Lessons in Discipleship

I told Ann earlier in the week that today’s text could very easily be 4 separate sermons. But there is so much wisdom in this book that I don’t want to go too deep in any one passage. As preachers, we often struggle with breadth vs. depth.

My prayer is that while I know I am preaching texts that many of you read each year in your read through the Bible reading plans, I hope to provide at least one new insight into a text that may seem quite familiar.

You may recall that I told you chapters 9-19 is a training section as Jesus is leading his disciples to Jerusalem where he is going to offer himself as the atonement for sin. On this journey Jesus encounters the public and the disciples get to watch Jesus interact with seekers and skeptics, between these public interactions Jesus gives snippets that the disciples need to absorb if they are going to carry on the mission after the Resurrection and Ascension.

Today’s text includes 4 of these “bullet list” items that the Twelve (and us) need to consider, prioritize, and internalize.

Transition: The first item on the list is…

Teaching about Temptation (vv.1-4)

1 plant with 3 branches

1. Jesus is fully aware that the 12 have failed in various respects, and they will continue to fall and get back up again. But at the same time He doesn’t excuse these occurrences as trivial.

2. Central to this section is the beginning of v.3 where Jesus says, “when it comes to temptation and sin pay attention to yourselves. Within this paragraph He suggest 3 specific areas that deserve our attention.

a. Our actions toward the sins of others starts with self-awareness and reflection!

i. Jesus has said to remove our own log before dealing with the splinters in others.

ii. Paul will instruct in 2 Corinthians to examine yourselves and test yourselves.

b. Jesus never absolves any person of their accountability for sin, but He also warns of what I’ve read about and heard called contributory negligence.

Before I became your pastor, I was leading a custodian crew. Our building had 5 stairwells from the basement to the 2nd floor and each day we were expected to mop all those stairs. Sometimes it seemed like overkill to put out wet floor signs by each hallway and then go back nd collect them after the floor dried. But none of us wanted to be the one who created a slick situation that contributed to another person’s fall.

Sometimes it may seem foolish to warn somebody that food from the kitchen may be hot, but anybody who has eaten pizza too soon from the oven knows what I’m talking about.

c. Finally, Jesus says if another person sins we must be eager to forgive.

i. As Christians sometimes we are too quick to jump to 1 Cor 5:11 or Titus 3:10 that tell us to have nothing to do with the person who sins. We jump straight to the end of Mt 18:17 and treat him as you would a pagan.

ii. But how do we treat pagans? We treat them in such a way that we can win them to the gospel! We don’t avoid them, we give intentional love in their direction so that they would respond to the truth.

iii. How do we reconcile forgive him 7 times in the day, or forgive 70 time 7 with Titus 3:10 that says after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him.I think the difference is that 1 Cor 5:11, 2 Thess 3:14, 1 Tim 4:7, 2 Tim 2:23 and Tit 3:10 are all dealing with public sins against THE BODY that will damage the witness of Christ in a community. Matthew 18 and Luke 17:4 are dealing with private or personal offenses in your direction.

iv. We need to be a lot more forgiving regarding offenses toward us, and much more concerned about behaviors that can damage the testimony of the people of God.

Withholding Forgiveness

This isn’t original to me, but withholding forgiveness from another person or refusing to try to make peace is like drinking poison and hoping the other person gets sick.

Application

1. Don’t contribute to sin

2. Don’t refuse to forgive sin

Transition: They knew it would be difficult to do what Jesus is asking so they pray for

Expanding of Expectation (vv.5-6)

BIG Faith/small god or small faith/BIG GOD

1. The as much as admitted that they were not up to the task of forgiving the way Jesus just commanded.

2. Jesus says that small faith (the notably smallest seed) could move great trees that had complex root systems allowing Black Mulberry trees to live up to 600 years.

3. The contrast is so outrageous that it is memorable.

Have you ever tried to remove a bush or root ball of a tree? You need a lot of power and a strong chain, rope or strap. I have a friend Sean who, by his own admission, is sometimes more adventurous than smart. Sean worked in the building trades and wanted a truck but had just graduated from Bible College, was recently married and all they could afford was a little hatchback. Well Sean took the backseat out of his Dodge Omni and treated that little 4-banger like it was a truck. Back to my story about removing bushes. Since Sean and Christy couldn’t afford to hire a landscaper to remove the front hedge, He decided to hook a towstrap to the back of his “truck” and try to pull the bushes out of the ground. Needless to say, a Dodge Omni is not built to pull bushes out of the ground. Sean didn’t need a stronger strap, he needed a more powerful source. The disciples did not need increased faith, Jesus said the strap isn’t the problem! Even if you have a small 1” strap, that will be sufficient if it is connected to the right source.

· A heavy tow chain attached to a weak source is not going to get the job done, but a reasonable strap connected to God’s power is more than enough to move 600 year old trees!

Transition: Once Jesus has expanded their view of God, HE then challenges Disciples to…

Fulfill our Participation (vv.7-10)

1. Jesus uses a story that doesn’t translate well into our modern work ethic.

2. Since the servant/master relationship is difficult for modern ears, I tried to imagine a husband and wife and that took my mind to a very dark place.

I’m sure this textbook was burned before I started school, but perhaps you’ve heard of the 1950’s Home Economics test that read:

· Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready on time. This is a way of letting him know that you have been thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they come home and the prospect of a good meal is part of the warm welcome needed.

· Prepare yourself. Take fifteen minutes to rest so that you are refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your makeup, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people. Be a little gay and a little more interesting. His boring day may need a lift.

Out of time considerations I just give you the highlights of the rest of the list…

· Clear away the clutter.

· Prepare the children.

· Minimize all noise.

· Do not greet your husband with problems or complaints.

· Make him comfortable.

· Listen to him.

· This last one is genius…

· Make the evening his - He is special! Never complain that he does not take you out to dinner or to other pleasant entertainment. Instead, try to understand his world of strain and pressure, his need to unwind and relax. Remember that you relaxed all day waiting for his return. Now it’s his turn to enjoy what you enjoyed.

1. If your home looks like that or you ever served in the military as an enlisted man who interacted with a Drill Instructor or officers, you probably get what Jesus is saying.

2. V.9 makes perfect sense in those settings.

3. In a world where burger flippers who can’t even count change want $15 and hour, this idea of “we have only done what was our duty” seems like madness.

4. In a world where athletes under contract refuse to come to training camp because they want a different contract, “we have only done what was our duty” seems unreasonable.

5. Contentment comes when we do not think too highly of ourselves. Jesus is saying we are not the master, He is. Just as the prodigal son humbly considered it a privilege to be taken back into his father’s estate as a hired hand, we must remember what an honor it is to be in His kingdom and in His service and remember there is only room in the hive for 1 ruler.

6. We have a job to do and we must do it. For Christians that job is to make disciples.

Transition: From Direct teaching from Jesus to His disciples, this last lesson is one that they learn by watching Him interact with others. The takeaway is a need for…

Cultivating our Appreciation (vv.11-19)

Explanation

1. Leprosy was a whole class of skin diseases. Ever since Leviticus 13 it was assigned to the priest to evaluate if the condition appeared contagious or not.

2. Because they needed to self-isolate, they stood at a distance and called out.

3. Jesus finds himself in a sketchy place. He’s in the area between Galilee (a blue collar district) and Samaria (an area that high society avoided). These men have 1 big strike against them—they are lepers and a 2ndstrike is that at least 1 of them was a Samaritan.

4. Jesus calls these 10 to act in faith. Somewhere between leaving Jesus and arriving at the Priests they were to experience something life changing.

Didn’t you enjoy that song that the teens led after communion? We can celebrate that our sin is gone because of what He has done. It is good for us to recall what has happened and who has done it! That is exactly what this Samaritan does in v.15.llustration

5. V.16 is a clear violation of quarantine rules! Jesus has already shown in previous chapters that the work of God does not often submit to the protocols of man.

6. The healing/cleansing of vv.14-17 is less than the wellness of v.19. He wasn’t only cleansed from blisters, he was made well.

We all know that there is a world of difference between being “not sick” and “feeling good”

7. If the 10 were made “not sick”, 1 was turned to “made well”

8. Darel Bock writes, “When the blessings of life are seen as a result of God’s grace, it makes us into gentler, more grateful people. Such an attitude prevents us from assessing life in terms of what we are owed, an attitude that can sow seeds of anger and bitterness.[i]”

Conclusion:

All four of these instructions are relevant to success in becoming godly disciples. I also noticed that they are each essential in a harmonious family. Families that are short in any of these areas: forgiveness, hope, duty and appreciation are pretty unpleasant homes to live in.

A HUGE part of becoming the disciple that God intends is to learn to relate well within His family.

I guess I have family on my mind because I’m going to spend time will much of my extended family in the next 2 weeks. But in preparing for this message, I thought it was appropriate to celebrate THIS family as all who have been adopted into God’s family.

If you are not sure that you are part of God’s family, just tell me after service that you want to be sure you are in God’s family and I will partner you with someone who can show you from Gods Word how you can KNOW that your sins are forgiven.

You have done well to humor me in starting a new tradition that when we remember the blood and body of Christ that unites us as family, we celebrate that relationship by joining hands and singing…

[i]Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996), 447.