Not So Fast
#BecomingTheChurchHeIntended
OKAY
SO – we are in this series.
An extremely important one.
AND – so far in this series we have seen that the church that Jesus intended IS…
• His Body
• His Bride
• His Family
• His Flock
• God’s Temple
• The promised messianic kingdom
• The ‘Called Ones’
• The hope of the world
AND – the church that Jesus intended is made up of people who have died to and daily deny themselves….
‘Crucified followers’ NOT fans, and who are fully devoted to…
• The apostles teaching
• The fellowship
• The breaking of bread
• And to prayer
LISTEN, LISTEN – I am fully convinced that when you, when I, when we FULLY DEVOTE ourselves to this 4 things we will experience what the Acts 2 church experienced….
• Everyone being filled with awe and wonder
• God moving among us in powerful, unexplainable and supernatural ways
• Radical and authentic community… full of joy and praising of God… and sharing of all things
• God adding to our number daily those who were being saved.
AND – I am equally convinced that if we do not devote ourselves to those things we will not experience those things and instead we will just be spinning our wheels.
YOU KNOW - I was talking to someone this week.
ABOUT HOW - if we want to see more people walk through the doors of this building
That what we need to pray for is not for more people to walk through the doors of this building…
BUT INSTEAD – what we need to pray for is GREATER DEVOTION among us who are already here.
They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
The results…
Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.
Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. – Acts 2:42-47
YES MAPLE GROVE – what we need is greater devotion.
I had lunch with friend on Friday at Martin’s Grill (po boy)
He attends and serves at Maple Grove and we were talking about this very thing.
About how if we are devoted to those 4 things everything will take care of itself and we will experience an Acts 2 MOVEMENT right here…
I MEAN – seriously think about it…
If someone is devoted to reading God’s word, studying God’s Word…And to submitting to that Word and living it out. And if they are devoted to regularly being on their knees in the presence of and crying out to the Lord and Sovereign King of the Universe… And if they are living in authentic Christian fellowship… sharing life together, pursuing God together, and investing in others together…
I MEAN – seriously think about it, would someone living and following Jesus like, devoted like that, have to be told or coerced to…
- love their neighbor
- share their faith
- serve in the church
- give their tithe and offering
- forgive those who hurt them
- care for the orphan and the widow
- live in authentic radical community
Of course not
OKAY THIS MORNING – I want to unpack a conversation that I am calling ‘Not So Fast…’
AND – the reason for that title is because yesterday morning as I was in the process of wrapping up the conversation that I had been working on all week…
You know – move on to the next discussion in this series, it was like God said… “Hold on Steve, not so fast, I do not want you to move on yet.’
NOW – if you were here last week you know that we talked about how we are not to merely be fans of Jesus and simply admire Him but that we are to be crucified followers.
Jesus was never interested in having fans. When he defines what kind of relationship He wants, “Enthusiastic Admirer’ isn’t an option. My concern is that many of our churches in America have gone from being sanctuaries to becoming stadiums. And every week all the fans come to the stadium where they cheer for Jesus but have no interest in truly following Him.
The biggest threat to the church today is fans who call themselves Christians but aren’t actually interested in following Christ. They want to be close enough to Jesus to get all the benefits, but no so close that it requires anything from them.” - Kyle Idleman (Not A Fan)
QUESTION – do you agree with that statement?
LIKE – do think that is the biggest threat to the church?
AND – what about that last sentence…?
UNDERSTAND – the truth is we cannot and we are not following Jesus unless we die to ourselves first.
NOW – don’t get me wrong…
JESUS – wanted people to follow Him, He called people to follow Him…
BUT UNDERSTAND – He made it clear to the people in the first century (and to us in the 21st century) that if we do there will be a cost and that we must die.
NOW LAST SUNDAY – I challenged you to do two things…
• Read Luke 9 and Luke 14 and hear Jesus own words about what it means to follow Him…
• and I also challenged to meet with Jesus in your mind at Starbucks and share with Him a list of all the ways that following Him has cost you.
Did you do that?
I did. I made a list.
HEY – let’s take a moment and reflect on that question?
What costs have I paid to follow Jesus?
NOW – a few things struck me as I made my list.
1. The costs I have paid pale in comparison to my brothers and sisters around the world who have suffered intense persecution for following Jesus.
READ – from ‘Letters To The Church…’ page 132 - 134
2. Some of my greater costs seem to mostly be in my rearview mirror
• Leaving my Navy Career
• Adopting 2 orphans
. taking in a single mom and her kids into our home for 9 months
. taking in 2 young adult males for a couple of years
3. When I began to consider write down all that I have and will one day gain from following Jesus…
WOW – R U kidding me… - I just made the deal of the century!
Like Jesus said
“Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. - Mark 10:28-30
OKAY – and now let’s do ‘the not so fast’ thing with what Jesus said in Luke 9 and in Luke 14
LUKE 9
Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? – Luke 9:23-25
As they were traveling on the road someone said to Him,“I will follow You wherever You go!” Jesus told him, “Foxes have dens, and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.”
Then He said to another, “Follow Me.” “Lord,” he said, “first let me go bury my father.” But He told him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and spread the news of the kingdom of God.” Another also said, “I will follow You, Lord, but first let me go and say good-bye to those at my house.” But Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” - Luke 9:57-62
Luke 14
Now great crowds were traveling with Him. So He turned and said to them: “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, and even his own life—he cannot be My disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. – Luke 14:25-27
AS – I read over these words of Jesus about what it means for you and I to follow Him, again this week.
I noticed that these words are sandwiched between 2 parables and a final concluding statement.
NOW – the parable that Jesus gives before these words is about a bunch of people making EXCUSES…
Making what?
Ever do that? Make excuses…
even about following Jesus.
WELL – in this parable a rich guy is giving a great banquet.
AND – sends out his servants to tell people…
“Come, for everything is now ready.” But they all began to make excuses.” – Luke 14:17,18
AND LISTEN - the excuses were pretty lame…
• I just bought a field and I need to see
• I just bought five yoke of oxen and I need to try them out
• I just got married and I can’t come
AND HOW – did the Master feel about their excuses?
Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’
“‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’” - Luke 14:21-24
OKAY – that’s parable that Jesus gives before His teaching about what it means to follow Him…
AND – the parable he gives after is about the importance of COUNTING THE COST…
If you are going to build a tower, or if you are planning to go to war.
NOW – I am convinced that the Holy Spirit had Luke put Jesus’ teaching about following Him in the context of these two parables for a reason…
UNDERSTAND – everything is ready for us, for you to enjoy the great banquet of following Jesus and experiencing the abundant life of being a fully devoted disciple.
AND – some people make excuses as to why they can’t come to this banquet.
And because of this they will never taste what it is like to really follow Him.
Others – do not count the cost or they are unwilling to pay the cost.
AND CHECK OUT – how Jesus ends this discussion on following Him in Luke 14…
I MEAN – right after the parable about counting the cost he says…
Those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.
QUESTION – is there anything unclear about that?
“Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.
Salt is good – being a fully devoted follower of Jesus is good. Very good.
BUT IF…
“Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” - Luke 9:33-35
Check out this quote from Bo Chancy (I’m Going To Light Myself On Fire)…
Following Jesus is an all-or-nothing deal.
There is no such thing as partial surrender. In order to follow Him, we must completely lay down our lives. We do not get to pick and choose what we hold onto and what we give up.
Total surrender is the only option.
Take a moment to examine your life.
Who is in charge? Who is calling the shots? Who is the director of your life? Is it you? Or Jesus?
It can’t be both. If you answer both you and Jesus, then total surrender has not occurred. Jesus will not stand for it. He will not share His throne.
Call Him selfish if you like, but that’s just the way it is. Jesus desires you, and He is not willing to share you with anyone, including yourself.
Total surrender is an outlandish extreme that justifiably produces discomfort in most.
We may believe or accept the concept on a cognitive level, but in our hearts, most of us are holding onto hope that there will be a little “wiggle room” on the deal.
We may desire the appearance of surrender, but we clearly know who is in control. This is not one of those fuzzy, hard to interpret theological ideals. It is clear cut. Total surrender and nothing less is required. Nowhere in Scripture do we see Jesus backing off of this. ..
Jesus wants all of you. He wants your hopes, dreams, goals, plans, agendas, lifestyles, families, relationships, jobs, service, hobbies, gifts, talents, money, abilities, passions, the lists goes on… He purchased you, and the price was significant.
Jesus is not negotiating this deal with you. His final offer is on the table. – Bo Chancy
“Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” - Luke 9:35
YES – following Jesus is a big deal with a big cost…
Why Is Following Jesus Worth It?
AND LISTEN – if it wasn’t worth it we’d every reason to stay off the field and remain in the stands.
No One Is Who He Is
And just who is Jesus, Jesus is God…
• HE - is the Alpha and the Omega…
• the beginning and the end.
• He is the mighty God
• He is Creator of all that we see
• He is all-powerful, all-knowing – and always there
• HE always has been and He always will be
• He is the Kings of King & Lord of Lords..
• Jesus is huge… holy… mighty… He is God
No One Has Done What He Has Done
AND – what has Jesus done.
HE - has cleaned up our past (He paid a debt He did not owe, because we owed a debt we could not pay)…
And He has guaranteed our future… by defeating death, sin and the grave
No Can Do What Jesus Can Do
And what can Jesus do? He can do anything! Nothing is too hard or impossible for our God…
• Can deliver what he promised
• Bring peace to any conflict
• Conquer any problem
• Calm any storm
• Defeat any enemy
• Move any mountain
• Restore what is broken
• Bring life to what was dead
No Mission Can Accomplish What His Can
• Change lives and hearts
• Redirect the forevers of lost men and women
• Give hope to the hopeless
• Belonging to the lonely
• Freedom to the captive
Because Jesus said it is worth it!
“Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. - Mark 10:28-30
Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. – Luke 9:23
The late 1800’s saw an evangelistic explosion in India. Entire provinces formally closed to the gospel were swept up a missionary movement perhaps unparalleled in history.
Wales in particular sent hundreds of missionaries to Northern India, and they were joined by Indian evangelists, as well as missionaries from England, Australia, and the United States.
This movement was remarkable for two reasons; first, it was led mostly by Indians themselves, and those men became national figures.
Second, this missionary endeavor was focused on Northern India, which was firmly in the grips of the most oppressive forms of Hinduism. It was a place where the caste system was entrenched, and where headhunters ruled.
These provinces often prided themselves on the hostile reaction they gave foreigners. Dozens and dozens of these missionaries were martyred, but despite the opposition and violence (or perhaps because of it) the gospel made inroads into this previously off-limits area.
In the 1880’s a Welsh missionary who had endured severe persecution finally saw his first converts in a particularly brutal village in the Indian province of Assam. A husband and wife, with their two children, professed faith in Christ and were baptized.
Their village leaders decided to make an example out of the husband. Arresting the family, they demanded that the father renounce Christ, or see his wife and children murdered. When he refused, his two children were executed by archers.
Given another chance to recant, the man again refused, and his wife was similarly stuck down. Still refusing to recant, the man followed his family into glory.
Witnesses later told the story to the Welsh missionary. The reports said that when asked to recant or see his children murdered, the man said: “I have decided to follow Jesus, and there is no turning back.”
After seeing his children killed, he reportedly said, “The world can be behind me, but the cross is still before me.” And after seeing his wife pierced by the arrows, he said, “Though no one is here to go with me, still I will follow Jesus.”
According to this missionary, when he returned to the village, a revival had broken out, and those that had murdered the first converts and since come to faith themselves.
The Welsh man passed along these reports to the famous Indian evangelist Sadhu Singh. Singh had risen to prominence in India because he was training foreign missionaries, and a theme in his teaching had been the necessity of avoiding the cultural trappings of Western Christianity.
He insisted that the missionaries now pouring into India focus on the essentials of the gospel while allowing the now vibrant Indian Christian community to develop their own Christian customs.
The accounts of the family that had been martyred in Assam were so astonishing and widely circulated that most Indian believers were familiar with it.
So Singh took the martyr’s last words, and put them to traditional Indian music in order to make one of the first uniquely Indian hymns. The song immediately became popular in Indian churches, and it remains a mainstay of worship music there to this day.
Eventually some of the American missionaries returned from India and they brought that song with them.
