It All Begins with Me

Good morning! Today is the first day Sunday of the year. Its a special day. Last week we dealt with between 2 mountains and Where Choices Echo Today we are beginning to look at Prayer is our Priority and Missions is our Heartbeat. There is a distinct call this year to come back to the heartbeat of God. We see all throughout scripture that The heartbeat of God is redemption. From the fall of man in Genesis it has been redemption. Restoring man back to God. If our heartbeat collectively for is going to be for Missions and Prayer is going to be our priority then we must first learn that It All Begins with Me and my choices it begins in my heart first before it collectively becomes our heartbeat.

The first thing we must look at is our heartbeat. Where do we place the top things in our lives. What holds that special place in our heart. For some its our spouse, for others in a sports team, still for some its a hobby or even a job. For some The Lord does hold that sport. Today the question will be who holds that space in your heart.

If seeing Christ exalted really was the most important thing in our lives, how would that change our priorities and perspective?

Steven Runge

 9   The reason so many of us struggle so intensely with adversity is that we have yet to adopt God’s perspective and priorities. Charles Stanley How to Handle Adversity (1989)

Charles Stanley

English Standard Version Chapter 9

57 As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”

With this remark Jesus sets priorities.

Darrell L. Bock

We have to understand something there. There is a cost to following Jesus. Salvation is free meaning there are no strings attached God gives the gift freely, but if you want to grow, you want to follow Jesus there is a cost of reorganizing your priorities laying things down and picking up new ones, that is the cost of following Him. Today we have a very broad paint strokes look at following Jesus, we live in a world where following Jesus is simple, there is a church on almost every corner in most of America, there are thousands of sermons preached each week, There are many teachings that feel good and sound good but arent good. There are many teachings that are great. We have access to about any form we want. We hear of the cost of following Jesus and we shrug this section of scripture off because well its easy go to church and be good. I’ll be real honest with you that not following Jesus thats just normal life. You go to to your job and are there with others, you are good but that doesnt make you a follower of Christ. One commentary I read said that Jesus knew the heart of the man who wanted to follow Him and knew the enthusiasm behind his words. So He gives him a statement that is bold and empowered. Its not a quick witt or a statement of fun but of the cost to follow. It is saying that when you follow me its about giving up of yourself and the comforts you are used to. Can I tell you about Abraham a displaced Christian in Nigeria, He was the focus of an interview done by Open Doors International. He was displaced by the violence from Jihadist groups in Nigeria killing and targeting Christinas. His response to the torture and killing of Christians as recorded by Open Doors International

We will worship God because He has preserved our lives… I still have God and He is still on the throne. He will surely deliver me.ABRAHAM, DISPLACED CHRISTIAN IN NIGERIA

There is a cost of priorities to truly follow Jesus. One Commentary I read said this about the follower in the earlier verse of scripture.

Word Pictures in the New Testament Luke 9:59

“one of the casual disciples” of whom there are always too many.

We have been ok with just being in church but I believe that we are being called to a higher calling. There is a call to know the cost to following Jesus. WE struggle to come to church because we don’t feel like it, or we are tired. We have created our world by our comforts and listen I am with you comfort is important, we live in a the most free nation on the world those freedoms are great and I am not asking us to give up our freedoms, or our liberties. NO i am asking us to reorder our priorities. Is there something we prioritize over Jesus? Is there something that we are putting Higher than Him in our lives. If we are going to change our heartbeat it all begins with me. The heartbeat of missions isnt just about global, it isnt just about local, its about hearing the heart of God and responding. Its about redemption for all people. From single moms and dads to tired grandparents caring for their kids and grandkids, from drug addicts to the most grounded person you know. Redemption is the business of God. You can trace it all throughout scripture, You can see that from the inception of the NT Church in Acts that it was all about redemption from beginning to the end of the book. It was about creating moments where Jesus was preached and people made a choice.

English Standard Version Chapter 9

59 To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” 60 And Jesus said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”

This next person scripture says that He offered for him to follow. This was not the same with the first who wanted to follow Jesus, this was an invitation such as the 12 to follow Jesus. The man hesitated. There is a call to here to a sacred time spending time with your loved ones at the end of their life. There is nothing wrong with that. However a deeper look at context and understanding shows us that the mans parents were still alive and not in the last stages of life. It was an excuse to play on the fact that

Luke H. Dedication Means No Looking Back (9:57–62)

He would commit the uncertain future but not the present concrete moment.

Now today we must take a moment here a deal with something Jesus was not disregarding scripture and saying don’t honor your mother or father. We must take into account the Jewish history and culture. A burial of a father was the duty of the eldest son and was a key to receiving the inheritance of the estate. Therefore what this “follower” is saying is I want to come after I deal with all of these things. Then I will be fully devoted to you but Jesus is harsh yet an important concept is found that Jesus is not looking for your future self to say I am ready. He is looking for all to come to Him, for all to follow. He is not saying dont go bury your family, but He is saying that we must place the highest priority of our lives on The Kingdom of God. Yes family is vital yes time is great yes events are fantastic, we have great freedoms and liberties, we all have busy schedules, we arent just going from place to place we have to fit 3 kids 12 schedules and a donkey into a life yet we must make the Kingdom of God our first priority.

This passage is about priorities, and the central priority is God himself.

N. T. Wright

We live by demands when we should live by priorities.

J. Alec Motyer

English Standard Version Chapter 9

61 Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” 62 Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

This man was not looking to be long, He was not looking months into the future or even years, His was just a moment in time. Let me go home and tell those who love me that I am leaving. This was a good thing to do. Go tell someone so the knew thats a good plan but Jesus once again is not looking for someone who is waiting but someone who will understand priorities. His answer is a clear picture that many would understand when you plow you are very guided to make straight lines, you didnt want crooked lines or the crop would not work or grow right. The plowman knows you don’t look back otherwise your lines get off. Jesus is saying that

Luke H. Dedication Means No Looking Back (9:57–62)

Do not start to work and then find something else with more importance, even if for a minute. The call to follow is a call to follow without excuse, without delay

So what is the priority today? Are we so focused on the future we will do it then or if we had this it would all be ok. Jesus is not asking us to look to our future selves and decide that they will follow. He is not calling us to look at those around us and exclude them but He is calling us to make a decision. To say I am all in for you and I will follow you at all cost. I want the heartbeat of Missions I want to prioritize prayer.

The gospel gives us different priorities from those of the popular culture and offers us a different agenda from that of the political economy.

Jim Wallis

Are we focused on things that don’t matter? Are we concerned with schedules, future engagements, or are we just making excuses because we are a casual disciple? because there are many of those. This is not a call that all will step into because well “Jesus wouldn’t ask us to_______?

Or I would never follow any one who would tell me to______? Can i tell you if thats you I love you but you are looking at it all wrong. Jesus isnt asking you to not do those things He is asking you to reorder your priorities to advance the kingdom of God first. The Kingdom of God is not a democracy its not a dictatorship. Its a theocracy. The King is the Lord and he makes the decisions We follow them. Our job is not to tell God what we are doing but to follow His lead. You may say well I don’t know what God is saying or what God is asking. Let me answer for you its simple. Redemption. That is the business of God Its reorganizing your priorities. Its putting things in the right place.

The first reason for rejecting Christ has to do with personal priorities.

A. W. Tozer

If we really understand what being a Christian means—that this Christ, the living God, actually comes in to rule one’s life—then everything change: values, goals, priorities, desires and habits.

Charles Colson

There is a disctinct call today to understand our place in the kingdom of God. We are to be ambassadors of the King, therefore we are to follow the ways of the kingdom. Today we are to reorganize our priorities.

ALTAR