Tag Archives: Matthew

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A Few Good Men…Women, Too!

Today’s Reflection:

“Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”  (Matthew 16:24)

Does Christ’s call to discipleship seem a little extreme in comparison to the “easy believism” that passes for discipleship today? You will likely hear a lot more about “God’s promise” of a life of comfort, security and success these days from spiritual leaders than straight talk on self-denial and cross bearing.

Jesus made no of promises of an easy, breezy, carefree Christianity. Rather, he demanded complete obedience, costly sacrifice, and selfless servanthood from those who would follow him. He told them that they would have to “eat his flesh and drink his blood” (John 6:53-55) if they wanted a part in him. He said people would hate them, misunderstand them, reject them, persecute them, and put them out of the synagogues. And he even promised that people would kill them, believing that in so doing they were helping God out.

Yet the eleven disciples (one of them, Judas, got cold feet) fully bought into Christ’s call to costly discipleship. They left everything they had and everything they knew for a life that promised nothing except a chance to advance God’s kingdom in a resistant, hostile world. They fully understood that the overwhelming bulk of their rewards would come only afterwards, in the afterlife.

And, despite Christ’s less than appealing recruitment campaign, these first disciples, followed in the years to come by countless thousands of other hungry seekers, flocked to this self-denying, cross-bearing brand of Christianity. Jesus was a tough act to follow, literally, but these first disciples eagerly signed up—and they changed the world.

How? Simply by doing what Jesus had asked: They denied themselves, took up their crosses, and laid down their lives for his sake. Without a political voice, financial resources, social standing, and military might, this unlikely ragtag band of followers conquered the Roman Empire in less than three hundred years.

Such was this brand of fully committed discipleship’s radical power!

Do you worry, as I do, that Christ’s call to costly discipleship would empty most churches in our day not only if it were demanded, but even if it were merely taught? Though most believers give mental assent to cross-bearing and self-denial, in reality there is very little evidence of it in their lives, or in their churches of this kind of full-throttle discipleship.

If Jesus rebuked Peter (Matthew 16:23) — “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men” — for suggesting Christianity without a cross (Matthew 16:24), what do you suppose he would say to we who have suggested Christian discipleship without cross-bearing?

Dietrich Bonhoeffer once remarked, “Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ.” We need to remind ourselves of that truth, because you likely won’t hear it from too many pulpits today. A.W. Tozer commented that “it has become popular to preach a painless Christianity and automatic saintliness. It has become part of our ‘instant’ culture. ‘Just pour a little water on it, stir mildly, pick up a gospel tract, and you are on your Christian way.’”

We must aggressively and boldly reject that brand of faith, because that is not the discipleship to which Jesus has called us. And that is not the discipleship that I want for my life.

How about you?

Something To Consider
“Salvation is free … but discipleship will cost you your life.” ~Dietrich Bonhoeffer

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Temptation

Matthew 3:1-4:25

Temptation

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be
tempted by the devil.  And when He had fasted forty days
and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. Now
when the tempter came to Him, he said,
“If You are the Son of God…”
Matthew 4:1-3

 

Go Deep: Isn’t it interesting—profound, really—that Satan knew who Jesus was, that he was God the Son, yet tempted him anyway.

Satan once resided as Lucifer, chief of all then angels, in the presence of the Holy Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. So when Jesus became the incarnate Son of God, Satan knew perfectly well of his divine nature. Rather than backing off, however, Satan unleashed a torrent of enticements designed to derail the plan of God and get Jesus off his game.  And if the very Son of God would have to endure an onslaught of Satanic temptations, so will you.

It is also of interest that Satan didn’t tempt Jesus with obvious evil.  Three times he attempted to entice Jesus to sin with subtle, sane, and spiritual sounding goodies. The devil is the master of subtlety. He didn’t come to Jesus dressed in a red suit and pointed tail, pitchfork in hand, luring Jesus to commit murder or to steal a bag full of money.  No, this temptation was to gain what seemed good by sacrificing what was best.

It is highly likely that the temptations you will face today will be subtle as well.  Satan’s stock-in-trade is deception, which is what makes temptation so effective.  Jesus called him “the father of lies”, and he’s gotten pretty good at it over the millennia.  So in particular, watch out for the enticements that will be just slightly off center from God’s will.  Don’t accept good at the expense of God’s best.

In one sense, the temptations that will hit you today will be perfectly sane.  Jesus had fasted for forty days and was at the limit of what a human body could endure.  He was hungry, and Satan simply suggested that Jesus use his God-prerogatives to satisfy a physical necessity.

Jesus was called to be the Messiah of the Jews.  What better way to jumpstart his ministry than by hang-gliding from the highest point of the temple in Jerusalem—without a hang-glider.  What a great way to show off his God-powers and impress the people he was called to lead.

Ultimately, Jesus was called to be the Lord and Savior of the world.  Why not fast-track that plan by allowing Satan to hand deliver all the nations of the world to him in an instant.  No fuss, no muss.

The problem was, each of these temptations called for Jesus to depend on himself to get his needs met rather than trusting in God’s provision, timing and plan.  That is perhaps the most foundational and most common sin of all—to trust in anything or anyone other than God to get your needs and wants met.

It is likely that you will be hit with temptation in the same way today.  It will be subtle.  It will seem sane.  And probably, it will sound pretty spiritual as well—remember, each temptation Satan dangled before Jesus was prefaced with Scripture.

So be on guard today—sin is crouching at your door.  But it is not inevitable that you will succumb to it.  Jesus didn’t—which means that you don’t have to either.  Jesus knew the Word and will of God better than Satan, and so do you.  That’s one of the blessings of reading and praying the Scripture each day, as you are doing.

Likewise, since Jesus overcame his battle with temptation, he stands at the ready to help you in your battle.  So just ask him for his help—he is more than willing to come alongside you.  Hebrews 2:17-18 teaches us,

“For this reason Jesus had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.”

So when sin comes knocking at your door today, just send Jesus to answer it.

 

Just Saying… John Quincy Adams, the sixth president of the United States, said “Every temptation is an opportunity of our getting nearer to God.” Temptation usually has the effect of causing distance between you and God.  Why not buck your temptation and use it to draw close instead.

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History Is Really His Story

Matthew 1:1-2:23

History Is Really His Story

“For thus it is written in the prophets…”
Matthew 2:5, 15, 18, 23

Go Deep: The birth and life of Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Savior of the world, was not the product of random events. It was the direct result of prophetic fulfillment. Thus the phrase linking Christ’s life to Old Testament prophecy is repeated four times here in this second chapter of Matthew’s Gospel.

Those details of Jesus’ life had been laid out in the mind of God from eternity past and had been written down in the inspired utterances of the prophets of old hundreds of years before Christ was born. The fulfillment of scores of prophecies in minute detail of the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus leaves us with a pretty amazing track record of prophetic accuracy…leaving no doubt that those detailing his second coming will most certainly be fulfilled, too.

There is nothing random about God; nothing is left up to chance. The God of the Bible is the sovereign Lord of the universe, and is ruling over the details of history to bring about his perfect plan. What may seem like happenstance or coincidence, God has foreordained, caused, or permitted in his perfect will. Coincidence is simply a sovereign act of God for which he chooses to remain unseen; a miracle for which he prefers anonymity.

God is in control of all things, and that includes your life. David wrote in Psalm 139:16,

“You saw me before I was born.
Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
before a single day had passed.”

God’s Word invites you to live with amazing confidence today, knowing that he is in control of all things, including even the smallest details of your life. Therefore you can say, “all things will work together for my good and his glory.”

Just Saying… John Newton, once a slave-trading profligate who was marvelously converted, was profoundly spot-on when he wrote, “We serve a gracious Master who knows how to overrule even our mistakes to His glory and our own advantage.”