Shooting the Breeze

This morning we are finishing up our series “What is a disciple?” Let’s quickly review what we have learned so far. So far we have seen that a disciple spends time with Jesus, a disciple loves Jesus supremely, a disciple loves every other disciple, a disciple obeys Christ continually and last we week saw that a disciple uses their gifts to serve others. The final characteristic of a disciple that we will be examining this morning is: a disciple passes on the good news.

I came across this hilarious story this week about how a 4-year-old girl got involved in passing on the good news. Like many girls, this girl was really into Barbies. I guess this little girl engaged in long conversations with her Barbies as she walked around the house. So her dad, searching for common ground with his little girl, suggested that she teach her Barbies about Jesus. The little girl then went back to her room for a few minutes, gathered all her Barbies in a circle around her and told them that they needed to believe in Jesus in order to go to heaven. A few minutes later, she came out of her room and proudly announced that all of her Barbies were now believers. Her dad then asked her how it happened that they all become Christians so quickly. With a big grin on her face, the little girl said, “It was easy. I just sat on each of them until they said yes!”

While this method sure sounds effective, it’s probably much better to communicate the gospel in other ways. This morning we’re going to look into God’s Word in order to find out how the Apostle Paul passed on the good news. If you have your Bibles, turn to Acts 17, beginning in verse 16. Let’s begin by getting a little bit of background to this passage. This incident takes place in Athens. When Paul was there, as part of his Second Missionary Journey, he did what most people do when they go to a beautiful city ¬ he went sightseeing. But instead of being impressed with what he saw, verse 16 says that he was distressed to see that the city was full of idols. One ancient writer tells us that at the time there were 30,000 gods in Athens! In fact, one historian has said that it was easier to find a god than a man in the downtown area. Paul’s spirit was moved when he saw all these idols. The Greek helps us here because it shows how strongly Paul was distressed – it literally means that he was provoked by a storm of protest within his inner being.

Instead of leaving the city or complaining to the officials, verse 17 shows us that he went to work. He spent time both in the religious centers and in the marketplace. The text says that he did it every day. We see in verse 18 that some philosophers wanted to debate with him. The Epicureans were atheists; they denied God’s existence. They didn’t believe in the afterlife. They were content to just live for today ¬ we might call them materialists. Their motto was, “Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die.” There are still plenty of Epicureans around today right here in Port Hardy. The Stoics were pantheist’s, they believed that everything is God, and that He does not exist as a separate entity, but is in the rocks and trees and every material thing. Their attitude toward life was one of ultimate resignation they prided themselves on their ability to take whatever came their way. Their motto was, “Grin and bear it.” Apathy was regarded as the highest virtue in life. Do you know anyone like that today?

Now, look at the last part of verse 18 through verse 21: “Some of them asked, ‘What is this babbler trying to say?’ [Those were the Epicureans.] Others remarked, ‘He seems to be advocating foreign gods.’ [These were the Stoics.] They said this because Paul was preaching about Jesus and the resurrection. Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, ‘May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we want to know what they mean. (All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)”

The Epicureans, who were atheists, treated Paul with utter disdain. The word “babbler” is literally a “seed-picker.” They saw Paul as one of the little birds in the marketplace going around pecking at seeds here and there. In their minds, Paul was little more than a collector of fragments of truth ¬ and they dismissed him. But the Stoics were interested. In their theology, they had some room for additional gods. They were intrigued. I love Luke’s commentary “the people spent their time doing nothing but talking and listening to the latest ideas” – sounds like Talk Radio today, doesn’t it?

These people brought Paul before the Supreme Court of Athens. As the only Christian in the city, he was asked to explain what he believed. This is one of the most dramatic scenes in the New Testament ¬ Paul preaching the gospel in the intellectual capital of the world. His words are clear, concise, and very much to the point. More than that, they show what it means to become “all things to all men” (1 Corinthians 9:22). We know that Paul as a Jew could speak to his own people. But here we see him before an audience of Gentiles who have never heard of Jesus Christ. Standing on their turf, at their invitation, he starts where they are and uses this opportunity to preach the gospel to them.

As we walk through the text this morning, I want us to see Paul’s approach as a model for us as we mix it up with the Epicurean and Stoic people in our own lives. I see four things that Paul did which we need to emulate – all of them begin with the letter “C”. If we want to follow Paul’s lead, the first thing we need to do is: Be Courteous. Look at verse 22: “Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious…” What a great approach. Paul started right where his listeners were. He didn’t denounce them or attack their idolatry. In fact, he paid them a compliment. He basically said, “As I’ve been walking around your city, I’ve noticed one thing about you: You are a very religious people.” First words matter. If he loses his audience—either by boring them or insulting them—he’ll never get them back again.

To Paul, the Athenians were like blind men groping in the dark towards a God they did not know and could not find. But no kind person makes sport of the blind. Write this down in large letters: You cannot insult a person into the Kingdom of God. Were not the Athenians idolaters? Yes they were. But he didn’t begin by saying, “I’ve come to expose your sins, you dirty, wretched, hell-bound, idol-worshipping, heathenistic pagans. Thank God I’m here because I’m going to lead you to Jesus.” They wouldn’t have given him the time of day if he had said that.

The questions we need to ask ourselves are: Am I courteous when I spend time with people who are not followers of Christ yet? Or, am I secretly angry with them because of some of the things they do? If so, we need to remember that people without Christ are going to sin. In other words, we shouldn’t be surprised when people without Christ act like people without Christ. We also need to ask ourselves: Am I kind and gracious or am I abrasive? People without Christ in their life yet can and will pick up on our attitudes so we need to be careful.

I think the Early Church had a good handle on this. They were so thankful for the grace of God in their own lives, that they extended this same grace to others. I’m intrigued by what we read in Acts 2:47 when it says that the believers were praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. That tells me that Christians were fun to be around. They were winsome. Upbeat. Full of grace. People without Christ wanted to hang out with these followers of Christ. We need to ask ourselves: Do people with out Christ in their life feel that same way about us? If not, we need to work at being more courteous.

Secondly, we learn that we need to be contemporary. Paul was courteous when he dealt with people operating within a different worldview. We see in the first part of verse 23. He established some common ground with his listeners. Here’s another way to say it: When he was courteous, he broke down barriers; when he was contemporary, he built bridges to the heart of his audience. Notice verse 23: “For as I walked around and observed your objects of worship, I found even an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD…”

Paul was out where the people lived and worked. He hung out with people. This is important for several reasons. First, it would tell the Athenians that Paul had taken the time to get to know their city. This is a key principle, isn’t it? You’ve got to get to know people if you want to talk to them intelligently. Second, this statement tells us that Paul found a natural point of contact. As he walked around, he looked for connectors, or bridges, from their world to the gospel. In missions, these are called “redemptive analogies,” which are cultural or traditional beliefs that the missionary can use as a springboard to explain the gospel message. As he strolled through the city, he saw altars to every conceivable deity. Historians tell us that the Athenians built altars not only to their main gods—such as Zeus and Aphrodite, but also to abstract concepts such as justice, modesty, energy, and virtue. They were trying to cover all the bases, so to speak.

As Paul toured the city, he came upon an altar with a strange inscription: “To an unknown God.” There were a number of these in Athens. Here’s the background: Several centuries before this, a plague had hit the city and a man from Cyprus advised them to take a flock of black and white sheep to the Areopagus and let them go. Wherever a sheep stopped, they would kill the sheep and offer it on the nearest altar. If there was no altar nearby, they built one and dedicated it to “the unknown God.” The plague eventually lifted and the altars stayed. They attributed their deliverance to one of the “unknown gods.” Evidently, Paul found one of these altars and used it as his opening illustration.

Think about this for a moment. 30,000 altars in one city and still they weren’t sure they had enough. When you don’t know the true God, you always turn to idols. And not just one, but too many of them, because one is never enough. Some of our friends and neighbours have idols as well ¬ though they might not be the kind you can see on a shelf in their house ¬ they might be a little more hidden than that. We need to ask ourselves: are we spending enough time with people who don’t know Christ yet? Do we know what their interests are? Do we know what they are concerned about? Do we know those things that make them happy? The things that make them cry? Have we discovered any idols in their hearts? We need to be contemporary, up-to-date with our neighbours, co-workers and extended family members.

Not only was Paul courteous and contemporary, he was also courageous. We don’t have time this morning to mine the depths of this passage, but I want you to notice how bold Paul was in verses 23-30. Look at the last part of verse 23: “Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you.” The phrase something unknown really means “in ignorance” though the hearers wouldn’t have taken it that way. He tactfully tells them they don’t know what they are talking about—which is literally true. It’s as if he is saying, “You admit there is a God you don’t know. Very well, then. I happen to know that God and I will now proclaim him to you. I will begin where you end.” This is tremendous evangelistic strategy. How could they be offended when he starts by quoting from one of their own altars “To the unknown God?”

By admitting there is more to God than they know, they have opened the door for Paul to preach the gospel boldly. This is what I mean by finding common ground. It doesn’t mean compromising our values in order to share the gospel. Paul here isn’t compromising anything. He’s just finding a way to gain a hearing with these highly intelligent people. And how did he find it? The same way we will in our own passing on of the good news—by listening, by reading, by watching, by observing, by paying attention to what people say and do. Ecclesiastes 3:11 says that God has set eternity in every human heart. Sooner or later, that longing for eternity will express itself in one way or another. We need to pay attention and we’ll see it when it happens. That’s our common ground.

We need to keep our eyes open and our ears tuned in because sooner or later, we’ll sense the “God-shaped vacuum” inside the heart of those who don’t know Jesus yet. And when the door opens, we need to be courageous and just step in. That’s what Paul did and we can do it, too. In verses 24-25, Paul gives them a theology lesson, courageously speaking of God as the Creator and the Giver of all things: “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.”

Paul then establishes the fact that God is near enough for us to reach out to Him and find what we’re looking for in verses 26-29. Verse 30 shows us the depth of Paul’s courageousness: “In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.” Paul is mincing no words here. When I think about the need to be courageous, I’m helped greatly by something Bill Bright once said: “Instead of assuming that people don’t want to hear the gospel, try instead to assume that they will be interested in the good news.” Our friend may have just gone through circumstances that have prepared their heart to receive Jesus Christ. God may have been leading them into an awareness of their need for truth. Perhaps they have felt especially alone — or in need of love.

As Paul moves from being courteous to being contemporary, to being courageous, he comes to the final phase of his speech: he was Christ-centered. You see, it’s not enough to just be nice and spend time with people. Nor is it enough to just be bold. We must look for ways to talk about Jesus. Look at verse 31: “For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.” Paul was not afraid to speak of an inescapable day of judgment. He did not shrink from speaking the truth about the resurrection of Jesus, even though he knew that many of his listeners would not want to hear it.

We too must not shrink from speaking about Jesus. He is the only way to peace with God and people have to believe in Him in order to be saved. Paul said it strongly in 1 Corinthians 1:22-23: “Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified.” As God gives you opportunity, speak boldly for Christ. Tell people about His death so they understand that Jesus died in their place and that they can be forgiven for all the sins they have committed. Tell them about His resurrection so that that they can have hope for eternity. Tell them about the love and peace and joy that will be theirs once they surrender to Christ.

Let’s now look at how the people responded to Paul’s message. I see at least 3 reactions – people have the same sort of responses today. Response #1 is found in verse 32. Some were contemptuous. When they heard about the resurrection, they sneered. A second response is found in the last part of verse 32: Others were curious. Their appetites were whetted and they told Paul that they wanted to hear more. Verse 34 gives us the encouraging news that a number of others were convinced. This is what we can expect when we are involved in the lives of lost people. Some will become agitated and contemptuous. Others will be curious. And some will become convinced and commit themselves to Christ.

As I think about how Paul mixed it up with the intellectuals of his day, a couple thoughts come to mind: (1) How people respond to the gospel is God’s responsibility. Remember the words from Acts 2:47, “The Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” It’s God who brings people to Himself. Some will be upset, others will be interested, and still others will come to Christ. That’s up to Him, not me. (2) How I respond to God is my responsibility. As we wrap up this series called, “What is a disciple?” I’m struck by the fact that my responsibility is to become completely committed and totally sold-out to Christ. We can do that by spending time with Jesus, loving Jesus supremely, by loving every other disciple, by obeying Christ continually, by using my gifts to serve others and by passing on the good news.

Let me give you some action steps as we conclude this morning to help us apply these truths to our relationships. They are really simple and pretty easy. First we need to pray. Pray for neighbours as you walk around and drive through your neighbourhood. Pray for your co-workers by name. List 3 or 4 people and pray for them everyday. Second, we need to care. Seek ways to show people you care and offer to pray for their needs. Be courteous and contemporary. Organize a block party or have someone over and have a BQQ. Reach out with random acts of kindness. Pick up trash. Put your neighbour’s paper by the front door. Invite a neighbour in when they stop by. And finally, we need to share. This is where being courageous and Christ-centered come in. Look for natural opportunities to share your faith. Be ready to tell others about how you came to Christ.

In the 1850s, some people discovered a tremendous amount of gold in a riverbed in Montana. But, because they didn’t have any tools and some members of their team were sick, they realized that they had to go back to town for some supplies and to rest up. Before they left, they decided to make a pact to not tell anyone where the gold was. They then went to the city for a couple weeks. Early one morning, as they all got up to leave the town and head back to the riverbed, over 50 of the townspeople walked out of town with them. They asked each other, “Did you tell them about the gold?” No, did you? They finally asked the people why they were coming along. This is what they said; “We knew you found gold by the smiles on your faces.”

Question: Do our neighbours know that we’ve found gold? Can they tell just by looking at our face? Do they see a bit of Christ when they look at us? If so, they’re going to want what we have. Are you ready to pass on the good news? Believe me, this is much more effective then trying to sit on them …

Today we are continuing on in our series “What is a disciple?” So far we have learned that a disciple spends time with Jesus, a disciple loves Jesus supremely, a disciple loves every other disciple and a disciple obeys Christ continually. Today we are going to learn that a disciple uses their gifts to serve others. The beauty of Christianity is that believers have been redeemed for a reason, converted to a cause, and saved to serve. The Early Church understood this principle very clearly. Take a look at Acts 2:45, “Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.” These Christ-followers were committed to each other, giving and ministering whenever they had opportunity. But, much like what happens to us after awhile, fracture points were beginning to appear across the fabric of the Early Church.

Flip over a few chapters now to Acts 6:1-7. This text tells the story of a sudden and unexpected controversy that threatened to rip apart the Early Church. How it was handled and how the crisis became an opportunity makes for a fascinating story. As I study these verses I am struck by the way the passage begins and ends. Verse 1 tells us that the problem surfaced as the number of disciples was increasing. Verse 7 informs us that the Word of God spread rapidly as many people believed and many priests became obedient to the faith. Instead of derailing the church, this crisis propelled it to even faster growth. Surely this is a mark of God’s hand of blessing. Even the bad things work out for good.

What happens in Acts 6 takes place at the end of a period of severe persecution, from which the church emerged stronger than ever. Acts 4 tells us that it was a time of unusual spiritual unity and sharing of possessions. And it happened during a period of amazing spiritual harvest. This should not surprise us. Satan often attacks at the moment when things are finally going well. In seven brief verses Luke describes the problem, gives the solution, and then tells us about the very positive result. When we get to the end, we discover that more people are serving the Lord, more people are being won to Christ, and the unity of the church has been restored.

Let’s begin by looking at the problem. Acts 6: 1says: “In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Grecian Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.” This is the first case of racial prejudice in the Christian church. It comes about primarily because the church has grown so fast that it has outstripped its leadership base. In the early days the apostles and their helpers could easily care for everyone in the congregation. As thousands joined the growing movement, it was inevitable that some people (or groups of people) would fall through the cracks.

Judaism had a system for the distribution of food to the poor. The Early Church in Jerusalem also shared their possessions with the needy. But, because of the increasing number of believers, the number of widows dependent on relief became disproportionately large. The problem stemmed from the fact that although the Early Church was entirely Jewish, it was made up of two different groups of Jews. The Hebraic Jews were Jewish-Christian converts who spoke Hebrew (or more probably Aramaic, a dialect of Hebrew) as their main language. They had been born and raised in Israel, were native to the land, knew the customs of the synagogue intimately, and they brought their extensive culture with them when they entered the church.

By contrast, the Grecian Jews were Jewish-Christian converts who spoke Greek because they had been born and raised outside Israel. When they came to Christ, they brought their Greek-speaking culture with them. This means they probably looked a bit different and certainly acted and sounded different from the Hebrew-speaking Jewish Christians. This was a recipe for trouble. As long as things were going well, the differences could be ignored. However, the Jerusalem church was never wealthy, and eventually there were problems in the daily distribution of food for the widows from the two groups. The Hebrew-speaking Jewish Christian widows were being favoured over the Greek-speaking Jewish Christian widows. I think (although I can’t prove it) that here we have a simple case of the “hometown widows” being favoured—consciously or unconsciously. After all, the Hebrew-speaking widows were from Israel, and perhaps had grown up in or near Jerusalem. They were well known and had many connections. It’s a natural human impulse to “take care of your own” in times of trouble or shortage.

I think it’s easy for us to dismiss this as a fairly minor problem. It wasn’t. If you were a Greek-speaking widow in the Jerusalem church, it was a big deal because you weren’t being fed. And when the widows weren’t being fed, their friends got up in arms. This is a serious problem that demanded careful attention. Churches routinely split over issues much less important than this. So how should the church tackle a problem like this? If it were us, we would appoint a Food Distribution Task Force to study the matter and report to the elders. Or we might call a prayer meeting. Or we might have a business meeting and hash it out (or shout it out). Maybe we would end up starting a new church—The First Jewish-Christian Greek-speaking church of Jerusalem but that’s not how the Early Church addresses this issue.

What’s the solution that they came up with? Verses 2-6 tell us how the Early Church confronted this difficult issue. The solution involves a four-step process. Step one was setting priorities. We see this in verse 2. First, there was an immediate response. “So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together.” Second, there was a clear statement of priorities. “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables.” Whenever I read those words, I always stop and ponder them because at first glance they seem a bit harsh. I can easily imagine that certain people in the church said something like this: “Wouldn’t it be great if the apostles got together and took over the feeding of the Greek-speaking widows? That would send a powerful message to the congregation, and it would be a healing way to bring the two groups together.” What could be better than for the leaders to set the pace in personally solving this problem? It’s so easy, and so tempting, to adopt that strategy.

But it would have been wrong. To do so would actually have caused the apostles to disobey God’s will. They understood that God had called them to the ministry of the Word and to prayer. Anything that moved them away from that priority—no matter how good or noble or necessary it might be—was actually a diversion from their divine calling. The same principle holds true for spiritual leaders in general. In any church there are many tasks that need to be done. It is tempting to say to the leadership, “Do a little of everything.” That can lead to spiritual disaster. When leaders do a little of everything, they end up doing a whole lot of nothing. Since the church is built upon the Word of God, leaders must devote themselves to the study and teaching of the Bible. Nothing must be allowed to take the place of this central priority. This may seem hardhearted but it really is nothing more than having a biblical focus. We must not let the good crowd out the best or allow the urgent to push the important off the agenda. Since no one can do everything, spiritual leaders must commit themselves to their primary work of ministering the Word and spending time in prayer but this is only part of the story.

In verses 3-4, we see that step two is making a plan. It is well and good for the apostles to be high-minded about their calling, but they’ve still got a group of hungry widows on our hands. What are they going to do about them? After all, if they aren’t fed, they won’t be in any mood to listen to the apostles as they minister the Word. They still need a plan to handle the problem. Notice that it begins with congregational involvement: “Brothers, choose seven men from among you.” It continues with a clear statement of qualifications: “known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom.” Then, there is a commitment to definite delegation: “We will turn this responsibility over to them.” And finally there’s a restatement of their own priorities: “and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the Word.”

This strikes me as an exceedingly wise approach to the problem. Rather than issuing an edict from on high, they ask the congregation to choose the men who will serve the widows. The statement of personal qualifications shows that they wanted seven spiritually-mature men who would immediately have the respect of the church. Once those men were chosen, they could attack the problem as they wished while the apostles focused on their primary calling.

Verse 5 gives us step three which is finding the right people. Luke tells us that this proposal won unanimous approval: “This proposal pleased the whole group.” Here is a list of the seven men they chose: “Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism.” This list is unique in that all the names are Greek names, meaning that the congregation chose men from within the Greek-speaking section of the church. These men no doubt knew the widows personally, would have the trust of all the Greek-speaking believers, and would know how to handle any problems that might arise.

The final step is found in verse 6 which is commissioning the workers. After the congregation selected the seven men, they were presented to the apostles who laid their hands on them and prayed for them. This final step is important because it puts the full weight of the 12 apostles behind the seven men. It ensures that the Greek-speaking widows will know that they aren’t being pushed in a corner and that their concerns have been taken seriously at the very highest level. It also sends a message to the congregation that this problem has been dealt with in a forthright manner, and that the apostles truly want to see the Greek-speaking widows fed every day.

In verse 7 we see the result of the Apostles decision. Notice first that there is a new receptivity to the message: “So the word of God spread.” Second, there are many new converts: “The number of disciples in Jerusalem spread rapidly.” Third, there are conversions in high places: “And a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.” By God’s grace an interruption that threatened to divide became an opportunity for further growth.

Now, what are we to learn from all this? Let’s consider 3 implications: (1) We need to keep the main thing the main thing. The apostles understood their calling from the Lord, which is why they refused to personally get involved in feeding the widows. What seems harsh and uncaring was actually best for all concerned. Sometimes churches must say “no” to the good in order to say “yes” to the best. In every organization a thousand pressures constantly pull people away from their core concerns. We need to keep the main the main thing which is making disciples. We shouldn’t let anything distract us from this purpose.

The second implication is: No one can do everything. This follows logically. The apostles couldn’t do their work and feed the widows too. The same is true in every church today. This passage in Acts 6 really lays the groundwork for the New Testament teaching on gift-based ministry. God never intended that one man—or one group of men—or any group of men and women—do all the work in the local church. The church does not work that way. Other passages like 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4 and 1 Peter 4 speak clearly to the fact that each of us have been gifted in order to serve. God wants us to be mobilized for ministry.

We don’t have time this morning to look at each of these passages, but I do want you to see something in Romans 12. Please turn there with me. It’s not enough just to discover, or even develop, our spiritual gifts. Our gifts are given to be used. We have been gifted in order to serve. There are 7 gifts listed in this passage. I want us to notice something — after listing each gift, Paul tells us to put the gifts we have into action. Let’s read verses 6 to 8 of Romans 12 “We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. 7If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; 8if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.” Let me say it this way. It is inconceivable to Paul that a Christian would not use their spiritual gifts — the very reason for their existence demands that we use them! They are given to be used. 1 Peter 4:10 says that “Each one should use whatever spiritual gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.”

Here’s the final implication: Everyone can do something. This is the flip side of what I’ve just said. Think about our text. In the beginning the widows are going hungry and their friends are upset. Anger is threatening the very unity of the body. By the end the anger is gone and the widows are fed because the seven men are now serving the Lord and are recognized by the entire congregation. This is precisely how the body of Christ is supposed to function. No one does everything but everyone does something. That’s God’s plan for the local church. Some may do more, others may do less, but everyone does something. God is calling us to give our most precious commodity by taking time to use our gifts to serve Him and others!

Do you see the picture? We need to keep the main thing the main thing. No one can do everything but everyone can do something. Gifts are given in order to be used. Here’s the bottom line: We are looking for servants, not superstars; Contributors, not just consumers. How are you going to use your gifts to serve others?

Today we are continuing on in our series: What is a disciple? So far we have learned that a disciple spends time with Jesus, a disciple loves Jesus supremely and a disciple loves every other disciple. Today we are going to learn that a disciple obeys Christ continually. In other words, a disciple does what Jesus tells them to do.

A rather pompous-looking deacon was endeavouring to impress upon a class of boys the importance of living the Christian life. “Why do people call me a Christian?” the man asked. After a moment’s pause, one youngster said, “Maybe it’s because they don’t know you.” Ouch! Funny but true at times.

Our goal as disciples/followers of Christ is to grow in our in love for God. Being a disciple is not just about being a better person per se; it is growing in our understanding of the awesome power and intimacy of God’s love. This is what will radically change our hearts and lives. A lot of times, people don’t see Christ in us. They don’t see any difference in us. We are called to be doers of the Word, not just hearers only. We are called to be transformed, not merely informed. What it comes down to is this: Spiritual growth/maturity is measured by obedience.

Although knowledge of the Bible is foundational to spiritual maturity, it isn’t the total measurement of it. The Christian life isn’t just a matter of creeds and convictions; it includes conduct and character. Beliefs must be backed up with behaviour. Our deeds must be consistent with our creeds. God is not as concerned with how much of the Bible I know as He is with what I do with what I know. A paraphrase of James 3:13 says: “If your faith hasn’t changed your lifestyle, your faith isn’t worth much.” We must not only learn the Word but we must also love it and live it.

With this in mind I want to share four truths about our spiritual growth. First, spiritual growth is not automatic. Spiritual growth does not just happen once we are saved, even if we attend lots of church services regularly. Churches are filled with people who have attended services for their entire lives, yet they are still spiritual babies. Spiritual growth is not automatic with the passing of time. Hebrews 5:12 say: “In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!” Spiritual growth is intentional. It requires commitment and effort to grow. A person must want to grow, decide to grow, and make an effort to grow.

Philippians 2:12-13 says: “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed-not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence-continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” Notice that it says “work out, “not “work on,” your salvation. There is nothing we can add to what Christ did for our salvation. Paul is talking in these verses about spiritual growth to people who are already saved. The important thing is that God has a part in our growth, but so do we! Becoming like Christ is the result of the commitments we make. We become whatever we are committed to. Without a commitment to grow, the growth that does occur will be circumstantial, rather than intentional. Spiritual growth is too important to be left to circumstance.

A barrier to spiritual growth for many people is not lack of commitment, but over-commitment to the wrong things. We have got to learn to make wise commitments. Jesus always asked for a full-hearted total commitment. Christ aim was not to gather appreciative crowds, but to make true disciples. He never adapted His message to majority preferences, but always plainly declared the high cost of discipleship. Jesus often pushed the crowds to either sell-out or bail-out. Jesus always asked for a commitment clearly and confidently. He was not at all reluctant to ask men and women to drop everything and follow Him. It is an interesting phenomenon that, often, the greater the commitment you request, the greater response you will get. People want to be committed to something that gives life true meaning. They want to be committed to something that is real and consistent.

The second truth is: spiritual growth is attainable for everybody. Unfortunately, many Christians feel that spiritual maturity is so far out of their reach, they don’t even try to attain it. They have this mystical, idealized image of what a mature Christian looks like. Maturity, they believe, is only for “super saints. “ Some Christian biographies have been partly responsible for this myth by glossing over the humanity of godly people and implying that if you don’t pray ten hours a day, move to a jungle, and plan to die as a martyr you may as well forget aspiring to maturity. This can be quite discouraging to the rest of us “average believer”. It makes us feel that we must be content with being a “second-class” Christian. But we don’t have to feel this way because Philippians 1:6 reminds of this important truth: “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

Third, spiritual growth is very practical. Any believer can grow to maturity if he or she will develop the habits/disciplines that are necessary for spiritual growth. Paul often compared training for the Christian life to the way athletes stay in shape. 1 Timothy 4:7 says: “Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly.” We need to take the time and the trouble to keep ourselves spiritually fit. The path to spiritual fitness is as practical as the path to physical fitness. Anyone can become physically fit if he or she will regularly do certain exercises and practice good health habits. Likewise, spiritual fitness is simply a matter of learning certain spiritual exercises and being disciplined to do them until they become a regular part of our lives. Character is shaped by the habits we develop. We will talk more about this in a little bit.

Fourth, spiritual growth is a process that takes time. Just as God allowed Joshua and the Israelites to possess the land “little by little” (Duet. 7:22), he uses a gradual process of change to develop us into the image of Christ. There are no shortcuts to maturity. It is a slow process. Although we have instant coffee, instant potatoes, and now even instant weight-loss methods, there is no such thing as instant spiritual maturity. It is taking one step at a time. Sometimes it’s two steps forward and one step back. It’s an ongoing process.

The words most used to describe the Christian life are love, give, believe, and serve. Jesus did not say, “I have come that you might study.” When the Christian life consists completely of receiving biblical input with no outflow of ministry or evangelism, his or her spiritual growth will stagnate. Impression without expression leads to depression. Spiritual growth begins with commitment, it is attainable for everyone, it is very practical and it is a gradual process. The question isn’t whether or not people are going to be committed, but rather who/what is going to get their commitment.

So, what will you commit yourself to? Here are a few suggestions: First and foremost, we need to commit ourselves to Christ. We need to commit mind, heart and soul over to Him to remain under His authority and control. Second, we need to commit ourselves to developing good habits/disciplines of maturity into our life: prayer, Bible reading, fellowship, serving and tithing. These habits are not an end in themselves; they help us live the Christian life. Third, maybe we need to commit ourselves to baptism. Baptism is where we declare publicly our commitment to Christ. Baptism is we publicly identify with what Christ has done for us: His death, His burial and His resurrection And fourth, maybe we need to commit ourselves to church membership. When we become a member of a church member we are saying that we are putting ourselves under the authority of the church and we are willing to be held accountable.

What are the benefits to our commitment? All of God’s promises are attached to commitments. We always end up being blessed when we are obedient. Personal benefits: Peace with God and self, not only know you’re forgiven but truly experiencing the freedom that accompanies forgiveness. Family benefits: Not only the natural ramifications of our own peace, but also the blessings of security in knowing that nothing can touch us and our family with out first going through the screen of God’s providential care. Benefits of the Body of Christ: We have a family that will pray for us and support us in any way possible. YES THE COST SEEMS HIGH AND THE COMMITMENT SEEMS GREAT BUT WHEN IT’S ALL SAID AND DONE IT’LL BE WORTH IT!! Remember, spiritual growth is measured by obedience!

This morning we are going to be continuing on in our series “What is a disciple?” So far we have seen that a disciple spends time with Jesus and a disciple loves Jesus supremely. Today we are going to look at this characteristic of a disciple: a disciple loves every other disciple. Although love is the thing we need the most, it is usually the thing that we give the least. The others-oriented, giving kind of love that Jesus spoke of is rare. Our society thinks of love primarily in terms of feeling and emotion. But Christian love is much more. It’s a belief and an attitude that we have towards others – especially toward fellow followers of Christ. Throughout the Scriptures, we see God’s emphasis on love. One bible scholar said, “The overwhelming testimony of the New Testament is that love, expressed and experienced among members of the body, is absolutely essential if it is to be healthy and alive.” Love is a catalyst that creates a desire in our lives to grow in Jesus Christ.

I think a great place for us to start as examine how we can love each other as followers of Christ is by examining the priority of love in Jesus’ life and teaching. Every aspect of Christ’s life and ministry reflected love. As we look at Christ’s life, we see instances where He clearly demonstrated both a tender and a tough love. One of the primary ways that Jesus demonstrated love was by spending time with people and in particular spending time with societies “rejects”. Jesus spent time with people with whom society would not spend time with. Examples of this are: Jesus spent time with lepers; Jesus spent time with tax-collectors; Jesus spent time with disabled people; Jesus spent time with “sinners”; Jesus spent time with widows. Spending time with people was very important to Jesus because He loved people

Also, many times the gospels refer to Jesus having “compassion” towards people – 13 times in all. Jesus saw the hurts and sufferings of people and had pity/sympathy for them. Sometimes this compassion was for individuals and other times it was for crowds. At times Jesus’ love was also demonstrated in “tough” ways. We see this when He cleared the temple because people were abusing it and at times when He had to rebuke people. Although these instances appeared to be harsh, Jesus was still demonstrating love – it was just tough love. Ultimately the greatest demonstration of the priority of love in Jesus’ life was His death on the cross. Jesus gave His life in love for us. We could spend a lot of time looking at the priority of love in Jesus’ life but we do not have time.

Let’s now look at couple of passages that teach what Jesus had to say about love. First, let’s look at John 13:34-35. These verses say, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” This is probably the most important instruction that Jesus left for His disciples and future followers. When Jesus talks about a “new command”, He is implying freshness, or the opposite of “outworn” rather than simply “recent” or “different”. The attitude of love would be the bond that would keep the disciples united and would be a convincing demonstration that they had partaken of Jesus’ own spirit and purpose. Jesus had loved them with out reservation and without limit and He expected them and us to do the same.

Another teaching of Christ’s on love is found in Matthew 5:38-47. These verses are found in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus was focusing on Kingdom living – how the subjects of His Kingdom should conduct themselves. In verses 38-42, Jesus deals with the heart’s attitude – the better righteousness. These four examples are not meant to be new legal prescriptions but they are meant to teach us a “new” response when dealing with apparent injustice – a response of love and not retaliation. Verses 43 to 47 focus again on a new way of approaching life and love. It is easy to love those who love us but the rubber hits the road when it comes to loving those who persecute us and hate us. Jesus says that we have as our perfect example God Himself, who loves so indiscriminately that He sends sun and rain on both the righteous and the unrighteous.

Jesus made love a priority in His life and His teaching, and He challenged His followers to do the same. When Christians practice love for each other, non-Christians see a demonstration of the Gospels truth and power. Have you noticed the difference between churches where people truly love one another and churches where they don’t? Where these is a lack of love there seems to be a multitude of sins such as accusations, innuendos, gossip, political infighting, and so on. If there is a lack of love for one another in the church, God’s work is harmed and people are hurt. When a church practices biblical love, it becomes a place for encouragement and dramatic spiritual growth. Love was a priority in Jesus’ life and teaching and thus love should be a priority in our lives as well.

Love must not only be a priority though it must also be expressed and reflected in our actions and attitudes so we must ask the questions: How do we create a loving and caring church? How do we communicate love to one another? One of the church’s most important ministries is healing. People today need a place where they will be listened to without verbal and non-verbal put downs. People need to experience love that offers emotional, physical and spiritual acceptance for each individual. People communicate and receive love in different ways. Therefore, if we just attempt to communicate love in only one or two ways, many may never understand the sincerity of our love in Christ for them. There are a variety of ways to communicate love. I want to share five. I have taken and summarized these five ways to communicate love from Gary Chapman’s book: “The Five Love Languages”.

The first way to communicate love is personal attention. Have you ever felt totally alone in a crowd? Many people feel alone. All of us have a need to be noticed, to be wanted, to be needed, to be significant to someone, and to feel special. The second way we can communicate love is through our words. Such simple statements as “I appreciate …” and “thank you” are rare commodities in our modern, in-your face culture. All of us have been on the receiving end of destructive, ill-spoken words and know the pain they can cause. As Christians, one of the ways we can show each other love is through genuine compliments. The church must not support the world’s system of destructive put-downs. If we do, we tear down what Jesus died to build. An encouraging atmosphere of loving acceptance can be undermined by a single verbal attack. Scripture reminds us in James 3:6 that, “The tongue also is a fire . . . It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire . . .” Words can devastate our lives and the lives of others bit words can also love. The third way to communicate love is through acts of service. The Scriptures challenge us to express our love in deed and truth. 1 John 3:18 says, “Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.” Servant-hood is a concept that is modeled more than taught.

Fourthly, we communicate love by spending time with others. Many of us in our church only see each other once a week and as result some people feel isolated. How can our church provide regular opportunities for people to fellowship with and encourage each other? Some ideas are: our small groups where people meet regularly for prayer, Bible Study, and support; weekend retreats – like the men’s and women’s retreat that place at Camp Homewood; even participating in shared activities like golf, fishing, and other recreational opportunities are ways to encourage people to make new friendships and help new people feel welcome in our church. Finally, few things communicate love like a patient, listening ear. When someone listens to you with undivided attention, you instinctively know that person cares about you. Listening carefully though is hard work. It requires abandoning our own agenda in order to pay attention to the person talking with us. Listening is something most us do poorly, and yet it’s a powerful way to demonstrate that we care.

Imagine for a moment, what our church would look like if we all practiced these five ingredients of love. If we did this we would begin to live out 1 Corinthians 13 verses 4 to 8a. In each of these fifteen descriptive phrases the apostle describes an attitude or an action on our part.: “Love is patient, [We would be more patient with people] love is kind [We would demonstrate kindness by actively doing good on behalf of others.]. It does not envy [We wouldn’t be envious of the earthly blessings or spiritual gifts of others.], it does not boast, it is not proud. [In other words we wouldn’t have to have an inflated sense of their own importance] It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. [We would be unselfish, slow to anger and we wouldn’t be keeping long records of the wrongs that have been done to us. Want to destroy a relationship? Keep a list of the injuries or supposed injuries someone else does to you and refuse to forgive. Many families and churches have been destroyed by a lack of forgiveness.] Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, [We would give credit to the best of motives to others and to create a spirit of trust. That’s what the Scripture means when it teaches that love always trusts and always hopes] always perseveres. Love never fails. [It enables us to remain true to our Lord, to our families, and to our fellow believers in Christ even when circumstances become tough. Christ-like love always perseveres - it never fails.]

Disciples of Jesus make love a priority just like Christ did. They practice, not the mushy sentimentalism that passes for love in our world, but the kind of love that Jesus Christ modelled and taught – a love that sees each human being as valuable and that looks for ways to serve others. Jesus does not allow us to treat love for other followers as optional. He placed a premium on love as the essential quality to be nurtured in the lives of His disciples and in the corporate life of His church. A disciple loves every other disciple!

This morning we are going to be continuing on in the series that we began last week called “What is a disciple?” Last week we learned that a disciple spends time with Jesus and we looked at some practical ways that we can do that. This week we are going to see that a disciple loves Jesus supremely.

When Jesus was asked what the most important commandment was, He said this in Mark 12:29-30 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” In other words, a disciple loves Jesus more than anything else that this world has to offer.

This is another one of those statements that is easy to say and easy to give mental assent to BUT it is much harder to actually live out. In our time this morning, we are going to explore what it means to love Jesus supremely and to do this we are going to look at two parables – the parable of the a hidden treasure and the parable of the valuable pearl. These two parables are found in Matthew 13:44-46.

Let’s begin by looking at the parable of the hidden treasure. This is seen in verse 44. Burying your valuables in the ground sounds strange to us, but it was a very common practice in the first century. Today we usually put our money in a bank. We keep our valuables in a safe deposit box. But, back in those days, there were no banks for the common people. Only wealthy folks had access to banks, which in those days were not very safe places to keep your money anyway. Have you ever heard of wealthy old men who don’t trust the banks, so they stuff all their money in their mattress or they hide it all around the house? Well, that’s what the people of the first century did; only they didn’t have mattresses, so they buried it.

This was especially true in Palestine because it was a place of frequent warfare. Burying their valuables protected them against any enemies who might raid their homes and try to steal everything. Over the years, the ground of Palestine became a genuine treasure house. When the owner of a buried treasure died or was forcefully driven from the land (like during the Babylonian exile), his treasure would be lost forever unless someone discovered it. So, in those days, it wasn’t uncommon at all for a person who was ploughing or digging in a field to accidentally come across a treasure. So, Jesus’ parable described a very feasible situation.

Now, there is a concern that people sometimes have about this parable. At first glance, the man in the parable seems to be dishonest. Honest behaviour would demand that this man tell the owner of the field about the treasure, since it was on his property and rightfully belonged to him. Right? Not necessarily. Jewish rabbinic law said that “if a man finds scattered fruit or money, it belongs to the finder.” So the people listening to the parable would not have perceived the man’s actions as unethical at all.

In fact, the man had a right to what he found. If a man came across money or valuables that were obviously lost and whose owner was dead or unknown, the finder had a right to keep what was found — even if was found on someone else’s property! It’s obvious that the treasure didn’t belong to the man who owned the field. If it did, then he would have dug up the treasure before he sold the piece of ground. But he didn’t know it was there. Apparently it had belonged to a previous owner, who had probably died in battle or by accident, which prevented him from recovering it.

So, really, the man who found the treasure was extremely honest. He didn’t have to buy the field. He could have just taken the treasure.But he doesn’t. He buys the field. In fact, he didn’t even use the treasure to provide him enough money to make the purchase. Instead, he liquidated everything he owned to come up with the money. So the man didn’t do anything unethical. But we need to be careful not to lose sight of the main point of the parable which is this: A man found something so valuable that he sold everything he had to get it. He was so excited about finding the treasure that he was willing to do whatever he had to do in order to purchase it.

Let’s now look at the parable of the pearl. This is seen in verse 45-46. Here’s a man who was a merchant. The Greek word is “emporos“, from which we get the English word “emporium”. The merchant was a man who would buy things wholesale and sell them to a retailer. In the parable, he is looking specifically for beautiful pearls. It was common for entrepreneurs in that day to look for pearls to sell and at the same time look for high-quality pearls for themselves. In those days, people would invest in pearls. Pearls were perceived in the first century in much the same way we view diamonds today. They were the most valuable gem in the world at that time. If you owned a pearl, you owned a fortune.

And there was a good reason for it. Pearl hunting involved immense danger. The fine quality pearls are obtained from the pearl oyster. Since that oyster thrives at an average depth of 40 feet, a pearl isn’t a treasure you just stumble across as you walk along a beach. Pearls aren’t found like that. In biblical times they were obtained at great cost in human terms — many people died while pearl hunting. They didn’t have the equipment that’s available today. In those days, your equipment consisted of a rope and a rock. A pearl diver would tie a large rock to his body and jump over the side of a little boat, allowing the weight of the rock to carry him down to the oyster beds. He risked danger from sharks, moray eels and other creatures to scour the mud below for oysters. An average of only one oyster in a thousand contains a pearl. All the while, he had to hold his breath and hope he wouldn’t drown.

You can see why pearls were so precious. The Jewish Talmud said, “Pearls are beyond price.” The Egyptians actually worshipped the pearl, and the Romans copied that practice. When women wanted to show their wealth, they put pearls in their hair. When a Roman emperor wanted to show how rich he was, he would dissolve pearls in vinegar and then drink them in his wine, in much the same way that a millionaire might light his cigar using a hundred-dollar bill.

The Bible also stresses the value of pearls. Jesus said in Matthew 7:6 that we’re not to cast our pearls before swine. In other words, “Don’t give something of such great value to a pig; it’s a foolish thing to do!” In Revelation 21, when John described heaven using earthly figures of speech, he mentioned the streets of gold and the gates of pearl. Tremendously valuable! So this parable describes a man who goes around looking for beautiful pearls and then sells them to retailers for a profit. But when he finds the most beautiful pearl he has ever seen, he sells everything that he has to obtain it for himself.

These are a couple of interesting little stories but what is the message that Jesus is giving? It seems clear that the focus of both these stories is that being a disciple of Jesus (i.e. having a relationship with Him) is worth whatever sacrifice one has to make. Even if one gave up everything he or she had to follow Jesus, it would be well worth it. Let’s look at three implications for us from these two parables.

The first implication or lesson we learn from these parables is: Loving Jesus supremely is of great value. When you think about how much it means to us to have a relationship with God, to know that Jesus sacrificed His life on the cross so that we might live, to know that we can approach the throne of Almighty God and call him “Father”, how much is that worth to you? I mean, how do we begin to compare those riches with the material things that we’re familiar with? How can we compare the blessing of prayer with a brand new car? How can we even begin to calculate the value of the death on the cross as compared to a house?

In Matthew 16:26, Jesus used the image of a pair of scales when He asked the question, “What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” Pile up everything in this world on one side and put salvation on the other side and it comes out very lopsided on the side of salvation. The salvation of our souls is worth so much more. That’s what Jesus wants us to understand in these two parables. Loving Jesus supremely is a treasure beyond comparison.

The second implication or lesson for us from these parables is: loving Jesus supremely involves “sacrifice.” Have you ever seen something that you just had to have, something that you were willing to make any sacrifice to get? Maybe when you were a kid it was a special bicycle that you saved up for months to get, giving up candy bars and going to the movies so you would have enough money to get that bicycle. Or maybe, as you got older, it was a car or something for the house, something that was so special that you were willing to give up going out to eat twice a week, you were willing to give up any new clothes, you were willing to give up any “extras” in life so you could get that something special. Both of these parables involve men who bought things of great value. But, they had to make sacrifices, selling everything that they had to obtain their treasures.

Someone may say, “Wait a minute, are these parables saying that a person has to buy their salvation?” Absolutely not! The Bible makes it abundantly clear that you can’t buy your salvation with money or with anything else for that matter – it is a free gift of God offered by His grace and love. Nevertheless there is a cost of salvation. It is the price of commitment. Luke 9:57 says, “As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’” Here was a man who wanted to be a follower of Jesus. And Jesus responded by saying, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” Jesus said, in essence, “Here’s the price for following me. You will have to give up your comfort in order to follow me.”

There is a cost involved in being a follower of Christ, and Jesus wants us to understand that. I realize that I’ve grown up in a generation that doesn’t know much about sacrifice. To people my age, the Great Depression is just a boring story about how terrible things were in the ancient long, long ago. We’re used to having things easy. And sometimes that attitude carries over into the church. And so we want to enjoy all the blessings of a relationship with Jesus, but we don’t want to do anything, we don’t want to give anything, and we certainly don’t want to sacrifice anything. I like this quote from John Calvin: “The natural meaning of the words is, that the Gospel does not receive from us the respect which it deserves, unless we prefer it to all the riches, pleasures, honours, and advantages of the world, and to such an extent, that we are satisfied with the spiritual blessings which it promises, and throw aside every thing that would keep us from enjoying them.” Loving Jesus supremely involves “sacrifice”.

The final implication or lesson for us from these parables is: loving Jesus supremely is a source of joy. Notice, Jesus said that the man who finds the treasure “in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.” This man doesn’t just sell everything he has, but he does so with joy. He doesn’t regret it. He doesn’t complain about the sacrifice he has to make. In fact, he probably doesn’t even consider it to be a sacrifice. He gives a lot for the field, but he gets so much more in return. The great missionary, David Livingstone, said, “Over the years I have given up many things, but I have never made a sacrifice.” In other words, all of the comforts and pleasures which he forfeited by serving the Lord in Africa were not anything compared to the rich rewards he found in Jesus Christ. By devoting his life to serving Jesus, he had a priceless pearl – he had found a treasure of immense value.

Paul said in Philippians 3:7-8, “But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ.” Did Paul make sacrifices to follow Christ? Certainly he did, but he did so with joy knowing what he gained. Perhaps the real test of our commitment is not so much whether we are willing to make sacrifices for our Lord, but whether we are able to make those sacrifices with joy.

There are people who would say that you have to give up a lot to be a Christian, and in a sense that’s true. But if I asked you to give up $500,000 in Monopoly money to buy a 2005 Mercedes Benz, I think you would make the “sacrifice” with joy. In the same way, if I asked you to give up everything that this world has to offer and accept all that Christ has to offer that will last eternally, the term “sacrifice” takes on a whole new meaning, doesn’t it? Loving Jesus supremely is a source of great joy.

There are really two things that stand out in these parables: (1) What we need to give up and (2) what we stand to gain. This morning, for us to know the joy of a relationship with God through Jesus Christ, we must be willing to give up everything. Jesus said in Luke 9:23-24, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.” The world says that’s foolish. The world says, “Take what you can get and enjoy it!” But I can promise you that if you’ll make the “sacrifice”, you’ll gain in return something far greater that you could ever imagine. For, as Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:18 “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

As we conclude this morning I want to ask us three questions. First, do you see loving Jesus supremely as something of immense value? Is it worth more to you than anything this world has to offer? Second, are you willing to make “sacrifices” in order to love Jesus supremely? Are you willing to give up what you cannot keep, to gain what you cannot lose? Finally, is loving Jesus supremely a source of great joy to you? Are what appear to be sacrifices to others really acts of joy for you? Loving Jesus supremely is a priceless treasure that exceeds all earthly riches and advantages combined!

Let me ask you a question. When you think of the word “disciple” what thoughts or images come to mind? Most people probably think of the Twelve disciples or they think of a rigid program where you learn lots of information about Christ and following Him (discipleship). Not many followers of Christ though would think of themselves as disciples. It is not a term we use regularly or even think of regularly. It’s interesting though that the the main word to describe a follower of Christ in the bible is not the word “Christian” (it is only used 3 times) but it is the word “disciple” (used 269 times). Followers of Christ were called “disciples.”

Unfortunately, over time the word “disciple” has totally lost its original meaning. The word disciple means “a learner”. It was used by Jesus and Paul. By definition a disciple is someone who follows a revered leader and tries to become an exact impersonation of the one who is followed. To be a disciple is to attempt to live, think, believe, respond, and desire as the role model does. A disciple is not a mimicking puppet, but a student who deeply studies the loves, hates, desires, and intents of the one they admire and they attempt to have those things become their own. It is out of these that they will interact with the world around them. It is these things that will become their loves, hates, desires, and intents. They will be unified with their master in spirit and mind. They will be an extension of their master at all times and in all the places they go.

This morning I am beginning a new six week series that I have titled “What is a disciple?” I want to begin by sharing a little bit about what it meant to be a “disciple” during the time of Jesus. I found a great video by Rob Bell that explains this very well. Watch specifically from 2:50 to the end.

Being of disciple of Jesus isn’t just about knowing some truths or doing some things and not doing other things. It’s about becoming like our Teacher. So over the next six weeks, we are going to unpack what it means to be a disciple. Today, we are going to see that a disciple spends time with Jesus. Makes sense, right? In order to be a disciple you must spend time with your Teacher. This is so easy to give lip service to but a lot more difficult to actually live it out in our lives.

Our main passage this morning is going to be John chapter 12 (specifically verse 26). Let’s get the context of these verses first. John 12 begins with Jesus being anointed in Bethany and then He makes His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem. After the Triumphal Entry, Jesus begins to predict His death to the disciples. He knew that the very people who were just yelling “Hosanna! Hosanna!” would be yelling “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” in less than a week. Listen to what Jesus said to His disciples in John 12:26. He says: “Anyone who wants to be my disciple must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honour anyone who serves me” (New Living Translation). In order to be a disciple of Christ, we must BE with Him. We must spend time with Him. Let’s unpack this verse a little bit.

First, we see that this is a CHOICE. Jesus says “Anyone who wants …” Spending time with Jesus is a choice. I know we can come up with a lot of excuses as to why we don’t spend time with Jesus but ultimately it is a choice. We choose to fill our time up with other things at times. It’s OUR choice to either spend time with Jesus or to not spend time with Him. Nobody else can make that choice for you. It’s OUR choice.

Secondly, we see that this is a COMMITMENT. Jesus says that we “must follow Him.” This takes commitment. When we choose to become a disciple/a follower of Jesus we are committing ourselves to live FOR Him instead of living FOR ourselves. We are committing ourselves to making Him the #1 priority in our lives. We are committing ourselves to live under His leading and His guiding.

And finally, we see that is a RELATIONSHIP. Jesus says “my servants must be where I am.” Being a disciple of Jesus isn’t about how much we know about Him; it is about how much we know Him! I could know everything there is to know about Lauren but that doesn’t mean I know her. I have to be in a relationship with her in order to get to know her. It is the same with Jesus.” In order to be a disciple of Christ, we must BE with Him because His disciples spend time with Him!

Now, I wouldn’t be doing my job this morning if I challenged us to spend time with Jesus and then not give us some ways that we can do that! I don’t want to take for granted that everyone knows how to spend time with Jesus. In fact, I can reasonably guess that there are probably a number of people here today who don’t know how because no one has ever told them. I want to share some ways that we can spend time with Jesus.

One way is what I have come to call my daily office. Some people might call this their quiet time or their devotions. I call it my daily office. “Office” in Latin, literally means, “work of God”. It is not just spending time with God once a day because what it is saying is that ALL our work is to seek God. Some people call this practicing the presence of God. It’s to be with God. That is the first work of all of us in this room. It comes out of Psalm 27:4 where David says “One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.” David says “That is my work. It is to seek God.” And an office is about being with God. For me, I do it in the morning. Some people do it at night or during the day. It really doesn’t matter when we spend time with Jesus. The important thing is that we do it! Here’s a tip: doing it at the same time every day will help you keep it an important part of your day. Remember it is a choice and a commitment.

Here are some ideas to get you started. There are some great resources out there. One good one is a website called You Version. It has an online journaling component (which is completely private of course) and it has a new feature that gives you 30 different plans to read through the Bible. Another great resource is the Daily Bread. These have a Scripture reading and then some thoughts relating to the Scripture. Another one is the “Book of Common Prayer”. This has a morning and evening reading and it takes you through the book of Psalms in a month. The point is: gets into God’s word!

A few tips for while you are reading: (1) Pray that the Holy Spirit will guide you and to reveal God’s truth to you. (2) Try to only read one chapter a day. (3) Use the SOAP method – “S” stands for the Scripture. Write down the scripture that stands out for you. “O” stands for observation. Write down what the verse is saying to you. “A” stands for application. Ask yourself: how will you be different today because of what you just read. “P” stands for prayer. Take what God is saying in His word back to Him in prayer. (4) Meditate on the Scripture you chose for the rest of the day. At different breaks during the day, pause and meditate on it and remind yourself of the application that you chose.

A disciple spends time with Jesus! We cannot follow Jesus if we do not spend time with Him. It is through our time with Him that His priorities become our priorities, that His passions become our passions, that His desires become our desires. It is only through spending time with Jesus that we will become like Him! I love what Psalm 1 has to say about the person who spends time with Jesus. It says this in verses 1 to 3: “Blessed are those who do not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but who delight in the law of the LORD and meditate on his law day and night. They are like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers.” That is what happens when we spend time with Jesus. We will produce fruit. We will receive whatever it is that we need to live for Jesus. Commit yourself today to spending time with Jesus! Believe me, you will not be disappointed when you do!