Rabu, 01 September 2010

HOW TO FOLLOW LORD JESUS CHRIST

We continue the discussion in the teaching of Jesus in Luke 9:57-62. This is a very important reading and hopefully each of us can understand it clearly:

    
When Jesus and his disciples continue their journey, said one in the middle of the road to Jesus: "I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus said to him: "Foxes have holes and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head." And he said to one another: "Follow me!" But he said: "Let me go first to bury my father." But Jesus said to him: "Let the dead bury their dead: but thee, go and proclaim the kingdom of God everywhere." And another one said: "I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say goodbye to my family." But Jesus said: "Every person who is ready to hijack but looking back, unfit for the kingdom of God."
Parallel passage in Matthew 8:19-22

    
Then came a scribe, and said unto Him: "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus said to him: "Foxes have holes and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head." Another person, namely one of his disciples, saying unto him: "Lord, first let me go bury my father." But Jesus said to him: "Follow me and let the dead bury their dead people."
We will discuss the passage in Luke because Luke's reading in more detail.
What exactly is conveyed by Jesus here?
Count the cost before submitting themselves to him
Jesus was walking with his disciples and a man came to Him and said, "I will follow you wherever you go." It is obvious that this person was very impressed with the life and teachings of Jesus who encouraged him to reveal this extraordinary commitment, "I will follow you wherever you go."
As an officer in a message earlier, these people have begun to see the glory of Christ. He had seen many wonderful things done by Jesus, and he said, "Lord, wherever you go, I'll follow you." But Jesus' answer seems as if conveyed to break a fiery desire that.
Today, if there is someone who says, "I will follow Jesus," then you will shout, "Hurrah! Praise the Lord! Halleluyah!" Especially if he says to God, "I will follow you wherever you go." But Jesus seems even mengguyurkan bucket of cold water over his head, as if to say, "Calm down." Maybe you'll think, "Oh? This is not good psychology. There are people who say, 'I'm coming,' but you actually said, 'No, listen to me first.'"
Jesus told the scribes it, "I'll I'll tell you something. Foxes have holes. And did you see the birds in the air? They all have a nest. But I, the Son of Man, even I had no place to put my head." In other words, He was revealed to him, "Before you say that you want to come with me wherever I go, first you must consider before about anything related to it become disciples."
Jesus never exploit a person's emotions. He does not try to spur people's emotions and the emotion, they then said, "What if we follow Jesus?" Then the others hooked and said, "Yes! We will follow Jesus!" Jesus never pump your spirits and take advantage of the overflowing of your spirit. You will never find Jesus evangelize in a way of worship mass choir accompanied by thousands of people to burn the spirit of the people. Never!
Music and the number of sets of mass has a tremendous impact on humans. Way that is effectively used by Hitler. If you watch a movie about World War II, you'll see how impressive the way Hitler's speeches accompanied by a parade of red flags with swastikas and the accompaniment of military music is to increase morale. Everything is arranged with the aim to arouse people's emotions so much!
But note that Jesus never wore such ways. Instead, she flushed them with cold water. Often times, when people who say that they want to come to God, I would say, "Do you know about the difficulties associated with being a Christian? Did you know the cost to become a Christian?" Why does Jesus act like this? Because He wanted everyone to first calculate the fare before making a commitment.
In 1952, when I was in China during the Korean War, senior military officers came to our school in order to recruit soldiers of war propaganda or what they call "volunteers". And there are many children who use various methods to evoke emotion to others. They spoke tearfully crying, "Our country was in danger! Arise, let us defend our beloved country!" And there's one person in our class named Zhang who was crying and screaming the loudest. At first nobody wanted to volunteer in our class, and because no one would ask themselves, crying increasingly worsen. After crying, she finally said, "I will go to Korea and fight the Americans." After he expressed it, the other a friend named Sun, who can not stand to hear her cry, and volunteered. But apparently on the day of registration, Zhang did not come forward. He just sat quietly in one corner. So even so emotional at first, Zhang was not to go to the front lines. He has work on this poor fellow to evoke emotion! Things I can never forget is the look in his eyes that this poor Sun. Actually he did not want to go but he responded only because his emotions stirred.
Well, I wanted to ask, whether the people who join because of the momentary outburst will become a formidable army? If I became a commander, I would fire everybody who had no intention to depart. I would say, "This mission is very dangerous and difficult, people who do not have the courage and do not take into account the sacrifices that needed to go, better resign now." Only soldiers who still want to fight even though he knew the way very difficult to survive.
Is a very big mistake if you are reaching people to enter into the kingdom by playing with emotion. Only those who have been carefully considering the fare which would be the most formidable warriors. Instantaneous outburst will not enable you to survive long in spiritual warfare. That's why there are so many people who raised his hand in the TRC to be Christian are not able to survive long. That is why Jesus mengguyurkan cold water on the man's head, an action that is necessary.
Is eligibility to follow Jesus?
1. Be assertive in a relationship with the world
Is the real meaning of Jesus's sayings? He said to him, "I do not have a place to lay my head." What does that mean? You will always find a place to lay your head, even in public parks even. There is always a place to lay my head, I never experienced a time when I had to sleep on park benches general. Jesus could have gone into the wilderness and lay down in any place. That's not his intention. The purpose of his sayings was, "If you want to come with me, then this world can not become your house."
This is the first point: If you want to be a true disciple of Christ, you must be clear how you will relate to the world.
Many Christians who do not have the attitude of this one. They do not realize that they are only passers-by only. They feel that this world is their house. If so, then you will not be able to become a disciple of Christ. Hebrews chapter 11 says that Abraham, the father of believers, sees himself only as a foreigner who was crossing a foreign country. And if we want to be a good student, then we must affirm what our attitude toward this world. If you loved the world, then you will not be able to be disciples of Jesus.
At the time talking about the world, which meant no mountains, animals or birds. The word 'world' in the Bible refers to systems that exist in this world, man-made systems that do not obey God. So we must be clear. If we love the world, as we are told in 1 John 2:15, if people loved the world, the love of the Father is not in the ituu. You can not serve God and money at the same time. You must assert your attitude. And because so many Christians who do not ensure their attitude to the world, then they can not long survive as Christians. They always want the best from both sides. They want to earn money from the world at the same time obtain the kingdom of God as well. Having money is not a sin. Your attitude toward money that's critical. Love of money is the thing that will destroy us.
Be prepared to go through hardships and sufferings
Have no place to lay his head, as spoken by Jesus also means that you must suffer. Jesus was saying, "You will not be able to follow me if you are not willing to endure hardship." Being a Christian can mean that you will endure many hardships. You must be prepared. And Jesus wants you to understand this well. The Bible speaks much about the difficulty, and it is not because God wants to torment you but because you are going to suffer in the path of this discipleship.
In China, we know that if we become Christians, then we will suffer hardships. We do not need to lecture about it. If I lived in China, I'll never get education, I will not be able to go to university because I will not be allowed to enter the university as a Christian. So, as Christians in China, then I should be ready to accept the difficulties - namely the difficulty in the form of a labor forever. I'm not going to be more than that. That is, even though I have a high school diploma, they would still put me to work as laborers. Now, a worker is not a shameful thing. Being a good worker also. But that means that my contribution will be limited only in that field alone. I will not be allowed to do anything else. However, new difficulties were minor compared to the fact that I will be under the supervision of the government in my lifetime. I will always be interrogated for each of my activities, the things I've ever experienced. So, as Christians, we must be prepared to accept hardship.
Learning self-discipline
But in prosperous paced world right now, I have found that Christians become flabby. You must stay strong. Although our environment is very comfortable, but we need to learn a lot about personal discipline. We do not need to take the easy option even though that option is available. If possible, I want every Christian to have some kind of physical discipline, such as with exercise or other activities that can strengthen your body. Physical discipline is a good thing for your body and your soul.
Lots of maids and servants of God who do not have too much self-discipline. They let their bodies become unhealthy because there is no self-control in terms of diet and exercise. This is really not a good testimony. Every Christian needs to learn to discipline yourself.
One simple way we can discipline ourselves is by not always enjoy a delicious meal. Through food, we can learn about personal discipline. Even if we can afford to buy luxury foods each day, we can learn to eat more simple dishes. Let every Christian be a good and disciplined soldiers. Here is what is said by Paul to Timothy in 2 Tim 2:3. He said to Timothy, "Follow hardship as a good soldier of Christ Jesus."
So also with the parents, you have to teach discipline to your children. Invite them to run or exercise. Make them strong kids, rather than the children who are weak and fat. Look around you, the true disciples are those who are tough and disciplined. They know what the meaning of restraint. People who spoiled only Christians will be spoiled. Some people have destroyed their children due to pamper their children. Make your children a strong personal. We must love them but we also need to be assertive. Discipline is a good thing. They'll love you more because you love them enough to want to try to discipline them.
I train ran over my body condition allows. And I know that Billy Graham also jog every day. That is exactly what is said by the apostle Paul about what he does for himself in 1 Corinthians 9:27, "I discipline myself. I even control it strictly." That is a phrase to indicate that he discipline himself. People who have self-discipline to know how to control himself in relation to worldly things. My prayer is that our churches will be raised generations of Christians who are a true soldier of Jesus Christ.
2. Act firmly against worldly obligations
The second thing Jesus said in Luke 9:59-60 is even more difficult to comprehend. And he said to one another: "Follow me!" But he said: "Let me go first to bury my father." But Jesus said to him: "Let the dead bury their dead: but thee, go and proclaim the kingdom of God everywhere."
This is the first point about the relationship between ourselves with the world. Inside discipleship, you must have a firm stand in your relationship with the world. However, this is not an easy thing especially when it relates to liability issues. This is handled here.
Jesus said, "Follow me." But the man replied, "Well, but let me bury my father first. I have an obligation to my father. My father is dead, and I had to bury him." (The Jews have a habit of funerals held for 7 days. In some cases, the period of mourning that can reach 70 days.) Jesus' response to these people is shocking, "Follow me ... Let the dead bury the dead."
But did not we should respect our parents? In any part of God's teachings also instruct you to honor your parents. In fact, in Mark 7:11-12, He loudly admonished the Pharisees for not honoring their mother and father. But here, the response of Jesus is very surprising, "Let the dead bury the dead." His attitude seems contrary to what ever he declared to the Pharisees earlier. How are we going to understand it?
We're really surprised to see such responses as the fifth commandment requires us to honor our parents. And Jesus was very supportive of that. He said, "I came to fulfill the Law, not to abolish them." So how can we understand his answer in verse 60 that surprising?
Love your parents, but love God more than others
To understand it, we must review how we deal with our obligations in the world. The point is: of course we should love our mother and father, but there are circumstances where we must make a choice, where we can not do both. We must choose one or the other. And that's exactly what happens in this passage.
In another part, in Matthew 10:37, Jesus said, "Whoever loves father, mother, wife, son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me." How do we apply? Well of course we should love a father, mother, wife and our children, and also those close to us. But when we are faced with a choice, then we must love Him more than all the others. This point was stated by Jesus.
What choices seen here? After this passage, at the beginning of Luke chapter 10, Jesus sent his disciples to go preach the Gospel to the whole of Israel. They were getting ready to depart. They can not wait until 7 days. They can not wait for this one person completed the seven day funeral. Kingdom Work is very important. Eternal life for many people depend on it. The students were getting ready to go preach the gospel. How many people in Israel who died in a week? If this tradition continues to hold, then they'll never hear the message of the kingdom. They should not delay the work for some people who held the funeral service. Well, if you're ready to go preach the gospel and your beloved father dies, whether your choice? Completing the funeral or go preach the gospel? A difficult choice. Of course we loved our father. But our responsibility to preach the gospel. Which would you choose? The students should choose to preach the gospel.
Think about this people problem. He could have said, "Look, if I did not bury my father, then how do I show respect to him? How relatives will judge me as a Christian? If I had to choose preach the gospel at this time because the mission is more important and then go bury my father, what the relatives said later? " What will be done by most Christians in this era. They would say, "Excuse me, I can not go. I must bury my father." I can say that not just 99% who would do that, but perhaps up to 99.9% would do so. Most Christians would say, "If I'm not going to bury my father, so I'll embarrass God." That's the smell of spiritual answers they will give. At least it was a spiritual-sounding answers. But whether it is spiritual?
But listen to God's teachings even if it makes you feel uncomfortable. Jesus' teachings are very sharp. He said, "If you're faced with this choice, what then is your choice? Yours is left for preaching the gospel if you want to become my disciple. But if your choice is to bury your father, then you're just doing something that can be done by the dead. You do not need live to do it. "
There is one very important spiritual principles that appear here: You do not need to do what can be done by people who are spiritually dead. In other words, your father died, and it's good if you love them. But if you really love him, love him while he was still alive. If he's dead, not many more things you can do for him.
If your mother or father still lives, love them now. Remember, they will not always be with you. Someday, they will go, along with my parents who have died. I also really love them. Well, if I do not love them when they were alive, then everything will be too late if they are dead. There will be times where your parents will die. You shall love them now. Now is the time to love them. Now is the time to show them how great God's love to them through you.
But there is also a very strange person. Throughout their lives, they do not care about their parents, they do not like their parents. And when their parents died, they bought the most beautiful coffins for their parents. They buy up a mountain of flowers. They are looking for the best places for burial. But for your parents, do not make any difference if they are coffins made of bronze or of wood? No benefit for them. And they also can not enjoy your entire stock pile of flowers. The reason why they did this is because their consciences intact. They think, "Throughout my life, I do not love my parents. Now is the time to pay off all of that. I'll buy a nice casket for them." So things that are taught by God is this: If they are dead, not many more things you can do for them. If you can attend his funeral, then great. Please do what's best for them. "
But if you are faced with a choice between doing the funeral or go preach the gospel, then each student will say, "I have to go preach the gospel." I find that there are so many things that is being done by Christians that they should be able to leave it to those undertaken by non-Christians. But preaching is a matter that can not be done by non-Christians. But non-Christians could bury the dead. You do not need to do it. That is why, if you had to choose, choose things you can do but can not they do. Well, in many areas of work, the same applies as well.
If you have a gift and a call to preach the gospel, then that is something you can do but can not be done by non-Christians. So there are teaching here just the same as that taught by Jesus in Matthew 10:37. Namely that, however you must love your mother and father. But if you confronted with a choice, then you must love Jesus more than them.
Similarly, I want to be my wife loves me. He must love me and I wanted him to love me. But I wanted him to love God more than me. It is very important for him to love Jesus more than me because this is what is demanded by Jesus. Jesus is far greater than me, therefore it is important that He is more loved than I am.
Something beautiful emerge from here. When someone loves Jesus more than you, then you will not be kind to decrease, even increased. So for you to be married: make sure that your husband or wife to love God more than you. The more he loves God he will love you as well. This is a miraculous thing. However, the more you bring him to love yourself more than God, then give them to you also will decrease over time. This is very surprising. I myself still can not parse them. However, this is the right thing.
If you are a parent, do not ever make the mistake of saying, "You must love your father and mother. And after that then you love Jesus." In the end you will find that they do not love Jesus, and moreover, they are very not love you. But if you tell them, 'You shall love Jesus more than father and mother. Jesus is always the first one, "there will be things that surprised. They will love Jesus and also the more love you. They will love you more than usual. This is a very magical things.
The same principle is true in terms of seeking first the kingdom of God and all things shall be added to you. Perhaps the secret lies in when they are more loving God, then God put love in their hearts to love you. So the more your husband loves the Lord, the more he loves you with a love more pure and strong. The more wives you love God, the more he loves you with a love pure and strong. So there's nothing to worry about this God's teachings.
Very great love of Jesus on his mother! He always puts the kingdom as being primarily, but has been great His love to his mother. I do not think there is a anakpun who loves his mother more than the love of Jesus. Although he was hanging on the cross in pain and dying, he still had time for his mother. And on the cross, He set a plan for his mother, he arranged for his beloved disciples will take care of his mother. And we can also see that his mother knew how much Jesus loved him. He helped wherever he went. How many women who followed her son as a student? So great his love for his son so until the cross was, he was there.
So, what Jesus taught was in the face of choice, love your parents, but love God more than others. When my mother died, I was preaching the gospel in Ontario. When the telegram announcing the death of my mother arrived, do you think I immediately stopped my sermon and my mother rushed to the funeral? I really love my mother even to the present. But if I must choose between preaching the gospel and to bury my mother, I choose to remain in place and preach the gospel even though it was very sad for me. This option should always be held by each student. When you have to choose, always put God first choice. So this second point relates to our obligations in this world.
3. Be firm with the things we have left
And the third point at the same time become a point cover. Here there are people who say the same thing to God, "I will follow you, Lord." Then he continued, "But first let me say goodbye to my family. (But first, let me say farewell to Those at my home, the KJV?) Well, it looks like this is very reasonable. At least I can say goodbye." Surely, You would not say that I will follow you but I can not say goodbye You're allowed to go home. Because it means I instantly disappear from them? "Of course, this section does not tell us where that person's house. And probably far enough away his house. It may take two days round trip.
But it is not in question here. The problem is: But first, let me say farewell (but first, allow me goodbye. The word first / first of all do not exist in translation LAI but it is in the manuscript sources, Ed.). "First of all" there's something that'll do it first before I can preach the gospel. Jesus soon saw there was something wrong with these people's thinking. In the kingdom of God, nothing is beyond him an advantage. The word "first (first)" is a word that's important here. If he says, "Allow me home goodbye." So do not be a problem. But the word "first / first of all" has very important meaning. If you notice the sentence, the sentence seems to be spoken with, "Allow me home goodbye." And the sentence is of course no problem. That sentence, spoken by Elisha to Elijah: "Allow me say goodbye to my parents." And Elijah said, "Okay, go." But here, there are important words "first / first of all."
You should not put other things in the first place than God and His work. He immediately looked into his heart and understand what he was thinking. Then get out the response from Jesus. He said, "Every person who is ready to hijack but looking back, unfit for the kingdom of God."
Do not continually look back
Here, it is important to see and understand the emphasis of the present continuous tense form of the sentence (the present continuous form) in Greek grammar, and the emphasis is not properly expressed in English translation (also in the Indonesian language). In the Indonesian grammar, the word "look back" can mean simply turning once. But in the Greek grammar, actually it should be translated "constantly look back". That is, he kept looking back. Just imagine that you are plowing with my head just kept looking back. How can you plow?
In other words, this last point relates to our interests on the world, to keep things just make us look back, toward the world. If you want to be a student but you keep turning toward the world, your bond with the world and your interest in the world, forget the desire to become a disciple! You will never be a disciple. This was reflected in the attitude of many Christians who do not want to break their ties with the world. They keep looking back.
For example, I had to quit my job to serve the Lord but I just kept looking back and saying, "I wish I could go back on the job." If so, maybe I better never start the service altogether. Becoming a Christian is a matter of "destroying your pot," or "sink your ship." There was no way back. Like a "burn the bridge to go home." There is only way forward, no turning back. This proverb comes from a famous incident in the past. A general of his armies to cross the river and then he ordered all the ships sunk. He said to his troops, "Behind you right now there's only river. There is no ship for you to come back. You're going to fight here, and the options are win or die."


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