The Mindset Of A Christ Follower

There is a difference in the way a Christ follower lives.

Luke 9:57-62 As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.”

58 But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.”

59 He said to another person, “Come, follow me.”The man agreed, but he said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.” 60 But Jesus told him, “Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.”

61 Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family.” 62 But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.”

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Walking down the road one day, somebody comes up and tells Jesus that he will follow him, we don't know how much forethought went into this decision so Jesus gives him some more information about the choice that he is making. We don't know if the man kept his commitment or if Jesus' comments scared him away.

A little later Jesus two more people to follow him and each of them had concerns about the idea, they were troubled by earthly concerns that kept them from being focused on Jesus and the task that he had for them.

These uninformed people didn't realize that Jesus' followers don't always have the same lifestyle as the rest of the world. All of the usual stuff that gives us physical and emotional security such as a home, a warm bed and family close-by may have to be given up in order to be obedient to his call. Jesus doesn't want the shallow commitment that he gets from most of his followers, he wants people with their focus on the mission that God has called them to do.

I have never understood the excuse about going to bury a dead relative but my study Bible notes says that the man that was concerned with burying his father was really putting off obedience for a long time:

"It is doubtful that this man's father had already died. If he had, the man would have been involved in burial rites instead of talking to Jesus." -HCSB Study Bible Notes

In order to follow Jesus I need to be ready to depend on him for my physical and emotional security, the cares of this world can weigh me down, I know that he will supply my needs (Philippians 4:19).

Thank you Lord for taking care of every detail in my life!

You might like to read:
What Are You Carrying  //  Focus On Jesus  //  Faith That Is Amazing

Jesus Kingdom Isn't About Your Rank

Don't ask what Jesus can do for you, ask Jesus what you can do for him.

Luke 9: 46-50  Then his disciples began arguing about which of them was the greatest. 47 But Jesus knew their thoughts, so he brought a little child to his side.

48 Then he said to them, “Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me also welcomes my Father who sent me. Whoever is the least among you is the greatest.”

49 John said to Jesus, “Master, we saw someone using your name to cast out demons, but we told him to stop because he isn’t in our group.”

50 But Jesus said, “Don’t stop him! Anyone who is not against you is for you.”

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The disciples knew that every earthly organization has it's hierarchy, whether its the courthouse the temple or the government offices, they all had leadership that let you know where you stand. No doubt they had all been mistreated by the religious leaders and the Roman government officials, every established authority that they knew of was corrupt, but this wasn't an earthly organization and Jesus wasn't looking for people to fill management positions (Matthew 20:25-28).

Two lessons are in this scripture on how Jesus views an individuals status in the kingdom:

Lesson number one, this organization has it upside down, somehow the least will be the greatest. Jesus set the standard high when he modeled servant leadership, he is the greatest and yet he made himself to be the very least, allowing himself to be mistreated and taking every sin as his own.

Lesson number two, the disciples were not in an elite group that had the right to work in Jesus name. The disciples saw someone that wasn't a part of their circle that was doing God's work and they told him to stop, they didn't realize that Jesus was all inclusive.

God's work isn't dependent on an organization chart and it doesn't care what your rank is, the greatest will always be God and if we forget that then we are out of line and even though we may be doing a lot of good we will not be pleasing him. 

Thank you Lord, for your example of servant leadership, although you are the greatest you allowed yourself to become the least. Help me to serve you with humility.

You might like to read:
Greatness Redefined  //  Jesus Disciples Are Servants  //  God Will Lift Up Your Head

Pop Quiz

Was Jesus the Son of God? Was Jesus a big liar? Was Jesus just a good teacher?

Luke 9:18 One day Jesus left the crowds to pray alone. Only his disciples were with him, and he asked them, “Who do people say I am?”

19 “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say you are one of the other ancient prophets risen from the dead.”

20 Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?”

Peter replied, “You are the Messiah sent from God!”

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Nobody likes a pop quiz, we usually cringe at the idea when we are in school, none of the students like them but they aren't going anywhere because the teachers know that the pop quiz works.

There was plenty of speculation about Jesus,  Herod thought he was a prophet or maybe John the Baptist had come back to life, the Pharisees labeled Jesus a madman and even speculated that he was possessed. Was Jesus the Son of God? Was Jesus a liar? Was Jesus just a teacher?

“But who do you say I am?” The question is important because your view of Jesus will predict your willingness to follow and obey, to view him as Messiah and Lord has a cost, it requires that you live an obedient lifestyle. If you want to get to know who Jesus is, then it makes sense to ask the people that spent the most time with Jesus, the disciples should be able to fill us in.

Peter answered Jesus “You are the Messiah sent from God!” The people that were the closest to Jesus came to the conclusion that he is who he claimed to be, they proved it in the new way that they lived, they proved it in their obedience to his teaching, they proved it to the point of sacrifice.

Acts 5:42  And every day, in the Temple and from house to house, they continued to teach and preach this message: “Jesus is the Messiah.”

It is so much easier to call him a teacher or a liar, problem is, the evidence doesn't support these two theories, the testimony of the eleven men that spent three years with him 24/7 should be enough documentation to prove Jesus as the Messiah without any doubt.

You might like to read:
Puzzled About Jesus  //  Who Was Jesus  //  Sincerely Wrong

What Are You Carrying

What we are toting around tells a lot about who we are.

Luke 9:22-26  “The Son of Man must suffer many terrible things,” he said. “He will be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He will be killed, but on the third day he will be raised from the dead.”

23 Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. 24 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.

25 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed? 26 If anyone is ashamed of me and my message, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when he returns in his glory and in the glory of the Father and the holy angels.

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Jesus turns to the crowd and gives them an offer to follow him, that would be one thing if you knew that his future was bright and sunny  but look at what preceded his invitation.

He gives them an offer but first he tells them that he isn't going down easy street, he isn't going to have a retirement plan, a car or be a homeowner, he isn't even going to be popular.

The offer that Jesus was making was a lifestyle change that included putting yourself aside and thinking about your neighbor, he wants us to be an example of his grace, mercy and forgiveness. That's a fascinating concept but for people that had so little to begin with, people that lived with harsh treatment and abuse and yet they still were drawn to Jesus and dropped what they were carrying so they could pick-up a cross.

"Is that your cross or is it just your stuff?" That's the question that we need to answer. James, John, Peter, and Andrew dropped their nets to follow him, Simon the Zealot, threw down his weapons, Matthew, the tax collector, let go of his riches.

The stuff that I am toting around will tell the world what I think is important, I need to drop everything that is weighing me down, the world has so many things to entice me to carry and it won't stop trying to convince me that I need more stuff and that I can have it all. I need to carry my cross and follow wherever I am asked to go without any excess baggage.   

Lord help me to discard all of the things that Satan wants to use to weigh me down and make me too weak to carry my cross.

You might like to read:
Sacred Cows Can Stink The Place Up  //  Sell Your Possessions?  //  Choose The Narrow Way

Focus On Jesus

It's not about me, it's all about Jesus and his power.

Luke 9: 1-6  One day Jesus called together his twelve disciples and gave them power and authority to cast out demons and to heal all diseases. 2 Then he sent them out to tell everyone about the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

3 “Take nothing for your journey,” he instructed them. “Don’t take a walking stick, a traveler’s bag, food, money, or even a change of clothes. 4 Wherever you go, stay in the same house until you leave town. 5 And if a town refuses to welcome you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate.”

6 So they began their circuit of the villages, preaching the Good News and healing the sick.

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This is the first time that Jesus sends his disciples out on a mission trip, the second time is in Luke 10:1, it seems that Jesus woke up that morning and without any warning he calls the twelve together and gives them their instructions and all of a sudden they are leaving town.

Jesus does two things before he sends them on their way:

First he gives them the power and authority that they are to depend on for the spiritual battle that takes place on a mission trip. Jesus transfers his power and authority to the disciples so that their ability to do his work comes from him, the same power that they would be using after he left earth, they were getting some hands on experience with it now.

Second Jesus instructs them to depend on God to supply their physical needs as well, over preparation on their part would cause them to depend on their own resources so Jesus told them to travel light.

Luke 9:10-11   When the apostles returned, they told Jesus everything they had done. Then he slipped quietly away with them toward the town of Bethsaida. But the crowds found out where he was going, and they followed him. He welcomed them and taught them about the Kingdom of God, and he healed those who were sick.

Jesus gave them everything that they needed for the trip, every part of the mission trip was to be a journey of faith, he provided for their spiritual and their physical needs. The disciples focus was to be on God's ability to supply all of their needs and to keep their focus on Jesus. The focus of the scripture was hardly on the disciples for anytime before the writer went back to Jesus doing another miracle.

Lord, help me to have faith that you have provided for all of my needs, I must believe that you will provide for the work that you have called me to do.

You might like to read:
Believing The Impossible  //  Jesus Disciples Will Be Persecuted  //  The Smartest Guy In The Room

Does Anybody Still Care WWJD?

"…who ever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did."

Many people used to use the slogan "WWJD?" The bracelets and t-shirts were all over our bodies and the stickers were on our cars.

Where did it all go? Have we stopped caring about the answer anymore, since you don't hear the question as much in recent time maybe Jesus example is too old school for us.

Maybe we don't really want to know what he would do. Maybe Jesus response to a situation or his thoughts about our daily life are not welcome anymore.

I say that it is still a valid question that we all need to answer in order to please God, remember, nobody pleased God on this earth as much as his son did.

What Did Jesus Do?

He Prepared Diligently

Luke 2:52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature with God and men.

He Served Faithfully

Mark 10:45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve

Luke 22:42 "Father if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will but yours be done

He Worshiped Regularly

Luke 4:16 He went to Nazareth and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom.

He Prayed Fervently

Mark 1:35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.

Luke 5:16 But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.

Luke 6:12 …and spent the night praying to God.

He Witnessed Boldly

John 3:11 "I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony."

John 8:12 "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

He Mentored Lovingly

Mark 3:14 He appointed twelve - designating them apostles - that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach.

Matthew 5:1 His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them.

He Lived Holy

1Peter 2:21-22 Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.

Hebrews 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin.

This list came from some old sermon notes, a sermon preached while WWJD was popular. It really drove home the point that we fall very short of doing what Jesus would do.

I need to apply this list to my life and begin to live with a greater awareness of what Jesus would do. I bet the world around me would take notice and be greatly influenced by the change in my life.

Thank you Lord for showing us what you would do and how you would live.

Puzzled About Jesus

Men of the Bible Series - Herod didn't know if Jesus was someone back from the dead, not yet but soon he would be!

Luke 9:7-9  When Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee, heard about everything Jesus was doing, he was puzzled. Some were saying that John the Baptist had been raised from the dead. 8 Others thought Jesus was Elijah or one of the other prophets risen from the dead. 9 “I beheaded John,” Herod said, “so who is this man about whom I hear such stories?” And he kept trying to see him.

Luke 23:8-11 Herod was delighted at the opportunity to see Jesus, because he had heard about him and had been hoping for a long time to see him perform a miracle. 9 He asked Jesus question after question, but Jesus refused to answer. 10 Meanwhile, the leading priests and the teachers of religious law stood there shouting their accusations. 11 Then Herod and his soldiers began mocking and ridiculing Jesus. Finally, they put a royal robe on him and sent him back to Pilate.

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Could there be a second personality in town stirring things up? Herod had to wonder, he thought that the one making all of the fuss in town was dead when he had John the Baptist beheaded, Herod was paranoid  because of his guilty conscience. John was arrested because he criticized Herod's illicit marriage to his brother's wife.

Puzzled about what was going on, Herod asked, “so who is this man about whom I hear such stories?” Herod seemed to want to know more about Jesus but he never sent for Jesus to come to him, he never gave much thought and consideration about Jesus. So some time later when Jesus is on trial, Herod is delighted to see him, his delight didn't last for long as he became angry when his questions were ignored by Jesus.

Herod Antipas was one of four sons of Herod the Great, he inherited a fourth of his fathers territory upon his death, later Antipas was accused by his nephew Agrippa of conspiracy against the new Roman emperor Caligula.

We need to take some time to consider who Jesus is and why he came to earth, Herod didn't go beyond a superficial, careless inquiry into who Jesus is and he doesn't have a clue what his ministry is about. If you come to the wrong conclusion about Jesus or you don't even give his life and ministry any consideration then you will have made the greatest mistake of all. 

Luke 9:20  Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?” Peter replied, “You are the Messiah sent from God!”

We need to consider the evidence that brought Peter to the conclusion that Jesus is the Messiah. Peter was an eyewitness to Jesus power over sickness, his power to feed the crowds with a sack lunch and Peter was the one that got out of the boat and took a walk with Jesus on the water.

Thank you Lord for your Word and for the eyewitness accounts that show us that you are really the Savior of the world. I pray that we will all consider the evidence thoroughly and come to the right conclusion.

Jesus Power To Forgive

Your sins are forgiven because of Jesus love for his creation.

Mark 2: 6-7  But some of the teachers of religious law who were sitting there thought to themselves, “What is he saying? This is blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins!”

Acts 10:37-43  You know what happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee, after John began preaching his message of baptism. 38 And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

39 “And we apostles are witnesses of all he did throughout Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a cross, 40 but God raised him to life on the third day. Then God allowed him to appear, 41 not to the general public, but to us whom God had chosen in advance to be his witnesses.

We were those who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 And he ordered us to preach everywhere and to testify that Jesus is the one appointed by God to be the judge of all—the living and the dead. 43 He is the one all the prophets testified about, saying that everyone who believes in him will have their sins forgiven through his name.”

Acts 13: 38-39  “Brothers, listen! We are here to proclaim that through this man Jesus there is forgiveness for your sins. Everyone who believes in him is declared right with God—something the law of Moses could never do.

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The power to forgive sins was a highly volatile discussion several times in the interactions between Jesus and the Pharisees, the religious police would say over and over again "This is blasphemy!" The prophets declared that Jesus would forgive and take their sin away (Acts 10:43), it was predicted by the angels and by John the Baptist (Matthew 1:20-21,John 1:29)

Was Jesus God and did he have the power to settle the debt of sin that I owed? There must have been a purpose in his willingness to go to the cross without protesting at his trial. If Jesus didn't die for a purpose then why did he die and come back again in three days? There was only one reason to suffer the way that Jesus did, if he wasn't doing it to forgive us of our sin debt then the only conclusion that we could make is that he was a lunatic. Jesus would have to be a madman to endure the pain and the torture that he went through if it were not for the forgiveness of our sins.

It was predicted that he would come to earth and die to forgive us, it was predicted that he would return from the grave in three days, what more proof do we need that Jesus is who he claimed to be and that he came to make us right with God?

Thank you Lord for your love for me that provided a way for me to be made right before you, all of my sins forgiven and a bright future with you for eternity is mine because of you.

Jesus Power Over Sin

Sin doesn't stand a chance against our Redeemer.

Acts 2: 22-24,32  “People of Israel, listen! God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through him, as you well know.

23 But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him. 24 But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip. “God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this.

Romans 6:6-11  We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. 7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. 8 And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. 9 We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. 10 When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. 11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.

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We all love to make plans and try to take control of our day, we make plans and then we face the roadblocks to our plans, the rest of the world likes to get in our way. There is a plan that hasn't been altered or modified, that would be God's plan, it has been the same since the beginning of time.

Satan knew that God's plan to break the power of sin was an assault on his power, the grip that he had on man was coming to an end, Satan was fighting back for thirty-three years but he failed to stop the plan. Satan worked to spoil God's plan from Jesus birth all the way to his death, from King Herod all the way to the soldiers nails, but the plan kept on.

Jesus set me free, my sin was taken to the cross and they have been removed from the record books, the spreadsheet that was being kept has been deleted without any payments being made by me. Jesus paid off the entire balance. The only payments that I can make is to live for Jesus in obedience to him, I can offer my life as a living sacrifice. (Romans 12:1-2)

I now have real life that is worth living. Life without bondage and fear, life with hope and a bright future, a life that will never end. I need to share this good news with everyone.

Thank you Lord for giving me real life without the bondage and fear that so many people are still trapped in. I pray that they will hear the gospel message and receive your powerful healing in their life.

Jesus defeated the power of sin: 

Isa 53:10-12; Mt 9:6; Jn 15:13; Ro 6:6; 1Co 15:3; Tit 2:14; Heb 9:28; 1Pe 2:24; Rev 5:9

Jesus Power Over Death

Don't be afraid, the end is not the end, death has been defeated. 

Luke 8:41-42,49,54-55 Then a man named Jairus, a leader of the local synagogue, came and fell at Jesus’ feet, pleading with him to come home with him. 42 His only daughter, who was about twelve years old, was dying.

49 A messenger arrived from the home of Jairus, the leader of the synagogue. He told him, “Your daughter is dead. There’s no use troubling the Teacher now.”

54 Then Jesus took her by the hand and said in a loud voice, “My child, get up!” 55 And at that moment her life returned, and she immediately stood up!

John 11:14-15, 25  “Lazarus is dead. And for your sakes, I’m glad I wasn’t there, for now you will really believe. Come, let’s go see him. I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying."

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In the past two post we looked at Jesus power over the physical world and the spirit world, today I am looking at the power that Jesus had to restore life to a dead person. Jesus showed us on three occasions that he had the power to bring life back to somebody.

It is interesting to note that on two occasions he was delayed in reaching the dying person so they seemed to have died needlessly. Jesus didn't have the concern that we have when somebody is sick to the point of death, in both of the stories about his delay resulting in death, he had a greater work in mind. It was no sweat to bring them back to life and Jesus said that it would help the disciples to "really believe". (John 11:15)

God hates death, we were not meant to die, God gave Adam a rule to follow in Genesis 2:17 but Adam and Eve chose to put their faith in the serpents distorted interpretation of scripture instead of talking to God. They talked to him everyday so it seems like they would have asked God to clarify anything that the Devil told them.

Everybody wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die

- David Crowder

Jesus asked us all to die, not a physical death, he wants our old life, our selfishness and pride to be put to death. He wants me to live for his will and purpose instead of my own, I cannot please him unless the old man dies, it is a moment by moment decision to put aside self and pickup my cross. (Galatians 2:20, Matthew 16:24-25)

Thank you for taking the fear out of dying, help me Lord to die to self every moment of every day.

People that Jesus raised from the dead:

The daughter of Jairus shortly after death, a young man in the midst of his own funeral procession, and Lazarus, who had been buried for four days.

Jesus defeated the power of death: 

Ps 16:10; Jn 2:19; Jn 5:21; Jn 17:2; Ac 2:24,32; Ro 1:4; Ro 6:9; Eph 1:19-20; Php 3:10

Jesus Power Over Demons

Jesus came to reverse the curse.

Luke 8:27-33  As Jesus was climbing out of the boat, a man who was possessed by demons came out to meet him. For a long time he had been homeless and naked, living in a cemetery outside the town.

28 As soon as he saw Jesus, he shrieked and fell down in front of him. Then he screamed, “Why are you interfering with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Please, I beg you, don’t torture me!” 29 For Jesus had already commanded the evil spirit to come out of him. 33 Then the demons came out of the man and entered the pigs, and the entire herd plunged down the steep hillside into the lake and drowned.

Luke 11: 17 He knew their thoughts, so he said, “Any kingdom divided by civil war is doomed. A family splintered by feuding will fall apart. 18 You say I am empowered by Satan. But if Satan is divided and fighting against himself, how can his kingdom survive? 19 And if I am empowered by Satan, what about your own exorcists? They cast out demons, too, so they will condemn you for what you have said. 20 But if I am casting out demons by the power of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you. 21 For when a strong man like Satan is fully armed and guards his palace, his possessions are safe 22 until someone even stronger attacks and overpowers him, strips him of his weapons, and carries off his belongings.

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Jesus power included the ability to rule over the demonic forces that he encountered, this was a well known fact that every demon knew, just look at how they always reacted every time that they were in his presence. Not only were they scared of him but most of them actually acknowledged who Jesus was and they made it clear that they were powerless against him.

The people knew that there were only two forces that could control Satan's demons, Jesus was one option but they didn't want to admit that he had the power so they accused him of being a demon and pulling some kind of trick on the other demons. They were desperate to explain Jesus power, as silly as it seems that Satan would be fighting against Satan, they could not admit that Jesus was God.

Satan is powerful and dangerous but our Savior makes the claim that he is stronger than our enemy (1 Peter 5:8, Luke 11:21-22) . The Devil refuses to acknowledge Jesus as Lord and continues to fight a battle that we cannot see, the battle to destroy the Devil and reverse the curse of sin (Ephesians 6:10, 1 John 3:8).

I must not allow myself to look at the evil in this world and get a defeated attitude. Jesus proved that he is in control of the forces of evil and the evil will be overcome with good.

Thank you Lord for loving me and defeating the Enemy so that I can spend eternity with you.

Jesus control over demons:

Blind mute  // Boy // Canaanite's daughter // Capernaum synagogue //
Gerasenes demonic‎ // Mute man // At sunset