The Truth About Following Jesus – Part 1
Luke 9:57-62 (57-58)
December 16, 2018
Well as you know we are currently in the segment in Luke’s gospel
Which we have referred to as “Messianic Misconceptions”
Luke has compiled a group of stories, sermons, rebukes, and encounters Which all follow the same theme of Jesus correcting the disciples,
If you want to push it deeper, we could say that more specifically Jesus is correcting the disciples thinking
Regarding WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A FOLLOWER of Jesus.
You will remember that THE SECTION BEGAN
After the disciples were able to accurately identify Jesus.
Luke 9:18-20 “And it happened that while He was praying alone, the disciples were with Him, and He questioned them, saying, “Who do the people say that I am?” They answered and said, “John the Baptist, and others say Elijah; but others, that one of the prophets of old has risen again.” And He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.”
That was a pivotal moment in Luke’s gospel; revealing Jesus as Messiah,
And now he is showing what it means to follow that Messiah.
It began with the statement that really encompases the entire point.
Luke 9:23-26 “And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. “For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself? “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.”
• We remember there the requirements of denying self
• We remember the call to follow Him
• We remember the explanation that we give up this life for the next
• We remember that we must not be ashamed of Him in this life
That passage has proven to be the rudder
That has steered the rest of the chapter.
The remainder of Luke 9 has built upon this.
We’ve seen how the disciples didn’t understand the necessity of the cross
• Both in Peter’s impulsive statement on the mountain
• And the other disciples entering Jesus in fight with a demon
We’ve seen how the disciples did not understand denying self
• In their argument about who was greatest
• In their jealousy over other ministers stealing their glory
• In their propensity to care about themselves more than the lost
Everything we’ve studied over the past 2 months has really just been
To give more weight and depth to that statement that all who follow Jesus
Must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow Him.
Well this morning is no different.
Luke concludes this section with one final theme and 3 final encounters.
In the final 6 verses of Luke 9 we run across 3 different men
And they all have 2 things in common.
1) They are willing to follow Jesus
2) They have no clue what that means
So after Luke compiled 3 stories which illustrated the point about denying self;
Luke now compiles 3 stories which illustrate the point about following Jesus.
So we have 3 men who are all at the very least willing to follow Jesus
But in all 3 of these men Jesus stops them in their tracks
In order to address their misconceptions.
We see here that tremendous discernment of Jesus.
John 2:23-25 “Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name, observing His signs which He was doing. But Jesus, on His part, was not entrusting Himself to them, for He knew all men, and because He did not need anyone to testify concerning man, for He Himself knew what was in man.”
• Just because a person claimed to believe, that wasn’t enough for Jesus, He looked at the heart.
• And just because these men claim a willingness to follow, that is also not enough.
Jesus goes for the heart of the matter.
AND THE RESULT IS PURE GOLD FOR YOU AND ME.
We get to see here the truth about following Jesus.
• Jesus Himself begins to outline more specifically what He means by following
and what following actually looks like.
These men had glaring misconceptions about
What it meant to follow the Messiah.
And Jesus both confronts and corrects them.
It is a tremendous evaluator for our own lives.
So let’s begin our journey into what it actually means to follow Jesus.
3 Stories that illustrate THE TRUTH ABOUT FOLLOWING JESUS.
#1 FOLLOWING JESUS IS NOT FOR THE AMBITIOUS
Luke 9:57-58
First we read “As they were going along the road, someone said to Him,”
It is a story void of any sort of time context.
Matthew’s gospel places these first two encounters during the Galilean ministry of Jesus, specifically after Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law. (Matthew doesn’t include the third)
• Matthew records that after Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law (there were
several miracles on that day) that a crowd started to form and so Jesus left.
• And as He was leaving this man approached him.
I only reveal that to remind you again that Luke is not arranging these stories chronologically, but rather THEMATICALLY.
This story fits Luke’s theme of pointing out to you
The truth about following Jesus.
Matthew also records that this “someone” who spoke to Jesus was in fact “a scribe”
And that is interesting to the story
Since scribes are stereotyped quite harshly by Jesus in Matthew’s gospel.
Matthew 23:1-7 “Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses; therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them. “They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger. “But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. “They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men.”
Scribes were often lumped in with the Pharisees and here we see them specifically as those who crave glory and attention and honor and respect.
That at least gives us some back story
As to WHAT TYPE OF PERSON WE ARE DEALING WITH.
None the less, Luke just calls him “someone”
And this “someone said to Him, “I will follow You wherever You go.”
Now the FIRST THING we must realize is that
There is absolutely nothing wrong with that statement; how could there be?
• It comes across as though this man is giving Jesus a blank check.
• He’s just a random guy who has seen enough and has decided that wherever Jesus leads, he will follow.
And IF WE HAD NOTHING MORE of the story
We would no doubt PRAISE THIS MAN for his eagerness and commitment and even for his sacrifice.
But as we pointed out, Jesus knows what is inside of a man.
Jesus exposes the heart.
Hebrews reminds us that the word of God pierces soul and spirit and joints and marrow. And of course Jesus is the living word.
Hebrews 4:13 “And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.”
So while we hear what the man said,
Jesus saw what the man meant.
Jesus saw what the man desired.
And that is what Jesus both EXPOSES and CORRECTS.
(58) “And Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”
Based upon Jesus response we know what was in this man’s heart.
We couldn’t have discerned his motives, but all motives are laid bare before Jesus.
And it becomes evident to us that this man obviously thought that
FOLLOWING JESUS WAS A TICKET TO PROSPERITY.
And we know that because
That is precisely what Jesus addresses and discredits.
This is a man (a scribe who loves honor; remember)
• Who just saw Jesus work miracle after miracle
• Who just saw a crowd flock to Jesus so that He had to leave
• And who has decided that Jesus is a meal ticket to everything he seeks to get out of life
To put it more plainly.
This is a man who craves the glory and prosperity of the world
And he thinks that the best way to achieve it
Is by hitching his wagon to Jesus.
He sees Jesus as the means of achieving his fleshly goals.
I don’t know what they called that in Jesus’ day,
But I know what we call that in our day.
Today it is called: “The Prosperity Gospel”
The prosperity gospel is that detestable and blasphemous
System of belief where men peddle Jesus
As the fulfiller of everything your flesh might crave.
It is built off of a terrible twisting and distortion of John 10:10
John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”
Prosperity preachers have taken that truth and twisted it to say that
• Jesus only wants for you to have “abundant life”
• And they translate abundance to mean an abundance of health, and abundance of wealth, and an abundance of success.
• They then credit all loss and struggling and poverty and reproach to the devil (the thief) who stole that from you.
And so the prosperity message is pretty clear and simple.
• Do you have all in this life that you want?
• Are you living in victory and wealth?
• Has the devil taken from you that promotion you deserve?
• Has the thief stolen your new car or your new house?
• Are you living in sickness or pain and the bondage of the devil?
Well friend run to Jesus!
I recently heard a “Christian” song about it:
If you’ve got pain He’s a pain taker
If you feel lost He’s a way maker
If you need freedom or saving He’s a prison-shaking Savior
If you’ve got chains He’s a chain breaker
There’s really not much distinction from the snake-oil salesman who pulls up in his wagon and says:
Are you suffering from gout, fungus, baldness, loneliness, bad breath or irritability? Do you lack energy, appetite, sleep, vision, hearing, or companionship? Then take this bottle of mystery elixir. It stops aches and pains, it cures arthritis, it grows hair, freshens breath, calms the bowls, improves vision, and makes you generally appealing to the opposite sex. Put it in your eggs to make them fluffy, add a drop to your pot roast and make it tender, put some in your milk to keep it from spoiling, and use it to dip your dog to rid him of fleas and ticks. It’ll make your horse stronger, your corn taller, your grass greener, and your wife thinner. Why friends it offers the answer to every problem you face in every walk of life.
YOU’VE HEARD IT.
Well gone is the man in the wagon selling moonshine and guaranteeing happiness; now we have the man in the pulpit selling Jesus for the same reason.
It’s the promise that Jesus will satisfy your wildest dreams and desires.
It’s basically nothing more than an exploitation
Of people who want their flesh gratified.
And the false prophets are in the business of that exploitation.
2 Peter 2:2-3 “Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”
They literally get rich off of the poor who want to get rich.
BUT IT’S ALL BUILT ON THIS FAULTY PREMISE THAT
Jesus is some sort of “Sugar Daddy” or “Genie in a Bottle”
Who can use His immense power to make your wildest dreams come true.
Well this guy that approached Jesus
Wasn’t preaching the prosperity gospel,
But he certainly wanted to believe it.
When he saw all that Jesus could do, he was ready to sign up.
And Jesus squashes this misconception
With one simple and yet profound statement.
“The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”
Jesus in effect releases His tax return to this guy.
He basically says, “I know you want to follow Me because you think it’s the key to prosperity, but look at Me. Do I look prosperous to you?”
In reality, that bird over there and that fox on that hill are all in a more prosperous condition than I am. They at least have a home they return to, and I don’t even have that.
JESUS WAS HOMELESS.
And if you’ll think about it, you DON’T FIND ANYTHING IN SCRIPTURE that gives the slightest indicator
THAT JESUS EVER ACQUIRED ANY EARTHLY PROSPERITY.
We read of His birth:
Luke 2:7 “And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”
Jesus left the glorious of heaven to purposely enter that type of humility.
Philippians 2:5-8 “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
We read of His life:
We remember the day He was asked by Peter if He should pay taxes for the temple:
Matthew 17:24-27 “When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the two-drachma tax?” He said, “Yes.” And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?” When Peter said, “From strangers,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are exempt. “However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for you and Me.”
Jesus had to borrow money from a fish to pay the tax in His own temple.
Here Jesus reminds that He owned no home, and had no property.
Think about all that He owned
• The donkey He rode at the triumphal entry was borrowed
• The room where He met with His disciples for the Last Supper was borrowed
• The cross on which He died was borrowed
• And the tomb where He was buried was borrowed
John 19:41-42 “Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. Therefore because of the Jewish day of preparation, since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.”
The ONLY POSSESSION we are aware of that He had
Was a tunic that was gambled away at His death.
So what about this Jesus causes you to think
That He is some sort of meal ticket to earthly prosperity?
Consider those who followed Him on earth.
We remember Peter’s assessment of what it took to follow:
Matthew 19:27 “Then Peter said to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?”
We remember James and John leaving their father and their nets
We remember Matthew leaving his tax booth
We remember the day when Peter and John approached the man who was crippled in his feet.
Acts 3:6 “But Peter said, “I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene — walk!”
We remember Paul’s testimony about following Christ.
Philippians 3:8 “More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,”
Christ never obtained the world,
And we don’t see where any of the apostles did either.
So why would you think that following Jesus was some sort of gateway to earthly prosperity?
We have seen people in the book of Acts
WHO TRIED TO USE JESUS IN THAT WAY.
Remember Simon the Magician?
Acts 8:18-20 “Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give this authority to me as well, so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!”
Several threads to that story.
• One is clearly that Simon thought Jesus was a means to making a profit. If
he could just obtain the Holy Spirit he could spin that into quite a business.
Simon rebuked harshly for that one.
• But the other obvious reality is that Peter and the apostles had a chance there
to make a lot of money off of their ministry and they categorically refused it.
They weren’t looking to get rich.
They weren’t using their ministry as a means of obtaining prosperity.
IT’S JUST ALL OVER THE PLACE.
In fact, do me a favor and NAME ONE PERSON in the Scripture
That Jesus made rich.
The prosperity gospel has absolutely no basis in Scripture.
And Jesus squashes it simply by pointing out that He is homeless.
I’ve got nothing, so why would you think following Me would cause you to get something?
But this isn’t the only time Jesus addressed this prosperity gospel.
In John 6 we have quite an eventful chapter.
• It begins with Jesus feeding the 5,000 and as a result they want to take Him by force and make Him king, but He leaves them.
• That night He walks on water and the next day that entire crowd that saw Him as their ticket to a full stomach searched Him out.
Let me show you how Jesus responded to this crowd
Who thought that He was a ticket to earthly prosperity.
Here the crowd searched Him out:
John 6:26-27 “Jesus answered them and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. “Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal.”
Jesus is very matter of fact to that crowd.
• You think I’m a ticket to prosperity and that is not true.
• Quit seeking Me for earthly prosperity and start seeking what I really came to offer, which is salvation.
But the crowd isn’t interested.
Now they do understand that He told them “No” to their request.
So their response is even more audacious.
Well, if You’re not going to make any more bread…
John 6:28 “Therefore they said to Him, “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?”
Look, if You’re not going to do it any more for us, then give us the power to do it ourselves.
Do you see that all these people want from Jesus is a ticket to prosperity?
John 6:29 “Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.”
Jesus corrects them.
• If you want to be in God’s will, if you want to do God’s work, then believe in Me.
• That’s what you should concern yourself with.
• Be concerned about salvation not bread; not prosperity.
• You should believe in Me.
But again we notice their response:
John 6:30-31 “So they said to Him, “What then do You do for a sign, so that we may see, and believe You? What work do You perform? “Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘HE GAVE THEM BREAD OUT OF HEAVEN TO EAT.'”
• Well if You want us to believe in You then You’re going to have to prove
Yourself worthy.
• Let’s see a sign! Give us bread like Moses did.
These people can’t get past their expectation that in some way, shape, or form Jesus is supposed to prosper them?
So Jesus answers again:
John 6:32-33 “Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven. “For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world.”
• Jesus tells them that they should not seek the bread of Moses (actual bread)
• But that they should seek the bread of God (Jesus).
But the people don’t understand that He is speaking spiritually
And they answer:
John 6:34 “Then they said to Him, “Lord, always give us this bread.”
Hey, Moses’ bread; God’s bread; doesn’t matter to us.
• Just so long as we get bread.
• Just give us the prosperity we are seeking.
And finally Jesus says:
John 6:35-36 “Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. “But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe.”
That is a terrific discourse there from Jesus to further enforce the reality He spoke here.
• He DID NOT come to make you earthly prosperous!
• He DID NOT come to make you comfortable!
• He DID NOT come to make you financially secure!
• He DID NOT come to take away all your struggles!
In fact He emphatically told His people
NOT to concern themselves with those things.
Matthew 6:25 “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?”
Matthew 6:31-33 “Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ “For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
There Jesus even equated worldly concern as lostness;
Indicating that that was a Gentile concern.
But honestly, where did He ever even slightly insinuate that following Him would be some sort of ticket to earthly prosperity?
HE NEVER DID.
And I’m telling you, His first followers knew that.
I think Paul gave us one of the strongest statements regarding the prosperity gospel.
1 Timothy 6:3-10 “If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
That’s a pretty obvious rebuke isn’t it?
Men who “suppose that godliness is a means of gain”
• Paul says that is evidence of a “depraved mind”
• And of people who have been “deprived of the truth”
Wanting to get rich is not a Christian virtue.
Desiring to use Jesus to get rich is not a Christian ambition.
In fact, “the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith”
Seeking prosperity does not lead you to godliness, it leads away from it.
Do you remember the servant of Elisha named Gehazi?
• This was after Elisha healed the leper Naaman but would accept no
compensation for the miracle.
• Gehazi saw an opportunity to make a little money off of the miracle.
• So he chased Naaman down and asked for two talents of silver and two
changes of clothes
• He sought to use godliness as a means of financial gain.
Here was Elisha’s response:
2 Kings 5:26-27 “Then he said to him, “Did not my heart go with you, when the man turned from his chariot to meet you? Is it a time to receive money and to receive clothes and olive groves and vineyards and sheep and oxen and male and female servants? “Therefore, the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and to your descendants forever.” So he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow.”
Gehazi’s love of money caused him to wander from the faith
And he was pierced with many griefs.
The points are just obvious throughout the Bible.
• The objective of God IS NOT to make you healthy, wealthy, and happy.
• The objective of God IS to make you holy.
• He will ruin your health to make you holy
• He will destroy your wealth to make you holy
• He will afflict you with adversity to make you holy
This notion that following Jesus is some means of prosperity is notion.
AND YET, SO MANY FOLLOW JESUS FOR THAT VERY REASON
That’s what this man wanted to do.
SO LET’S JUST MAKE IT CLEAR THIS MORNING.
IF YOU HAVE DECIDED TO FOLLOW JESUS
• Because you think it will benefit your bank account
• Or because it will effect some sort of promotion at work,
• Or because you expect it will provide physical relief from your ailments,
• Or because it will shower you with bliss and physical blessing
THEN FORGET IT!
If that’s why you have decided to follow Jesus
Then let me just sort of throw down the gauntlet this morning.
You aren’t following Christ, you are following Baalam.
And I would remind you that you cannot follow both.
Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”
Do you remember Balaam in the Old Testament?
• He was the prophet that Balak, King of Midian tried to hire to curse the children of Israel.
• And when God told Balaam not to do it, he said “ok” until Balak offered him money and then Balaam was willing.
• However God nearly killed Balaam where it not for the smartest donkey who ever lived.
Balaam wasn’t seeking God,
Balaam was seeking how his ministry could make him prosperous.
And people follow him still today.
2 Peter 2:15-16 “forsaking the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; but he received a rebuke for his own transgression, for a mute donkey, speaking with a voice of a man, restrained the madness of the prophet.”
A person who is seeking to use God or Christ or the Holy Spirit
Or the word of God or the church of God
As a means for earthly prosperity is not following Christ.
That person is following Balaam.
And if that is you, and that is why you come…GO HOME
Jesus is no Genie
Jesus is no Sugar Daddy
Jesus is the sinless Son of God
• Who gave up His heavenly riches
• That He might come to this world and suffer,
• Even suffer as a homeless man,
• And die that He might redeem sinners to God.
He did not come to make man healthy, wealthy, and happy.
And to put it plainly.
The call to follow Jesus is NOT FOR THE AMBITIOUS
• It is NOT a call to men to come and get their best life now.
• It is NOT a call to men to come and get all the stuff the devil stole from them.
• It is NOT a call to wealth
• It is NOT a call to promotion or status in this world
If you think that is what you will get for following Jesus
THEN LIKE THIS SCRIBE HERE,
You obviously have not paid close enough attention to Jesus.
“The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”
And so the question is, ARE YOU WILLING TO FOLLOW JESUS EVEN IF IT MEANS POVERTY?
• If following Jesus means no wealth
• If following Jesus means no promotion
• If following Jesus means no fleshly fulfillment
• Are you still willing to follow?
That’s what Jesus asked this man, and that is what He asks us.
In fact that is what He demands of us.
That’s the first conversation, we’ll look at the next two next time.
Luke 9:23 “And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.”
