All In pt2: Take up your cross
All In • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 3 viewsWhat motivates missionaries to stay in the field regardless of the threat to their personal lives and the lives of their families? What caused 5 women to move their children into the village of the exact same village that murdered their husbands? What motivates people to give up their lives for the sake of serving others? They were "All In"! Going "All In" for Christ means making Him our #1 source...
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In one of his books, Dr. Stan Toler tells the story of Leith Anderson… an old man who attended the 100 year celebration of missionaries coming to the Congo…
Leith wasn’t a scheduled speaker, but he insisted that they allow him to speak.... you see… He had a story to tell that would die with him if he didn’t tell it…
As he spoke, he told of how strange the missionaries were when they first came to the area.... how strange their message was… How unsure they were about whether they could trust these newcomers or not…
So… The village leaders came up with an idea… They’d test these missionaries… Over time, they slowly poisoned them…
One by one, the missionaries children began to die…
The old man said, “It was as we watched how they died that we decided we wanted to live as Christians.”
No one told this story for a hundred years… The missionaries died strange… painful deaths… and they didn’t even know why!
But they didn’t know the impact their deaths would have either…
They could have left… after all, their children were dying!
But they didn’t! They stayed… and because of that, the tribes lives were changed!
What motivated them to stay under such horrible circumstances?
Why didn’t they go back home when the going got tough?
“They were committed to love and obey Jesus and follow the call He had placed on their lives.” — Dr. Stan Toler
They were ALL IN.
They had decided that Following Jesus… that expending their life for the Kingdom of God was worth it!
“The first and last word for a disciple of Jesus is ‘Obey!’ I mean to say that the word ‘believe’ is not as important as ‘You who believe, obey Him whom you believe!’ Of what use is believing if you cannot obey!” — Johann Christoph Blumhardt
And what did Jesus say, “Take up YOUR cross and FOLLOW me.” (Mt. 16:24)
That means going “All In” for Jesus…
Going “ALL IN” means making Christ our #1 source…
Our #1 source for love… Our #1 source for encouragement… Our #1 source for direction… purpose… and fulfillment…
Look at 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.
“To deny yourself does NOT mean to deny things. It means to give yourself WHOLLY to Christ…” — Weirsbe
1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
…
7 But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.
8 What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ
9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.
10 I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
To deny ourselves means that our life BECOMES Christ’s!
Look at Mt 16:24 again…
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 defines TRUE FOLLOWERS in 3 ways here…
— The words He uses are “3rd person imperatives” meaning we do not have strong enough language in English to translate them properly…
True Followers MUST “deny themselves”.
— “arneomai” — “to deny utterly, completely, emphatically...”
— This is how Peter’s denial of Christ was…
Look at Paul’s words in Gal 2:20
20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
— “Arneomai” [deny ourselves] means total depravation… total exclusion… of anything that comes between us and the Kingdom of God! It means excluding from our lives anything [and everything] that competes with His Kingdom!
Look what Jesus says next:
Matthew 16:24 (NIV)
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
2. (Today) True Followers MUST “take up their Cross.”
— — We’ll talk about the 3rd thing next week…
Jesus says that we must “take up our cross”, but…
What does that mean?
“To take up a cross does not mean to carry burdens, or to have problems...” — Weirsbe
He goes on to say:
“To take up the cross means to identify with Christ, in His resurrection, shame, suffering, and death.” — Weirsbe
But… that’s where we struggle, isn’t it?
“Many people [want] to follow Jesus, but most [want] to do it on their own terms.” — Holman
Look @ what Jesus says in verses 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.
In other words… “Only those who [follow] on His terms [can] be disciples. And they [will] be rewarded for their [faithfulness].” — Holman
We CANNOT be “ALL IN” for Christ if we DO NOT seek to be “TRUE FOLLOWERS.”
That means … we MUST deny ourselves and take up our cross…
Taking up our cross means…
We Can Expect Pain…
We can expect struggles…
We can expect trials and hardships…
2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
Let me tell you a little of my story…
— coming out of highschool and into the workforce, I decided that life was all about partying… you know… sex, drugs, and rock & roll!
— I didn’t get into drugs, but my use of alcohol got out of control…
— I managed to get free from that, but… Io focused my energy on wealth… my ability to provide became purpose…
— Things were going well until 2003.... bankruptcy…
— It took my feet right out from under me…
— When that pain came into my life, I didn’t know what to do… It had caught me completely off guard…
I mean… everything was going so well… and then… Bam! It’s all gone! The comfort was taken away… I almost turned back to alcohol…
Jesus makes it clear time and time again in scripture… There is a promise of pain if we follow Him…
When we “set our eyes on Him… “trials, pain, hardship… will come…”
Why?
— Because, this world “hates” Christ… It hated Him then, and it hates Him now…
33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Jesus tells us that this world is going to offer us sorrow and pain…
But look at Jn 14:3
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
He has overcome the world… and has prepared a place for us!
That means that the suffering is temporary!
Did you hear that?!?
The sufferings are TEMPORARY!
We too can overcome the world through Christ! Through the power of His Holy Spirit!
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?
Jesus tells us… before we take up our cross to follow Him… that we MUST “count the cost!”
For the 12 apostles… the cost for most of them was their lives…
It cost John physical and emotional suffering… and isolation/exile…
Throughout the history of the Church, around the world, this has been a reality for the followers of Christ…
For us… the pain may not be physical… It may not mean death or imprisonment… But… There is a cost!
No matter how easy it seems to follow Christ in our nation, There is a cost!
We can expect certain things from this world…
We Can Expect Loneliness.
We read about Jesus… the crowds following Him… When they weren’t, He had the 12… walking and talking with Him…
It would be easy for us to believe that Jesus was never alone… That He never felt loneliness… as we do…
BUT…
We’d be wrong!
17 Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha).
Jesus didn’t just carry the Cross… He did so, BY HIMSELF!
All of His disciples had deserted Him… Look at Mt 26:31-34
31 Then Jesus told them, “This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written: “ ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’
32 But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”
33 Peter replied, “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.”
34 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.”
“Disown”… “Deny”… “aparneimai” means “to refuse to acknowledge as one’s own; to claim no knowledge or relationship to; to say that one does not know about or is in any way related to a person or event.”
Now look at:
74 Then he began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know the man!” Immediately a rooster crowed.
75 Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: “Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.
Even Peter… who had declared his willingness to follow Jesus tot he Cross… Left Him…
What a moment this would have been for Jesus!
He’s already in pain… He’s been beaten… His flesh torn open… He’s been mocked… teased… made fun of… and now…
He has to travel to His place of execution, CARRYING HIS OWN CROSS!!!
He was totally alone… totally isolated… totally and completely without friends… family… or any supporters in that moment…
BUT…
Jesus willingly chose to walk that path… BECAUSE HE LOVES US!!!!
Taking up our cross means willingly choosing to follow His example…
It may result in loneliness… it may feel as if we are on an island by ourselves as we stand on our faith… That’s the reality of living “Not of This World”.
49 “I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!
50 But I have a baptism to undergo, and what constraint I am under until it is completed!
51 Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division.
52 From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three.
53 They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
When Jesus sets that fire in us… That fire that He desires to kindle… It will separate us from this world!
Church… We have to be alright with the idea of people in our life walking away strictly because we are following Jesus!
The Bible makes it clear that that will happen… People will desert us… they will leave, but…
Jesus will NEVER leave us or FORSAKE us!
Think about it… Even though Peter completely abandoned Him, Jesus NEVER left him…
And He will NEVER leave us!
We Can EXPECT Partnership.
Scripture tells us that Jesus is our brother!
5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—
The family of God is a beautiful thing!
It is full of people from ALL walks of life… from ALL cultures… from ALL races… working TOGETHER for the Kingdom!!!
Let me tell you… There is nothing more beautiful than a family that is PARTNERED together for the benefit of the family…
That’s why Paul talks so much about working together…
This is where I want us to “land” today.
15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”
16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
If we want to share in Jesus’s glory, then we must also share in His suffering.
The road isn’t easy, but… It Is Worth It!
Partnering with Christ… going “ALL IN”… means looking at what He has done… and DOING IT!!!
It means following Him… learning from Him… being a student — learner — disciple…
It means that we GIVE UP our way of life… and EMBRACE His way of life!
That is the cross we bear!
3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
What is standing in the way of you living that new life today?
What is holding you back from carrying your cross?
(prayer)