Untitled Sermon

EMBRACING THE CALL

Part 1

Matthew 16:24-27

September 8, 2013

Pastor Ralph Morris

A layer of sweat lathered his body and drenched his bed in the drab turn-of-the-century Cairo hospital. Looking at him, you wouldn’t have recognized him as a millionaire . . . a brilliant scholar . . . or even as a young, well-built athlete. He was all those things . . . and more!

Bill Borden grew up on Chicago’s Gold Coast. His family’s fortune had come from real estate and from Borden’s Condensed Milk. But when Bill was seven, his mother discovered the sincere milk of the Word, becoming a Christian and joining Moody Church. Bill began attending too, and was soon led to Christ by Pastor R. A. Torrey.

Bill attended an elite boarding high school and excelled in both academics and athletics. He graduated fourth in his class, and as a reward, his father gave him a year-long trip around the world. Bill left California aboard a ship that carried several missionaries bound for Asia. From Japan he wrote his mother: “Your request that I pray for God’s very best for my life is not hard to do, for I’ve been praying that for a long time. Although I’ve never thought seriously about being a missionary until lately, I was somewhat interested in that line. I think this trip is going to show me things in a new light. I met such pleasant young people on the steamer who were going out as missionaries and meeting them influenced me. . . . I don’t know what you will think of this.” From Japan, Bill and his guide crossed Asia to Europe. In Rome, Bill received a reply to his letter. His mother rejoiced at his growing interest in missions; his father wanted him to wait until he was 21 before making a vocational decision. In England, Bill encountered Pastor Torrey, who was preaching in London. Borden attended one of the services, and Torrey challenged his listeners to surrender their lives totally to Christ. Bill was deeply moved as he stood with others and sang the hymn, Surrender All.” Back in America, Borden entered Yale University. A friend later wrote: “Bill came to college far ahead, spiritually, of any of us. He had already given his heart in full surrender to Christ. He had formed his purpose to become a missionary, and all through college and seminary that purpose never wavered. We, his classmates, learned to lean on him and find in him strength as solid as a rock.” Bill joined 4,000 others from across the nation at a student convention that year in Nashville, Tennessee. Missionaries from 26 countries spoke of their fields, and one of them, Samuel Zwemer, made a moving appeal for Muslim evangelization: “Of course it will cost life. It is not an expedition of ease nor a picnic excursion to which we are called. It is going to cost many a life and not lives only, but prayers and tears and blood.” Borden returned to Yale committed to reaching the Chinese Muslims. But his eyes saw present needs, not just future challenges. Concerned that New Haven had no rescue mission, he purchased a downtown building, started a work, and hired a director. Then Bill Borden—a handsome, athletic, brilliant college sophomore worth 40 to 50 million dollars by today’s standards—spent his evenings witnessing to broken men. He also led Bible studies on campus. He was chairman of the Student Missionary Union. He played football and baseball for Yale, and he was on the wrestling team. He was near the top of his class and was elected president of Phi Beta Kappa. Atop all that, he oversaw an incredible financial portfolio, devouring the Wall Street Journal daily and making frequent business trips to Chicago. Following graduation, Bill attended Princeton Seminary and served on the boards of Moody Bible Institute, China Inland Mission, and the National Bible Institute. He graduated from Princeton in 1912 and, after summering in Switzerland, he returned to tour American colleges on behalf of China Inland Mission. At Andover he expressed his burden for missions this way: “If ten men are carrying a log, nine of them on the little end and one at the heavy end, and you want to help, which end will you lift?” When a friend asked him about getting married he replied that he thought it cruel for a man to ask a girl to go with him to one of the most difficult mission fields; he said he had no intention of marrying. He felt it would be wrong to the girl and would hinder his highest efficiency in the field he had in view. Another friend observed, “No one would have known from Borden’s life and talk that he was a millionaire; but no one could have helped knowing that he was a Christian and alive for missions.”

When Bill was ordained into the ministry at Moody Church the newspapers made much of it and the nation followed him on December 17, 1912, as he boarded the S. S. Mauritania bound for language study in Egypt. On the night before his departure, his frail mother fell asleep asking herself again and again, “Is it, after all, worth while?” In the morning she awoke, a quiet voice in her heart answering, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.” “It was strength for the day,” she said, “and for all the days to come.” Arriving in Cairo in 1913 at age 25, Bill immediately plunged into Arabic and Chinese studies. But within weeks, he developed a headache and fever. On Easter Sunday, the small missionary community in Cairo was shocked to hear that Bill had cerebral meningitis. Serum was injected into his spinal cord. Over the next several days, his friends watched with growing anxiety. Mrs. Borden had left America to join Bill for a vacation in Lebanon, but being informed of his illness, she diverted toward Egypt. His sister in London also set out for Cairo. In America, prayer circles were activated from coast to coast. Strong men wept at the thought of losing him. Bill’s sister arrived at his bedside. Finally, his aged mother reached the Egyptian border and started by train for Cairo, arriving there at 1 p.m. Bill had passed away four hours earlier.

A wave of sorrow arose around the world. Practically every American newspaper told Borden’s life story. Biographies of him were translated into Chinese and shipped across the nation he had dreamed of reaching. R. A. Torrey wrote Mrs. Borden, “I know of no young man in this country or in England from whose life I expected greater things. But God has His own way of carrying out His purposes. He has some larger plan of usefulness through your son’s departure than could have been realized by his remaining here.” Indeed, hundreds of young people, stirred by his example, offered themselves for overseas service. When his will was opened, it was discovered that Bill had left almost his entire fortune to Christian and missionary causes. Even today, his example has moved a new generation to consider global missions. How can we explain such a life? A final message from Bill Borden—a paper stuffed under his hospital pillow—told the secret. On it he had scribbled a message that summarized his life: “No Reserve! No Retreat! No Regrets!”

“Of course it will cost life,” Zwemer had said. “It is not an expedition of ease nor a picnic excursion to which we are called. It is going to cost many a life.” It did and it does!

1. Every time I read that story, it causes me to stop right in my tracks.

2. I’m filled with emotion as to the determination of a young man that is fully surrendered to a calling.

3. Here is a story of a young man that fully embraced the purpose of his birth.

4. It speaks of a level of surrender that most people shudder at even the thought of.

5. Sad but true, most Christians live in another place in life. A place that would never involve a sacrifice as costly as that.

6. I want us to look at something today that is one of the most powerful and important things that Jesus ever said.

7. Yet it is probably some of the most neglected words of Christ today by many pastors and churches.

8. I’m afraid that too often the church fails to warn people that when they come out of their sin and give their life to Christ, the call on their life means that difficulties and persecutions await them.

9. When a person confesses their sin and receives Jesus as Lord, the Holy Spirit moves into that life in order to begin a process known as;

 Sanctification = To Be Set Apart For A Specific Purpose

10. When we become saved, our lives are thrust into a battle for control.

 A New Nature Has Been Introduced Into Our Life That Brings About Daily Tensions That We Hadn’t Known Before.

11. All of this came about due to something else called;

 Redemption = To Purchase or Buy Back

12. The way that that fleshes itself out in our lives is that Satan has lost us but yet fights to maintain control of us while the Holy Spirit works to transform us into the image of Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:17 (NASB)

17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

13. The problem that we each face is that Satan keeps trying to resurrect the old nature in us therefore creating tension.

 Being A Follower Of Christ Will At Times Invoke Conflict within Us.

14. We will experience difficulties and heartache but not without rewards if we handle the conflicts well.

15. But Jesus proposes a seemingly strange concept of;

 “Winning Through Losing”

Matthew 16:24-27 (NASB)

24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.

25 "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

26 "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

27 "For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and will then repay every man according to his deeds .

16. Jesus seems to be saying something here that seems to be oxymoronic. Think on this for just a moment;

 If You Attempt To Save Your Own Life, You End Up Losing It And If You Willing Lose Your Life, You Will End Up Saving It.

17. This doesn’t seem to fit very well into the philosophy of life that we have grown accustom to.

18. This doesn’t fit what the world is saying yet this passage encompasses the whole of Christian discipleship.

19. There are those, under the banner of Christianity that would have you believe that you can have heaven on earth.

20. They want to somehow blend the message of the gospel with the desires of the flesh.

21. They tell you that if you can somehow muster up enough faith, you can have wealth, health and an abundance of happiness but it depends solely upon your level of faith.

22. None of that is true yet the Bible definitely teaches that God enjoys blessing His children.

1 Timothy 6:17-19 (NASB)

17 Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy.

18 Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share,

19 storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.

23. But neither material blessings or the blessing of good health are indicators of a righteous life.

24. Remember the story of Elijah and the widow? She never had an abundance but she always had enough.

1 Kings 17:15-16 (NASB)

15 So she went and did according to the word of Elijah, and she and he and her household ate for many days.

16 The bowl of flour was not exhausted nor did the jar of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord which He spoke through Elijah.

25. Coming to Christ means that you receive and keep on receiving forever but not as the world would define it.

26. The Bible clearly tells us that in the life of a follower, there must always be a;

 Cross Before A Crown

 Suffering Before Glory

 Sacrifice Before Reward

 Giving Before Gaining

 Losing Before Winning

(take a drink and give time for them to write and think)

27. Every time Jesus spoke, He was emphasizing and alluding to these issues.

28. I must take this opportunity to reiterate something that is very important;

 If We Are To Know Success In This Life, We Must Embrace The Truth Of Those Statements.

29. This experience of life that you and I NOW know is not the fulfillment of the hope that He has in store for us. That is still yet to come.

30. At the present time, we are engaged in a conflict that cannot be avoided. The conflict is the battle of our two natures.

31. But Christ has provided us everything we need to overcome the old nature and learn to walk in the new nature.

32. And as we overcome the old nature by dying daily to self and taking up the cross of service that Christ has given us, we will receive an inheritance.

Revelation 21:1-7 (NASB)

1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.

2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.

3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,

4 and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away."

5 And He who sits on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." And He *said, "Write, for these words are faithful and true."

6 Then He said to me, "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.

7 "He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son.

33. Who is it that overcomes?

1 John 5:3-5 (NIV)

3 This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,

4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.

5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.

34. But there is no denying that there is a cost to being a disciple that overcomes.

Matthew 10:37-39 (NASB)

37 "He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.

38 "And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.

39 "He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it.

John 12:24-27 (NASB)

24 "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

25 "He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal.

26 "If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.

27 "Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, 'Father, save Me from this hour'? But for this purpose I came to this hour.

35. Those teachings ran contrary to the teachings of that day and they still run contrary to everything that we are told today.

36. The Jews were convinced that when the Messiah would come, He would fix all their problems.

37. They were looking for a heaven on earth lifestyle that involved ease and happiness but that was not what God’s purpose in this world.

38. This world is being held captive by Satan and is full of sin. It is not this world that God wants to for His children but another one.

39. God’s purpose right now is to transform us into the likeness of His Son and rescue us from this world.

40. There is a truism about God that people 2,000 years ago could not accept and people today still reject.

 God Cannot, Be It In Fleshly Form As Jesus Christ Or As A Living Being In The Hearts Of Believers, Come Into The Midst Of An Anti-God Society Without Being Met With Hostility And Oppression.

41. This is not where our Father wants to leave us. He wants to prepare us for another place.

42. We have another call on our lives. One that involves walking and serving alongside of the Father.

43. We’ve been called to engage in the greatest experience and task in all of the world.

44. That task is to deny ourselves and take on a bigger task of being used by God to lead others to eternal life.

45. In this world, there are no such things as;

• Perfect Lives

• Perfect Marriages

• Perfect Jobs

• Perfect Health

• Perfect Relationships

46. But we are all being shaped by the imperfections of this life to be an effective witness for Jesus.

47. If we choose to live by faith, there will be an added portion of testing and trials to our plate from time to time.

2 Timothy 3:12 (NASB)

12 Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

48. When Jesus said these words; “If anyone wishes to come after Me,” the disciples were no doubt reminded of the day He called each of them to leave all and follow Him.

49. They had surrendered their lives and had received little benefit for doing so.

50. Mark tells us in his record that there was a crowd present when He said this. No doubt there were unbelievers present.

51. When they heard these words, they must have shuddered at the cost He was asking them to pay.

52. The term “deny yourself” and “take up a cross” had very negative connotations in those days and we’ll talk more about that over the next two weeks.

53. But let me say this, these people understood being denied of the things they wanted most and they surely understood the cruelty of a cross.

54. In one moment He’s speaking of joy, peace and abundant life and in the next He’s speaking of self-denial and crosses to bear.

55. The key to understanding how this can be is to answer the call to a life of daily obedience to Christ.

 Discipleship Is On God’s Terms. The Key To Winning By Losing Involves Two Things;

• Self-Denial

• Cross-Bearing

56. Over the next two weeks, I will break down self-denial and cross bearing according to Jesus’ definition.

57. But in closing, let me leave you with this;

2 Timothy 1:8-9 (NIV)

So do not be ASHAMED to testify about our Lord…… But join with me in SUFFERING for the gospel, by the power of God, who has saved us and called us to a holy life…

58. Ask yourself this question in closing;

 Am I Fulfilling The Purpose Of My Birth?