The Cost of Following Christ

English Standard Version Chapter 9

23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? 26 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. 27 But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”

Reviewing the Basics: It is hard to be asked to be preach in a church that you are not too familiar with. You don’t know a lot of things. The hardships and trials that the congregation has gone through. If the congregation is made up of baby Christians, seasoned saints, or some mixture of the aforementioned. There was a WWII doctrine for fighter pilots that when you cannot communicate with your commanding officer and the enemy is in play, “When in doubt, win the war.” Well when in doubt from the pulpit, edify the Church with an examination or reexamination of the basics. So today we are looking to , as well as numerous other passages, and we are going examine what it costs to be Christ’s disciple.

It is hard to be asked to be preach in a church that you are not too familiar with. There was a WWII doctrine for fighter pilots that when you cannot communicate with your commanding officer and the enemy is in play, “When in doubt, win the war.” Well when in doubt from the pulpit, edify the Church with an examination of the basics. So today we are looking to , as well as numerous other passages so be ready with your Bibles, and we are going examine what it costs to be Christ’s disciple. It doesn’t

is preceded by some big events, with this type situation repeating later on in : The Feeding of the 5000, the Disciples confide to Jesus that they know He is the Christ of God, and Jesus foretells His suffering and death instructing the disciples to secrecy for the then present.

is preceded by some big events which is worth mentioning briefly as it is a common pattern found in the gospels. Here chapter 9 we have the Feeding of the 5000, the Disciples confide to Jesus that they know He is the Christ of God, and Jesus foretells His suffering and death instructing the disciples to secrecy for the then present.

is preceded by some big events, with this type situation repeating later on in : The Feeding of the 5000, the Disciples confide to Jesus that they know He is the Christ of God, and Jesus foretells His suffering and death instructing the disciples to secrecy for the then present.

Our present text is a common theme of one of the predominant teachings of Jesus in the Gospels, which is also echoed in the teachings of the Apostles: We must die to Self, if we are to live to Christ. , “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”

is preceded by some big events: The Feeding of the 5000, the Disciples confide to Jesus that they know He is the Christ of God, and Jesus foretells His suffering and death instructing the disciples to secrecy for the then present.

This is a common theme in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke: Die to Self, Live to Christ

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English Standard Version Chapter 9

If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

In a few other places Christ repeats this, though slightly worded differently:

R. C. Sproul wrote, “What Jesus is saying here is that when we take the name Christian, and openly identify ourselves with Christ, we must be ready not only to bear the normal suffering that life brings, but to share in the particular suffering of Christ. Countless times in the epistles, we find the promise that God has stored up for his people great joy, great glory, and that on the day of the consummation of the kingdom of God, all of Christ’s people will share in the inheritance that God has given his Son. But there is a catch, isn’t there? Unless we are willing to participate in the humiliation of Christ, we cannot participate in his exaltation.” (pg. 201)

Jesus discusses his coming suffering and death many times alone with his disciples, and here he seemingly anticipates his disciples objections. Another instance recorded in Jesus finishes discussing these things and Peter took Christ aside and declared in , “Far be it from you Lord! This shall never happen to you.” and what was Christ response then? “Get behind me Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” Christ instructs them to prepare themselves for if you are to follow me you will suffer.

The Presbyterian pastor Matthew Henry wrote, “We must accustom ourselves to all instances of self-denial and patience. This is the best preparative for martyrdom. We must live a life of self-denial, mortification, and contempt of the world; we must not indulge our ease and appetite, for then it will be hard to bear toil, and weariness, and want, for Christ."

Jesus discusses his coming suffering and death many times alone with his disciples, and here he seemingly anticipates his disciples objections. Another instance recorded in Jesus finishes discussing these things and Peter took Christ aside and declared in , “Far be it from you Lord! This shall never happen to you.” and what was Christ response then? “Get behind me Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” Christ instructs them to prepare themselves for if you are to follow me you will suffer.

In essence, Christ is telling His disciples, the church of old and us today, that if we seek to claim the name of Christ we must give Christ the whole of our lives.

Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 1852.

Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 1852."

In essence, Christ is telling His disciples, the church of old and us today, that if we seek to claim the name of Christ we must give Christ the whole of our lives.

As the Dutch pastor and statesman Abraham Kuyper wrote, “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, MINE!”

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016), .

A common theme in the Synoptic Gospels: Die to Self, Live to Christ

English Standard Version Chapter 8

18 Now when Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. 19 And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” 20 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.” 21 Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” 22 And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.”

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.” 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.” 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.”

R. C. Sproul wrote, “What Jesus is saying here is that when we take the name Christian, and openly identify ourselves with Christ, we must be ready not only to bear the normal suffering that life brings, but to share in the particular suffering of Christ. Countless times in the epistles, we find the promise that God has stored up for his people great joy, great glory, and that on the day of the consummation of the kingdom of God, all of Christ’s people will share in the inheritance that God has given his Son. But there is a catch, isn’t there? Unless we are willing to participate in the humiliation of Christ, we cannot participate in his exaltation.” (pg. 201)

, “Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.”

Countless times in the epistles, we find the promise that God has stored up for his people great joy, great glory, and that on the day of the consummation of the kingdom of God, all of Christ’s people will share in the inheritance that God has given his Son. But there is a catch, isn’t there? Unless we are willing to participate in the humiliation of Christ, we cannot participate in his exaltation.” (pg. 201)

English Standard Version Chapter 14

Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.

, “And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.”

English Standard Version Chapter 10

And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016), .”

, "25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.”

English Standard Version Chapter 12

25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

Jesus is teaching us this: If you are going to identify with Christ as being His, seeking Him in faith, it is going to cost you, and cost you greatly. For it is going to cost you your very life. You cannot claim Christ in faith and yet have nothing change.

Jesus is teaching us this: If you are going to identify with Christ as being His, seeking Him in faith, it is going to cost you, and cost you greatly. For it is going to cost you your very life. You cannot claim Christ in faith, and yet continue to live as a rank heathen.

As Christ instructs us, without denying ourselves and picking up our cross, each and every one of us here, we cannot be His disciple.

R. C. Sproul wrote, “What Jesus is saying here is that when we take the name Christian, and openly identify ourselves with Christ, we must be ready not only to bear the normal suffering that life brings, but to share in the particular suffering of Christ. Countless times in the epistles, we find the promise that God has stored up for his people great joy, great glory, and that on the day of the consummation of the kingdom of God, all of Christ’s people will share in the inheritance that God has given his Son. But there is a catch, isn’t there? Unless we are willing to participate in the humiliation of Christ, we cannot participate in his exaltation.” R. C. Sproul, A Walk with God: An Exposition of Luke, pg. 201.

The Presbyterian pastor Matthew Henry wrote, “We must accustom ourselves to all instances of self-denial and patience. This is the best preparative for martyrdom. We must live a life of self-denial, mortification, and contempt of the world; we must not indulge our ease and appetite, for then it will be hard to bear toil, and weariness, and want, for Christ."

R. C. Sproul wrote, “What Jesus is saying here is that when we take the name Christian, and openly identify ourselves with Christ, we must be ready not only to bear the normal suffering that life brings, but to share in the particular suffering of Christ. Countless times in the epistles, we find the promise that God has stored up for his people great joy, great glory, and that on the day of the consummation of the kingdom of God, all of Christ’s people will share in the inheritance that God has given his Son. But there is a catch, isn’t there? Unless we are willing to participate in the humiliation of Christ, we cannot participate in his exaltation.” R. C. Sproul, A Walk with God: An Exposition of Luke, pg. 201.

R. C. Sproul, A Walk with God: An Exposition of Luke (Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications, 1999), 201.

J. C. Ryle wrote, “A religion that costs nothing is worth nothing! A cheap Christianity, without a cross, will prove in the end a useless Christianity, without a crown." J. C. Ryle, Holiness, pg. 103.

R. C. Sproul wrote, “What Jesus is saying here is that when we take the name Christian, and openly identify ourselves with Christ, we must be ready not only to bear the normal suffering that life brings, but to share in the particular suffering of Christ. Countless times in the epistles, we find the promise that God has stored up for his people great joy, great glory, and that on the day of the consummation of the kingdom of God, all of Christ’s people will share in the inheritance that God has given his Son. But there is a catch, isn’t there? Unless we are willing to participate in the humiliation of Christ, we cannot participate in his exaltation.” R. C. Sproul, A Walk with God: An Exposition of Luke, pg. 201.

J. C. Ryle wrote, “A religion that costs nothing is worth nothing! A cheap Christianity, without a cross, will prove in the end a useless Christianity, without a crown." J. C. Ryle, Holiness, pg. 103.

As Christ instructs us, without denying ourselves and picking up our cross, each and every one of us here, we cannot be His disciple.

Christ instructs His apostles, the church of old and even us today, that without denying ourselves and picking up our cross, each and every one of us here, we cannot be His disciple. That seems simple enough, but what exactly does that mean?

What does it mean to Follow Christ?

Christ came to establish the Kingdom of God, the task given to Him by the Father. He was here for that purpose and to bring people into that Kingdom. During His earthly ministry Christ came across many who wanted to distract him from this task.

The Jewish people after hearing him preach and knowing that the Jewish leaders were looking for the true Messiah sought to establish him as king on many occasions. , “Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.” This pattern repeated itself several times in the Gospels.

, “Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.”

During His wilderness temptation Satan offered Him a kingdom which would allow him to avoid the unpleasantness of the Crucifixion, Satan’s cost was for Christ to commit apostasy and worship him. Christ responded to this in , “Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’””

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016), .

“‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’””

The Kingdom Christ came to establish was established in his humiliation, in his becoming a poor man, suffering the pains of this life, of being cursed and tortured by men and ultimately murdered at the hands of the wicked.

, “looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”

What is it? It is to no longer be living for yourself, but to live truly and wholly for the one true and living God. To live with Christ Jesus as our God and King.

What is it?

, “looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” And at God’s right hand he must reign, as tells us, “For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.”

English Standard Version Chapter 12

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

, “For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.”

We must follow him if we hope to gain a portion of his inheritance. , “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.”

English Standard Version

25 Whom have I in heaven but you?

And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.

English Standard Version Chapter 2

11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

, “For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.”

We must follow him if we hope to gain a portion of his inheritance. , “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.”

26 My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

English Standard Version Psalm 125

But those who turn aside to their crooked ways

the LORD will lead away with evildoers!

Peace be upon Israel!

How do we do it?

, “For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.”

How do we do it?

,

English Standard Version Chapter 15

5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.

We must continually look to Christ, like a farmer who is plowing looks to point far off in his field and in doing so plows straight lines, maximizes his crop. We must not look away, for the moment we do so we veer off the narrow path into the pit on either side of us. Remember these words of Christ, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life: No man cometh to unto the Father except by me.” If we depart from following Christ, we depart from the way, and we depart from God towards destruction, misery and death.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016), .”

In order to follow Christ we must by faith in Christ seek to do two things all of our days from the moment of our coming to Christ: We must deny ourselves and we must pick up our cross. If we don’t do these two essential things, we can’t follow Christ. If we cannot follow Christ, our faith is a dead faith that accomplishes nothing in this life and will lead to destruction in the next.

What does this mean to “deny yourself” and to “pick up your cross”?

What does it mean to deny yourself?

A couple of things can be noticed in the phrase deny yourself. The first is the implication that the self and Christ are at odds. “If you are to come after me” you must first deny yourself. If you don’t deny yourself you cannot follow Christ. So the self and Christ are going in two chiefly different directions. Christ is trailblazing a path to his Father’s Kingdom, which will be experienced at the end of all things in the New Jerusalem, or when Heaven and Earth join together. The self is on the well worn trail to everlasting destruction.

The puritan minister Thomas Boston wrote, “Self is Christ’s great rival in the world; and no man can serve the two masters: he must either deny himself, and go after Christ; or he will deny Christ, and go after self...the self to be denied is our corrupt self, the old man, the unrenewed part; for that only is contrary to Christ. And, indeed it is not possible there can be any true self-denial but in sound believers” Thomas Boston’s Works, vol. 6. pg 309.

“Self is Christ’s great rival in the world; and no man can serve the two masters: he must either deny himself, and go after Christ; or he will deny Christ, and go after self...the self to be denied is our corrupt self, the old man, the unrenewed part; for that only is contrary to Christ. And, indeed it is not possible there can be any true self-denial but in sound believers” Thomas Boston’s Works, vol. 6. pg 309.

A. The implication is that the Self and Christ are at odds with one another.

What is it? To mortify our sin is living in a constant state of war with sin that indwells us, that is every thought, word, and deed that is counter to the law of God.

1 “Self is Christ’s great rival in the world; and no man can serve the two masters: he must either deny himself, and go after Christ; or he will deny Christ, and go after self...the self to be denied is our corrupt self, the old man, the unrenewed part; for that only is contrary to Christ. And, indeed it is not possible there can be any true self-denial but in sound believers” Thomas Boston’s Works, vol. 6. pg 309.

Christ declares in Matthew 6,

What is it?

English Standard Version Chapter 6

24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

How do we do it?

We must seek our life in Christ, for without this we are not following Christ and are in grave danger with regards to our eternal soul.

2 “the self to be denied is our corrupt self, the old man, the unrenewed part; for that only is contrary to Christ. And, indeed it is not possible there can be any true self-denial but in sound believers" Thomas Boston, vol. 6. pg 309.

How do we do it?

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Thomas Boston, The Whole Works of Thomas Boston: Sermons and Discourses on Several Important Subjects in Divinity, ed. Samuel M‘Millan, vol. 6 (Aberdeen: George and Robert King, 1849), 309.

English Standard Version Psalm 73

25 Whom have I in heaven but you?

And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.

26 My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

English Standard Version Psalm 73

Whom have I in heaven but you?

And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.

26 My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Thomas Boston, The Whole Works of Thomas Boston: Sermons and Discourses on Several Important Subjects in Divinity, ed. Samuel M‘Millan, vol. 6 (Aberdeen: George and Robert King, 1849), 309.

English Standard Version Chapter 2

11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

-

English Standard Version Chapter 2

11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

We have been saved so that we may do good works in faith and gratitude to Christ. So we deny ourselves, the sinful old man, and we put on the new man. We give up ungodliness, and live godly lives. We stop our worthless and selfish labor, and we labor unto the Lord in everything. This is why in Christ we die, so that we can live aright to God.

,

English Standard Version Chapter 12

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

We have a race to run, let us put off our sinful worldly cares and with Christ in our sights run unencumbered to the goal.

Paul in almost cries out, “For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23 but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.”

To deny yourself is a daily activity, which is constant in the life of the believer. It is to commit yourself to a warring against sin and temptation, to live for godliness in faith.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016), .

We must love Christ more than our country, our family, even our own lives. He must be EVERYTHING to us, or we cannot claim to be his disciple.

What does it mean to pick up your cross daily?

What is it? It is the living in a constant state of war with the world, resisting and fighting in faith the temptations and lusts in the world. ( )

What is it?

The cross was an instrument of execution in the Roman world. The Romans were experts in adapting other cultures technology to their own needs and purposes and made better or more creative use of them. Everyone in the Roman world would have seen a crucifixion, as it was the very public carrying out of a judicial sentence against non-Romans for grievous crimes, in which the guilty, or at least those found guilty at the hands of the Romans would be tied or nailed to a cross-beam and nailed to a stake and hung up.

Every single one of the disciples knew what it meant to carry a cross: It was the final humiliating act of a man about to experience the worst death imaginable.

So why is Jesus telling us that we need to pick up and carry our means of execution, and not only that but we need to do it daily?

Well, its purpose is to execute the old man that is in you. The sinful man who hates God and everything that is good, which is in your heart waging an all out war for your soul. The ultimate act of our growing in Christ and ultimately reaching the goal of the Christian faith, holy and intimate fellowship with God, is to through our faith in Christ to nail the old man to that Cross every moment of every day.

James the brother of Jesus wrote,

English Standard Version Chapter 1

2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

How do we do it?

The act of picking up your cross is a daily suffering that God has laid before each of us. Not all suffering is bad suffering. Women struggle and experience excruciating pain in delivery, but ultimately bring forth a treasured possession. So too must we suffer. We must kill the old man that resides in each of us, laying the burdens of holiness that God has laid before us on our necks and carrying them forth.

You cannot live in the world according to the worlds terms. This is called

). I pondered this. To the world, this is masochism. To the Christian, this is freedom. Did I really believe this? Do I really believe this today?” Rosaria Butterfield, The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert, pg. 26.

God places various trials before us, not the normal kind of every day trials or suffering, but holy trials that come about with the dying to self or the denying yourself. If we seek to at all cost avoid the trials we are sinning. He does this for our chastisement. Think about the goal of disciplining a child, in spanking a child you cause him pain, but out of that pain the parent intends to bring about growth and maturity, in essence, putting to death the selfishness that preoccupies childhood. In doing so, you move the child towards adulthood.

In order to follow Christ we must be willing to lay our necks under the yoke of burden that God in His infinite wisdom has sought to place before us. Various trials and tests of faith, exercise our soul and our endurance, like exercise to the body.

We must seek to put to death the old sinful man picking up the crosses that God has laid before us. Trusting in faith that He will give us the strength to bear it.

Thomas Boston wrote, “Christ bore the cross before you, for your sake; and shall it be such a frightful thing for you to bear it after him, for his sake? If ye would partake of his crown, will ye refuse your part of his cross?.” Thomas Boston’s Works, pg. 316.

Thomas Boston, The Whole Works of Thomas Boston: Sermons and Discourses on Several Important Subjects in Divinity, ed. Samuel M‘Millan, vol. 6 (Aberdeen: George and Robert King, 1849), 316.

What does this mean for me today? Or, “So what?”

This is not an exhaustive list

First and foremost, we must make sure that we are faithfully reading God’s Word daily, and seeking to apply it to our lives. Paul instructs Timothy that,

English Standard Version Chapter 3

16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

If we are not in His Word, we cannot be training ourselves up by faith in the righteousness of Christ. This requires effort, prayerful serious effort, even though we all live busy lives.

Secondly, we must seek to glorify God in our life.

Paul wrote in ,

English Standard Version Chapter 10

31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Are you seriously asking yourself in thought, word, or deed: Is this conforming to the Word of God? Will this bring glory to God? If the answer is no, or I don’t know, you should stop put to death the ‘No’s and seriously investigate the ‘I don’t know’s and figure it out.

Thirdly, we must be willing to lose everything for Christ’s sake.

Pastor Doug Wilson said at a recent conference dealing with Faith and Life, “I used to give this advice to those entering military service, but I now give it to everyone. You need to wake up everyday being willing to wreck your career for the cause of Christ.”

, “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.”

And again Christ said in , “21 And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22 Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.”

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016), .

Two examples that I thought of with regards to what we are talking about are what happened to the Apostle Paul and what happened to Rosaria Butterfield a Professor of English and Women’s Studies at Syracuse University. Consider these examples later today when you are at home, and think on the questions that I provide in the outlines.

Apostolic Example:

Paul was a persecutor of the Church. He was present at and approved of the first murdered Christian after the crucifixion, that is the martyrdom of Stephen, in which he held the coats of those who proceeded to stone Stephen. He searched everywhere in Judea for Christians to out and kill. That all changed when Christ appeared to him and knocked him off his horse blinding him in . After his conversion his love for Christ is recorded for us here in Philippians and elsewhere.

Read and think on these questions:

Paul in his Epistle to the -

English Standard Version Chapter 1

Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.

27 Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, 28 and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. 29 For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, 30 engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

In , what was it for Paul to live?

The Early Church, so way back in the 1st and 2nd centuries faced immense hardship because of life during that time period but also because of roman rule. They took Christ’s words here to heart and would cease any activity that would even hint at sin. They refused to attend the Roman Games (think the movie The Gladiator), they refused to allow their children to be educated by pagans. The most grievous to the Roman authority was that they would not participate in the Emperor Cult ceremonies especially in the Roman markets. Roman soldiers would make you throw a pinch of incense into a ceremonial fire and you were obligated to recite publically Kaiser Kurios. This refusal was a crucifying their old pagan ways and being faithful to Christ no matter the consequences. This was an act of high treason for which the church was persecuted and people were crucified, fed to lions, cut down in the arena, or even fitted for wax shirts to provide lighting for the emperors evening meals. They sought to flee from every temptation, and resist every pull of the world to follow Christ and be faithful to Him to the end.

What does Paul exhort us to do in , with regards to how we live?

Modern:

Modern Example:

Modern:

Rosaria Butterfield, a lesbian feminist professor who while focusing on embarrassing and mocking the Christian faith in a book she was working on came to Christ through the kind ministry of a Reformed Presbyterian minister and it changed her whole world.

Rosaria Butterfield - “When I became a Christian, I had to change everything—my life, my friends, my writing, my teaching, my advising, my clothes, my speech, my thoughts. I was tenured to a field that I could no longer work in. I was the faculty advisor to all of the gay and lesbian and feminist groups on campus. I was writing a book that I no longer believed in. And, I was scheduled in a few months to give the incoming address to all of Syracuse University’s graduate students. What in the world would I say to them? The lecture that I had written and planned to deliver—on Queer Theory—I threw in the trash. Thousands of new students would hear my first, fledgling attempts to speak about Christian hermeneutics at a postmodern university. I was flooded with doubt about my new life in Christ. Was I willing to suffer like Christ? Was I willing to be considered stupid by those who didn’t know Jesus? The world’s eyes register what a life in Christ takes away, but how do I communicate all that it gives? Do I really believe, in Charles Bridges’ words, “The very chains of Christ are glorious” (p. 33)? Peter, after being beaten for preaching the gospel, rejoiced that he was “counted worthy to suffer shame for [Christ’s] name” (). I pondered this. To the world, this is masochism. To the Christian, this is freedom. Did I really believe this? Do I really believe this today?” Rosaria Butterfield, The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert, pg. 26.

She wrote in her autobiographical account of her conversion, “When I became a Christian, I had to change everything—my life, my friends, my writing, my teaching, my advising, my clothes, my speech, my thoughts. I was tenured to a field that I could no longer work in. I was the faculty advisor to all of the gay and lesbian and feminist groups on campus. I was writing a book that I no longer believed in. And, I was scheduled in a few months to give the incoming address to all of Syracuse University’s graduate students. What in the world would I say to them? The lecture that I had written and planned to deliver—on Queer Theory—I threw in the trash. Thousands of new students would hear my first, fledgling attempts to speak about Christian hermeneutics at a postmodern university. I was flooded with doubt about my new life in Christ. Was I willing to suffer like Christ? Was I willing to be considered stupid by those who didn’t know Jesus? The world’s eyes register what a life in Christ takes away, but how do I communicate all that it gives? Do I really believe, in Charles Bridges’ words, “The very chains of Christ are glorious” (p. 33)? Peter, after being beaten for preaching the gospel, rejoiced that he was “counted worthy to suffer shame for [Christ’s] name” (). I pondered this. To the world, this is masochism. To the Christian, this is freedom. Did I really believe this? Do I really believe this today?” Rosaria Butterfield, The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert, pg. 26.

“When I became a Christian, I had to change everything—my life, my friends, my writing, my teaching, my advising, my clothes, my speech, my thoughts. I was tenured to a field that I could no longer work in. I was the faculty advisor to all of the gay and lesbian and feminist groups on campus. I was writing a book that I no longer believed in. And, I was scheduled in a few months to give the incoming address to all of Syracuse University’s graduate students. What in the world would I say to them? The lecture that I had written and planned to deliver—on Queer Theory—I threw in the trash. Thousands of new students would hear my first, fledgling attempts to speak about Christian hermeneutics at a postmodern university. I was flooded with doubt about my new life in Christ. Was I willing to suffer like Christ? Was I willing to be considered stupid by those who didn’t know Jesus? The world’s eyes register what a life in Christ takes away, but how do I communicate all that it gives? Do I really believe, in Charles Bridges’ words, “The very chains of Christ are glorious” (p. 33)?1 Peter, after being beaten for preaching the gospel, rejoiced that he was “counted worthy to suffer shame for [Christ’s] name” (). I pondered this. To the world, this is masochism. To the Christian, this is freedom. Did I really believe this? Do I really believe this today?” Rosaria Butterfield, The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert, pg. 26.

Countless times in the epistles, we find the promise that God has stored up for his people great joy, great glory, and that on the day of the consummation of the kingdom of God, all of Christ’s people will share in the inheritance that God has given his Son. But there is a catch, isn’t there? Unless we are willing to participate in the humiliation of Christ, we cannot participate in his exaltation.

Her whole book is an incredible journey and part of it actually happens at Geneva College in Beaver Falls between 1999 and 2001.

R. C. Sproul, A Walk with God: An Exposition of Luke (Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications, 1999), 201.” (p. 33)?1 Peter, after being beaten for preaching the gospel, rejoiced that he was “counted worthy to suffer shame for [Christ’s] name” (). I pondered this. To the world, this is masochism. To the Christian, this is freedom. Did I really believe this? Do I really believe this today?” Rosaria Butterfield, The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert, pg. 26.

When I became a Christian, I had to change everything—my life, my friends, my writing, my teaching, my advising, my clothes, my speech, my thoughts. I was tenured to a field that I could no longer work in. I was the faculty advisor to all of the gay and lesbian and feminist groups on campus. I was writing a book that I no longer believed in. And, I was scheduled in a few months to give the incoming address to all of Syracuse University’s graduate students. What in the world would I say to them? The lecture that I had written and planned to deliver—on Queer Theory—I threw in the trash. Thousands of new students would hear my first, fledgling attempts to speak about Christian hermeneutics at a postmodern university. I was flooded with doubt about my new life in Christ. Was I willing to suffer like Christ? Was I willing to be considered stupid by those who didn’t know Jesus? The world’s eyes register what a life in Christ takes away, but how do I communicate all that it gives? Do I really believe, in Charles Bridges’ words, “The very chains of Christ are glorious” (p. 33)?1 Peter, after being beaten for preaching the gospel, rejoiced that he was “counted worthy to suffer shame for [Christ’s] name” (). I pondered this. To the world, this is masochism. To the Christian, this is freedom. Did I really believe this? Do I really believe this today?”

“When I became a Christian, I had to change everything—my life, my friends, my writing, my teaching, my advising, my clothes, my speech, my thoughts. I was tenured to a field that I could no longer work in. I was the faculty advisor to all of the gay and lesbian and feminist groups on campus. I was writing a book that I no longer believed in. And, I was scheduled in a few months to give the incoming address to all of Syracuse University’s graduate students. What in the world would I say to them? The lecture that I had written and planned to deliver—on Queer Theory—I threw in the trash. Thousands of new students would hear my first, fledgling attempts to speak about Christian hermeneutics at a postmodern university. I was flooded with doubt about my new life in Christ. Was I willing to suffer like Christ? Was I willing to be considered stupid by those who didn’t know Jesus? The world’s eyes register what a life in Christ takes away, but how do I communicate all that it gives? Do I really believe, in Charles Bridges’ words, “The very chains of Christ are glorious” (p. 33)? Peter, after being beaten for preaching the gospel, rejoiced that he was “counted worthy to suffer shame for [Christ’s] name” (). I pondered this. To the world, this is masochism. To the Christian, this is freedom. Did I really believe this? Do I really believe this today?” Rosaria Butterfield, The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert, pg. 26.

Consider the questions that Rosaria asked herself as she was coming to have faith in Christ. How would you answer?

You need to be willing to wake up every day being willing to fight sin in faith, to seek Christ and his Glory every day, every hour, every moment.

Does everything we have talked about today mean that we cannot have good things in life. NO! God forbid that! Creation is full of good things, all for us to enjoy and use. What changes is our sinful motives. We do things from the right motive, and use things aright. Fornication, Adultery, and Lust are all sinful abuses of the good thing that God has given to those whom he has joined in marriage. It means that we are willing to put everything, including every good thing aside, if it distracts us from the goal. We must crucify everything that is in competition with Christ in our life.

There is no such thing as Easy-Believism Christianity, trusting in Christ to save you from Hell is not enough. We must have faith because we desire to be with Christ, simply avoiding Hell is not the goal. As Paul cried out, “For to live is Christ!” We must desire to be saved from our sin, so we can be saved to Christ. If we are not willing to Follow Christ, to deny ourselves, participate in His suffering, to pursue life with Him, we have a faith that is worthless.

Do you know Christ? He is more valuable than all the world. He died on the cross to trail blaze a path to the kingdom for sinners. You know the cost, you know the reward, would you but come to Christ. Cling to Him and never let him go. Remember He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except by him.

There is no such thing as Easy-Believism Christianity, trusting in Christ to save you from Hell is not enough. You must have faith in Christ to save you from your sin as well as the consequences that your sin deserves, and you must desire to be saved because you want Christ. Like a man who loves a woman desires everything about her, not just the honeymoon night. Either we seek Him with the whole of our being or we have none of Him!

J. C. Ryle, Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties and Roots (London: William Hunt and Company, 1889), 103.

If you love me you will keep your commandments. If you have anything that is before Christ, that is your god. If you have another god, you don’t have Jesus.

Idolatry, King Josiah cutting down Ashera poles

; ; ; ; ; ; ;

McGraw, Ryan. Why Should You Deny Yourself?

Butterfield, Rosaria. The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert

Why Should You Deny Yourself?

How Can I Overcome Lust?

— How Should I Manage Time?

— Knowing the Trinity: Practical Thoughts for Daily Life

Butterfield, Rosaria. The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert

The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert

Ryle, J. C.. Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties, and Roots

— Old Paths

Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties, and Roots

Old Paths

Pipa, Joseph. How Can I Do All Things For God’s Glory?

Lawson, Steven. The Cost

Lawson, Steven. It Will Cost You Everything! — tinysa.com/sermon/15101919280

The Cost of Following Christ

Introduction

Reviewing the Basics

The Setup

Application

1. Follow Me

2. Deny Yourself

3. Pick Up Your Cross Daily

Application

Reading God’s Word Daily

Reading God’s Word Daily

Glorify Christ in Everything

Be Willing To Lose It All for Christ

Examples

Caution

Closing

Further Learning

Scripture

Books/Booklets

Sermons

The Cost of Following Christ

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Introduction

Reviewing the Basics

The Setup

​

Application

1. Follow Me

2. Deny Yourself

3. Pick Up Your Cross Daily

Application

Reading God’s Word Daily

Reading God’s Word Daily

Glorify Christ in Everything

Be Willing To Lose It All for Christ

Examples

Caution

Closing

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Further Learning

Scripture

Books/Booklets

Sermons