"SO, WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO FOLLOW JESUS?"
Written and preached by David P. Nolte




LUKE 9:23-26
 


There are many different ideas as to what it takes to be a Christian. Some think it is keeping a lot of religious rules, mostly starting with, "Thou shalt not!" Some think that being a Christian demands just being kind, loving, compassionate and sharing what we have with others. Some believe that being a Christian means to go to church, to read the Bible, to pray a lot and to avoid smiling whenever possible. There are those who believe that being a law-abiding citizen, who never violates the speed limit or cheats on taxes makes you a Christian. Believe it or not, some actually believe that just being born in America makes you a Christian. What does it take to be a Christian? At the very foundation, at the very basis, at the very least it takes a heart that desires to follow Jesus Christ, or in His terms, to be His disciple. Being a Christian and following Jesus Christ are synonymous. No matter how many rules you keep, if you don't follow Jesus you're not a Christian. No matter how kind and loving you are, if you don't follow Jesus, you're not a Christian. No matter how often you attend church, read your Bible and pray, if you don't follow Jesus, you're not a Christian. You might never break a human law and not be a Christian. You might be a tenth generation American and not be a Christian. So what does it take to be a Christian? Following Jesus. And the ancillary question is: So what does it take to follow Jesus? There are three factors revealed in the text. Before we consider them, let me tell you about two men, Will and Sam, both of whom professed to be Christian. Both, at some time in their life, had responded to the Gospel call and made confession of faith, were baptized and affiliated with a congregation. One of them was about to learn that it took more than that to follow Jesus. It took more than that to be His disciple. So what does it take to follow Jesus?
  1. It Takes Commitment: 
    1. By "Commitment" I mean:
      1. Fixation of purpose to accomplish some goal or reach some end.
      2. The act of binding or obligating yourself to some action or duty.
      3. The act of determining a direction to travel. You come to a fork in the road and you commit to one way or the other. Two ways open before us: The wide way which leads to death and the narrow way, Jesus' way, which leads to life. You must commit to one way or the other.
      4. Dedication to a person or cause.
      5. A promise you make to someone.
      6. Fully devoting yourself to any given idea or plan.
    2. Notice that Jesus says, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me." In Luke 14:27 Jesus puts it this way, "Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple." Jesus calls us to commitment when He calls us to follow Him. Following Him means becoming His disciple. Being His disciple means learning from Him, patterning our lives after His, and being committed to Him and His purposes.
    3. He's speaking about commitment.
      1. To follow Jesus demands commitment.
      2. To be His disciple demands commitment.
      3. To bear a cross demands commitment.
      4. To live as a Christian demands commitment.
    4. When I was a youth minister, I spoke to a young lady to encourage her in her Christian walk. She said, "Well, I don't go whole-hog for this Christian thing like some people do. I'm sort of half Christian."
      1. Now, in the first place, I knew this girl. She not only didn't go whole-hog, she hadn't even tasted the bacon!
      2. In the second place, you can't be half Christian. You can be half awake, half finished and half baked. But you can't be half Christian. It's committed or nothing.
Will and Sam both made some commitment to Christ at some time in their lives. But for one of them it was "Whole hog" and for the other it was a matter of whether it was convenient or not. Will served Christ even when it cost him; Sam served when it benefitted him or was expedient. But to follow Jesus, to be His disciple, to be a Christian demands more than that. It demands commitment and:
  1. It Takes Cross-Bearing:
    1. To follow Jesus is to commit to cross-bearing. This is something we choose, it is not thrust upon us against our own will.
    2. What does this mean? What is it to bear a cross? Think about it in reference to literal cross-bearing as in Jesus' day.
      1. The cross was painful and induced much suffering. Application: There may be those things we will have to suffer for Jesus: persecution, rejection, ridicule.
      2. The cross represented, in the Christian context, sacrifice. Jesus came to lay down His life on behalf of others. He was the atoning sacrifice that paid for our sins. He became the Lamb of God Who took away the sins of the world. Application: There are sacrifices we will be called upon to make for Jesus: forfeiture of our own plans, submitting our wills to His, giving up what we'd use for self for the benefit of others.
      3. The cross was a shameful thing. People looked with reproach and disgust on the criminal nailed to the cross. Application: others may look with contempt upon us for following Jesus. That's a cross we must willingly bear.
      4. The cross was a form of execution. If someone was carrying a cross, others knew that individual was going to be put to death. Application: We are to die to sin, to the dictates of the flesh. We are to be crucified to the world and the world to us. To bear a cross is to die.
    3. Some people think that a back ache or bunion or a nagging mother-in-law is their cross. Not so, these may be thorns in the flesh, but a cross is chosen. Pick yours up and bear it with courage and commitment. (Reading on the cross below).
    4. A cross is not comfortable, it is not convenient, it is not glorious, it is not necessarily pleasant. But each of us has a cross to bear and we'd do well to learn to bear it without grumbling.
So, Will and Sam both made some commitment to Christ. Will was a cross-bearer, Sam took the easy way. Will was dependable, regular, trustworthy; Sam was on again, off again. One day, Sam came into Will's place of business to place an order. During their conversation, Sam cussed and swore and used the Lord's Name in vain. Will's son was present and Will didn't want him to hear that language. He spoke up, "Sir, the language you are using is most offensive to me. I'm a Christian and I'm trying to raise my son as a Christian, and I'd be obliged if you'd watch your language in here." Sam's mouth flew open and he said, "Why, I'm a Christian, too!" Will said, "Well, with all your swearing, I'd never have guessed that in a thousand years!" Sam left and Will thought, not with regret, that he'd lost a customer for sure. Sam needed to learn another lesson about being a Christian, about being a disciple. To follow Jesus, to be His disciple, to be a Christian demands commitment, cross-bearing and:
  1. It Takes Consistency:
    1. Jesus said, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me." Daily.
      1. Not only when the mood strikes but daily!
      2. Not just when you feel like it but daily!
      3. Not just when it's easy but daily!
      4. Not if and when you don't have other plans but daily!
    2. Listen to what the Bible says about consistency:
      1. "And because lawlessness is increased, most people's love will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved." Matthew 24:12-13.
      2. "Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life." Revelation 2:10b.
      3. "He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach -- if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard," Colossians 1:22b, 23.
      4. "Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance, and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us," Hebrews 12:1.
    3. Some people:
      1. Praise the Lord, shout amen, and talk about Jesus at church and then go to work or school or home and cuss and swear like a pirate's parrot. That's inconsistent.
      2. Sing all the choruses, recite all the verses at church and then go to work or school or home and swamp themselves in unChristian music and literature. That's inconsistent.
    4. We must be consistent in following Jesus as His disciples and that must impact how we live and talk and act.
      1. Be consistent in giving. We read, "On the first day of every week let each one of you put aside and save, as he may prosper," 1 Corinthians 16:2.
      2. Be consistent in serving. Jesus equates serving with greatness in the kingdom: "But the greatest among you shall be your servant." Matthew 23:11.
      3. Be consistent in attendance and worship: We read in Hebrews 10:25 (NIV) "Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another -- and all the more as you see the Day approaching."
      4. Be consistent in Bible study and prayer. Unlike Brylcreem, a little dab won't do ya!
      5. Be consistent in your morals and ethics. There is no right way to do a wrong thing. Wrong is always wrong and right is always right -- always -- consistently!
      6. Be consistent in language and speech. Paul wrote: "Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, that it may give grace to those who hear." Ephesians 4:29.
A few days later, Sam returned to Will's store and his wife was with him. Sam said, "Myra, this is that fellow I told you about who gave me a good tongue lashing."  Myra said, "Sir, thank you for doing that. Sam's been a changed man since you spoke to him." Will's rebuke cut to Sam's heart and showed him his inconsistency. So, how about you? Are you committed to Jesus Christ? Are you bearing your cross daily? Are you consistent in speech, thought, attitude, and action? Do you truly determine to follow Jesus? Will you determine to take up your cross and follow? This is a moment to decide. This is a moment of destiny. You stand at the cross roads. To which path will you commit yourself? Come and follow Jesus, as we sing.

Story from unidentified source.  Cross reading from unidentified source.



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Well, here I am, Lord. You said "Take up your cross," and I'm here to do it. It's not easy, you know, this self-denial thing. I mean to go through with it though, yes sir!
 

I'll bet you w ish more people were willing to be disciples like me. I've count ed the cost and surrendered my life, and it's not an easy road.
 

You mind if I look over these crosses? I' d kind of like a new one. I'm not fussy, you understand; but a disciple has to be relevant these days.
 

I was wondering -are there any that are vinyl padded? I' m thinking of attracting others, see? And if I could show them a comfortable cross, I'm sure I could win a lot more. Got to keep up with the population explosion and all.
 

And I need something durable so I can treasure it always. Oh, is there one that's sort of flat so it would fit under my coat? One shouldn't be too obvious.
 

Funny, there doesn't seem to be much choice here. Just th at coarse, rough wood. I mean that would hurt. Don't you have something more distinctive, Lord? I can tell you right now, none of my friends are going to be impressed by this shoddy workmanship. They 'II think I'm a nut or something. And my family will be just mortified.
 

What's that? It's either one of these or forget the whole thing? But Lord, I want to be your disciple, I mean, just being with you; that's all that counts; but life has to have a balance, too. But you don't understand- nobody lives that way today! Who is going to be attracted by this self-denial bit? I mean, I want to; but let's not over do it!
 

Start getting radical like this, and they 'II have me off to the funny farm. Know what 1 mean? I mean being a disciple is challenging and exciting and I want to do it; but I do have some rights, you know.

Now let's see no blood - OK? I just can't stand the thought of that, Lord! Lord? Jesus? Now where do you suppose He went?