The Place Where We Die to Ourselves
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Intro
Intro
There is nothing remarkable about the man Jesus except that He is the incarnate son of God
For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
He was and is “nothing” to look at.
The Unremarkable Jesus
The Unremarkable Jesus
Our current culture is looking for the remarkable. We look for the remarkable in moments, trips, songs, venues.
It is what we see in our memories and our pictures. We do this because experience is the commodity of our time.
Distraction is a discipline to be cultivated.
We are seeking life in all the wrong places
How is Jesus to get our attention?
Jesus offers us something that no one else can offer. He offers us life! Here are a few verses to use for emphasis
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies,
so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.
In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.
And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.
And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life.
In our passage today Jesus says that the lives that we are looking for are found by losing them to the father. He is the one who will save it. Not only from death but from it being a waste of time.
Discipleship
Discipleship
What Jesus thinks is worthwhile is following the father. What Jesus gives as the three step process is what he himself did?
Jesus’ discipleship to his father
I do what the father does ()
Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.
I say what the father tell me to say
“For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak.
I seek the father’s will not my own
“I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.
J
If anyone wishes to come after me...
If anyone wishes to come after me...
5 verses prior Jesus asked the question to his disciples (v.18), “Who do the people say that I am?”
They answered and said, “John the Baptist, and others say Elijah; but others, that one of the prophets of old has risen again.”
He then asked them…”but who do you say that I am?” (v.20)
They answer - the Christ of God (fixer of all things)
so here is the context of our teaching today. The world says one thing, you say another. If you believe that. If you trust that I am who I said I am and I did what I said I did and you want to follow me, then here is what’s up
The place that we die to ourselves is the place of Discipleship | the place of following a new master
3 ideas to get out of this passage
Denying Ones-self
Bearing One’s Cross
Accompanying Jesus
And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.
And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. “For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself? “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.
Self-Denial
Self-Denial
if anyone would come after me or seek to follow me, he must deny himself
Self-Denial
my youngest daughter is mildly allergic to peanuts. The other day she asks to eat the rest of my oldest Son’s peanut butter prezels. I told her that she could not eat them because they would harm her. She did not like this. I had denied her. Everyone else says that this is ok, but for me it is not
for the most part, most of you in this room have an identity/context that you use to judge and make decisions
these decisions make up the life you lead and how you are in the world. Some of these things are voluntary and some don’t seem like they are. Everything from your personality to your hair style, choice of clothes, what you are involved in are decided mostly by what your identity will allow
Jesus is addressing this tendency when he says we must deny ourselves. Ourselves is the thing I have just described, it is what we must say no to
“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.
Luke 14:26
“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.
Bearing One’s Cross
Bearing One’s Cross
Bearing One’s Cross
Bearing One’s Cross
means to carry one’s life willingly to the place of execution
taking the electric chair to the plug, walking the bullet’s over to the firing squad
he gives a picture of what they have undoubtedly seen many times - a prisoner who has been convicted and sentenced to crucifixion, it is a scene that he will play out later in front of them
He is asking them and you to do what he has done and does everyday - die to what he could be in this world and live for what he should be for God
Does your mind take you to the temptation of Jesus in and
Satan “literally” offers him the whole world. That is what Jesus could have been
Accompanying Jesus
Accompanying Jesus
abiding with him in this life, my life is to follow him - I will go to very different places and do very different things if he is my master
By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.
have you ever seen a distracted child trying to keep up with their family
can I have this - no
have you ever seen a distracted child trying to keep up with their family
can we go in here - no
hey look at that - come on
Have you seen soldiers following a platoon leader on manuevers or training
they practice following, they practice obeying, they are about that business. They are not above being part of his crowd. They are not ashamed of what they are and do not deny what they have chosen to be by following him
this is most certainly learned
not being above him
By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.
good example of what it would look like to not be ashamed
shame scene in Alexander’s horrible, no good, very bad day where the older brother choosing his family instead of his friends
Explanation of the parties and who they represent
“A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.
And He also spoke a parable to them: “A blind man cannot guide a blind man, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit?
according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.
Speaking about this verse Oswald Chambers
My Utmost for His Highest January 1st—Let Us Keep to the Point
My Utmost for His Highest. “My eager desire and hope being that I may never feel ashamed.” We shall all feel very much ashamed if we do not yield to Jesus on the point He has asked us to yield to Him. Paul says—“My determination is to be my utmost for His Highest.” To get there is a question of will, not of debate nor of reasoning, but a surrender of will, an absolute and irrevocable surrender on that point. An over-weening consideration for ourselves is the thing that keeps us from that decision, though we put it that we are considering others. When we consider what it will cost others if we obey the call of Jesus, we tell God He does not know what our obedience will mean. Keep to the point; He does know. Shut out every other consideration and keep yourself before God for this one thing only—“My Utmost for His Highest.” I am determined to be absolutely and entirely for Him and for Him alone
“A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.
Dallas Willard
“One thing is sure: You are somebody’s disciple. You learned how to live from somebody else. There are no exceptions to this rule, for human beings are just the kind of creatures that have to learn and keep learning from others how to live.”
how to live from somebody else. There are no exceptions to this rule,
Dallas Willard
for human beings are just the kind of creatures that have to learn and
keep learning from others how to live.
Who we choose to be our teacher is is the biggest decision we will ever make in our entire lives
and that is a decision you will make every day
He doesn’t say take up your cross and follow me to pray a prayer or to the baptismal pool one day next week…he says do it daily
So who you decide your teacher is today, is who you need to decide your teacher is tomorrow, and Tuesday, Wed, Thur, Friday and next Saturday (well that is a home game), Sunday then...
And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. “For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself? “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.
And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.
And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.
That is the promise…You will find your life. This is the promise that opened the door to my following Jesus as he describes in this passage
Close:
I asked myself the question. Rob, whose life do you want?
Do you want the one that leaves you empty at the most opportune times or do you want the one he promises.
I was so tired of the one I was living, it let me down one to many times. I told the world that I am good. When I began doing these three things I found life.
This life is so much better than the one I was living, the life that I lost. The life divided, the one that tried to have it both ways, the one that tried to have others teachers besides Christ.
Over the course of my life I have tried to live my life three ways. (1) as a non-christian without him (2) what I thought was a christian life... following at a distance, kind of in his vicinity (3) and accompanying him as he leads me
There is no other way to find this life outside of following these three instructions
Denying Ones-self
Denying Ones-self
shame scene in Alexander’s horrible, no good, very bad day where the older brother choosing his family instead of his friends
Bearing One’s Cross
Bearing One’s Cross
last slide -
Accompanying Jesus
Accompanying Jesus
Three things on the Slide
Instructions:
Philippians
You have two questions there to debrief. Take a minute to reflect and write some thoughts down, respond in Prayer and then share with the person next to you at your table.
My Utmost for His Highest January 1st—Let Us Keep to the Point
My Utmost for His Highest. “My eager desire and hope being that I may never feel ashamed.” We shall all feel very much ashamed if we do not yield to Jesus on the point He has asked us to yield to Him. Paul says—“My determination is to be my utmost for His Highest.” To get there is a question of will, not of debate nor of reasoning, but a surrender of will, an absolute and irrevocable surrender on that point. An over-weening consideration for ourselves is the thing that keeps us from that decision, though we put it that we are considering others. When we consider what it will cost others if we obey the call of Jesus, we tell God He does not know what our obedience will mean. Keep to the point; He does know. Shut out every other consideration and keep yourself before God for this one thing only—“My Utmost for His Highest.” I am determined to be absolutely and entirely for Him and for Him alone