2018 Goal: Students & Parents Discipled

Introduction

What a powerful video, right? It’s all about Jesus.

That’s what we are going to talk about tonight as we continue our series on 2018 Goals. We’ve talked about being a bigger part of the multi-generational church and students leading students to Jesus. Tonight we are talking about abandoning everything and becoming disciples of Jesus.

Text

Mark 8:34–38 CSB

34 Calling the crowd along with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. 35 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me and the gospel will save it. 36 For what does it benefit someone to gain the whole world and yet lose his life? 37 What can anyone give in exchange for his life? 38 For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

Mark 8:34

Jesus turns from speaking to His closest disciples to the whole crowd. This is for all followers of Jesus.

When Jesus said take up his cross, He did not mean to wear a necklace or have a tatoo. He means be ready to die, be ready to love everything including your own life.

There is an eternity to be lived after this life, so we cannot let the cares of this world keep us from the prize of eternity with Jesus.

Body

Define disciples (talmidim)

A disciple is someone who lives to be like his/her teacher.

Jesus description of someone who follows Him.

Abandon life and embrace Jesus

Jesus provides eternal life

Even your and my life are expendable for the Kingdom of God

Abandon ambition and embrace Jesus

Jesus provides a plan and purpose better than our own

We live our lives looking for a plan and purpose that satisfy us and make us happy, but the only plan and purpose worth pursuing is the one with Jesus in front of you and the world behind you.

Abandon self and embrace Jesus

Jesus provides a new life of selflessness

The self is the most worshiped idol in our culture whether through self-love or self-hatred. All we think about is our selves whether positively or negatively. Abandoning self means to put everything about us on the back burner and put Jesus in that chair where the idol used to sit.

Abandon things and embrace Jesus

Jesus provides eternity

Everything you have right now will whither away and die. There will be new phones. New games. New youth groups. New schools. New life circumstances. New this. New that. But eternity with Jesus never changes. He calls us to let go of all of the things that will eventually be meaningless and embrace the most meaningful thing in all of existence, eternal life with Jesus.

Abandon acceptance and embrace Jesus

Jesus provides entrance into His Kingdom and family, ultimate acceptance

We strive and claw for acceptance among our peers or adults. We will do anything for it. What will you do to be accepted by Jesus? The only answer is give up everything.

Conclusion

Previous Goals

More students will be involved in the multigenerational life of the church here at First Baptist.

Goal: That students would lead students to Jesus.

That students would lead students to Jesus.

Goal: Students would become more like Jesus than before, and that more parents would be involved in the spiritual lives of their teenagers.

We don’t want teenagers to live stagnant, holy Christian huddle lives at this church.

We want students to be radically changed by the good news of Jesus and to be continually changed and molded and shaped to be like Jesus.

Our goal is not to have all of the Christians come to this church. Our goal is to be radically changed here and take that radical change to the ends of the earth…including CL, TX

Response

We talked about abandoning a lot of different things tonight. Which one of those hits you the hardest? Which one of those do you need to give up to Jesus tonight?

Do you find what Jesus says in this passage of Scripture kind of harsh? He says some pretty difficult things. What do you think that says about the Christian life? What can we expect when we follow Jesus?

There are some in this room who haven’t begun to abandon everything for Jesus, but they feel now that they want to start living life with that eternity with Jesus in mind. Could that be you?

Dream about how different our youth group could be if everyone abandoned self and embraced Jesus. How can you be a part of making that dream come true?