Following the Dust of the Rabbi
Notes
Transcript
What do I want them to know? What it means to be a Christian
Why? It give clarity and life
What do I want them to do? Follow Jesus, Deny themselves, Change vocation, Make God’s family first
Why? It brings life
ME/WE
Have you ever said, “What do you mean by that?”
This happens many times over words that have multiple meanings
For example, what do you mean when you said that was CRAZY!
What do you mean by that CRAZY
You could mean that was something was unbelievable, like it was so CRAZY that Browns made the playoffs
CRAZY could also mean good....it was so crazy that someone decided to BLESS me financially…they gave me that gift
CRAZY that could mean something bad.....it was so crazy that tree in our backyard fell on down and took out our power lines but it was always crazy that it did not hit our house or our neighbors garage.
Or another word is God....what do you mean when you say God?
Do you mean some deity that is out there somewhere?
Others believe God to mean some tyranent, harsh ruler, mean judge
others believe that God is intimate all powerful saving father
Another has multiple means is that is unfortunately not helpful to us today who believe and follow Jesus is the Word Christian.
What does it mean to be a Christian? Especially as 7 out of 10 people in the United States claim they are Christians
Some say they are a Christian because when they were filling out a legal document and you had to fill in a circle to tell them what religion you were and you went through the listen and said, “I am not Buddist, or Hindu, or Muslim BUT I am not no religion, I believe there is a God so I will say I am a Christian.”
Others say to be a Christian to go to church…side note if that is the case that makes the definition of Christian go from 7 out of 10 to 2 out of 10 people in America
Others say to be a Christian means following the 10 commandments and the teachings of Jesus
The reality is if you would ask 100 people you will discover numerous answers of what it means to be a Christian.
This is not helpful
BUT THE GOOD NEWS THE BIBLE LAYS OUT WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A CHRISTIAN, WHICH WAS NOT A TERM FIRST USED TO DESCRIBE CHRISTIANS, THE FIRST WORD that was used is they were called the people of the Way.
Let’s look at the first Christians, those called the People of the Way,
How did they become the people of the Way, Christians?
Why are they called the people of the Way, or Christians?
But before we get there to these two questions let’s remember where we are at in the story of Jesus
Matthew has been laying out who Jesus is....who is Jesus....who is the Christ in Christian
The son of David…He’s King the of Kings
The son of Abraham....He’s the Father to many nations
Long awaited Messiah who has come to rescue and redeem His people
Immanuel “God with us”
Ruler of world
Central story of history…every other story
Good Shepherd
He is full of the Spirit of God
He makes a way through the wilderness
Inaugurates a new Exodus, an Exodus from SIN, DEATH, and SHAME
New Adam (the first fell)
New Israel (He’s the faithful and obedient son)
Light of the World
Hope of the nations
This is who Jesus Christ is.....and it is this Jesus, KING of KINGS, LORD of LORDS, SAVIOR, FATHER, REDEEMER, GOOD SHEPHERD....who seeks to people to belong to this new kingdom....That He is going to call people into this kingdom
Who are first people Jesus going to call? That Jesus is going to start the new kingdom with?
The religious elites of the day? Is Jesus going to travel to the Jerusalem the epic center for religious life, where the temple is, where the somebodies of religious aptitude reside?
NO, JESUS is starting a new Kingdom, the Kingdom of God…the Jesus is the new rabbi
And Jesus doesn’t choose people who we would pick or who we would think....he choses the unlikely…men around the Sea of Galilee, the northern part of Israel, the place that called the Galilee of Gentiles.
But this just makes sense, Jesus often choses the unlikely....
But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;
While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.
And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
Immediately they left their nets and followed him.
And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them.
Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
What is happening here?
The God of the universe, the Savior, Messiah goes around the Sea of Galilee and he sees these average teenagers except Peter and says to them (Peter was the only adult of the 12 disciples) “follow me”
Jesus says I have chose YOU and have called you to “follow me”
Jesus says to these average, ordinary fisherman I CHOOSE YOU TO “follow me”
Is this not the same thing the creator and savior of the world has done with us?
even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love
he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,
to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,
which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
God chose you and called you to be His, a person of the way, a Christian, a disciple of Jesus.
He’s called you to be in His family and follow in His foots steps, to follow so closely that you are covered in the dust of the rabbi Jesus.
This is what it means to be a Christian according to the Biblical definition
To belong to Jesus and to follow Jesus, to follow so closely that you covered in the dust of rabbi Jesus....no only are they covered in the dust they look like Jesus
This is the reason people called them Christians in Acts 11:26 is because people were looking for a name to call this group of people who stood out, not for their glory, who were different....They did not stand out for their glory, “oh look at me” but for His glory “look at Him”
They were humble…when humility was not a positive word
They loved their enemies....when you were told to be an eye for an eye and to hate your enemies
They did not sleep around....can you believe that, this group did not sleep around, it was socially acceptable to sleep around.
Bottom They did not act like Gentiles, like the rest of the world
What do we call this group? This group that looks like Jesus Christ? This group who belong to Jesus Christ?
and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.
Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds.
What we are starting to discover is that being a Christian is not
- just going to church,
- or reading your Bible,
- or tithing
- or trying to obey Jesus teachings
....this are all things that you do when you follow Jesus but it is so much more....it is giving your whole life to Jesus....
Every part of your life…not just a piece or a room of your life…or day of your week...
THIS IS WHAT Peter, Andrew, James and John did
Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
LEAVE EVERYTHING BEHIND TO FOLLOW JESUS
Left behind their careers
Left behind their possessions
Left behind their position in the society
Left behind their family to be apart of Jesus’ family
Left behind safety and security
Left their old life to behind…put to death the old life
THIS IS ALWAYS THE CALL GOD GIVES US WHEN HE CALLS US TO PUT TO DEATH THE OLD LIFE
I like what Dietrich Bonnhoffer says
When Christ Calls a Man, He Bids Him Come and Die
…It may be a death like that of the first disciples who had to leave home and work to follow him, or it may be a death like Luther’s, who had to leave the monastery and go out into the world. But it is the same death every time—death in Jesus Christ, the death of the old man and his call. Jesus’ summons to the rich young man was a calling for him to die, because only the man who is dead to his will can follow Christ. In fact every command of Jesus is a call to die, with all our affections and lusts. But we do not want to die, and therefore Jesus Christ and his call are necessarily our death as well as our life. The call to discipleship, the baptism in the name of Jesus Christ means both death and life.
Matthew says something similar
Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?
Do you see what Jesus says there? The only way for you to have life is through putting your old life to death and following Jesus
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Jesus is the only way to life…the world may say life is found in money, success, sex, or power....but Jesus says no the only that brings life....
Look what Matt 7:13-14 says
“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.
For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
Jesus says for you truly, truly to have new life you need to put your old life away (the only ways you found life, your old self)....AND FOLLOW JESUS....THATS WHERE JESUS IS ....this is so important to know....many people WANT TO ADD JESUS.....that is what I did most of my life and guess what I had glimpses of life but I did not have life ....
What is Jesus is saying is do add me to your life....have mean
Jesus is saying NO, I WANT TO GIVE YOU ABUDENT LIFE…it is yours to have all you have to do is follow Him
Three Dollars Worth of God
I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please.
Not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep,
but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk
or a snooze in the sunshine.
I don’t want enough of God to make me love a black man
or pick beets with a migrant.
I want ecstasy, not transformation.
I want warmth of the womb, not a new birth.
I want a pound of the Eternal in a paper sack.
I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please.
— Wilbur Rees
What God is saying to you and me do not settle for $3 of God when you can have all of God....all of the infinite and majestic God…all of life…Why settle for a $3 when you can have the best life...
The only way this happens is with three ways
1. deny yourself, put your old self to death,
2. For you to follow is going to need to trust Him
You are not going to follow someone or something you do not trust....It is not going to be easy at times because when you follow God, He is going to have you take some scary paths and our flesh is going to say take me back to Egypt, take me back to slavery, but God says
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
3. Follow Him, which is a narrow path
Matt 7:13-14 says
HOW DO WE FOLLOW JESUS? By being in relationship with Jesus
Follow the Words of Scripture
Following the Words written on our heart
Following the leading of the Holy Spirit
It is hard! You have three enemies saying DON’T DO IT!, your flesh, the world, and the devil and his demons.
BE ABOUT YOU!!!!
Jesus says there is no life in being about you....there is life in following Him.
US
Where are you?
What or who have you been following? Has it been Jesus would those around you say you look like Jesus? You have been covered in the dust of rabbi Jesus?
Are you rejoicing that the reason you are able to have life is because you have been CHOSEN BY GOD…HE CHOSE YOU TO BE IN HIS FAMILY AND TO FOLLOW HIM
1. How are you doing?
2. Why is so important that we know the biblical meaning of the word Christian?
3. What is the Biblical meaning of the Word Christian?
4. Why is it impossible to follow Jesus without putting to death our old self?
5. How has your rejoicing in your new life been lately?