200409.ser
“Counting the Cost”
CLBC Feb 15 04 a.m.
Subject: Discipleship
Theme: The Cost of Discipleship
Passage: John 6: 60 - 71
It was a difficult time for the 12 disciples. They had been so thrilled with the popularity of
Jesus. They had been so excited at the miracles performed by Jesus. In fact when the crowds
started talking about making Jesus their king, the idea sounded pretty good to them. They were
still like so many who thought in terms of a political Messiah, a great King like David who would
restore the fortunes of Israel.
But now what were they to think?
Jesus had told all these people that they were following him just for what they could get
out of it. He had taught them that he had come down from heaven to do the Father’s will, and
that seemed to be a claim to deity. Then he told them that they couldn’t be his followers unless his
Father drew them and finally he offended them completely by talking about eating his flesh and
drinking his blood.
The disciples heard the crowd begin to murmur, and complain, and then people began to
drift away, just a few at first, but then the whole multitude turned their backs and walked away.
“From that time, many of his disciples went back and walked with him no more.” v. 66 Even
others whom they were sure were real believers left, and as they looked around, there were only
the twelve of them left.
Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?” Actually the actual
words seem to have been “You won’t also go away, will you?”
Yes, it was a difficult time for the disciples.
Have you ever been in a situation like this? Have you watched churches get torn apart
with people grumbling and complaining, with family after family leaving, and with some of them
going nowhere? And every family that has left has unsettled other families until perhaps you
yourself have wondered what you should do.
Have you watched people in other circumstances seem to turn their backs on Jesus? Have
you heard of people who have gotten tangled up in sin again and who seem to have left their
faith? Perhaps you have heard of Pastors or other Christian leaders to whom you have looked up
as role models and examples who have fallen into sin, whose marriages have shattered, perhaps
some who have even denounced Christianity?
It’s confusing, isn’t it? And perhaps it has made you wonder, “What is it that keeps a
person true to Jesus? How may I know that I shall not turn back one day?”
These are good questions. For every believer, these are necessary questions. There is a
cost to following Jesus. There are choices to make. Let’s see what the disciples decided.
1. They made a conscious choice
2. They made an informed choice
3. They made a deliberate choice
4. They made a costly choice.
1. They made a conscious choice
Of course it had to be Peter who became the spokesman for the group. “Lord to whom
shall we go?”
What other teacher are we to follow? Where shall we find any other guide to heaven
beside you? What scribe, what rabbi, what priest can show us words of life like you have shown
us?
Even though they saw all the others leaving, these twelve disciples made a conscious
choice to stay with Jesus.
2. They made an informed choice
“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”
Never before had they heard anyone speak as Jesus spoke. The words that Jesus spoke
had penetrated their hearts. Those words had convicted them of their sin , and convinced them of
forgiveness and truth, and life. They didn’t know everything yet. In fact they still had no
understanding of the coming cross. They had no idea yet that their salvation would cost Jesus His
life. But they believed that Jesus’ words came from God and that they were true words.
3. They made a deliberate choice
And we believe and know that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
It was no small thing for them to embrace the one whom the Scribes and the Pharisees,
and the Priests and the Elders were rejecting. To stand with Jesus when everyone else was leaving
was no small choice. To stand with Jesus when he made such difficult claims like “Unless you eat
the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you”, was a monstrous step of
faith. Somehow they understood the spiritual meaning of those words, when the rest understood
them literally and were offended.
But they believed that this was the Messiah, promised in the scriptures. They may not have
understood everything about him, but they believed that he was the Son of God, and when he
talked about coming down from heaven, they were beginning to grasp the fact that he was
claiming to be God come to earth. No, even if everyone else left, they would stay with him.
It was a deliberate choice to follow Jesus, no matter what!
4. They made a costly choice.
They had no idea yet how costly the choice would be. They did not yet know that it would
cost Jesus his life. They had no idea that this choice would cost every one of them their own lives.
As yet all they understood was that it meant staying true to him, even if everyone else did drift
away.
But not everyone made that choice for the same reasons.
They had no idea that there was one in their number who did not stay for the same reasons
they did. They did not know that there was a false apostle with them, one who would sell Jesus
out. But Jesus knew. “Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?” He spoke of
Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray him, being one of the
twelve.”
We might ask, why did Judas stay? Certainly his presence demonstrates how little benefit
some people receive from even the most awesome religious privileges. A chosen disciple, a
constant companion of Jesus, a witness of the miracles, a hearer of his sermons, a commissioned
preacher of his kingdom, a friend of the other disciples, Judas shows us how far a person can go,
and still never have his heart changed.
Children can grow up in Christian homes, attend a sound Christian church, learn loads of
memory verses, profess faith in Jesus, perhaps be baptized and join the church, yes perhaps even
become a preacher of the gospel, and still turn away.
I go back to my earlier questions: “What is it that keeps a person true to Jesus? How
may I know that I shall not turn back one day?”
Perhaps you even experience doubts about your faith, about your salvation.
I have become convinced that such doubts are not a bad thing. They keep us from presumption.
They encourage a humility of spirit rather than a confident boasting.
But when you have doubts remember:
1. That salvation is the gift of God, and that you could never have come to Him without His
drawing. You are not saved because you simply decided to accept Christ. You would never
have come if it had not been for His supernatural work in your soul. And you will never
persevere in faith apart from His keeping you. But He has led you to a conscious choice and
you can’t go back Like Joshua, in Joshua 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the
LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that
[were] on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as
for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.
Like Ruth in Ruth 1:16 And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, [or] to return from
following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy
people [shall be] my people, and thy God my God:
2. That it is only the Holy Spirit who can give life. The flesh profits nothing. The Spirit of
God uses the Word of God to bring conviction to the heart of His people that they must
place their trust in Jesus or perish.
Psalms 73:25 Whom have I in heaven [but thee]? and [there is] none upon earth [that] I
desire beside thee.
3. That Jesus knows all things including your own heart, and He knows better than you do
whether you are His true child. v. 64
He has never been caught off guard when some professing Christian has walked away
from Him. The knowledge and acceptance of the fact that Jesus knows all about you is a comfort
to the true believer.
4. Your faith is not based upon what others do, or whether even the most prominent believer
stands true to Christ. I believe it is a wonderful thing when you can answer as Peter did, "Lord to
whom shall we go? Who else has eternal life? Who else can satisfy my soul? Who else has
purchased my salvation?
Your faith is rooted in the Spirit given conviction that Jesus Christ is the Saviour of the
world and of your soul no matter what anyone else may say or think.
Hold fast to his promises:
John 6:40 And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son,
and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.
John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I
speak unto you, [they] are spirit, and [they] are life.
John 5:24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on
him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed
from death unto life.
Acts 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under
heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
1 John 5:11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life
is in his Son. 12 He that hath the Son hath life; [and] he that hath not the Son of God hath
not life. 13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God;
that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of
God.
Let me speak for a moment to the young teens who are here with us in our service.
Do you girls have any idea how precious you are to us? You began attending Cross
Trainers. You began hearing the Word of God. You felt your self loved by the leaders. You began
memorizing verses from the Bible. You began hearing about the need to ask Jesus into your heart,
and some of you have done that. When your leaders ask how many have asked Jesus into their
lives, you may put up your hand.
But now you have gotten a little older. You are young teens, and perhaps you are
beginning to find out that this living for Jesus is not so easy as it looked at first. You are
experiencing temptations that you knew nothing about. You are finding out that there is a right
way and a wrong way, and it is often a lot easier to follow the wrong way than the right. You are
becoming more aware of sin, and needing to be forgiven.
Well, just let us tell you that we love you. Let us tell you that we are here to help you
learn what it really means to be a Christian, and to trust in Jesus. Yes there is a cost to following
Jesus. Not everyone will understand. Not everyone will like it if you try to live for Jesus. But God
is with you to help you to live for Him.
Forsake Jesus? Don’t put any deep trust in yourself and your profession. You were not
saved by trusting your self. You were saved by trusting Jesus. Don’t ever turn aside from that
reality.
When you doubt, acknowledge your doubts to Jesus. When you have sinned, confess your
sins to Jesus.
Yes there is a cost to serving Jesus. It is important to count that cost. There are sins to
turn away from. There are temptations to avoid. There may be friends who will leave you. There
may be people who will not like you.
But when all is said and done, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of
eternal life.”
Amen.
