I Am Not A Fan Of Jesus. What??
Did I really say this?
But think about it, are you just a fan, or a real follower
of Jesus?
Then Jesus told this
story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned
everyone else: “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the
other was a despised tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed
this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like everyone else. For
I don’t cheat, I don’t sin, and I don’t commit adultery. I’m certainly not like
that tax collector! I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’
“But the tax collector stood at a
distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he
beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a
sinner.’ I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified
before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who
humble themselves will be exalted.” (Luke 18:9-14)
Are we a fan of Jesus, or a
follower?
It is not enthusiastic admirers Jesus wants, but
committed followers. I have heard this question several times lately: “If I
were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict
me?”
Sometimes when preparing these lessons, that I truly
know that God has led me to do, I think, “is this lesson going to really hit
someone hard or maybe even offend them”?
I really want people to come to our class or continue to read the lesson
on the our “blog” or in an email or facebook. You see, I really want people to
continue to “Forward” our email lesson to others! So maybe, just maybe, I should not use the
lesson I believe God wants me to do if it may offend someone. Maybe I should
just make some “slight” changes to take away the “bite” of the lesson. But
wouldn’t that really be selling Jesus cheap and watering down the gospel in
hopes that more will read the lessons, that more will come to hear the lessons?
I am afraid that today that many preachers and teachers tend to “water down”
their sermons or lessons to increase attendance. They want to make it “easy” to be just a
“fan” of Jesus.
And that's why this Sunday we're
talking about whether or not we are prepared to just be an excitable fan of the
Lord Jesus Christ, awed by His miracles, caught up in His stories and parables,
or have we really made a decision to be committed to the only Lord of Glory, to
belong to Him in such a way that it doesn't matter whatever happens, whatever
comes, whatever anyone says?
Have you ever looked seriously at
Luke 9:23? Seriously?
“Then he said to the
crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish
ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me.”
Notice the
word “daily” not just ever now and then!
Take a moment and go word-for-word through Luke 9:23
-- Jesus' invitation to follow Him -- and honestly ask yourself, "Am I a
fan or a follower of Jesus?"
You see, the dictionary defines a fan as an
"enthusiastic admirer." But our Jesus, the living Son of God, the
Prince of Peace down through eternity, was never interested in enthusiastic
admirers. It is completely committed followers, and no one else, for whom He
will stand before the Father. It's not raised hands during the worship service,
bowed heads during the benediction at the end of the service, or even prayer
before a meal that He is looking for. It goes to much more than a "Honk If
You Love Jesus" bumper sticker, or a Christian fish symbol on the back of our
car. He wants more of us than for us to declare ourselves as His fans. Look
what Jesus said to a group of his followers in another scripture: "If any of you
wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your
cross, and follow me. (Matthew
16:24) If He said it more than once then
it must be important to “follow” Him!
Some amazing things happen when we “turn from our
selfish ways”!
During these very difficult,
emotional, roller coaster times in which we live, troubled on every side by the
threat of physical death by terrorists, and financial ruin by professional
politicians, our religious “freedoms” gradually be taken away, we also see a “movement”
within churches that allows other religions and false gods to challenge our
commitment to Him, to tickle our ears with logical sounding heresy, to encourage
those committed to personal comfort, emotional highs, and to be ignorant of the inspired Word of God. Listening
to just what is heard on Sunday morning instead of studying the Bible
ourselves. How can we do what He says, if we don't know what He says?
We need to be reminded that there is no believing
without following, no salvation without surrender, no forgiveness without
repentance, and no life without death. Preachers far too often quickly skip
over the "bad news" of the Gospel in fear they will scare people
away. But instead of pushing people away, the truth of the Gospel is what draws
people together, the Gospel is what sets them free, breaking the chains of their
sins they have been dragging around with them.
Once we are free, we need the support of fellow
Christians more than ever. Once the burden of sin has been lifted from us, we
need to follow Jesus in baptism, and know why, with its symbolism of dying to
self and being alive in Jesus Christ. For there is a date circled on God's
calendar, even though we walk around unaware of it, a day in our life circled
on God's calendar since before you, and I, and they were born. It's a day when we
will all be held accountable before God, just one more step in His intricate
and compassionate plan for us.
We are part of God's plan down through eternity.
If we are in a difficult situation, if we have come
face to face with someone else's need, the chance is good that God either wants
us to learn something, or to do something. He will impart to our heart which
message it is.
Will we be just another fan of God’s miraculous
presence. Just cheerleading the real followers from the safety of the
stands. But never really following His
Son? Maybe just following Him from a distance. Uncomfortable to let Jesus shine
through us. Never moving a hand to make a difference? Or will we step forward
to take our place in His plan for us, accepting responsibility for who we are,
accepting His gift of eternal life, that gift He has meant for us all along?
We just need to say yes to Him. He's crazy about us.
After all He“…. so loved the world,
that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not
perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)
