All In (1)
All In • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 11 viewsMany in this world think that answering God's call on our life means "never having fun again..." They have been told that God doesn't let us live... BUT... That couldn't be further from the truth! Jesus said, "I have come so they may have life, and have it to the fullest!" (John 10:10, emphasis mine) Jesus's call to "Follow Him" is a call to walk into a life of abundance... of true Joy, and true, honest, loving relationships! It is a call to join Him in a life filled with ... well... LIFE!!!! Walk with us as we discover what it means to be "All In" for the Kingdom!
Notes
Transcript
Mahatma Ghandi once said: “I like your Christ, but I do not like your Christians, because your Christians do not look much like your Christ.” — Mahatma Ghandi
There are many people in this world who agree with him…
Why do you think that is?
— Because, people only seem to commit to what “feels good”… to what is comfortable… to what doesn’t ask them to step out of their comfort zones… and do anything…
— We don’t want to be asked to “love the unlovable”… to give up a Saturday for a service project at the church… or to teach the kids Sunday school…
— We don’t want to give up our daily “Chai mochachino double latte”… or that chrome for our bike… or that yearly cruise to the Bahamas… for the sake of that lost, broken, drug addict living on the street…
— We don’t want to be told to get out of our box! So… We make excuses… “I don’t have time”… “I don’t the money”.... “Those aren’t ‘my type’ of people, I can’t reach out to them...”…
— Or worse… We do step out, but we do it with a judgmental attitude… “They don’t want Jesus”… “They don’t want to help themselves”… “They need to ____”…
All of those things feed the world’s view of Christians…
But that’s not what Jesus commands… amen?
“To say ‘Lord, Lord’ and then disobey is the moral equivalent of Judas’s kiss.” — John McArthur
“Faith is not only a commitment to the promises of Christ; faith is also a commitment to the demands of Christ.” — William Barclay
So… What is it that Christ demands? How do we live our lives as Christians? What are we to do that reveals Christ — the True Christ — to the world?!?
God, through Peter says, “Be Holy for I Am Holy.” (1 Peter 1:16)
27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
Jesus says: “Love your neighbor as yourself...”
When Jesus called the disciples… He said, “Come, Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men.”
He didn’t say, “Follow Me and I’ll never ask you to do anything uncomfortable!”
His call was a call to step out of our comfort zones… out of ourselves… and into the life He has called us to…
So… How do we do these things?
Would you agree that this (the Bible) tells us the best way to do life here on earth?
That it tells us ALL that we need to know to live the life the Christ has called us to live?
John 10:10 (NIV)
10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
The word used to describe the life we are promised is “perissos”… it means “exceptional, more than expected, beyond”
(experissos) “pertaining to a quanitity so abundant as to be considerably more than what one would expect or anticipate...” — Louw-Nida
In other words, think of the most amazing… most awesome… most fulfilling life you can think of… (That doesn’t even come close!)
The life God promises through Christ is so much more than that! It is so much more than anything we can imagine!
BUT… Here’s the catch!
If we want to experience the abundant life Jesus promised… If we want to experience eternal life… Then we have to COMMIT our lives to Jesus…
We have to COMMIT to being guided by Him… to being directed by the Holy Spirit…
We have to go ALL IN for Jesus!
But… I’ve been asked many times… What does that look like?
That is what we are going to spend the next few weeks looking at…
(prayer)
(If you have your Bibles with you) Open your Bibles (or Bible apps) to Matthew 16:24-27
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.
26 What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?
27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done.
This isn’t the only place the Jesus says something along this lines… Look at verse 27.
What is it that Jesus says we are rewarded on?
— “What [we] have done.”
What is that?
12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.
How do we get our name in the Book of Life?
9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.
11 As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.”
That word “believes” is the word “pisteuo” again, it means “puts their complete and total trust in.”
(think about what that does to that verse!)
Jesus’s concern is that we put our trust in Him, and learn to live the way He calls us to live…
His concern is that we live His abundant life, NOT OURS!!!
So He says… (reread Mt 16:24)
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
This all sounds like a whole lot, doesn’t it?
That’s why we are going to break this down… and take it a piece at a time…
Today, we are going to focus on Jesus’s command to “Deny Yourself.”
This is a tough command… But, if we learn to “live it out”, it WILL change everything!
What does it mean to “deny ourselves”?
One pastor said: “Denying ourselves begins with a long look inside.”
Let’s look at Jesus’s words here in context…
In verse 21-24, Jesus is telling the disciples what is to come… The suffering that He will have to endure… and of His coming death…
How does Peter respond? (I kinda admire Peter)
I mean, who among us would have the guts to “rebuke” Jesus?!?
But Jesus turns the table on Peter! look at Mt 16:23
23 Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
Then He tells them:
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
Jesus is telling them to Look Introspectively!
Jesus is telling them to STOP! To take a long, deep, look inside themselves… That they are not thinking through the Spirit… That they do not have His mind…
— We have a tendency to look at things through ‘worldly eyes’… That’s what Peter was doing…
— ‘Worldly eyes’ tend to focus only on personal needs and desires… only on those things that bring glory and honor to our lives… those things that personally benefit us…
When what we really need is God!
We need to get our focus off of ourselves, and on Him!
King David… a man that the Bible calls “A man after God’s own heart”… understood this need…
23 Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
David is doing something here that God is calling all of us to do!
If we have any hope of following Jesus, then we MUST look inside ourselves…
We MUST stop looking for what scripture says to others… We MUST stop looking only at the surface… and look at what scripture is saying to us… ABOUT US!!!!
If we hope to truly DENY OURSELVES, then we MUST LOOK INTROSPECTIVELY at ourselves…
It’s not an easy thing to do, because it means being open and honest with ourselves…
It means recognizing our faults… our misconceptions… our stubbornness and selfishness…
It means asking ourselves:
“Where is my life heading?”
“What are my priorities?”
“What am I investing myself in to?”
“What things have become idols in my life?”
“Denying ourselves” is not something we can do on our own… It means asking God to help us to see what things… what motivations… what thoughts, ideas, and beliefs… even what “works”… are coming between us and Him!
It means praying with David, “Lord search me and know me, reveal to me if there is anything in me that is offensive to You...”
— We have a tendency to read scripture only for what it can give to others… or, for what it says about them…
(Consider the last 6 weeks… How many of you considered honestly that you might be the Pharisee… or the oldest son?)
— We often read scripture and pray only to vindicate ourselves…
— We are like that Priest that stood in the front of the sanctuary, praying loudly, proclaiming his thanks that he wasn’t like that “tax-collector”… that “sinner”…
Jesus tells us not to be like that!!!
We need to read scripture… we need to pray… fervently and introspectively!!!
If we don’t pray fervently and introspectively, then we aren’t growing in Christ.... and if we aren’t willing to grow in Christ, then we might as well close the doors and go home!!! (Pastor Tony Whitehead)
It would have been pointless for David to merely look within himself to try and figure out what was needed to simply exit the scene…
That wouldn’t have helped him!!!
Yet, that’s what we often do, isn’t it?
David knew he needed God to play a role… And, so do we!
That is what the Holy Spirit does for us…
13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
Let me tell you…
God desires to lead us into all truth.
18 “Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.
Truth is found in scripture… Truth is found in honest, open, prayer… Prayer that doesn’t just tell God our needs, but LISTENS to what His needs are for us!
The Holy Spirit will lead us into the best way of life, from the inside out… IF WE WILL LET HIM!!!
True change happens from the inside out…
18 But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them.
19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.
20 These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.”
Sinful deeds… and sinful words… come from a sin-filled heart!
That is why it is so important that God play a central role in our introspection.
What is it that God wants to reveal to you about what’s going on right now in your life?
Or, in your mind?
Maybe in your heart?
Do you even know?!?
God wants to tell you what steps He wantsa you to take, but… We have to listen!!!
We must have receptive hearts!
That is why we MUST invite Him into the conversation!
“Search me and know me o’ Lord...”
Then… after we have heard from God… We MUST be willing to give it to God!
Denying ourselves means…
Living with Open Hands.
There are 2 things we tend to do:
We pray for something, then we pick it right back up… or...
We never let it go to begin with…
(Everyone clench your fists....)
This is how we are with things…
This is how we are with our families… our beliefs… our thoughts about scripture… our finances… even our sanctification…
We hold on to them so tightly… refusing to let go…
(drum stick example)
It is really hard — in fact, it is nearly impossible — for us to say “no” to things when we have them clenched in our fist!
It’s hard to say “no” to things when we feel like they are “necessities” in our lives, rather than “wants.”
It’s hard to say “no” when we think we have to do it… we have to plan for it… we have to achieve it ourselves…
Jesus knows this… and He tells us to “let go”…
17 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone.
19 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”
20 “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”
21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
22 At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.
We know this story....
It is such a powerful statement made by Jesus.
He tells the rich man, who honestly desires to receive God’s blessings, to sell everything he has and give it to the poor…
But the rich man’s response to Jesus’s words tells us all we need to know about him…
22 At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.
I wonder… Do we have too many possessions?
Maybe those possessions aren’t all material…
Maybe some of them are past things that we are still holding on to…
Maybe they’re habits… or ideas… or beliefs… that are creating more and more unhealthy rhythms in our lives…
I want you to see something… this is right between the “great banquet” and the “lost sheep”… Jesus says:
Look at Luke 14:26-33
Luke 14:26–33 (NIV)
26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple.
27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
28 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? …
33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.
God’s desire is that we would give EVERYTHING to Him… That we would TRUST Him with it ALL!!!
(tithing story)
The only reason I experienced God’s provision in such a powerful way was because I moved from a clenched fist to an open hand…
God cannot move us to the next place in our Faith Journey until we “let go, and Let Him…!”
(expound — as long as we are holding on to things, we are stuck… )
Final point… Don’t Look Back!
— We have to be willing to take a “leap of faith”.
— We have to be willing to step off the cliff… Trusting God to be there!
This simple statement can be a game changer for you!
Don’t Look Back!!!
Don’t look back at yesterday’s illusions of comfort… Don’t look back at yesterday’s joys and triumphs…
Don’t look back at those things that you’ve chosen to leave behind!
Genesis 19 tells the story of Sodom and Gamorrah… God was going to destroy the cities because of the severity of the sins going on within them… BUT… He allows Abraham to tell Lot what is going to happen, so that they can leave the city…
In the story, Lot and his wife and children are fleeing the city… They’ve been told not to look back… but Lot’s wife chooses to look back…
Look what happens:
26 But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
Did you hear that?!?!
She was turned into a pillar of salt!!!
The question we have to ask is: “Why?”
Not “Why was she turned into a pillar of salt?”
But… “Why did she look back?!”
The answer is found in the Hebrew word used here… and it is a lesson for us…
In verse 26, the original Hebrew word used for our English word “looked” is “nabat”… it means “to regard something with favor, pleasure, or care.”
You see… When Lot’s wife looked back and saw her comfortable place of residence… the city she knew… she yearned for it… she desired it…
Even though this was a place of constant disobedience… of horrific sin… even though God had told them to “flee from it”… She still desired to be there…
Sometimes, we can find ourselves “looking back”… Longing for the things we left behind… or worse… clenching our fists, digging our heels in, refusing to let go… because those things “feel” more comfortable than God!
Guess where the #1 place we do this is?!?
— Money! Finances! Retirement! Our Future Plan!!!
Why do we do this? (Comfort)
Does it really bring us comfort? (NO!!! It brings worry, stress, ulcers,…)
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?
26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?
And Jesus goes on… I encourage you to read more of this later… But this is what I want you to hear for now…
When God points out something that we MUST leave behind, then we MUST be willing to leave it behind… AND NEVER LOOK BACK!!!
God does not want us to focus on what is behind us! That is yesterday’s news!!!
1 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,
2 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.
God’s desire is that we fixate on His plan for our lives!
Do you know what “fixate” means?
Dictionary.com says: “to obsessively concentrate one's attention on”
Cambridge.org says: “to think about something too much and find it difficult to stop:”
To “fix our eyes on Jesus” means that HE becomes the ONLY thing that matters in our lives…
Literally everything we do… our marriages… our jobs… our vacations… our spending… our giving… becomes DEFINED by HIM!!!
We CANNOT follow Christ if we are still holding onto ourselves! … to the past!
13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,
14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
The Apostle Paul had quite the past… He could have looked back upon it…
He was held in high esteem and honored among the Pharisees… He was an extremely gifted leader… He was celebrated for his persecution of the Christians…
Paul could have held onto all of that!
But… He had to learn as we do… in order to answer the call of God on our lives, we MUST deny ourselves and move forward with the life that God has given us…
10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
His abundant life is waiting for you… for me… for all of us!
What is holding you back today?
What part of your past are you holding onto with clenched fists?
What are you afraid to let go of?
Let’s pray.