Have coffee with us! Sherry and Steve have coffee on Facebook Live each morning at 9am (except Sundays.) We talk about nice things people are doing for each other, dumb stuff we are doing during the shutdown, read the “verse of the day,” and pray for your prayer requests. This week, we’ll have our 30th episode! It’s just one more way we are keeping connected together.
For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile.
Romans 1:16 NLT
What is something that you have had to sacrifice during this time for the sake of the health of our community?
This is a really difficult time for all of us. It’s partly the isolation. It is also partly the sacrificing of our normal patterns and freedoms. We just don’t know what it means to sacrifice for something greater, do we?
Jesus calls us to something much bigger, much better… But in order to live this abundant life that he calls us to, we have to die. That means we don’t always get what we want now, in order to experience something much more, right?
Some Greeks who had come to Jerusalem for the Passover celebration 21 paid a visit to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee. They said, “Sir, we want to meet Jesus.” 22 Philip told Andrew about it, and they went together to ask Jesus.
John 12:20-26 NLT
23 Jesus replied, “Now the time has come for the Son of Man to enter into his glory. 24 I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives. 25 Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing for their life in this world will keep it for eternity. 26 Anyone who wants to serve me must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honor anyone who serves me.
What did Jesus mean when he said, “Now the time has come for the Son of Man to enter into his glory”? Why do you think he said this when the Greeks asked to see him?
A few verses later, Jesus will say, “As for Me, if I am lifted up from the earth I will draw all people to Myself” (12:32). Jesus saw the Greeks coming to see Him as a reminder that, in order to save them, He would have to be crucified. All nations will see Jesus lifted up and crucified for the sins of men and women. In order to fulfill the Father’s will for His life, He would be crucified. This type of self-sacrificing life is exactly how Jesus calls on us, His disciples, to live as well.
What do you think Jesus means by “Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing for their life in this world will keep it for eternity?” What do you think this means? What does it look like on a daily basis?
Jesus doesn’t want us to live careless lives, and he doesn’t want us to despise this life here. Look at his own example! Jesus seemed to love being here! He was always with people. He laughed a lot. He went to parties. He touched even the dirtiest and most diseased people. Jesus said he taught so that “My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.” I think Jesus wants us to live joyful lives, don’t you? So, what is he really saying here?
What Jesus describes here is impossible unless we are born again by the power of the Holy Spirit. Unless the Spirit of God opens our eyes to our own selfishness and sin, we will continue to live “our lives” in opposition to God’s will for us. When we are born-again by faith in Jesus Christ, our desires change. We no longer want to lead the life that we once lived. Instead, our desires are changed so that we want to live for Christ. It is only by the power of the Spirit that we are able to take up our cross and follow Jesus.
A large crowd was following Jesus. He turned around and said to them, 26 “If you want to be my disciple, you must, by comparison, hate everyone else—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. 27 And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.
Luke 14:25-30 NLT
28 “But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? 29 Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you. 30 They would say, ‘There’s the person who started that building and couldn’t afford to finish it!’
How is this passage similar to the earlier one in John? What stands out to you as different? Are we really supposed to hate our families if we are Jesus’ disciples?
In this passage, it is important to note that Jesus uses the word “hate” as a comparison. How can we hate our families when Jesus said one of the greatest commandments is “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39)? The answer is that if our family, or even our desires, try to lead us in an ungodly or sinful direction, we will choose Jesus. Comparatively speaking, we must love Jesus enough that we will choose His ways over our own desires or even the desires of those closest to us. That does not mean we don’t love our families! The most loving thing we can do for our families is to love Christ first and to model for them the kind of self-sacrificing love that Jesus shows to us.
Why do you think that Jesus cautions us to ‘count the cost’? What are the costs we will pay to be His disciples?
If salvation is free, why does Jesus talk to us about what it will cost us?
It isn’t always easy to be a Christian. Paul told Timothy, “In fact, all those who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12). Jesus is not trying to be a shady business man. He is telling us the true cost of eternal life right up front. If we choose to follow Him, it will mean taking up our cross and dying.
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. 25 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. 26 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? 27 For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father and will judge all people according to their deeds.
Matthew 16:24-27 NLT
Jesus says that we must count the cost, die to self, and hate our lives. What is the payoff for giving up all of these things to follow Jesus?
Verse 27 says that the Son of Man “will reward each according to what He has done”. We saw in John 12 that Jesus promises “If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.” In Luke 18:29-30, Jesus says, “I assure you: There is no one who has left a house, wife or brothers, parents or children because of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more at this time, and eternal life in the age to come.” Jesus wants us to know that the price we pay to follow Him is infinitely worth it.
While Jesus’ call to Christian discipleship is difficult, He promises that He will give us joy, abundant life, and that the favor of God will rest upon us. Jesus does not call us to do anything that He did not Himself do. After all, Jesus died on the cross for our sins so that we might enjoy eternal life. Now, Jesus calls on us to make our ambitions the same as His: live for the joy of others. If we do this, Jesus promises that we will live the most abundant lives possible.
What are some things that you might be holding on to that could be hindering your walk with Jesus Christ? Are you holding onto your money instead of giving generously? Too much time at the office instead of setting aside time to be with family and friends?
One step that you might take is to remind yourself each day of the rewards we have in Christ: the forgiveness of sins, the joy of the Lord, a promise of eternal life, etc. How might this help us to overcome selfish ambition?