THE CALL AND THE CROSS

Readings: Psalm 139:1-6,13-18, Jeremiah 18:1-11, Philemon 1-21, Luke 14: 25-35
Preached at First Presbyterian Church, Baldwin, NY, on September 5th 2010

At home on our kitchen wall we have a series of plates depicting rural English scenes. There's quite a few of them. We hadn't meant to get quite so many, but it was one of those offers where you see an advertisement and you think it would be nice to have one of those, and then the one became a set of two, then the two became a set of six and the six became a set of twelve and you end up spending a lot more than you at first intended.

Same thing can happen with book clubs or music clubs. You sign up thinking you have the best bargain in the world and suddenly end up with stuff you hadn't really wanted. It can happen with Committees to. You say, in all innocence, "Yes, I'll serve on so-and-so", and it's only further down the road you realize just exactly what you've got yourself into.

When the crowds were following Him, Jesus was uncompromising in His expectations of those who would be His disciples. He told them to count the cost and to weigh up the implications before they signed up for discipleship. He told them that commitment to Him was all or it was nothing. That followers would have to restructure their whole life, their priorities, and their commitments, if they were to inherit the blessings of the Kingdom of God. He was crystal clear that if they responded to the Call they would also need to be prepared to take up the Cross.

An old gospel chorus my youth group used to sing put it plainly and decisively;

"If you will not bear a cross
You can't wear a Crown"

Have the rules changed? Does Jesus ask any less of disciples of the twenty first century?

The impression given by some preachers is that buying into the gospel is much like buying a used car. They make it sound as easy as possible. "To ensure your salvation, call for a quotation, and make a donation." It is like a throwback to the pre-Reformation days when you could purge yourself (and your relatives) from sin and purgatory by paying the right price to the right priest.

It is always a temptation for any preacher to say what they think they want the people to hear and try and avoid saying anything that may cause them offense, because, after all, a preacher's congregation are those who put the money in the collection plate that keeps him or her comfortable. It's always a temptation to try and make the message easier to swallow for some people because they might easier become followers. It's always a temptation to play to the crowd rather than make disciples. It's a temptation for all disciples to please people rather than please God.

So pray for your church leaders that they hold before your understanding not simply the call of Jesus that is beckoning you to be His follower, but also hold before you the Cross of Jesus that He is calling you to carry! Why? Because the cross has to be central to our life if we are in any true sense of the word going to be Christian.

The fact is that our Churches, Preachers, and Christian friends are going to let us down sometimes. But the One who died upon that cross, whose name is Jesus, He is not going to let us down. Even the greatest friend who deeply loves us can not go to Calvary to die for our sins, but Jesus did that.

There are always religious folk that we can point the finger at and say; “Phoneys, do-gooders, know-it-alls, holier than thou's, religious cranks, Bible freaks, hypocrites.” You can not point the finger at Jesus Christ and make such accusations. His love is truth and His life is life, life that burnt with such intensity that death, Hell and the Devil could not extinguish it. His way, is the ‘Way’ He is calling us to follow. His way is the way of the cross.

You may say, "But, you don't know what I'm going through, you don't know the struggles I have, you don't know what I have to put up with!" You know what? You are right. I don’t know. But Jesus Christ knows exactly what you are going through, exactly how you are trying to deal with things, exactly how you are feeling about things right now, and He is the One who uncompromisingly calls us to stand out of the crowd and make our stand, not for our church or for our preacher or our Christian friends, but for Him.

How uncompromising is that stand? Listen again to verse 26: "If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.

Let's clear away one stumbling block that's due to translation here. Jesus is not preaching about any anti-family statements or justifying hatred. He is speaking in a manner of traditional rabbinical teaching, (sometimes called "Semitic hyperbole") that greatly exaggerates a contrast so that the meaning of a phrase or a concept is seen more clearly. The word used for hatred, in Greek mijes (miseô), does not imply anger or hostility.

What Jesus appears to be saying is that our response to the call of discipleship has to take precedence over and above even the most sacred of human relationships; even that of family. That there is no higher obligation in life than commitment to Him and being His disciple. That the love we are to have for Him and the things of God's Kingdom, is of such a quality and depth that it seems to make, by comparison, our love for those closest to us seem like hatred.

What are the things that we give our time to? The things that excite us? The things that make up our life? Maybe it is our family. Or maybe it's our job. Or maybe it's our home. Or maybe it's hanging out with our friends. Or maybe it's the golf course. Or maybe it's having a quiet Sunday morning snoozing in bed. There is nothing wrong with any of those things.

But hear Jesus and hear Jesus loud and clear. "Whoever comes to me and does not love me more than these things, can not be my disciple". Can not. Will not. Shall not. May go through the motions but in reality not be getting there. God calls us to have a love for Jesus Christ, that by comparison to our love of all other things, seems like hatred.

Move on to verse 27. "Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple". Sadly we live in a world where many, faced with this challenge, will ask, "What's in it for me?" What's in it for us? What have we to gain by taking up a cross, by loving Jesus more than anything else? By making the decision to be disciples?

Think what Christ has done for us. Think on how He gave His life for our salvation, for our healing and wholeness. Think on all He said, all that He did. Think how His love has changed the world and so many of the freedoms we enjoy today have come about through those who sought to hold up His light in the darkness.

Reflect on those who died so that we could have a bible to study and freedom to worship Reflect on those who gave all so we can gain all. Look at how many hospitals and educational establishments and forms of government and structures of law bear the marks of His teaching.

Instead of asking "What's in it for me?" we should be asking, "What are we doing to reflect the love of Him who first loved us? How should we live in the light of the grace God has freely bestowed upon us? What heritage are we passing on to others?".

It was Isaac Watts who penned these words;

When I survey the wondrous Cross
On which the Prince of Glory Died
My richest gain, I count but loss
And pour contempt on all my pride

Were the whole realm of nature mine
That were an offering far to small
Love so amazing, so Divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all.

The Call and the Cross.
Both are essential for genuine discipleship.
May God enable us to hear clearly the Call to follow Jesus Christ.
May God enable us through the Holy Spirit,
to daily take up our cross
and go wherever this awesome discipleship journey may lead!

I invite you, as we come to a table laid with bread and wine, to reflect on these words:

“Love so amazing, so Divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all.”