The Final Cut

The Final Cut

Discipleship

Texts: Luke 9:23-24; Luke 14:25-33; John 6:53-69

Introduction:

In professional football there are at least three “cuts” during the final weeks of practice in order to get the roster down to those who will most likely see playing time during the season. Last year’s teams were allowed to take 90 players into the opening practice, but had to be down to 53 by the end of August. As the date grows nearer for the final cut, the requirements for making the team are elevated.

In the same way Jesus made some “cuts” to the group that was following Him as He drew near to His departure. Today we’re going to look at the “cuts” Jesus made, and the requirements at each stage.

For many people the word disciple is only applies to the 12 who became Apostles. In reality though, a disciple is one who learns from a teacher, or in the OT days, a Rabbi. People would literally follow a Rabbi day and night in order to learn, not only from what they said, but also from what they did. A true disciple was identified as one who was “covered in the dust of his Rabbi.” In other word, the disciple followed so closely that the dust stirred by the Rabbi’s sandals clung to them. At the beginning of Jesus’ ministry there were many who became “disciples”.

Another misunderstanding that we have is that all disciples are Christians. In reality, it appears that the 12 were not Christians until after the resurrection and Pentecost. While not all disciples are Christians, all (say “all”) Christians are disciples.

Many people in the church today are what are called “Cultural Christians”. They are the ones whom Jesus spoke of in Matt. 7:21-23 when He said “Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, drive out demons in your name, and do many miracles in your name?’ Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you lawbreakers.’”

Examination:

1. The First Cut

Luke 9:23–24“Then he said to them all, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will save it.”

In this passage Jesus clearly spelled out the basic requirements for becoming one of His disciples. Denying ones’ self means to recognize that not all of my wants and desires are in line with Jesus’ purposes. Any that are not should be denied. This is sort of like dieting. You deny yourself foods that would keep you from reaching your goals. In this case, Jesus is your dietitian. He has designed a life-plan for each person who wants to be His disciple. Self-denial is a willingness to obey His commandments, including loving one another, serving one another and being willing to suffer and die for His sake.

Taking up your cross daily is a word picture of dying. Those who first heard Jesus say this understood that He was referring to the most painful, humiliating form of execution…the Roman cross. If Jesus was speaking to us today in Florida, He would say, “Take up Old Sparky every day and be executed.” Just as Jesus bore the cross to Calvary, we are to bear our means of death to the place of death. Following Christ is not a joy-ride. It is recognizing that there will be painful situations every day simply because we are following our Rabbi. People who are not willing to deny self and die daily to their own desires, will miss the first cut of discipleship. Later in this chapter, v61, we find some who missed this first cut. Luke 9:61–62 “Another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me go and say good-bye to those at my house.” But Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.””

2. The Second Cut

Luke 14:25–33“Now great crowds were traveling with him. So he turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, and even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.

“For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn’t first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, after he has laid the foundation and cannot finish it, all the onlookers will begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This man started to build and wasn’t able to finish.’ “Or what king, going to war against another king, will not first sit down and decide if he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If not, while the other is still far off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. In the same way, therefore, every one of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple.”

The “great crowds” were “wanna-be disciples”. They were enamored by the teaching and the miracles of Jesus. They were like kids around the campfire on the last night at youth camp when everyone gets emotional and makes “decisions” to follow Jesus. These “commitments” often last until they get home. They were “fired-up” but they quickly “fizzled out”.

Jesus laid down a requirement that quickly whittled the number in the “great crowd”. He demanded first place in their hearts. He is to be loved so far beyond the love we have for our family, that in comparison, it appears that we actually hate them. The 12 had to leave family, occupation, home, friends…whatever, in order to follow Jesus. Paul put it this way In Romans 6:11 “So, you too consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” For the true disciple, to love anyone or anything more than you love Jesus is…sin.

Then Jesus said “Plan your work and work your plan.” Determine how you are going to do these requirements and devise a plan for doing them. If you find yourself thinking…that’s too hard, surely Jesus didn’t mean this, you are about to miss the second cut. Have you counted the cost?

3. The Final Cut

John 6:53–69“So Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life in yourselves. The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day, because my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven; it is not like the manna your ancestors ate—and they died. The one who eats this bread will live forever.” He said these things while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. Therefore, when many of his disciples heard this, they said, “This teaching is hard. Who can accept it?” Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, asked them, “Does this offend you? Then what if you were to observe the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? The Spirit is the one who gives life. The flesh doesn’t help at all. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and are life. But there are some among you who don’t believe. (For Jesus knew from the beginning those who did not believe and the one who would betray him.) He said, ‘This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted to him by the Father. From that moment many of his disciples turned back and no long accompanied him. So Jesus said to the Twelve, ‘You don’t want to go away too, do you?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the HOly One of God.’”

In the Hebrew understanding the phrase ‘flesh and blood’ refers to the total person. What Jesus said to them was, “You must surrender all of you to all of me, or there is no deal.” John McArthur points out in his study Bible that this was an analogy that is spiritual, rather than literal, in significance. Just as eating and drinking are necessary for physical life, the “eating of HIs flesh and drinking of His blood”, symbolically, are necessary for eternal life.

When you eat or drink something physically, you are, by faith, entrusting your entire being to whatever you eat or drink. When you eat the body and drink the blood of Jesus, you are, by faith, entrusting your eternal destiny to Him. You are surrendering control to Him.

Application: Where are you on the cut line? What do you need to do to “make the team”?

Salvation is attained by surrender to Jesus, lock, stock, and barrel.

Repeating a prayer and getting voted into church membership does not save you.

Being baptized does not save you.

The bottom line is that unless you are “all in”, you are all out. Have you surrendered to Jesus? If not, are you willing to surrender today?