Christian: What Kind of Disciple Are You?

The Gospel of Matthew

Matthew 20:17-28

Sermon by Rick Crandall

(Prepared December 6, 2022)

BACKGROUND:

*Please open your Bibles to Matthew 20:17. In this verse of Scripture, Jesus has started His trip to Jerusalem to die on the cross for our sins. And by the beginning of the next chapter, the Lord will be on the outskirts of the city less than a week before the cross.

*Of course, the cross was on our Savior's mind, and last time we studied vs. 17-19 where God's Word says:

17. Then Jesus, going up to Jerusalem, took the twelve disciples aside on the road and said to them,

18. "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death,

19. and deliver Him to the Gentiles to mock and to scourge and to crucify. And the third day He will rise again.''

*As Jesus focused on the cross here, He was speaking to His 12 disciples. But we must understand that the word "disciple" means "student," "learner," "follower," "imitator." And in the bigger sense, every Christian, every true believer in Jesus Christ, is also called to be a disciple of the Lord. (1)

*Yes, we are citizens of Heaven, children of God, friends of God, and much, much more. But we are also called to be disciples of Jesus Christ. And the same standards that Jesus gave to the twelve, apply to all of us today. Please think about this truth as we read Matthew 20:17-28.

MESSAGE:

*I was saved over 47 years ago. It's hard for me to believe that it's been that long. But it has! And I praise the Lord that I was saved by God's grace through faith in the cross of Jesus Christ. But what about my walk with the Lord?

*Remember that Ephesians 2:8-9 tells all Christians, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast." But then vs. 10 goes on to say that "we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."

*Christians: The question for me and you is: "How's my walk going? What kind of disciple am I?" This is true whether you have been a Christian for 47 years or 47 days: "What kind of disciple am I?"

*I know I need to be more focused on following the Lord. I know I need to be a better disciple. And if you feel the same way, today's Scripture can help us.

1. FIRST: WE MUST STRIVE TO AVOID DISTRACTIONS.

*We must try our best to avoid the many things that can distract our walk with the Lord. We don't want to be like the Lord's first disciples in vs. 17-21:

17. Then Jesus, going up to Jerusalem, took the twelve disciples aside on the road and said to them,

18. "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death,

19. and deliver Him to the Gentiles to mock and to scourge and to crucify. And the third day He will rise again.''

20. Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him.

21. And He said to her, "What do you wish?'' She said to Him, "Grant that these two sons of mine may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on the left, in Your kingdom.''

*There they were, just days before the death of our Lord. Jesus was focused like a laser on His great mission to die on the cross for our sins. He knew full-well the agony that was racing toward Him. Jesus also saw the glory of His resurrection on the other side. And nothing could have gotten in the way of Jesus making that great sacrifice for us. Nothing could have kept Him away from the cross.

*Jesus was focused like a laser, but His twelve disciples were not. Mark 10:32 tells us that "they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was going before them; and they were amazed. And as they followed they were afraid. Then He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them the things that would happen to Him."

*The disciples were amazed and afraid of what was coming. But at the same time, they were still jockeying for first position in the kingdom of God. When it came to Heaven, everybody wanted to get the best seats in the house.

*I usually just think about the 12 disciples following Jesus. But there were many more people in the group who followed Jesus up the road to Jerusalem. Matthew 27 gives us his report of the cross, and vs. 55-56 tell us that "many women who followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to Him, were there looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's sons."

*Zebedee's sons were the Apostles James and his brother John, and their mother Salome was on the road with them here in Matthew 20. That's who went to Jesus with the request about her sons. And again in vs. 21 she said, "Grant that these two sons of mine may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on the left, in Your kingdom.''

*On one hand, we can't blame this mother or her sons for their request. There are some good things we can say about it. They wanted to be as close to Jesus as possible for all eternity, and nothing could be better than that. John Phillips also pointed out that strong faith in Jesus was behind their request. They still strongly believed that Jesus was the Messiah, their promised King! And that He was surely going to set up His kingdom. (2)

*But the request was untimely to say the least, sort of like trying to divide up the estate at the funeral, or even in the hospital room of a dying man. Jesus was focused on what He was about to give: His life on the cross for our sins! The Apostles were still focused on what they wanted to get.

*Jesus was focused on His cross, and that's where His disciples needed to focus too. On top of that, Jesus explained that their request wasn't His call. As the Lord said in vs. 23, "To sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared by My Father.''

*The bottom line here is that the disciples were distracted from the cause of Christ. Do you ever get distracted? Oh yes, -- we do. I get distracted sometimes when I drive, and that drives my wife Mary crazy. She can't understand why I like to see what's going on out the side window. Thankfully, I haven't had a wreck because of my distractions. But a lot of people do.

*And there are a lot of things to distract us when we are going down the road: Cell phones, texting, fiddling with the radio, fussing kids, eating. Some people read or write notes behind the wheel. Some people comb their hair. And I have seen a few ladies putting on their make-up as they went down the road.

*One Triple A study found that 70% of drivers got distracted by something inside or outside the vehicle. And it can be serious, because 25% of all traffic crashes are caused by distractions.

*Driving distractions can be very serious, but spiritual distractions can be much more serious. Many times we are in danger of letting the good things in our lives take the place of the best things in our lives.

*Talking about the work God has called all of us to do, Pastor Jim Wilson once said, "Any distraction that averts our attention from our mission will have catastrophic results." That's why Hebrews 12:1-2 says this in the NIV: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before Him He endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." (3)

2. HOW CAN WE BE BETTER DISCIPLES? STRIVE TO AVOID DISTRACTIONS. BUT ALSO ACCEPT THE DIFFICULTIES OF FOLLOWING JESUS.

*We must try our best to understand and accept the difficulties of following Jesus Christ. This was the Lord's goal when He responded to the mother's request. In vs. 22-23, Jesus spoke to James and John and said:

22. . . "You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?'' They said to Him, "We are able.''

23. So He said to them, "You will indeed drink My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with. . ."

*The Lord was not talking about water baptism here. Remember that the word "baptize" means to fully dip or submerge something. And here the Lord was talking about James and John being plunged into the same kind of sorrow and suffering Jesus went through on the cross.

*Of course our worst suffering for the Lord could not begin to measure up to what He suffered for us. But God's Word is clear: All of Jesus' followers will go through some kind of suffering for the cause of Christ.

*Jesus explained it this way in Luke 9:23-26. "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what advantage is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels."

*There is a cross for every Christian to bear.

*I once heard a missionary say that when they witnessed to people, they had to be careful to explain that Christianity is not a "rabbit's foot religion." Jesus Christ is not a lucky charm. And life is not going to be an unbroken chain of health, wealth, and happiness, just because we trust in the Lord.

*Everything isn't going to be "peaches and cream". There is a cross for every Christian to bear. That's becoming clearer every day with the giant turn our own government has taken away from God. There is a cross for every Christian to bear, but it's worth it!

3. HOW CAN WE BE BETTER DISCIPLES? ACCEPT THE DIFFICULTIES OF FOLLOWING JESUS, AND AVOID POINTLESS DISPUTES.

*When James, John, and their mother asked Jesus for the best seats in the kingdom, the other disciples didn't like it one bit. Verse 24 says that "when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brothers."

*They were "moved with indignation." In the original language that is a strong word for angry resentment. The root word picture is something bent, like an arm. And the other disciples were really bent out of shape. John Phillips called this argument "an explosion." (2)

*But they were all arguing about something that really didn't matter at that point. They were also arguing about something that was out of their hands. Jesus had already told them that this was the Father's decision.

*And this wasn't the first time the disciples argued about who was the greatest in the kingdom. Mark 9:33-35 shows them arguing about it as they traveled down another road. That was about 6-8 months before the cross, and there God's Word says:

33. Then He came to Capernaum. And when He was in the house He asked them, "What was it you disputed among yourselves on the road?''

34. But they kept silent, for on the road they had disputed among themselves who would be the greatest.

35. And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, "If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.''

*Now here they were, just days before the cross, and the disciples are arguing about this again. -- Pointless. But even closer to the cross, in Matthew 23:11-12, Jesus had to tell them again: "He who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be abased, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

*And in Luke 22:23-27, just hours before the cross, even after the first Lord's Supper:

23. They began to question among themselves, which of them it was who would do this thing (betray Jesus).

24. But there was also rivalry among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest.

25. And He said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called 'benefactors.'

26. But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves.

27. For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the One who serves."

*With this shortcoming of the disciples in mind, is it any wonder that churches today sometimes fuss and fight? Not at all. But most of the fussing that goes on in churches is absolutely pointless.

*Doyle Young tells the story of the founding of the Anti-peg Baptist Church. In the late l800s there were just two deacons in a small Baptist church in Mayfield County, Kentucky. One Sunday, one of the deacons put up a small wooden peg in the back wall so the preacher could hang up his hat.

*When the other deacon discovered the peg. he was outraged that he had not been consulted. Before long, the church took sides and eventually split. And the new church was called the "Anti-peg Baptist Church."

*When Jim Wilson was pastoring in New Mexico he told that story in a sermon. And Jim noted how silly it was that a church would split over something as inconsequential as a peg on the wall, or the color of the carpet, or what side of the auditorium the piano was on.

*Pastor Jim later said, "After the message someone told me that our church had in fact split a few years after the pastor moved the piano to the other side of the stage." Jim replied: "Well, I just moved it a couple months ago and no one said a thing." The church member said, "That's because you moved it back to the right side." (4)

*I surely hope that man was kidding.

4. HOW CAN WE BE BETTER DISCIPLES? AVOID POINTLESS DISPUTES, AND LIVE WITH CHRISTLIKE DEVOTION.

*God wants us to serve like the Savior. God wants us to live with Christlike devotion. And we've looked at the disciples' distraction, their difficulties, and their disputes. But it's also a good idea to look at their devotion.

*After all, we are talking about the Apostles here. Other than Judas the betrayer, these men gave their all for Jesus Christ. So as we look back at vs. 20, we can see that James, John and their mother did some of the best things we can do as followers of Christ: "Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him." These 3 Christ followers did some things that all Christians should do.

[1] FIRST, THEY WENT TO JESUS.

*Do you have a question? Do you have a problem? Do you have a need? Do you want a blessing? Take it all to Jesus! He can and will meet every real need we will ever have in life.

[2] THESE BELIEVERS WENT TO JESUS, AND THEY WORSHIPED HIM.

*The NKJ says they were "kneeling down," and I don't doubt it. But the KJV says they were worshiping Jesus, and I like that better. The original word for "kneeling" or "worshipping" here is God's favorite New Testament word for worship. It's "proskuneo," the word picture of a loyal, loving dog licking his master's hand.

[3] THESE BELIEVERS WENT TO JESUS, THEY WORSHIPED HIM, AND THEY PRAYED TO HIM.

*Verse 20 says they were "asking something from Him," and that's a great thing to do. God surely wants us to pray, so we see their request in vs. 21, where Jesus "said to her, 'What do you wish?' She said to Him, 'Grant that these two sons of mine may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on the left, in Your kingdom.'''

*Salome had the same problem with her prayer that we often have with ours: As Jesus said in vs. 22, "You do not know what you ask." But at least she was praying. And as we think about living with Christlike devotion, James, John, and their mother help us with their example of going to Jesus, worshiping Him and praying.

[4] THEN IN VS. 22-23, WE ALSO SEE JAMES AND JOHN WILLING TO SUFFER FOR THE LORD.

*There Jesus asked:

22. . . "Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?'' They said to Him, "We are able.''

23. So He said to them, "You will indeed drink My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with. . ."

[5] THEY WERE WILLING TO SUFFER FOR THE LORD. BUT CHRISTLIKE DEVOTION ALSO REQUIRES US TO LEARN FROM THE LORD.

*So Jesus stopped the disciples' argument, and began to teach them the importance of having a servant's heart. We see this in vs. 24-27:

24. And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brothers.

25. But Jesus called them to Himself and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them.

26. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant.

27. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave."

*That is a hard lesson for most of us to learn, and it certainly was for the disciples. But the Lord will help us learn.

[6] LIVING WITH CHRISTLIKE DEVOTION MEANS LEARNING FROM THE LORD. AND IT MEANS FOLLOWING HIS EXAMPLE.

*In vs. 27-28 Jesus said, "Whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." There can be no question that the Lord wants us to follow His example of humble, loving, sacrificial service.

CONCLUSION:

*We sing "Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me." Most of us have been greatly blessed by that song written by John Newton over 200 years ago.

*You probably remember that John Newton spent his early years in the slave business and became captain of a slave ship. But he was gloriously saved by the grace of God, and at the age of 39, John was ordained as a preacher. He faithfully served God for over 40 years, and toward the end, his health began to fail: His eyesight, and especially his memory.

*Once a friend asked Newton if he still had a bad memory. And John Newton replied, "Yes, I do, but I remember two things: I am a great sinner. And I have a great Savior. And I don't suppose an old slave trader needs to remember much more than that." (5)

*John Newton's health was failing. But he never lost sight of what matters most in life. He was a devoted disciple; he was a faithful follower of Jesus Christ. And the question for each of us today is this: What kind of disciple am I?

*If we want to be better disciples, if we want to be good and faithful followers of Jesus Christ, we must try our best to avoid distractions, and accept the difficulties of following Jesus. We also must try our best to avoid pointless disputes, and live with Christlike devotion.

*Let's ask the Lord to help us do it. And if you have never trusted in the Lord, don't wait. You can call on Jesus to save you right now, as we go back to God in prayer.

(1) Sources:

-STRONG'S HEBREW AND GREEK DICTIONARIES - from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance by James Strong, S.T.D., LL.D. - Published in 1890; public domain. - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2000-2019

(2) EXPLORING THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW by John Phillips, Kregal Publications, Grand Rapids - "Ministry in the Kingdom" - Matthew 20:17-34 - Downloaded to "Bible Study 6" from Olive Tree Bible Software, Inc.

(3) Reuters, US drivers distracted by phones, eating, grooming, August 6, 2003. Submitted by Jim Sandell - Source: "Fresh illustrations" by Jim Wilson - Fi081203 - FreshMinistry.org

(4) NEW LIFE FOR YOUR CHURCH by Doyle Young - p. 63 - Source: Source: "Fresh illustrations" by Jim Wilson - FreshMinistry.org

(5) Sources:

-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazing_Grace