Opening illustration: I recently read the true story about a preacher who was standing at the door shaking hands as the congregation departed. He grabbed one man by the hand and pulled him aside.
The preacher said to him, "You need to join the Army of the Lord!" The man replied, "I’m already in the Army of the Lord, Preacher." The preacher questioned, "How come I don’t see you except for Christmas and Easter?" He whispered back, "I’m in the secret service."
Apply: The Secret Service? … I don’t think so.
Several years ago, I was exchanging ideas with several people on BibleMaster.com. During these conversations, I encountered a young man who’d just been called up to go to Iraq, because our nation had declared war on Saddam Hussein. The problem for this young man was – he didn’t want to go. He explained that he hadn’t joined the army to go to war... he’d joined because of the benefits: the pay, the college tuition, the insurance, etc.
Now, something’s wrong with that kind of thinking!! One of the primary functions of the military is to prepare for war. You’ve got to know that if you sign up! I’m sure it's somewhere in the job description.
Armies do NOT exist to pass out benefits (those are perks). Armies exist to deal with conflicts. To defend their people. To fight the enemy. And hopefully to contend against evil.
Nevertheless, there are people who actually join up hoping for a free ride. And that kind of mentality undermines the military of any nation.
That same kind of mentality can also undermine the church. Too often believers sign up for the benefits. They expect Jesus to "be there" for them, but they don’t expect to "be there" for Him. That’s the issue Jesus is addressing here in Matthew 16. He’s explaining to His disciples that they’re part of His army. He has called them to war, and there’s a decision to be made.
Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.” Matthew 16:24-25 (From a sermon by Jeff Strite, Time in the Trenches)
Introduction: We live in a day of "casual Christianity." I heard someone recently say that the average church could drop one-fourth of its members from the membership roll and neither the church, nor the dropped members would notice any difference.
Casual Christians are those who want to be numbered among the Flock, but could care less about following the Shepherd. They want the forgiveness the cross of Christ brings but never intend to carry their own cross. They want warm, fuzzy moments on Sunday mornings but offer no commitment to Jesus on Monday mornings. In short, they want the crown without the cross.
In this passage, Jesus lays out the principle of discipleship, when he says, “If anyone would come after me.” We are not allowed to come to God on our own terms, we must come to Him on His terms. To those who had not yet placed their faith in Jesus His words, “come after me” can be applied to the initial decision to surrender their lives to Christ for salvation. To those who have already placed their faith in Jesus for salvation, the call to “come after me” is a renewal of a call to a life of daily obedience to Christ. This is necessary because we are all under the constant temptation to take back what was given up and to reclaim what was forsaken. It is altogether possible to again place one’s own will above God’s and to take back rights which were relinquished to him.
What does it take to be a disciple of Christ?
1. Self-Denial (v. 24a)
The phrase “deny himself” literally means, “to completely disown, to utterly separate oneself from someone.” It is the same word used to describe Peter’s denial of Jesus outside the high priest’s home, Matthew 26:34! Each time he was confronted about his connection with Jesus, Peter more fervently denied knowing him (vs. 70, 72, 74).
? This is not talking about being materialistic or selfish.
? This is talking about not loving ourselves supremely.
? This is talking about humility. As in humility self does not exist. It is Christ and others above ourselves.
The disciple is to utterly disown himself, to refuse to acknowledge the self of the old man. What does it really entail?
• We are to count the old man as being dead. (Romans 6:11).
• We are to make no provision for the flesh. (Romans 13:14).
• To deny oneself means to follow the example set forth by the Lord Jesus Himself in coming to this world. (Philippians 2:5-8).
• We are to live our lives as one alive to God, but dead to sin and to the world. (Galatians 2:20).
Self-denial brings us to the place of absolute allegiance to Christ. That means that we are willing even to die, if necessary, for the sake of doing His will. Jesus says that the one who follows Him must, “take up his cross.” Such terminology pictures violent and humiliating death which Jesus Himself would soon experience (v. 21). The Lord used the same phrase earlier in 10:38 where He said that “… he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.” The disciples got the point.
It sounds hard because it is hard! Self doesn’t like to be denied, but until it is, we cannot possibly follow after Jesus like He desires for us to!
Illustration: “Fred Craddock, in an address to ministers, caught the practical implications of consecration. “To give my life for Christ appears glorious,” he said. “To pour myself out for others … to pay the ultimate price of martyrdom—I’ll do it. I’m ready, Lord, to go out in a blaze of glory.
“We think giving our all to the Lord is like taking $l,000 bill and laying it on the table— ‘Here’s my life, Lord. I’m giving it all.’ “But the reality for most of us is that he sends us to the bank and has us cash in the $l,000 for quarters. We go through life putting out 25 cents here and 50 cents there. Listen to the neighbor kid’s troubles instead of saying, ‘Get lost.’ Go to a committee meeting. Give a cup of water to a shaky old man in a nursing home.
“Usually giving our life to Christ isn’t glorious. It’s done in all those little acts of love, 25 cents at a time. It would be easy to go out in a flash of glory; it’s harder to live the Christian life little by little over the long haul.”
2. Cross-Hauling (v. 24b)
To understand what this cross Jesus refers to is, we need to talk about what it isn’t.
? It isn’t your lost husband or wife. It isn’t your wayward children.
? It isn’t your ding-a-ling neighbor.
? The cross was not some ornament or piece of decoration in the house.
? It was not a tattoo on your body implying some Christian testimony.
? It was not some form of beauty.
? Your cross isn’t your difficulties, your health or the bad situations you face in life. We say “that’s my cross,” but it is not! That is not what Jesus meant.
? It is NOT talking simply about everyday trials. Everyone endures these.
? He is talking about being willing to endure hardships for HIM. These are voluntary trials.
? The earliest Christians faced these trials willingly.
? Today the trials we face are for our stand for the truth (Galatians 4:16).
a) The gospel makes some people angry.
b) We may be ridiculed (1 Peter 4:3-4). Called "Bible Thumpers."
c) We may face family rejection (Matthew 10:36).
? The cross is not just a place of suffering; it is a place of death! It may cost you your life.
? It was an instrument of torture. It might lead to your execution.
When Jesus spoke of the cross everyone in his audience knew what he was referring to. He did not need to make any clarifications or supplement it with commentaries and side-notes. It was self-evident! I wonder, was the crowd (listeners) then smarter than today?
John MacArthur writes: “…the cross was a very concrete and vivid reality. It was the instrument of execution reserved for Rome’s worst enemies. It was a symbol of the torture and death that awaited those who dared raise a hand against Roman authority. Not many years before Jesus and the disciples came to Caesarea Philippi, 100 men had been crucified in the area. A century earlier, Alexander Janneus had crucified 800 Jewish rebels at Jerusalem, and after the revolt that followed the death of Herod the Great, 2,000 Jews were crucified by the Roman proconsul Varus. Crucifixions on a smaller scale were a common sight, and it has been estimated that perhaps some 30,000 occurred under Roman authority during the lifetime of Christ.”
When Jesus says that we are to take up our cross, He is saying that we are to live as dead men. We are called upon to take up that cross, once for all, and go after Jesus. We are not to back out, turn around, or lay down the cross. We are to die on that cross, giving our all for His glory! This phrase has the idea of being willing to go all the way for Jesus - no holds barred and no turning back - just a steady, humble walk that follows His footsteps and His path through this world. Jesus said it as simply as it could possibly be said, John 12:26,"If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.”
In The Cost of Discipleship Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote: “The cross is laid on every Christian. As we embark upon discipleship we surrender ourselves to Christ in union with his death–we give over our lives to death. The cross is not the terrible end to an otherwise god-fearing and happy life, but it meets us at the beginning of our communion with Christ. When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”
3. Follow-Jesus (v. 24c)
Here Jesus says, literally “let him follow me day by day.” To be a disciple of Christ is to be continually following after Jesus. It is a lifestyle. It is to be your pattern for living. Being a follower of Jesus requires complete commitment. A follower of Jesus will do whatever it takes to follow Jesus. They’re absolutely loyal and completely committed.
On the whole, we don’t do too well with absolute commitment, do we? I think that we prefer selective commitment. Simply put, we customize Christianity. Oftentimes, we look at our relationship with Jesus and say, “I’m going to follow Jesus, but I’m going to kind of cherry pick and choose the areas in which I will follow Him.” So you say, “Well, I’ll follow Jesus, but don’t ask me to forgive the person that hurt me. I’m not going to let go of that resentment. I’m not going to let go of that bitterness. I deserve that.” And, “I’ll follow Jesus, but don’t talk to me about my money. I work hard for that money.” “I’ll follow Jesus but don’t tell me to abstain from these sexual desires. I can’t help the fact that I have these desires. Don’t ask me to abstain. I’m a follower of Jesus, but that won’t stop me from getting what I want.” So it’s this customized Christianity that says, “Well, I follow Jesus, but only in the areas that are comfortable, only in the areas that I agree with. I’m a Christian but I’m not all in.”
Let me make one more point and then we close. If a disciple is a “follower” and we are disciples of Christ, it follows that that we are willing to be lead. We are willing to be led into places that we don’t understand; even places that are dark and scary and even painful and unpleasant; because we trust and follow the Shepherd.
Jesus words in verse 24 can be paraphrased this way, “If anyone wished to be counted as an adherent of mine, he must once and for all say farewell to self, decisively accept pain and shame and persecution for my sake and in my cause, and must then follow and keep on following me as my disciple.”
4. Life-Lost for Jesus (v. 25) “Way of Powerlessness”
One way of living life, says Jesus, is bondage. It is fear, it is power, and it is control. The other way to live life, he states, is just the opposite. It is powerlessness; it is losing control, and in that moment, giving your fear, and therefore your life, to God. He says it like this, “For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.”
As Christians, we don’t follow the cross. We follow Jesus. And when we follow His teachings, every time the cross comes our way.
Illustration: A dairy farmer went to buy a new pickup truck. He had seen an ad in the paper about discounts and factory rebates, so he decided to trade in his old clunker. He chose a new model and was ready to write the check for the full amount. The salesman said, "Wait, I haven't given you the final cost yet." The farmer said, "Isn't it the price I saw in the paper?" The salesman said, "No, that's for the basic model, all the options cost extra." So after the options were added, the farmer reluctantly wrote a check and drove off in his new pick-up.
A few months later the car salesman called the farmer because he wanted to buy a cow for his son's 4-H project. The farmer assured the car salesman he had several good milk cows for sale for $500. The salesman drove out and selected a cow and took out his checkbook. The farmer said, "Wait. I haven't given you the final cost yet." Then he handed the salesman a bill that read:
o BASIC COW $500
o Two-tone exterior $45
o Extra stomach $75
o Milk storage compartment $60
o Straw recycle compartment $120
o Four handy spigots @ $10 each $40
o Leather upholstery $125
o Dual horns $45
o Automatic rear fly swatter $38
o Natural fertilizer attachment $185
o GRAND TOTAL $1233
Whether you're buying cars or cows, it's important to get to what we call "the bottom line." What is the "bottom line" of following Jesus? You may go into sticker shock when you discover it. Many people are only interested in the basic model of Christian living. They want just enough Christianity to keep them out of hell without intruding on their fun. You don't find the full cost of discipleship advertised very often these days. Few preachers discuss it because it is unpleasant; it doesn't fill churches. It isn't the prosperity gospel that says, "Believe and you will be rich and happy." As Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote in his classic book, The Cost of Discipleship, "When Christ calls a man, he bids him to die." (From a sermon by David Dykes, Don't Waste Your Life)
Application: Let me make one more point and then we close. If a disciple is a “follower” and we are disciples of Christ, it follows that that we are willing to be lead. We are willing to be led into places that we don’t understand; even places that are dark and scary and even painful and unpleasant; because we trust and follow the Shepherd.
The vision going into 2017 is “Pursuing to be a Disciple of Jesus.” Are we willing to position and place ourselves in that spot where the Spirit of God will disciple us. The road is not going to be easy but entail –
• Self-Denial
• Cross-Hauling
• Following Jesus
• A Life-Lost for Jesus which is the Way of Powerlessness
