Hard Truth #3: Put Down What You Love, Pick Up What You Loathe

It is an unavoidable hard truth. Our relationship with Jesus will put us in situations where we must decide where love for him ranks compared to love for other people and things. And Jesus is not content to be one of many important things in our life; he wants to be first. He wants us to follow his Word unwaveringly, even when he asks us to do difficult things. As a result, following Jesus will force us to let go of things we love and embrace things we would naturally loath. Jesus is loving and honest. He doesn’t hide this hard truth! Instead, he tells us up front that we must count the cost of following him. That means calculating what we might have to give up as his followers. He wants us to do that now, ahead of time, rather than waiting until we are in the heat of the moment and emotions are running high. However, our calculations should not only consider what we might give up for Jesus. They also entail calculating what we get through him! When we perceive the infinite blessings we find in Christ, the decisions we must make, while difficult, will be clear. Whatever is lost as we follow Jesus pales in comparison to what we gain.

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Hard Truth #2: The Humble will be Exalted; The Exalted will be Humbled

Everyone knows that humility is a positive trait and pride is a negative one. So, why bother talking about what we already know? Because in spite of that knowledge, we still helplessly fall into the trap of pride. We cannot help but think that our ascent to the exalted status we desire is our responsibility. We even take our exaltation into our own hands, either by treating poorly those we believe we can stand on top of or by showing favoritism to those we believe can provide us with upward mobility. Rather than minimizing pride as a sin that is common or harmless, Jesus’ words today confront us with this hard truth. Those who exalt themselves will be humbled by God. But Jesus also gives us the promise we need to be freed from pride’s trap. Our exaltation doesn’t need to be our responsibility because Jesus has already made it his. Those who humble themselves, Christ will exalt.

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Hard Truth #1 - The First will be Last; The Last will be First

When it comes to the difficult and uncomfortable topic of who goes to heaven and who goes to hell, it is natural to want to avoid the issue. One way we do that is to direct our attention to theoretical questions. “What is heaven like?” “How old will we be there?” Today, someone asks Jesus, “Lord, are only a few going to be saved?” Jesus brushes these questions aside. Instead, he answers the question we should be asking. Rather than talking about how many will be saved, Jesus explains how to be among the saved. What he teaches today through his Word is a hard truth. The doorway into heaven is narrow. Scripture consistently teaches that those individuals who are certain they will be first through that door are more likely to be last, if they make it through at all. Instead, the one who believes he is the last one God should let into his kingdom and that his only chance of getting in is through the grace of Christ will enter first.

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Focused: Worry

Last week Jesus warned us against overvaluing earthly wealth. This week Jesus warns against undervaluing heavenly treasure. Last week, Jesus exposed the folly of greed. This week, Jesus exposes the folly of worry, even when faced with the prospect of having a shortage of earthly wealth. This week might be the bigger challenge! When it seems, we lack providence or protection for our daily lives, it can be hard to avoid worry. But Jesus focuses us. He points to creatures that do not labor or toil yet are daily fed and clothed. Even more Jesus points to our Father who promises to give us the heavenly treasures of his kingdom. Jesus assures us that Father will throw in needed earthly possessions as well. We can pursue heavenly treasure wholeheartedly, confident that our Father knows all we need.

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Focused: Wealth

Jesus wants focused followers. However, one of the things that can most easily get in the way of our focus is our earthly possessions. It is no surprise, therefore, that Jesus’ words so frequently focus his followers on wealth. Jesus’ followers don’t reject earthly wealth or despise it. They can be grateful for every good gift that comes from the hand of God. However, Jesus’ followers value earthly wealth correctly. They understand what earthly wealth can and cannot do. They don’t give earthly wealth a role in their lives it will never be able to fill. This week we focus on the fact that the identity and security earthly wealth can never provide is found fully and freely in Christ.

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Focused: Peace

We often divide humanity into groupings that are not really significant: this ethnic group versus that one, men versus women, wealthy versus the poor. Yet, every ethnic group is under God’s law. That law convicts both men and women of sin. Because of sin, the wealthy and the poor will both die. Only through faith in Christ is sin forgiven and the sting of death removed. God’s Word creates that saving faith, but not in everyone who hears it. Fallen man retains the awful power to resist the working of the Spirit inside him… to reject the gift of faith. Therefore, God’s Word produces the only people grouping that ultimately matters: believers and unbelievers. We want to overcome division and live in peace with other people. Here is a hard truth: total peace is impossible for the believer to achieve. Those who embrace the gospel in faith will inevitably face hostility and opposition. Following Jesus will come at a price. Yet he promises us our perseverance will be rewarded.

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Focused: Worship

We call worship a "service.” Which raises the question: who is serving whom? In answering that question, it is easy to focus on what we do in worship. “I set aside time in my week to come to church. I am singing praise to God. I brought him an offering. Clearly, I am serving him.” True enough. However, as God speaks this week, he clarifies our focus, letting us see that worship is primarily about him serving us. Through Word and sacrament, he delivers every spiritual gift he wants us to receive. Our service to God is good. His service for us is perfect. Our service to God is important. His service for us is essential. God loves our service to him. But we desperately need his service for us. Receiving his service is actually the highest form of worship. “God wants to be worshipped through faith so that we receive from him those things he promises and offers”.

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Focused: Prayer

In a sense, prayer comes naturally to us. We want so we ask. We hurt so we cry out. We are frustrated so we vent. We are blessed so we give thanks. So we sometimes define prayer as “speaking to God from the heart.” Seems so easy. What does not come naturally, however, is the focused prayer God wants for us. We need focus when it comes to the basis of our prayers. Our prayers are based entirely on the unique and unearned relationship with have with God, our Father. We also need focus when it comes to the content of our prayers. Yes, we can speak from the heart and ask for anything we want. But our Father invites us to pray specifically for the things he wants to give us. Prayer is the opportunity to bring our will into conformity with God’s will, not the other way around. We have much to learn about prayer. So, along with Jesus’ disciples, we say, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1).

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Focused: Love

We tend to think of distraction and focus as opposites. If someone is focused, they are not easily distracted by random events and encounters. If someone is focused, every decision about how to spend time and resources is calculated. Apart from Christ that type of focus spells disaster for our neighbor. We may dismiss the needs of our neighbor, thinking, “If I spend time helping him, that will distract me from other things I should be focused on.” Today, Jesus teaches us that he has set us free to live a life of such distractions. No matter the neighbor and no matter his need, we are free to act in ways that seem senseless. We are free to actively seek out a neighbor in need. We are free to bear any cost and go any distance to serve them as Christ would serve them.

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Christ Provides Ministers to Proclaim His Word

Christ has not only given us his powerful Word. In his grace, he gives us ministers who proclaim that Word to us in whatever ways we need at the time: words of comfort, words of instruction, or even words of rebuke. Those who are entrusted with the care of Jesus' flock are expected to shepherd that flock just as Jesus would. They humbly assume that privilege, not to proclaim their own ideas or opinions, but to speak Jesus’ own words. They share Christ’s words, not just when it is welcomed gladly by those who hear it, but also when it is not. Ministers carry out their calling, not because of what they might gain from the flock, but because of what the flock might gain from Jesus through them. God’s words possess God’s power. Therefore, God provides us with ministers to proclaim God’s Word, so that God’s kingdom might come powerfully among us.

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Through the Word, Christ Creates Committed Followers

There’s the type of fan who follows his team if they make the playoffs. Then there’s the type of fan who, regardless of his team’s record, watches every game and knows the stats for every player. There are different types of followers: the half-hearted versus the committed. Jesus is uninterested in half-hearted followers who shoehorn him into their lives only when their other pursuits provide time for Christ. Jesus wants followers who are all-in… who love him above all things… who would be willing to leave everything else behind if that were what it would take to be with him. We simply do not have it in us to produce that level of commitment. But Jesus’ words have Jesus’ power. In his gospel, Jesus explains how he went all-in for our salvation. He tells us he left the comforts of heaven behind to come rescue us. And through those words, Christ creates within us the very commitment that he seeks.

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Through the Word, the Lord Crushes Evil

God’s words are so powerful! With only his words, Jesus cured illness and raised the dead. With his words, Jesus created the faith that receives his forgiveness. So we should not be surprised this week when we see that Jesus’ words also have the power to push back the spiritual forces of evil that are in the world. Jesus’ words expose idols as worthless and following idols as self-destructive evil. Jesus’ words are so compelling, even demons must obey them. It is not surprising that God’s words crush evil. It is a surprise, however, to see that Jesus’ words have Jesus’ power even when they are not coming from Jesus’ mouth. Jesus puts his words on our lips. He makes us his witnesses. And as we carry out that awesome role, Jesus continues to drive back Satan and his allies, just as he did when he walked the earth.

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