to find out.
What I want to do with you today is to challenge your way of thinking. Maybe you have never participated in these Lenten services, but I wonder how many of you have gone about in your Christian walk with the Lenten mentality hanging over you.
Turn to Mark 10. I want to begin by reading verses 32-34. 32They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. 33“We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, 34who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise.”
Real quickly I want to look at four things in these verses.
1. They were on their way to Jerusalem.
2. Jesus led the way even though verses 33-34 say that He knew what was going to happen.
3. His disciples were astonished. Those who followed Him all this time couldn’t believe that HE was doing this.
4. All others who tagged along were afraid. It doesn’t say they were afraid for Him – just that they were afraid.
The reason that Jesus was willing to lead the way was because He saw the ultimate outcome – the defeat of the devil. And He wants us to see the same thing for our lives.
Luke 9:23, Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
I want to take you to the cross of Jesus today to show you that it is not what many people make it out to be – a cross of sorrow and sadness and penance – but a cross of cleansing and power and enablement and action.
Lord open my eyes to see and my ears to hear what the spirit is saying to the church.
If anyone would come after ME –
I. YOU MUST DENY YOURSELF. May I Have Your Attention Please! Contrary to popular belief denying yourself does not mean that you are supposed to beat yourself up, make yourself believe that you are insignificant in the body of Christ, or that you have to suffer to be of any value to God. If you want to be a follower of Jesus Christ you have to understand your role in the body of Christ. Romans 12:3, 3For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you… the measure of faith to be everything that God has called you to be in Christ Jesus. Of course we understand that we have no ability to do anything in our own power. Therefore we must do everything we can to put away those things that keep us from being what we should be according to the word of God. John 6:28-29, 28Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?” 29Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” Hence, denying oneself has nothing to do with outward appearances and actions and has everything to do with trusting Jesus for the power and authority He has given you to do the work of the church. WE need to look at the positives of being a Christian instead of dwelling on the “poor me” mentality of defeated Christianity. Stop trying to receive grace by earning it, (Oh, I’ll just be a martyr for the faith and accept whatever comes my way) for when you try to earn it, it stops being grace. You have been given power in the Holy Spirit in order to live a life of power and have a testimony that reveals God’s power at work in you. 2 Corinthians 9:8-11, 8And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 9As it is written:“He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” 10Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. Paul wrote this in reference to an offering that the church in Corinth had pledged but the principal applies to every aspect of your faith. You want healing in your life? God is able to make all grace abound to you… Do you need supernatural provision in your life? God is able to make all grace abound to you… Do you need a blessing today? God is able to make all grace abound to you… Do you need a change in your emotions, your relationships, your mental state? What part of this do you not understand? God is able to make all grace abound to you!!! You can’t do anything to receive it except believe it. It is God’s word to you. Jeremiah 1:12, The LORD said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled.” Jesus said in John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. So denying yourself means that you will accept the promises of God even when they don’t make sense to the natural man and quit trying to gain those promises through natural means.
II. TAKE UP HIS CROSS Now here is part of the scriptures that people read that makes them say, “See, we are supposed to suffer. We’re supposed to take up our crosses just like Jesus did and not say a word about it. Just do it!” I have to tell you, that sounds really holy. Now, don’t get me wrong. I know that Jesus said that there would be tribulation. Christians will be persecuted. But for the church to have the mentality that suffering somehow makes us better is the reason that the power has left church. The power is still there but Christians don’t take the power they have to be overcomers anymore. Here is the problem. We tend to want to pick up our cross and drag it along with us wherever we go. And that is so contrary to what Jesus intended for us. Colossians 2:13-15, When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. 15And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. That’s a whole different sermon but let me real quickly show you what Jesus has already done on the cross. 1) You were made alive. Your spirit man was dormant until you accepted that work of the cross and invited Jesus into your life. 2) Your sins were forgiven. 3) He cancelled the written code. You don’t have to try to do anything on your own any longer. It was against you and stood opposed to you. 4) He nailed your works (the law) to the cross. 5)He disarmed the powers and authorities. Satan no longer has authority over believers. 6) He publicly humiliated them. God intends for everyone to see the work and power of the cross. He has triumphed over them by the cross. Hebrews 11:8-10, 8First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them” (although the law required them to be made). 9Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. 10And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. If Jesus’ sacrifice was once for all what is it that you think that you can add by picking up your own cross? What we really need to do is pick up His cross and the victory that goes along with it and be the church that He intends us to be.
III. FOLLOW HIM “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. What Jesus has invited us to do is not just three separate steps that work independently of one another. They are three logical and orderly steps that lead to a life of power and victory. You can deny yourself and still not take up your cross. You can do steps one and two (denying self and taking your cross) but if you don’t follow Him the transaction isn’t complete. I want you to see that by look at various verses from the scriptures. Matthew 4:19-20, 19“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” 20At once they left their nets and followed him. Matthew 9:9, As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. These are two examples of those who were willing to set “self” aside and take up the cross and follow Jesus. And we know the result – the church was established in the power and authority of Christ working through them. There is one other story that I want you to see. In Matthew 19, 16Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”
17“Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments.”
18“Which ones?” the man inquired.
Jesus replied, “‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, 19honor your father and mother,’£ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’£”
20“All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”
21Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
22When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth. What a vast difference between the disciples and this young man. The disciples were willing to do whatever it took to gain their rightful place in the kingdom. The rich young ruler was in fact under the authority of another master – his possessions.
In one of my favorite movies of all time, “Field of Dreams” the main character Ray Kinsella hears the voice speaking to him from the cornfield, “Go the distance”. In Ray’s case it meant that he must be willing to do whatever or go wherever to see the completion of what he was asked to do. Our call to faith isn’t any different. Steps one and two are rather useless unless you are willing to go the distance. The word “follow” in the Greek means “to be in the same way with) (agreement) or to accompany. Jesus asks us to walk with Him and learn from Him the same way his disciples did so many years ago. To be willing to go where He went and say what He said and do what He did. He isn’t asking us to do anything that he didn’t empower us to do. He is just asking us to be willing and then do it.
The three steps I spike of today, as I said are not three steps that are independent of one another. In like manner they are not to be taken out of order. You cannot take up the cross until you deny yourself. You cannot follow Jesus until you have taken up your cross.
There is noting wrong with reflecting on the cross and the passion and agony that Jesus went through on your behalf. As a matter of fact I encourage you to do just that. Were it not for Jesus’ willingness to suffer and die for you, you would still be in your sin headed for the lake of fire. When you go to the cross reflect also on what Jesus has accomplished for you. Through the beatings that He took he brought you healing. What are you doing with it? His death on a cross took away your sin and brought you salvation. What have you done with it? His resurrection brought you life. What are you going to do with yours?
Here is what Jesus wants you to do.
Deny yourself
Take up His cross
Follow Him
If anyone would come after Me, He said, these are the things you must do. Anything else falls short.
Are you ready?
