"Faithful to the Mission"Sermon Transcript for April 16, 2000
By Rev. Mike Beck
Scripture Reading: Luke 9:43-45, 51 & 57-62
Some background to what we read in Luke, Chapter 9. Jesus has obviously been preaching for some time in Galilee. That’s to the north of Jerusalem. And he is quite popular there. In the previous chapter, Luke 8, we see that there have been great miracles such as the feeding of 5000. In Luke 8 that immediately preceded these verses we have the transfiguration experience of Jesus there on the mountain and Peter’s great confession, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
But now Jesus begins to speak a word that the disciples do not want to either hear or understand. It’s those words in Verse 42; "The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of man." And in our text for today, again Verse 51, "As the time approached for Him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem." Friends, there are profound truths within those brief but simple words. Let’s think for a moment concerning those implications.
To go to Jerusalem would mean rejection. And that rejection would come, not only from the religious establishment, but it would also come from some of the common people that Jesus had spent so much time with. How vividly that is illustrated in the contrast between the reception He received on Palm Sunday, that we remember today, and the cries of the angry mob just five days later when Pilot says, "What do we do with this man called Jesus?" And the crowd shouted, "Crucify Him". My guess is that some of the same people that said, "Hosanna to the King" on Sunday shouted, "Crucify Him" on Friday.
To go to Jerusalem would mean the betrayal of Judas. Friends, nothing hurts worse than to be betrayed by someone you dearly love and invested yourself in. To go to Jerusalem would mean that to Jesus. To go to Jerusalem would mean the denial of Peter who only a few weeks earlier had declared Jesus to be the Messiah.
To go to Jerusalem would mean humiliation. He would undergo the mockery of a trial, if you could call it that. Every rule in the book, Steve, in terms of correct legal procedure was violated in the trial of Jesus. He would be laughed at. He would be ridiculed. And perhaps the ultimate humiliation, he would be spat upon.
To go to Jerusalem would mean physical pain. Friends, Jesus was about three-fourths dead before he ever got to the cross. The Roman’s scourging that he endured there in the courtyard, little shrapnel’s of bone were put in the end of the whip so that when the cord was pulled out it would rip out pieces of flesh with it. Spiked nails would be driven into His wrists and into His ankles; and a spear would be thrust into His side. And He knew all of that in advance. Which is what makes Verse 51 so significant. The King James Version translates it this way; "Jesus set His face steadfastly to go to Jerusalem."
And friends, I am confident that the disciples were very much of mixed minds when Jesus told them of His intention to go to Jerusalem. My guess is that most of the disciples would have much preferred Him just to set up shop there in Galilee, receive the accolades of the crowd, keep passing out free lunches, and healing persons. And those few disciples who might have been excited about going to Jerusalem were most likely filled with very false expectations believing that Jesus’ plans for going to Jerusalem would be to set up a political Kingdom. And think it through, if you’re one of the twelve and He goes there and sets up His political Kingdom, you’re going to be a part of the Cabinet. And, finally, from their perspective, will be rid of those hated Romans.
But knowing what was in store for Him, why did Jesus so resolutely set out for Jerusalem? The answer is a very simple one. He was clear about what His mission was here on this earth. His Heavenly Father had revealed to Him that there was more to His ministry than just teaching and performing miracles in Galilee. Jesus knew that the time now had come for Him to fulfill His ultimate mission, which would involve taking on the sin of the entire world on Calvary’s cross. And, praise God, he was faithful to that mission.
There are two applications that I want to draw from this text today. One is personal; the other is corporate. First of all, this personal application. Friends, there is a difference between nominal Christianity and real discipleship. Let me define those terms. Nominal Christianity means we listen to and we enjoy the benefits of being with Jesus but that’s about as far as it goes. Real discipleship comes about when we realize this costs me something, but I’m willing to pay the price and follow Him whatever the costs might be.
To all of you who have named the name of Jesus. At some point in your walk with Christ, and often times when we accept Christ as Savior we’re not yet ready to hear or be able to understand what discipleship means. And God understands that. And sometimes that call to discipleship will come years after we have accepted Jesus as our Savior. But, friends, at some point all of us as Christians will be confronted head-on with the fact true faith costs us something.
That’s what those hard words that I read in Verses 57 and 62 were about. And to fully understand them we would need to take the time to go into the context of them culturally. The man’s father had not yet died and Jesus certainly was not opposed to saying goodbye to family. But in again a sense of hyperbole he wants to stress, "If you’re going to follow Christ, it’s going to cost you something." The songwriter hit the nail right straight on the head when he penned these words:
Must Jesus bear the cross alone,
and all the world go free?
No, there’s a cross for everyone,
and there’s a cross for me.
Jesus steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, even though He knew full well what it would cost Him. He did it out of His love for you and for me. I would simply on a personal basis ask each one of you on this Palm Sunday to look deep within your life today and ask the question, "What is my relationship to Jesus Christ costing me?"
The second application relates to our life as a church here at Grace. We are all aware that there have been numerous changes in our midst over the past several years. Change is one of the hardest things in life to deal with. In the remodeling work that we all celebrate but we are also aware that there is a cost involved in that. Your Administrative Council on Monday voted unanimously beginning in June to implement a more contemporary style of worship at the 11:00 a.m. service. It won’t affect you. This service will remain just as it always has been. But there will be some people who currently come at 11:00 a.m. that may not enjoy that new style and will have to change their time of coming to church that they’ve been coming for the last 30 years. We’re looking at a Mid-Week Ministry to begin in September. But there are costs in terms of energy and time connected to that. And we’ve pushed you forward significantly, friends, in terms of our General Fund Budget as we try to implement the recommendations of a variety of groups and to expand our ministries and our staff.
Hear me carefully, the easiest thing for our church, the easiest thing for you, and the easiest thing for me, to use the analogy from our scripture today, would be just to stay in Galilee. Friends, do you realize that if you wanted to just maintain the status quo, Grace is probably the easiest church in the South Indiana Conference to pastor. You can come in here and just relax because you already know how to do everything. There’s so much talent and resources present in our midst here. I could have come in and just coasted to retirement. Life would be a whole lot easier up there in Galilee. There would be less risk. There would be less complaining up there in Galilee. There would be less need for faith and sacrifice.
But the foundational question that must be asked is this? What is our mission as a church? Is it security and comfort of things "as they are?" Is that our mission? Is it having a whole lot of money in the bank? Is the mission of Christ church satisfying our preferences? Is the mission of the church the absence of debt? Friends, I can take you to a lot of churches who don’t have any debt; and most of them are deader than a doornail. There’s not much going on there in terms of vitality.
Or is our mission the same as that of Jesus--to win the lost and to make disciples? It’s pretty simple. As I read the New Testament, that is what I see Christ calls us to be. Whatever the cost, go out and win the lost and make disciples. Allow me to illustrate our mission this way. Listen carefully to this question. There are several of you that should stand. Don’t worry, you don’t have to give a testimony. But if you have come to faith in Jesus Christ or if you have returned to a vital relationship with Jesus through the ministry of Grace Church during the past three years, I just want you now to stand and remain standing. If that’s true of you, if you have come to faith in Christ or a deeper relationship with Him, would you stand? That’s proof for you. Remain standing. If you are a new person to Grace in the past three years who have found here help and hope and home, would you stand? You may be seated.
Friends, I suggest in faith and humility that the persons who have just stood and the others who will join their ranks in the years ahead, that is our mission. It’s not primarily about us. It’s about the people out there. But God has placed us here in this strategic location to be a beacon of light and love to them. If our mission is to win the lost and make disciples, then we have our "marching orders". To take up our cross and follow Christ no matter what may be the cost.
Would you pray with me? "Lord, remind us that You have not called us to a life of ease and pleasure, but to a life of love and service and concern for others. When the way is hard and there are sacrifices to be made, remind us we are not alone. That you are standing there with us to give and provide the strength and resources that we need to meet every challenge before us. This we pray in the name of the One who set His face steadfastly to Jerusalem to die on a cross for us. Amen."
E-mail Comments to: Reverend Dan Sinkhorn