Go All In

One day, Jesus was getting ready to send out his twelve core disciples to minister. And he gave them power and authority over impure spirits, and to heal diseases and sickness.

And before He sent them, He had a lot of advice for them.

And one part that he says really jumps out at me.

Matthew 10:38–39 NIV

Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.

Mark Batterson once said,

If Jesus isn’t the Lord of all, then He isn’t the Lord at all

Jesus here says, if you have something in your life you’re holding above me - are you really following me? Are you really a disciple?

There’s a few points about what it means to ‘go all in with Jesus’ from this chapter.

First, it’s important to understand this verse in context. In the previous verse, Jesus says

Matthew 10:34–37 NIV

“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn “ ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law— a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’ “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

For sure, the gospel message isn’t ‘hate everyone in your family’.

Jesus here is quoting from Micah 7:6. And in that chapter, Micah is lamenting LAND FILLED WITH UNRIGHTEOUSNESS / NO FAITHFUL PEOPLE. It was full of people clambering for power, and authority, and the rule. And other people latching onto those people for dear life, to get what THEY wanted.

So, Jesus is saying - take up your cross, and lose your life.

Going all in means

Picking the right path - even when it’s hard

Jesus said the person who picks up his cross is the one who is following Him. But how many times have we picked up a comforter rather than a cross? We’ve sought something easy rather than something right?

I hear you, you’re saying ‘no, that’s not me Jesus!’

But how often are we willing to tolerate something wrong to get to something we want? How often are we willing to DO something wrong to get to something we want?

See, to Micah, in israel at the time, the country was in a sorry state.

Micah 7:3–4 NIV

Both hands are skilled in doing evil; the ruler demands gifts, the judge accepts bribes, the powerful dictate what they desire— they all conspire together. The best of them is like a brier, the most upright worse than a thorn hedge. The day God visits you has come, the day your watchmen sound the alarm. Now is the time of your confusion.

And for those people in the country who wanted power over everyone else, and to seem upright and righteous in the eyes of everyone else - they found themselves in briers and thorny hedges.

And that sounds bad - but people were scrambling over themselves to dive into those thornbushes.

And the judges and rulers, they were asking for bribes and who knows what else. And people would do it - because they wanted to be on the right side of the gavel.

And the powerful, they were shaping and molding things to be exactly what they wanted. and the people would go along with it - because they wanted to be in the graces of the powerful. They wanted things shaped and molded to be what THEY wanted.

How does this connect to going all in?

We love Jesus - but what else do we love more?

Jesus says, ya, you love me - but what else do you love more?

Where do we say,

Jesus, my whole life is yours - but also, I want to feel powerful. So any time someone opposes me, or I have to submit to someone - I’ll rebel.

Jesus, I’ll do whatever you want - but also I need to make sure that I feel like i’m always the right one. So any time someone challenges me or says something I don’t agree with - I’ll shut it down.

When we lift a hand up to God - what are we still holding in the other one?

STORY - I’m terrible at going somewhere, picking something up, and walking away with it. If i put stuff down somewhere - i’m going to lose it.

Going all in means

Comitting to losing our lives - in order to find them

The life Jesus tells the disciples they are going to have when they go is…an interesting one.

Matthew 10:9–10 NIV

“Do not get any gold or silver or copper to take with you in your belts— no bag for the journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep.

Matthew 10:16–17 NIV

“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the synagogues.

Matthew 10:22 NIV

You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.

This sounds bad, let’s be honest. This sounds like the opposite of life. We want stuff (even if that stuff is just a roof over our heads!), we want safety and security - jesus told them, don’t even take money with you.

We want to be respected and held up high, we want to feel safe - Jesus says, yep, floggings, imprisonment, general hatred.

But jesus says something really interesting.

Matthew 10:39 NIV

Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.

Now, we’re all in on this idea of finding our lives. We believe that God has greater things for us than we have for ourselves.

STORY - Group of tourists in iceland lost a woman. Group and others spent hours looking for her. Eventually realized - she was with them looking for herself. She had gone and changed, freshened up, and they didn’t recognize her.

This sounds like an interesting story. But here’s a question.

What are you looking for?

Are you looking for Jesus - or jesus somewhere in the crowd while you’re looking for something that isn’t actually jesus?

Jesus says, whoever finds his life will lose it.

I’ve noticed something in my own life. I can generally only find things if I’m looking for them.

STORY - MY WATCH IN THE TRUNK. ALMOST LEFT IT THERE - MY BRAIN DID A DOUBLE TAKE. I’ve had times i’m sure i’ve found something i lost while looking for something else, and ignored that thing.

When we go about our day to day life in Christ - what are we looking for? Are we looking for Christ - or are we looking for our idea of what life is?

And again, i’m sure many of us can say ‘Of course, we’re looking for Jesus!’. And I believe we mean it.

You can tell what you’re looking for when you feel like you’ve found it

Wwhat should finding Jesus actually look like to us?

For some people, finding jesus means ‘when I have a wonderful experience that makes me feel special inside’. So then we ignore every other part of faith, and chase just those spiritual highs.

That isn’t looking for Jesus - that’s looking for a nice experience. Life to them is about enjoying experiences, and so they invite Jesus along on this journey of finding nice experiences.

For some people, finding jesus means being able to say ‘I have the truth, and you dont!’ and being able to be above someone else. So we ignore large parts of the bible and stand in judgment over a fallen world. They won’t stop until they feel like they’re better than others.

That’s not looking for Jesus - that’s looking for power and authority. Life to them is about being on top, and they invite Jesus along on this journey of being on top.

STORY - Chatting with rafi. Knew an old woman who was a prayer warrior. Would pray for people to be healed, and they would. But this person was old, and their health wasn’t what it used to be.

It’s not enough to be willing to lose our lives. We have to stop looking for our lives.

WANT TO ALWAYS BE RIGHT - actively hold other people and their opinions up.

WANT TO FEEL POWERFUL - Highlight other people and their leadershipo, and be a perfect example of submission.

WANT THE FOCUS ON YOURSELF - actively fight for other people to have the spotlight.

Don’t just be willing to give up your life. Actually give it up.

Jesus says, the person who isn’t looking for their life - they’re the one that will find what life really is.

We want to invite you to go all in with us