Preaching:
Douglas J. Kortyna
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This Sunday
April 2, 2017
Sermon Title:
"Jesus Said What?!?!"
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57
As they were going along the road, someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."
58
And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head."
59
To another he said, "Follow me." But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."
60
And Jesus said to him, "Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God."
61
Yet another said, "I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home."
62
Jesus said to him, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God." Luke 9:57-62
The text picked for this coming Lord's day asks two simple questions. Who is Jesus? And What is Jesus all about? If MLEPC can continually get these two questions right, success in ministry will always be found.
I've learned through my years being a Christian that things go bad whenever I make Jesus into my own image. I purposely choose this text in order to prove this point. The most telling statement in this passage of who Jesus is found in verse 60. Jesus does not permit a would be disciple to kiss his father good bye. This is a radical statement! If we are to follow Jesus, He is to be first and foremost. We are with Him or we are not.
This passage also provides an excellent answer to what the Kingdom of God is. Jesus does not permit His would be disciple to look back after following Him. This is one of the hardest statements Jesus makes in the Gospels. However, the story points to something great and glorious. Jews had been praying for God to break into history and rescue His people. Jesus is saying to His audience that God's rule and reign has been launched through His ministry. What a comforting message!
As you prepare your heart and mind for worship this Sunday, please read through this passage a few times in order to hear what Jesus is saying to us today. Jesus is asking us to make Him the center of our lives. Likewise, the Kingdom of God is to be the Christians heartbeat as they go out and proclaim the good news through word and deed.
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