The Sixth Sunday after Pentecost
\nJune 26, 2016
\nLuke 9:51-62<\/p>\n
As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.\u00a0 And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem.\u00a0 When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “LORD, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?”\u00a0 But Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they went to another village.\u00a0 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”\u00a0 Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 He said to another man, “Follow me.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 But the man replied, “LORD, first let me go and bury my father.”\u00a0 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Still another said, “I will follow you, LORD; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family.”\u00a0 Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 (NIV1984)<\/p>\n Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,<\/p>\n Are you familiar with the website called indeed.com?\u00a0 It is one of the premier websites to use if:\u00a0 a) you are looking for a job; b) you are looking for someone to fill an open position at your place of business.\u00a0 Basically, indeed.com takes help wanted ads from all over the country and places them on your computer or Smartphone.\u00a0 You just type in the kind of job you\u2019re interested in finding and the location where you want to work and hit \u201cSearch.\u201d\u00a0 There is even a link for you to upload your resume so that potential employers can contact you! \u00a0As of yesterday (Saturday, June 25) there were 5,205,540 stories from people in the United States who found a job in indeed.com!<\/p>\n Just out of curiosity I typed \u201cpastor\u201d into the search box.\u00a0 I immediately got a list of 1,292 \u201cnew\u201d postings for \u201cpastor.\u201d\u00a0 When I clicked on the ad for \u201cLead Pastor\u201d at Salina Community Church in Salina, OK, I found that the job summary included five aspects:\u00a0 \u201c1. Teaching\/preaching of traditional doctrine 2.\u00a0 Caregiving, such as visitation, counseling, comforting, and taking care of the needs of people\u00a0 3.\u00a0 Performing rites of passages, such as baptisms, weddings and funerals 4.\u00a0 Administration, such as taking care of meetings, putting together a bulletin, and developing programs for the church and evangelism\u00a0 5.\u00a0 And finally, serving as ambassador of the church to the community.\u201d\u00a0 All-in-all pretty standard pastoral duties.\u00a0 Since my curiosity was piqued I typed \u201cChristian disciple\u201d into the search box.\u00a0 I instantly got a list of 158 job openings ranging from Elementary School Teacher to Facilities Coordinator.<\/p>\n We, of course, know that through the power of God the Holy Spirit working through the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ we have been called to be disciples, followers, of our dear Lord and Savior.\u00a0 And while we generally know that it means to be a disciple, sometimes we might be a little \u201cfuzzy\u201d on some of the day-to-day details concerning our discipleship.<\/p>\n Our sermon text for today, my friends, gives us the opportunity to examine four different aspects of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.\u00a0 Hopefully the good Lord has given us all the ability to do well in all four of these areas.\u00a0 If not, today we have the opportunity to see where we can improve.\u00a0 With that goal in mind let\u2019s study our text under the theme:\u00a0 Wanted:\u00a0 Dedicated Disciples.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n The first aspect of being a dedicated disciple is found in the opening portion of our text.\u00a0 Luke writes, \u201cAs the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.\u00a0 And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem.\u00a0 When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, \u2018Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?\u2019\u00a0 But Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they went to another village.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n The overall emphasis here is quite simple and quite clear.\u00a0 Jesus knew that according to the heavenly Father\u2019s Plan of Salvation for this world it was time for Jesus to make His way to Jerusalem so that He could be betrayed, arrested, crucified, rise and victoriously ascend into heaven.\u00a0 As Jesus \u201cset His face\u201d<\/em> on achieving His goal for you and for me, He sent some disciples into a Samaritan village to make arrangements for food, lodging, etc.\u00a0 The Samaritans were undoubtedly thrilled to hear that Jesus was coming\u2014 until they heard that He was just passing through on His way to Jerusalem.\u00a0 Then they let their jealousy and their prejudice get the better of them.\u00a0 They told Jesus\u2019 disciples that He was not welcome in their village.\u00a0 James and John in turn let their \u201cdislike\u201d for the Samaritans get the better of them and asked Jesus for permission to \u201ccall fire down from heaven to destroy them.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Jesus, of course, absolutely refused.\u00a0 His mission, His goal, was to do everything that was necessary to save sinners, not destroy them.<\/p>\n Because our old sinful nature is both vengeful and vindictive we could easily find ourselves in a situation where like James and John we wish we could \u201ccall down fire from heaven\u201d<\/em> to destroy those who oppose and openly reject our dear Lord Jesus, the message He proclaims and the Church He has established.\u00a0 We get tired of being lumped together with some kind of \u201cright wing radical conspiracy.\u201d\u00a0 We begin to bristle at being labeled \u201cintolerant\u201d and \u201cunloving.\u201d\u00a0 We easily forget that one of the first and most prominent characteristics of being a disciple of Jesus Christ is found in our Savior\u2019s words, \u201cI tell you:\u00a0 Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven\u201d<\/em> (Matthew 5:44, 45).\u00a0 Even when we have been <\/strong>wronged, even if we are convinced <\/strong>that someone deserves<\/strong> to be punished for their spiteful words and hateful actions toward Jesus we still need to take a deep breath, count to whatever we need to count to and remember what our God tells us in Romans 12:18, 19:\u00a0 \u201cIf it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.\u00a0 Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God\u2019s wrath, for it is written:\u00a0 \u2018It is mine to avenge; I will repay,\u2019 says the Lord.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Anything less and we are the ones who need to stand next to James and John with our heads bowed low and be \u201crebuked\u201d<\/em> by the Lord.<\/p>\n The second aspect of being a dedicated disciple of Jesus is found in verses 57 and 58 of our text.\u00a0 Luke writes, \u201cAs they were walking along the road, a man said to him, \u2019I will follow you wherever you go.\u2019\u00a0 Jesus replied, \u2018Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n These verses emphasize the reality <\/strong>of what it means to be a dedicated disciple of Jesus.\u00a0 There are days when we are so \u201con fire\u201d for the Lord that we are willing to follow Jesus wherever He wants us to go!\u00a0 We hear stories of mission work being done in other parts of the world and like Isaiah our hearts cry out \u201cHere am I.\u00a0 Send me!\u201d<\/em> (Isaiah 6:8).\u00a0 But what we always need to remember are the sacrifices that are required in this type of commitment.\u00a0 Following Jesus wherever He leads us could easily require that we don\u2019t have our hearts set on having a beautiful home, a nice salary and a cornucopia of earthly comforts.\u00a0 We would do well to remember that while He was here on this earth even the Son of Man had \u201cno place to lay his head.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Does that mean that if we do have a beautiful home, a nice salary and lots of earthly comforts that we are being dedicated disciples of Jesus?\u00a0 No, it does not!\u00a0 But if our stewardship of time, talent and treasure (the offerings we place on the altar of our God) reveals that our goals and our priorities in this life focus more on our home, our money and our \u201cstuff\u201d instead of Jesus and His work, then it may mean that we need to spend more time at the foot of the cross asking our Lord to help us put Him and His work a little bit higher on our personal priority list.<\/p>\n That point ties in well with the third aspect of being a dedicated disciple.\u00a0 Look at verses 59 and 60 of our text.\u00a0 Luke continues, \u201cHe said to another man, \u2018Follow me.\u2019\u00a0 But the man replied, \u2018Lord, first let me go and bury my father.\u2019\u00a0 Jesus said to him, \u2018Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.\u2019\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 With these words Jesus emphasizes the cost <\/strong>of being His disciple.\u00a0 There may be times when the cost of following Jesus will include putting Jesus and proclaiming His Truth ahead of everything else\u2014 even our own family.\u00a0 While it may only happen on rare occasions, if <\/strong>we have to choose\u2014 either <\/strong>we follow Jesus and proclaim His Truth or <\/strong>we take care of family obligations\u2014 we need to remember what our salvation cost Jesus (Pointing to the cross) and be willing to put Him first.<\/p>\n The final aspect of being a dedicated disciple of Jesus is found in the closing verses of our text.\u00a0 Luke writes, \u201cStill another said, \u2018I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family.\u2019\u00a0 Jesus replied, \u2018No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Here we see the urgency <\/strong>of being a dedicated disciple of Jesus.\u00a0 All too often we might think that following Jesus whole-heartedly can wait\u2014 at least a little bit.\u00a0 We might say to ourselves, \u201cAfter I get my degree or after I get my career off the ground or after I have my family or after I retire then I\u2019ll have more time or more money or more energy to give to the Lord and to His work.\u201d\u00a0 While we are waiting opportunities to share the cross of Jesus Christ are being lost.\u00a0 While we are waiting Satan is working furiously.\u00a0 No matter what other responsibilities we have in our life, my friends, we need to stay focused on the fact that as disciples of Jesus Christ there is indeed an urgency to our calling to be witnesses for Him!\u00a0 (Pointing to the cross)<\/p>\n Millions of people turn to websites like indeed.com to either look for a job or to look for an employee.\u00a0 Thousands upon thousands of job openings are posted each and every day.\u00a0 Virtually all of them contain some kind of job summary so that everyone knows exactly what that job entails.<\/p>\n Purely by the grace and power of God you have been called to the most glorious \u201cjob\u201d on the face of this earth\u2014 being a disciple of Jesus.\u00a0 My prayer this morning is that while you rejoice at being His disciple you will also turn to portions of Scripture such as our text on a regular basis so that you can learn and grow in your understanding of what it means to live on a day-to-day as His disciple. (Pointing to the cross)<\/p>\n To God be the glory!<\/p>\n Amen<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Sixth Sunday after Pentecost June 26, 2016 Luke 9:51-62 As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.\u00a0 And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem.\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermon"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/691","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=691"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/691\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":692,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/691\/revisions\/692"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=691"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=691"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=691"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}