SACRIFICE REQUIRED

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

When Jesus saw the crowd around Him, He gave orders to cross to the other side of the lake.

Then a teacher of the law came to Him and said, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go."

Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head."

Another disciple said to Him, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father."

But Jesus told him, "Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead."

Matthew 8:18-22

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

What if Jesus had ran a want ad seeking disciples? It may have read like this:

“Disciples wanted. Can be men or women. Must be willing to leave everything behind and travel long distances on foot, weathering and enduring nomadic outdoor living. Must also we willing to accept consistent persecution, even to the point of death, at any time.”

I wonder how many applicants Jesus would have received.

Indeed, there is a price to be paid for anyone who truly chooses to follow Jesus in their lives. For He demands that we sacrifice…for sacrifice is one of the qualities that defined our Savior. One only look to Calvary’s cross and the crucifixion to understand that truth.

So how far are we willing to sacrifice for the One who gave everything for us?

It’s a fair question…and one we all need to ask ourselves daily.

Are we truly committed to lay it all down for Him just as He did for us?

As we look at today’s scripture passage, we see Jesus underscoring a little of what’s required to truly be His disciple.

We read that He “gave orders to cross to the other side” of the Sea of Galilee when He had seen “the crowd around Him”. You’ll recall that He was in Capernaum which was located on the northwest part of the sea so moving to the other side meant He would head to the eastern shores.

There, we read where He was approached by a “teacher of the law” who declared, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go." Knowing the hearts and minds of man, we sense that Jesus sensed that the man was not aware of the sacrifices that came with his proclamation. For He tells the teacher of the law, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head."

In other words, life with Me isn’t going to be glamorous. Indeed, Jesus, and those who followed Him, would find resistance nearly everywhere they would travel. In fact, we know that Jesus wasn’t even welcome in His own hometown of Galilee. Anyone deciding to follow Jesus needed to be aware that things would often be rough and challenging. It wasn’t, and still isn’t, for the faint of heart. Many Christians this very hour are being persecuted and killed for the cause of Christ.

Question: Are you willing to die for Jesus in your own life?

You never know when you might be faced with just that.

After the teacher of the law, Jesus encountered another disciple who was interested in following Him but with a caveat. The disciple asked Jesus to “first let me go and bury my father” to which Jesus replied, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead."

What? One can’t even show proper respect to their parent…their father who had invested so much in raising and rearing?

Jesus would say “No”. Why? Because it is just one of many excuses that someone can come up with to not fully lay their lives down for the One who would lay His life down for them…without reservation…without caveat.

Indeed, Christ didn’t say that He would accept crucifixion after He had a chance to do this or that. He asked for no delay. No…He accepted the wrongful judgment and the gruesome execution that came along with it. And He did it because He loved you and I that much.

So how much do we truly love Him in return? Do we ask Him if we can put His will on hold so we can love someone else more than Him? Or do we realize that He and He alone is the only One we should love with all our heart and mind and soul and strength…and respond in absolute and unquestioning obedience to His call?

Friends, the decision to follow Jesus is not to be made lightly. We must be sure of what we’re signing up for. For service in Jesus’ army is a lifelong enlistment…one that will take us onto the battlefield and in harm’s way. We must be willing to rough it with Him, get down into the trenches and sacrifice with Him.

For indeed, sacrifice is required…but it’s worth it as we look forward to the day when we share eternal life with Jesus forever.

We only have that privilege because of His sacrifice.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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