WHAT DOES JESUS EXPECT OF HIS FOLLOWERS? LUKE 9:51-10:24 JULY 8, 2007

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1 WHAT DOES JESUS EXPECT OF HIS FOLLOWERS? LUKE 9:51-10:24 JULY 8, 2007 Returning home for Christmas break after my first semester at college, I was surprised that I had conflict with my parents. In the evenings, I came and went as I pleased. I didn t inform my parents of my plans because while away at school I had gone where I wanted, when I wanted. After a few days, my parents requested a meeting. In our meeting, they laid out their expectations for me while I lived under their roof. They wanted to know where I was going and what time I d be home. I thought, I can live with that. So, I started informing them of my destination and my expected return time. That solved our problem. What threatened our relationship? -- Unspoken expectations. How did we resolve the problem? -- getting our expectations out in the open. Just as it is healthy to clearly communicate expectations in a human relationship, so it is in a relationship with God. This morning, Jesus will clearly communicate His expectations of His followers. Please open your Bible to Luke 9:51-10:24. We will look at this passage and consider the question, What does Jesus expect of His followers? Let s start in verse When the days were approaching for His ascension, He was determined to go to Jerusalem. As we start this section, Luke is clear about Jesus focus. He is going to Jerusalem. And why is Jerusalem His focus? He will fulfill His destiny in Jerusalem -- dying on the cross for the sin of the world and resurrecting from the dead. On His indirect path to Jerusalem, one of Jesus priorities will be preparing His followers for His death, resurrection and ascension to heaven. Once He leaves the earth, His followers will carry on His mission. Shortly after he lost the presidential election in November of 1992, George Bush invited the winner of that election, Bill Clinton, to the White House. Why would Bush invite the man who just beat him to the White House? Why would Bush reach out to someone with such different political views? For the good of the country, the mission of the United States was more important than Bush s personal agenda or feelings. If this is true in politics how much more is Jesus mission of advancing the Gospel? So, Jesus prepares His followers for the transition in leadership. Lets read verses and He sent messengers on ahead of Him, and they went and entered a village of the Samaritans to make arrangements for Him. 53 But they did not receive Him, because He was traveling toward Jerusalem. 54 When His disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them? 55 But He turned and rebuked them, and said, You do not know what kind of spirit you are of; 56for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men s lives, but to save them. And they went on to another village. In getting the disciples ready for public ministry, Jesus sends them ahead to make arrangements. This is a challenge for the disciples because of the Jews and Samaritans long-standing animosity toward one another. In verse 53, we see that the reason that the Samaritans didn t receive Jesus and his followers is because they were traveling to Jerusalem. Because Jerusalem is the center of Judaism, the Samaritans won t have anything to do with Jesus and his friends. In the Middle East today, many Muslim countries will not let an American enter the country if they had an Israeli 1

2 stamp in their passport. This same kind of hatred fuels the Samaritans rejection of Jesus. But many scholars also think that Luke uses Jerusalem here in the metaphorical sense to signify God s purpose. Jesus isn t focused on Jerusalem to reach a physical location. He is focused on Jerusalem to fulfill the Father s will for His life. And because Jesus and His followers embody God s purpose, the Samaritans reject them. In any case, Jesus and His disciples are rejected. In verse 54, the response of James and John is to call down judgment. They are indignant. Don t these people know who we are? Let s nuke em! James and John are intoxicated with their own power. They have a sense of entitlement. In verses 55 and 56, Jesus rebukes James and John. Now is not the time for judgment. Now is the time for grace and forgiveness. These verses show the disciples inadequacy. These verses show the need for training and discipleship. Sometimes, I fear that we as Jesus followers today have the same sense of entitlement and intoxication of power that James and John exhibit. Because of the history of our nation, we feel that we have certain rights as followers of Jesus. And when the culture rejects us and our values we call down judgment on people. I m not saying that we shouldn t stand for our values, but when the culture rejects us, we must follow Jesus direction to James and John. Now is not the time for judgment. Now is the time to reach out and keep extending God s grace to people. Our response to rejection reveals a lot about our character. When I sense rejection, my natural inclination is revenge. I don t call down fire, but I ignore a person or work to undercut a group of people. Sometimes, the fear of rejection keeps me from initiating friendships. How do you respond to rejection? Does the fear of rejection keep you from initiating friendships? None of us fully live out Jesus example of extending grace and forgiveness in the face of rejection. Our response to rejection reveals our need for the Holy Spirit s work of transforming our character to Christ. After exposing the disciples need to follow Him, Jesus teaches on the cost of following Him. Let s read verses As they were going along the road, someone said to Him, I will follow You wherever You go. 58 And Jesus said to him, The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head. 59 And He said to another, Follow Me. But he said, Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father. 60 But He said to him, Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God. 61 Another also said, I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home. 62 But Jesus said to him, No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God. We see that following Jesus is not a causal affair. In the first interaction a person volunteers to follow Jesus. Jesus tells this person that following Him will cost the comforts of life, like a place to stay. In the next two interactions, Jesus invites a person to follow Him. In both cases, the person requests a deferment to complete another task. Burying the dead and saying good-bye seem like reasonable requests. But Jesus doesn t grant these deferments. What is so important that we must be willing to let go of our comfort and our control? The Kingdom of God, Jesus mentions it in verse 60 and 62. What is the Kingdom of God? The Kingdom of God is God s rule or authority. Jesus embodies the Kingdom of God and demonstrates God s authority by casting out demons and 2

3 healing illnesses. But it is not a display of authority just to show force. Rather Jesus demonstration of authority frees or saves someone from sickness or demon possession or death. Ultimately, if we follow him, Jesus authority will free us from the power of sin and death. Thus, I will define the kingdom of God as God s saving rule. The Kingdom of God also refers to the community that embodies God s saving power. This tells us that God releases His power for physical and spiritual healing through His followers. Individually and corporately, God wants to work through us. We embody His kingdom. We are a conduit through which He transmits His favor, His blessing, His peace. The importance of God s Kingdom means we need to let go of our expectation of comfort and our expectation to control our life. What does Jesus expect of His followers? Jesus expects our full allegiance. Jesus expects our full allegiance. Full allegiance to Jesus will cost us. Some people will consider us weird because they don t understand our commitment and priorities. For me, full allegiance to Jesus meant working for a mission organization called Campus Crusade for Christ. My parents never understood nor approved of that decision. During those 15 years, my dad was so embarrassed by my decision that he told his friends that I worked as an engineer. For others, full allegiance to Jesus means they will not marry. They choose to remain single rather than marry a person not following Jesus. For others full allegiance to Jesus means not being popular in school because they won t take part in things that make a person popular. For some of our brothers and sisters overseas, full allegiance to Jesus means loss of a job or even death. Recently, at a pastor s retreat I heard a report of a pastor in India who was told to leave the area or be killed. This call to full allegiance is sobering. Jesus is our model. Before His death on the cross, Jesus sweat drops of blood. And in Luke 22, He prayed, Father, if it is possible let this cup pass. But not My will but your will be done. But we are not alone in living out Jesus call and example. God gives us the Holy Spirit. Twice in John 14, Jesus calls the Holy Spirit The Helper. This reminds us that he Holy Spirit resides in our life to help us, to empower us, to enable us, to live the will of God. This call to full allegiance overwhelms me. There is no way I can fulfill it on my own. But the good news is that I am not on my own. I can call on the Holy Spirit and He will help live in full allegiance to Christ. Living in full allegiance to Jesus means we serve at His call. In chapter 10, we see Jesus giving His followers instructions to go into the world. In verse 3, He says, 3 Go; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. As Jesus ambassadors, we will face hostility. Recently, militant, atheistic writers have made an assault on religious faith. Listen to some of these titles: Christopher Hitchins wrote: God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything. Sam Harris wrote The End of Faith and Letter to a Christian Nation. We need not fear this opposition but we must remain dependent on the Holy Spirit for wisdom and power. In verse 4, Jesus instructs the people to travel light. They don t need a lot of things for their journey. That is a good reminder for us. We can most effectively serve Jesus when we are not tied down by material possessions. 3

4 Jesus, then, instructs His followers how to react when people accept them. Let s read verses Whatever house you enter, first say, Peace be to this house. 6 If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. 7 Stay in that house, eating and drinking what they give you; for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not keep moving from house to house. 8 Whatever city you enter and they receive you, eat what is set before you; 9and heal those in it who are sick, and say to them, The kingdom of God has come near to you. Verse 9 reminds us that the Jesus followers are carriers of Kingdom of God. With whom are you in contact that God might use you as a conduit of His favor? With our full allegiance, Jesus uses us to advance His kingdom. Let s continue to look to make contact with people, that God might use us for that purpose. Starting in verse 10, Jesus instructs His followers on how to deal with rejection. Let s read verses But whatever city you enter and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 11 Even the dust of your city which clings to our feet we wipe off in protest against you; yet be sure of this, that the kingdom of God has come near. 12 I say to you, it will be more tolerable in that day for Sodom than for that city. People s response to Jesus followers will be commensurate with their response to Jesus message. If they don t accept Jesus message, they will not accept Jesus followers. When people reject Jesus followers, they are really rejecting His Kingdom. They reject God s ruling power in deliverance. In verse 12, Jesus declares that it will be worse for these cities that reject His followers than it will be for the city of Sodom. Sodom is legendary in the Old Testament for her wickedness. Why will it be worse for these cities? In Jesus, they have seen the power and majesty of God up close and personal, yet they reject Him. In verses 13-15, Jesus repeats this warning, using other Old Testament cities. Those that reject Jesus followers will be worse off in the Day of Judgment than the most wicked of Old Testament cities. Jesus concludes in verse The one who listens to you listens to Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me; and he who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me. As Jesus followers, we will be rejected. As Jesus representatives, we will be rejected. But it is not personal. It is not you, it is Jesus that they reject. There is no record of the ministry of these people sent out by Jesus. We only see what happens after they return to Jesus. Let s read verses 17 and The seventy returned with joy, saying, Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name. 18 And He said to them, I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. These verses remind us that we are in a spiritual battle. There are two kingdoms in this world Jesus and Satan. There are two rulers in this world 4

5 Jesus and Satan. When God works through us and a person comes to faith in Jesus, they switch kingdoms. They move from Satan s kingdom, Satan s rule to Jesus kingdom, Jesus rule. In Jesus, we have no reason for fear. We have authority over Satan and his kingdom. Yet, in verses 19 and 20, Jesus tells us not to rejoice in that authority. Rather, we should rejoice because our name is recorded in heaven. We should rejoice because we have life eternal with Jesus. These verses help us flesh out what full allegiance to Jesus means. Full allegiance to Jesus means we live each day as His ambassador. Very few of us will be called to be vocational missionaries. But we are all called to live out the principles of chapter 10 as Jesus ambassador. What does Jesus expect of His followers? As His Ambassador, Jesus expects our full allegiance. As His ambassador, Jesus expects our full allegiance. At this time of debriefing, in verses 21 and 22, Jesus praises the Father in the Holy Spirit. While on earth, Jesus Himself lived under the control of the Holy Spirit. This reminds us that The Father, Son and Holy Spirit have been in relationship from eternity past. Finally, Jesus turns to His followers and reminds them of their unique privilege of knowing Jesus. 23 Turning to the disciples, He said privately, Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see, 24for I say to you, that many prophets and kings wished to see the things which you see, and did not see them, and to hear the things which you hear, and did not hear them. We, too, share in this privilege. Prophets and kings of old, faithful servants of God longed to know what we know. They longed for our experience through Jesus Christ. There is a cost to serving Jesus. He demands our full allegiance. But people of history would gladly trade places with us. They would love to be this close, this personal, and this intimate with God. In their book, Built to Last, Jerry Porras and Jim Collins describe Nordstrom as having a cult like atmosphere. Employees are drilled with the importance of customer service. Nordstrom s employee hand book is a single five-by-eight card. In the middle of that card there is a highlighted statement that says: Our number one goal is to provide outstanding customer service. Management uses close surveillance and secret shoppers to ensure a high level of customer service. The company holds area pep rallies to celebrate employees who demonstrated outstanding customer service. If you work at Nordstrom you realize the expectation is that you provide outstanding customer service. Just as Nordstrom has a clear expectation of its employees, so Jesus has a clear expectation of His followers. What does Jesus expect of His followers? As His ambassador, Jesus expects our full allegiance. As His ambassador, Jesus expects our full allegiance. 5