Taking Upon Your Cross : The Cost of Discipleship

- Matthew 4 : Jesus Tempted in the Wilderness

What implications does this story hold for Christ-followers?

Take the example of Jesus what can we learn from this passage?

How does Jesus exemplify this idea of being a disciple of Christ?

To start off, the passage says.. Jesus is led by the Spirit...

What does being led by the Spirit look like? Who is this Holy Spirit?

Passage references:

He is God - Matthew 12:22-32 - Story of the man who is demon possesed.. the Spirit of God comes down upon this man and casts out this demon. The Holy Spirit has power

He is a gift and is eternal - This is shown in both the OT and NT… Gen 1 - This spirit of God hovers upon the waters

He understands God’s thoughts and teaches us to understand 1 Corinthians 2:10-13

He is our Advocate—our comforter or helper who strengthens and sustains and empowers us and advocates on our behalf before the Father (John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7).

We discussed the Holy Spirit coming down at Pentecost Acts 2

It is a personal force that walks with us and equips us

Galatians 5:16 ESV But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.

Romans 8:5 ESV For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.

Galatians 5:25 ESV If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit

What does it mean to walk with (or keep in step with) the Spirit? Paul’s word for “walk” is stoicheo, which means walking in a line and proceeding under another’s control. To walk by or with the Spirit is to do two things: to put off the flesh and to put on a new, Spirit-filled way of life. Follow the Spirit, live under his control, and don’t walk by the flesh.

First, to walk by the Spirit, according to Paul, means putting off the old way of life, “the works of the flesh” (v. 19). It means rejecting sin in all its forms. Living by the Spirit is living in the way of obedience and holiness. Where the Spirit is present, holiness abounds too.

Second, to walk by the Spirit is to put on the new way of life, to be “led by the Spirit.” It’s to be under his control and direction. It’s not just the absence of sin; it’s the presence of goodness and love and power.

It is not our job to be fighting this sin and desire… it is our job to trust in God and the Holy Spirit as they give us the answers needed to fight these things.

We are human… ultimately we are imperfect and sinful… however if we abide in Jesus, the Holy Spirirt, and God… the fruitfullness of understanding comes into fruition

Back to Matthew 4 - The temptations of the Flesh, the eyes, and Pride.

Jesus counters this with scripture but also with the Holy Spirit. He is led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted… this passage serves as a lesson for Christians on how to treat temptations.

Repent…

Using Trials for the testimony of God… this idea of trust begins to continue in the next section of Matthew 4- Jesus preaches a message that is applicable to the understanding of Christians.

Now that we discuss the Holy Spirit and its important work in our lives what does that look like in this aspect of sanctificaiton. To be made holy.

Jesus preaches a difficult message… we are to repent for the kingdom of heaven is near… this idea of repentance may be hard to hear but there is light and love when we rely on the Spirit in this work of repentance. We are not to do it alone but in Christ and his spirit.

Jesus also trust in the Spirit and God during this message. Although the message is difficult to process in nature…

Matthew 4:12–17 shows Jesus' travel and ministry in Capernaum, on the Sea of Galilee. This fulfills another ancient prophecy about the Messiah, found in Isaiah 9:1–2. Scriptures promised a great light would dawn in the region once occupied by the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali, near the Sea of Galilee. Once thought of as ''dark'' because of its nearness to the Gentile nations and distance from Jerusalem, Galilee is the region in which the light of the Messiah will first shine brightly.

The message is being preached to Gentiles… a land of darkness… however Jesus the great light is shown and his message is well recieved.

The calling of the first disciples

Jesus calls his first disciples… to be fishers of men

It is interesting to see the the order of events in this chapter...

Jesus is tempted, then preaches of God’s love of repentance and grace, then he goes and calls his first disicples…

Instead of focusing on what you can do for God… the simple act of abiding and obedience to God is what he is asking for us to do… we are not to walk alone in the wilderness… we are to walk with Christ, his Spirit, and God during this difficult journey.

So what does this walk look like… what is the cost to this freedom in Christ.

The Cost : Taking upon your cross

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

Matthew 16:24

Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and 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, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, ...

Luke 14:25-33

What heavy words… what does Jesus mean for us to “hate”

In a world with so many contendings loves, we can forget that Jesus is supposed to be our first love. This can mean we can even idolize our families. However, in this context Jesus is trying to say that our deepest affections must rely solely on him. This means even our deepest affections to our kin must be rooted in the fact that Jesus stands above all. If our love is rooted in Jesus… the guidance of how we should love our family members come into play

However the more heavier topic is this idea of taking upon a cross… what does this mean?

In the ancient world, the cross was used as a symbolism of death. However, Jesus managed to use this to create life for humankind. Ultimately he gave his life for our sins… so using this example what is Jesus calling for us to put death to.

The cost of discipleship is not an easy one… we are to lay down our life for his cause and for his goodness… the promise… ultimate freedom. However this leads into the question of how to do this… as mentioned above we are not to walk alone. We are to walk in Christ and the Spirirt. We are called to love and abide in him, and if we love and abide in him the cost is not really a cost or something difficult… it is freedom and love.

So what is Jesus asking for you to lay down today?

Would you still be a Christian…?