Let's begin with a word of prayer and then we'll get into our study.
Our gracious Father in heaven.
We are grateful for your blessings, for all that you do for us, for your care that you provide us.
We're mindful of all of your many bountiful blessings, among which are the congregation that surrounds us, the family of people that are willing to uh help us and aid us, to
encourage us and provoke us to love and to good works.
Lord, we pray for the congregation here and for its works.
We pray for its
laborers.
Pray that all that we do and say will be in accordance with your will and right in your sight.
Lord, we ask that you forgive us when we sin and fall short of your glory and help us to strive to diligently walk in the light as you are in the light.
Lord, we pray that you be with this nation and with its leaders, with the states and the counties that we live in and those local leaders as well.
We pray also for those who guide nations throughout the world.
We pray that their actions, that their deeds will be those which will create opportunities for evangelism, for the spreading of the gospel and the truth, and that we might always be
able to live peaceably but also serving you.
Lord, we pray that you be with those who are in foreign mission fields and we pray that you...
take care of them and provide for their needs.
Help us to aid in that as we have opportunity to do.
All this we pray and ask in Jesus' amen.
Jesus has told the disciples that He is going to be killed, that He is going to be rejected.
to the disciples at this present time that would have seemed as though his mission was going to be defeated.
But we understand now looking backward that that wasn't what Jesus was saying.
Jesus wasn't saying that by being rejected by the Jews that he was going to fail in his mission, which by the way, that's what the premillennialists still teach, that Jesus
failed in his mission because the Jews rejected it.
And that he's coming back at some later date to reign on the throne in Jerusalem for a thousand years because he failed to do it the first time.
But Jesus wasn't telling them that he was going to fail or that his mission would not be completed, rather that this was exactly what had always been the goal and the intent.
Turn to Luke chapter 23 real quick.
Luke chapter 24,
After His resurrection, we read in verse 44 of Luke chapter 24, for then he said to them, These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must
be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses, and the prophets, and the psalms concerning me.
And he opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the scriptures.
Then he said to them, Thus it is written.
And thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day.
And that repentance and remission of sin should be preached in His name to all nations beginning at Jerusalem.
Jesus here after His resurrection as He is getting ready to ascend back to the Father makes it clear to the disciples, you remember what I told you?
Do you remember what I had previously said?
That this was exactly what the prophets had said would occur.
And that none of the things which I had set out to do could be completed unless it fulfilled Old Testament prophecy.
So he points out that this was the plan all along.
This wasn't an audible.
This wasn't a change in plans.
This wasn't a shifting away from the original ideal scenario.
This was exactly what was intended from the beginning.
Now, verse 34 says, when he had called the disciples to himself with his, sorry, when he had called the people to himself with his disciples also, he said to them, whoever desires
to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.
for whoever desires to save his life will lose it.
But whoever loses his life for my sake and the Gospels will save it." Jesus here, as He is speaking to the disciples, will point out to them that they have to be willing to trade
their life for the goal and the mission of the Gospels.
Now what did he just say he was going to have to do?
He was going to have to go to the cross.
He was going to have to be rejected and killed.
And so he's calling upon them to have the same conviction that he has.
All along, Jesus's emphasis is you have to stop trusting you.
You have to stop prioritizing you.
You have to become the, if for lack of better term, the agent of God.
And if God says you've got to die, then you've got to die.
Turn over to Philippians chapter one.
Philippians chapter one.
Verse 19, "'For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope
that in nothing I shall be ashamed.
But with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.'"
But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor.
Yet what shall I choose?
I cannot tell.
For I am hard pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.
Nevertheless, to remain in the flesh is more needful for you.
And being confident of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all.
for your progress and joy in the faith." Paul, as he writes about his own scenario as he sits here in a Roman prison, says, I'm okay with dying.
As a matter of fact, not only am I okay with it, it would be the best scenario that I could have.
It would be a greater gain if I could leave this life and go be with Christ.
But he said, I also know which is more needful.
And it's more needful at the present time to stay here and work with these churches.
And so he considered his life to be something that did not have the same value that he once would have placed on it, not because it wasn't of great value.
but because eternity was of more value.
You go over to Galatians chapter 2.
In Galatians chapter 2 and in verse 20, we read, have been crucified with Christ.
It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.
And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
As Paul writes to the churches of Galatia,
He emphasizes to them, when you crucify yourself.
Now, what is it that Jesus called upon his disciples to do?
To take up their cross.
Now, over in the text, I believe it's in Luke's record, the text says, take up your cross daily and follow me.
Mark, he points out here, whoever desires to save his life,
We'll lose it.
the emphasis that God places on the fact that we do not understand what He is doing, that we rarely can fully grasp what God's plans are.
And so if we act out of natural self-motivation,
we're likely to get it wrong.
If rather, we are willing to give up everything that we have, everything that we are, to his purpose.
It doesn't mean, you know what, well, I got a dollar today, light it on fire, get rid of it, can't have anything.
There were those in history who swore themselves by an oath to poverty.
so that they could live for God.
That's not what Jesus is talking about.
Jesus is not saying if you're poor and destitute, you're more spiritual.
He's saying if you're a hundred percent allocated to God's purpose.
then God can use you.
But he points out, he says, if you're going to save your life, okay, you're going to lose your life.
When uh David went before Goliath, who did David rely upon to save his life?
God did, or he relied on God.
When David went,
into battle after battle after battle, movement after movement after movement throughout the course of the time that he was hiding from Saul and striving to defend Israel at the
same time?
Who did he rely on?
God.
Each one of those events you read over and over that David inquired of the Lord.
Did David have to spend all those years running away from Saul in order to accomplish God's purpose?
To ask the question is to answer it.
Whose purpose was David serving while he was running?
God's.
Now, what could have changed that?
David's need to run.
Would it have been David changing his actions or someone else?
It would have been Saul.
It would have been the person who, note, was afraid of losing his power, his position, his kingdom.
It would have been his choice to do something different.
that would have made David's running and desperation totally unnecessary.
And yet by Saul seeking to keep his power, his kingdom, his life, his situation, what did he do in reality?
He lost it.
Saul is the epitome of someone who sought to save his own life.
and lost it as a result because he didn't obey God.
You remember what Saul said when he brought back the king and all the flocks and the herds from the uh Amalekites that he was supposed to go and completely destroy because it was a
judgment from God that they'd be completely wiped out.
Nothing, none of the possessions, none of the uh king, none of the goodly uh items, none of it should have remained.
And he comes back with the king in tow, comes back with the flocks and the herds in tow.
Samuel comes out to meet him and Samuel says, what's this bleeding of the oxen and and loing of the donkeys that I hear?
Oh, well, the people, the people wanted to bring them back to sacrifice them to your God, Samuel.
And then here comes the king.
Still alive.
What does Samuel do to the king?
He took a sword and as the text indicates, he hacked him in pieces.
Samuel indicated.
that is a result of that action.
kingdom would be ripped.
from Seoul.
because Saul sought his own purposes and not God's.
You go back into the text and you'll notice that Jesus doesn't just say, whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.
He also says, and the gospels.
Jesus is not leaving this to an arbitrary emotional disposition about seeking God first.
This is not Jesus indicating that if you have an affinity for God, that that's what he's talking about.
No, what he's talking about is putting the mission of the gospel
above everything else, and thereby obeying God.
If you go over to Matthew chapter five, what do you find there?
Sorry, Matthew chapter six, I'll get my words out.
Matthew chapter six, verse 33, Jesus says, seek first the kingdom of heaven, and all these things shall be added unto you.
But then Jesus follows that up here in verse 36 with, for what will it profit
a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?
Sometimes we might imagine that, you know, what Jesus is really saying here is this is what an ideal disciple looks like, right?
This person who forsakes their own life and rather uh lives for God in this intense way.
ah That's what some perfect apostle level Christian looks like.
No, that's not what Jesus is saying.
Jesus is saying, this is the qualification for being my disciple.
This is what it means to be my follower.
You cannot have me, Christ, without this.
He says, because if you look at this life and your motivations,
and your actions are to gain this world.
you'll lose your soul.
Turn over to 1 John.
1 John chapter 2, beginning in verse 15, he says, do not love the world or the things in the world.
If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
And the world is passing away and the lust of it, but he who does the will of God,
abides forever.
as you consider what Jesus is saying.
Jesus is not telling these individuals, if you have any possessions, you're going to lose your soul.
He is saying, if you seek this world instead of seeking me, you'll lose your soul.
But he points out, he says, what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
What price will someone put on their eternal soul?
for the rich man and the rich man and Lazarus.
What was the price?
He fared sumptuously every day.
He had abundance and plenty, servants at his beck and call.
He had this world's abundance.
What did he lack?
He lacked trusting God.
He lacked compassion.
He lacked a willingness to depart with what he had to help someone else.
Where did Lazarus lay on a daily basis?
the gates of this man's house.
What did this man ever do for Lazarus?
Nothing.
had this man.
helped Lazarus, taking care of Lazarus, would Lazarus have died?
Eventually.
So if he was gonna die anyway, what was the point?
But had he helped Lazarus, would he have died?
Alright?
The answer is yes, eventually he would have died too.
but his eternal scenario, he would have found to be quite different.
Not because of a one-time act of helping Lazarus, but because of a change in everything about how he lived.
The Rich Man.
realized the error of his way, but he realized it too late.
What did Abraham say would have been sufficient for the rich man's brothers to not end up where the rich man was?
to go and to do the things that were taught them by Moses and the prophets.
I knew what you meant.
Abraham says they've got Moses and the prophets, let them hear them.
All right, now quick question.
Abraham, rich man or poor man?
Rich man.
So is the story about the inability of a rich man to enter heaven?
No.
Is the story about the default state of the poor man and the disabled man automatically going to heaven?
No.
Then what is the indication about the difference in Lazarus's life versus the rich man's life?
What did Lazarus do the rich man did not?
It's there in the answer from Abraham about the brothers of the rich man.
He followed Moses and the prophets.
When God brought Israel into the land flowing with milk and honey, when God brought them into an inheritance, what did God say would happen if they kept His word, did what He
said, followed Him faithfully, and kept His covenant?
He would bless them.
They would be loners and not debtors.
They would have abundance.
They would plant their harvest and come the next harvest, they'd have to throw out the old harvest that was still left over to put the new harvest in.
They would have abundance beyond what they could ask for.
They would have enough that would arrive on the sixth year
that they wouldn't have to plant on the seventh year and come the eighth year, they'd still have leftovers.
God says, if you will do my will, then I'll take care of what you need on this earth.
But if they didn't, what did he promise?
He said your skies will turn to iron and they won't give you any rain.
Your crops will grow up and I'll blow on them and wipe them out.
You will forever be enslaved and ensnared by others, not because you're powerless.
but because you didn't realize that it never had anything to do with your power to begin with.
That's what this is all about.
It's what Jesus is emphasizing here.
This is us coming to the frank realization that our state in life has little to nothing to do with ourselves.
and it has much to do with our trust and our confidence in God.
Not that.
If we trust and have confidence in God, we'll always have plenty.
Turn over to Philippians chapter four.
Paul's going to make this quite evident.
Philippians chapter four, verse 10.
But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at last your care for me has flourished again, though you surely did care, but you lacked opportunity.
Paul's saying there was a time in the life of the Philippian brethren where they desired to help Paul and couldn't.
They couldn't either because of his circumstance or theirs.
But their care for him
Their financial support of him, that's what the idea there in that text is, has flourished again.
They now have the ability and the opportunity.
He says, not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am to be content.
The key that Jesus is emphasizing is not,
Do what God says and every one of you will be so rich beyond your imagination you'll never have to worry about paying another bill.
That's not what he's talking about.
What he is emphasizing is...
If you focus on living your life this way, there is a place where there is no rent charged and you never go hungry and there's no lack of food and there's no rain and there's no
cloudy days and there's no nothing there that is evil and you have a secure
home and inheritance and you can't lose it.
He says, not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am to be content, I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound everywhere in all things I
have learned, both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.
I wish that more people, when they quoted the very next verse, would bother to read the verse before it.
He says, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Most of the time when they quote that verse, they're only thinking about the being full and the abounding and the
abundant state.
They're not saying, you know what, I have been abased and I have been hungry and I have suffered need and I have been content all along the way because Christ was my strength to
begin with.
And I could have stayed right there the entire way through the end of my life and been content.
Instead they're going, nope, I won.
Therefore it was Christ.
That's not what Paul's So we go back to chapter eight.
Paul has asked, what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
for whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, do not miss, don't skim by the fact that Jesus says, you are ashamed of my doctrine in the face
of a wicked generation.
He says, whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation of him, the Son of Man also will be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with his
holy angels.
Jesus says, if you can't be in full-throated support of my message and of me.
then I'm going to have a really, really hard time throwing my support behind you.
when Christ or when God the Father asked me, so tell me about this one.
Turn to Job chapter 1.
Job chapter 1.
We read in verse 1, there was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and shunned evil.
And seven sons and three daughters were born to him.
Also, his possessions were seven thousand sheep, seven thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred female donkeys, and a very large household.
So that this man was the greatest of all the people of the East.
And his sons would go and feast in their houses.
and on his appointed day would send and invite their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.
So it was when the days of feasting had run their course that Job would send and sanctify them and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the
number of them all.
For Job said, it may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.
Thus Job did regularly.
Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord and Satan also came among them.
And the Lord said to Satan, where do you come from?
Where do you come?
So Satan answered the Lord and said, from going to and fro on the earth and from walking back and forth on it.
Then the Lord said to Satan, have you considered my servant Job?
That's the idea of Jesus testifying on behalf of us before the Father.
that he would say to the judge.
Let me tell you about my servant.
Let me tell you about this one who carried his cross.
Let me tell you about what this one has done.
You read Job 1 and that's what God's doing.
God says, here's my testimony about Job.
He was a good man.
He was upright.
He was blameless.
He feared me.
and he shunned evil.
and he was so conscious of the fact of his state as a blessed individual that he was aware that there was a possibility that his children in their blessed state
would see the riches, see the possessions, see all the bounty that he had, see all the things that were part of being Job's child.
and come to love the stuff more than they love the giver of it.
And so Job offered sacrifices for his children in case they had cursed God in their heart and allowed their heart to chase after the possessions of this life.
Jesus.
is making it clear.
you're going to be my disciple.
You're going to have to not be ashamed of me.
Paul would point out that there were numerous ones as he sat in a Roman prison who didn't associate with Paul anymore because they were ashamed of his bonds, of his chains, of the
fact that he was in prison.
Paul didn't hold it against them.
But Jesus makes it clear if you're ashamed of me and my word.
then I will be ashamed of you when my Father comes in the glory, in His glory with His holy angels.
Chapter 9 verse 1, and He said to them, Assuredly I say to you,
There are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power.
There should not be a chapter break there, by the way,
right between holy angels and the word and.
There shouldn't be a chapter break.
He's not done talking.
We're not moving on to a new subject.
He's just said, if you're ashamed of me, I'll be ashamed of you.
He's just said, I'm going to go and be rejected and killed.
And He further states, and some of you standing here will still be standing and alive when you see the kingdom of God present with power.
Now, again, this passage is one of those death nails to premillennialism.
If you believe in premillennialism, you're still waiting for the kingdom.
And somewhere in the world, there's some 2,000-year-old people walking around we haven't found yet.
because Jesus said, there's some of you standing here who will not taste death.
till you observe the kingdom of God come.
So question, why does he use the word sum?
Okay?
Who?
Yeah, say it No, not James.
Judas!
Did Judas live to see the kingdom of God come on this earth?
No, he did not.
Why?
Because Judas decided that the worthy price in exchange for his soul was 30 pieces of silver.
Judas failed to pick up the cross and follow Jesus.
Many of the disciples when they saw Jesus arrested
were scared and forsook him
But they didn't stay gone.
They didn't forsake him permanently.
They rather forsook him temporarily.
And when that Sunday morning arose...
that Jesus was resurrected.
Those 11 were all together.
Mary was at the tomb.
Others were still confident in who he was.
Any comments or questions?
We won't get into the account, Mark's account of the transfiguration before we close.
Any thoughts?
Alright, thank you for your attention.