18: Is Jesus Worthy of my life? (Mt 8:18-34)

Our Graduates will soon be stepping away into new experiences and relationships in coming days. Some of them are also stepping away from some of their past loves, like competitive sports.

Many of us still remember the glory days of our youth athletics & other skills. In truth, it seems like the older we get…the better we were! Sometimes we wish we could go back and play 1 more time.

I heard the story of 2 old men, Abe and Bob, sit on a park bench feeding pigeons and talking about baseball. Abe turns to Bob and asks, "Do you think there's baseball in Heaven?”

Bob thinks about it for a minute and replies, "I dunno. But let's make a deal -- if I die first, I'll come back and tell you if there's baseball in Heaven, and if you die first, you do the same.”

They shake on it and sadly, a few months later, poor Abe passes on. Soon afterward, Bob sits in the park feeding the pigeons by himself and hears a voice whisper, "Bob... Bob... ."

Bob responds, "Abe! Is that you?”

"Yes it is, Sol," whispers Abe.

Bob, still amazed, asks, "So, is there baseball in Heaven?”

"Well," says Abe, "I've got good news and bad news."

"Gimme the good news first," says Bob.

Abe says, "Well, there IS baseball in Heaven."

Bob says, "That's great! What news could be bad enough to ruin that?”

Abe sighs and whispers, "You're pitching on Friday."

_____________

In light of the fact that every person here WILL have your number called when you die OR when Jesus returns, today we are confronted to answer the one question that matters most...

Is Jesus Worthy of My Life?

If He is, then we need to focus on what He expects of us, and be willing to lay down anything that interferes with giving Jesus first place in our lives.

So maybe the best question to get to that BIG QUESTION is this: Is there anything you are NOT willing to give up to follow Jesus?

James Calvert was a young pioneer missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands.

En route the ship captain, a humane man, tried to dissuade him, finally crying in desperation, “You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among such savages.”

James Calvert calmly replied, “We died before we came.”

PRAY - Lord Jesus, help us to be reminded that you ARE worthy of our lives, and help us to remove anything or anyone that sits on the throne of our hearts. Amen.

Matthew 8:18–20 (NIV)

When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he gave orders to cross to the other side of the lake. Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”

A teacher of the law is someone who copied, studied, and taught the Scriptures to others who often could not read or write. So here is a trained expert in the Hebrew Scriptures, asking Jesus to be his rabbi, his teacher - to follow, learn, and practice the ways of Jesus.

Obviously, this man thought a lot of Jesus to want to follow Jesus wherever he went. Surely this would encourage Jesus and he would likely say “Welcome to the family!” NOPE. Why not?

This man’s experience was going to be very different than whoever trained him before. He wasn’t going to experience the prestige typically accompanying most rabbis.

Jesus is saying, ‘Have you really THOUGHT this through? It’s not going to be comfortable. The animals have homes, but we have not yet found a place to stay tonight as we travel around from town to town. And what’s awaiting is not going to be easy. Are you sure you’re all in?’

While many had shown hospitality to Jesus up to this point, praising his words & works, the dark days were coming as Jesus journeyed to Jerusalem. In fact, as Jesus approached the CROSS, many who claimed to follow Him would fly the coop.

Have you noticed how EVERYBODY supports the home team when they are winning, but what about when the tough times come?

Many a man has signed up with the glories of war in their minds - the soldiers on parade with polished boots, glittering medals, and powerful weapons. But that glory fades when the bullets start flying, friends start dying, and exhaustion sucks the life out of you…it causes you to rethink whether it’s worthy of your life.

So too, Jesus warns this teacher of the law that he might want to reconsider signing up. It will cost the disciples of Jesus. Many of them would be chased away & even hunted down and killed. Many followers of Jesus would be banished from their families. Following Jesus is COSTLY.

But I know one thing. At the end of the journey for the men and women who DID follow Jesus throughout His ministry, to His death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and empowering of the Holy Spirit He promised...these people would say that...

BIG TRUTH: Life with the KING, IS worth the COST

Many prosperity preachers are calling people to follow a comfortable Christ - a build-a-bear Jesus - They emphasize a Jesus who guarantees health, wealth, & earthly security…but is this what Jesus was pointing this scribe to? Of course not.

So too, we do people a disservice to tell them, “Just pray this prayer, you’ll be saved and live happily ever after,” instead of pleading with them to examine the evidence, count the cost, and TRUST Jesus with everything they’ve got.

Many sign up and say “Jesus, I will follow you wherever you go…as long as it doesn’t cost me anything.”

People in the 21st century think they can make deals with Jesus that sound like this: “I’ll follow You if…”.

But Biblical Christianity is saying, “I’ll follow You…EVEN if.”

Even if…it cost my job, my relationships, my comfort. Biblical Christianity is recognizing that..

BIG TRUTH: Life with the KING, IS worth the COST

Well, since this man is never mentioned again, it seems that he stopped short of following Jesus.

Like many of us, this scribe was eager to declare his allegiance but had not counted the cost of following Jesus. Have YOU counted the cost? Are YOU all in?

Then another man then expresses interest in following Jesus…after he takes care of something first.

Matthew 8:21–22 (NIV)

Another disciple said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

Where did loving compassionate Jesus go? Was He having a bad day and lashing out with quick, uncaring statements?

Burying your father sure seems like a reasonable request.

But I have some questions.

First, if his father had just died, why is this son with Jesus now instead of making burial preparations?

Second, why would Jesus - who commands his followers to love their neighbors and their enemies, not allow this man a time to love his own family?

Third, since the Scriptures gave priority to burying the dead family members (Joseph asks for Pharaoh’s permission to leave and bury his father - Gen 5:1-14), and honoring your mother and father (Ex 20:12; Deut 5:16), why would Jesus tell him to disobey what the Scriptures say regarding this?

Some commentators note that this man might be awaiting his father's death in the next few days/years. In other words, “First let me go and bury my father” might be understood as “Some day, after my father has died, after I receive my inheritance, I will follow you.”

There’s another possibility. Since Jews did not embalm the body, they buried the corpse the same day as the death. One year later they would open the tomb for the second stage of burial - to put the bones into a small ossuary and seal the tomb again.

Jesus will not wait on this man. Jesus is calling this man to immediate obedience without delay, to decide WHO is most important in his life. He tells the man, Let the dead bury the dead - the spiritually dead can bury the physically dead. You want LIFE? Follow me!

Oh church…if WE would put the commands of Jesus before the desire of our families! Too often we give in to our children or spouse or friends rather than LEADING them to follow Jesus first.

A pastor I know had a heart to heart with his son, whom he dearly loves, after having multiple run-ins. This pastor/father made lots of time for his son away from church gatherings, and talked about Jesus often with family, friends, and acquaintances.

The son told his father, “I want you to be my Dad, not my pastor.” The young man, who was not living for Jesus, seemed embarrassed that his dad sharing the gospel with people, and seemed to want his father to stop talking about Jesus around him.

That pastor & father, with tears in his eyes - listened, tried to clarify how he could be a better father to his son, and then said these words, “Son, I love you, but…I love Jesus more than I love you. I was talking with people about Jesus before you were born, and that’s not going to change because you don’t like it.”

Following & obeying Jesus must be our first priority, even above the desires of our family, because...

BIG TRUTH: Life with the KING, IS worth the COST

Now, back to the Scriptures.

Matthew 8:23–25 (NIV)

Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”

Do you remember any other story where a prophet of God is asleep during a storm…on a boat?

Yep - Jonah (Jonah 1:1-6)! Except the stories end a little different.

Disobedient Jonah gets thrown overboard to appease the storm and the anger of God.

Obedient Jesus does something…a little bit different…different than ANY OTHER PROPHET has ever done in the history of time!

Matthew 8:26–27 (NIV)

He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!”

Um…who IS this guy? I mean, his disciples knew he did incredible miracles, casting out demons, healing diseases, and teaching like no one they had ever heard before. Thousands flocked to be near Him…but…WHO CAN CONTROL THE WIND AND WAVES?

NOTE: They didn’t hear Jesus pray and ask God to calm down the storm. He simply told it to stop…and IT DID - immediately!

Who IS this?

Psalms - written 1000 years before this event - gives us a glimpse of Who has this authority - Yahweh!

Psalm 89:9 (CSB)

You rule the raging sea; when its waves surge, you still them.

Jesus amazes His disciples once again.

And he wasn’t done.

PIC: They had sailed from the Jewish region to the Gentile region on the Sea of Galilee.

Matthew 8:28 (NIV)

When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way.

Mark and Luke give us some more interesting info about this situation (Mk 5:1–17; Lk 8:26–37). They focus on the man that ends up speaking to Jesus. These men lived among the tombs, and were so strong that they couldn’t be restrained - even tearing chains & shackles apart. They were some bad mamma-jammas.

It’s no wonder that people were afraid of them.

But Jesus wasn’t. In fact, they were afraid of Him! Because they KNEW Who He was!

Matthew 8:29 (NIV)

“What do you want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?”

Mark and Luke tell us that when Jesus commanded the demon to reveal his name, it responded, “We are legion, for we are many.” (Legion in Roman army was 6,000 men.)

But while Jesus was outnumbered, He wasn’t overpowered.

The countless demons inside these men are AFRAID of this Jewish rabbi, afraid that He will torture them by sending them to a place of punishment that awaits them - one that they know they will be sent at the appointed time. And here are these powerful demons inside these men, begging Jesus not to send them there yet.

Matthew 8:30–31 (NIV)

Some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding. The demons begged Jesus, “If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.”

Matthew 8:32 (NIV)

He said to them, “Go!” So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water.

Send us into the herd of pigs. This was clearly NOT a Jewish culture, as pigs would were considered unclean (Lev. 11:7; Deut. 14:8), never to be touched, eaten, and certainly not farmed.

And so it is that Jesus gives permission for the UNCLEAN SPIRITS to enter the UNCLEAN ANIMALS.

Mark 5:13 says there were 2000 pigs, now possessed by these demons - who want to get away from Jesus as quick as they can, and so... they all do a SWINE DIVE into the Sea of Galilee.

WHO is in charge here?

Just as Jesus calmed the weather, Jesus calmed the man, & kicked out the fallen angels - of all it is…His creation - Col 1:16 (Col 1:16).

Colossians 1:16 (NIV)

For in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.

When the Creator commands the created to do what He says, unless He allows their disobedience for a short time - His creation jumps to attention.

Matthew 8:33 (NIV)

Those tending the pigs ran off, went into the town and reported all this, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men.

I can imagine people in the town saying, “Surrrrre. We’ll believe that when pigs fly.”

I can see the pig herders saying, “Well, it was something like that. Come see if for yourselves.” So they do.

Matthew 8:34a (NIV)

Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus.

Mark and Luke give us insight into what they saw.

Mark 5:15 (NIV)

When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid.

Afraid? WHY? We don’t know for sure.

Maybe it was because they knew the power these demon possessed guys, and they were afraid of them. And since Jesus was more powerful than those guys, they were afraid of Him.

Maybe it was because they didn’t want any more of their valued herds hurdling into the Sea of Galilee.

So...

Matthew 8:34b (NIV)

And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region.

That’s how Matthew ends this story, and the ancient audience probably felt about the same we we do right now.

Asking…WHAT is WRONG with you? WHY in the world would you not WANT to spend some time with this incredibly powerful man? Don’t you realize WHO this is? Or…at least…don’t you want to know?

The reality is…many of US don’t want Jesus disrupting our comfortable way of life either. We rather He leave us alone.

______________

Now…we could leave this passage right here and let us chew on this question all week,

“Is Jesus Worthy of my Life?” or will I ask him to leave me alone?

But I can’t leave it there. You GOT to hear the rest of the story as told by Mark and Luke!

Mark 5:18 (NIV)

As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him.

Is Jesus worthy of my life? This transformed man sure thought so! He believed that LIFE with the KING was worth WHATEVER the cost!

He was ready to go with Jesus, and THIS TIME - different than Jesus done with the other 2 men we saw earlier - Jesus didn’t try to dilute the enthusiasm.

Instead...

Mark 5:19–20 (NIV)

Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.

The people didn’t push him away. They KNEW who has was before this. His transformational story amazed them as he spoke about how much Jesus had done for him!

I wonder how many of these Gentiles later left the comfort of their lives to go hear and see more from Jesus Himself!

Did you know there are people who might actually listen to YOU talk about Jesus if they see a DIFFERENCE in your life?

If Jesus is WORTHY of our lives…then it’s no brainer for us to tell others what He’s done for us!…and to tell them that...

BIG TRUTH: Life with the KING, IS worth the COST

OR....we can tell Jesus to leave us alone

OR tell Jesus “I’ll follow you…IF...”

OR…we can follow the example of the first followers of Jesus who had a different attitude.

“Jesus, I’ll follow you EVEN IF…

EVEN IF you don’t keep me and my family from tough times,

EVEN IF you don’t give us long life, EVEN IF you give us only want we need - but NOT what we WANT.

I’ll follow you EVEN IF you keep me from facing persecution from others.”

Because we have come to believe that..Life with the King IS worth the cost.

PRAY for Graduates

_____________

Discussion Questions

Read Matthew 8:18-22. Some people might wonder why Jesus is being so impatient, but what are some likely reasons why Jesus responds to these men this way? What are some significant COSTS for following Jesus? (We will talk about significant rewards in a moment [question 8].

Read Matthew 10:37. While taking care of our family’s needs and desires is a huge part of our lives, what priority should our family have compared to Jesus? Share some examples of how families are tempted to put their desires before what Jesus desires.

Read Matthew 8:23-27 & Psalm 89:9. What does Jesus’ control over the storm say about His authority and identity?

Read Matthew 8:28-33. While Jesus’ primary ministry was to Jewish people, what does this adventure into Gentile territory say about His care for Gentiles like you and me? What does the power of Jesus over demons say about His authority and identity?

Read Matthew 8:34. Why do you think Matthew might leave his readers with this ending (with the people asking Jesus to leave) instead of the ending of Mark & Luke (where the man wants to follow Jesus, and then obeys Jesus to go tell others about what has been done for him - Mk 5:1–17; Lk 8:26–37)?

Read Mark 5:18-20 and discuss how this transformed man should be an example to us. When’s the last time you shared what Jesus has done for you with a non-Christian? Share some practical ways you might start that conversation and some reasons why it’s difficult for you to initiate spiritual conversations with others.

Let’s practice: Take a few moments to share why life with the king is worth the cost.

What challenged or encouraged you most from today’s teaching and how might you apply it to your life?

Share prayer needs and pray for one another.