The Divine Revelation of Christ: Surrendering Self to Follow the Living God

[00:00:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:00:00] We're going to be in the Gospel of Matthew chapter 16. As we are looking towards Easter, towards Resurrection Sunday, Pastor Andy understood, preached a wonderful message last week, Gospel message, and now today's message, some of the things I might say may be familiar from last week, although I didn't get to hear the message because our audio messed up, but you were blessed and I know God was honored. So we're going to be in Matthew chapter 16.
[00:00:33] 16 we're looking at verses 13 to 28 and the title of our message whom say you that I am who do you say that I am Jesus asks each and every one of us so
[00:00:48] let's look now at the Gospel of Matthew chapter 16 verses 13 to 28 and as you're turning there by the way just want to welcome visitors some of you I know some you i have not yet met uh you're most welcome here today i pray that you'll be richly blessed
[00:01:05] love to meet you after the service matthew chapter 16 verse 13. when jesus came into the coast of caesarea philippi he asked his disciples saying whom do men say that i the son of man am and they
[00:01:22] said some say that thou art john the baptist some elias that is to say elijah others jeremiah or one of the prophets he says unto them but whom say ye that i am that ye in the king james means y'all
[00:01:38] second person plural okay uh he's speaking now to the whole disciples all of them the twelve and simon peter answered and said thou jesus art the christ the son of the living god and jesus answered and said unto him blessed art thou simon bar jonah for flesh and blood hath not
[00:01:57] reveal it unto thee but my father which is in heaven and i say unto thee that thou art peter and upon this rock will i build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it
[00:02:09] and i will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven
[00:02:19] Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ.
[00:02:28] From that time forth began Jesus to show unto his disciples how that he must go unto Jerusalem and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and be raised again the third day.
[00:02:42] Then Peter took him and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord, this shall not be unto thee.
[00:02:48] But he turned and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan.
[00:02:55] Thou art an offense unto me, for thou savorest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.
[00:03:03] Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
[00:03:11] For whosoever will save his life shall lose it, and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
[00:03:18] For what is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?
[00:03:24] Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
[00:03:27] For the Son of Man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he shall reward every man according to his works.
[00:03:36] Verily I say unto you, there be some standing here which shall not taste of death till they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.
[00:03:46] Let's pray.
[00:03:47] Heavenly Father, thank you for this wonderful word.
[00:03:50] Thank you, Lord, for your holy scripture.
[00:03:52] Now help us as we hear.
[00:03:54] Give us ears to hear, hearts ready to receive.
[00:03:57] May we not be drowsy, but alert, not to my voice, but we pray to your spirit's voice speaking to us now through your holy scripture.
[00:04:05] In Christ's name, we thank you.
[00:04:07] Amen.
[00:04:08] And so this message is really quite simple.
[00:04:12] Actually, the outline is on the back of your bulletin.
[00:04:15] Number one, whom do you say that I am?
[00:04:19] This is what Jesus asks.
[00:04:21] First of all, he asks, whom do the men, who do people say that I am?
[00:04:25] He's interested.
[00:04:26] Well, everybody's got an opinion, right?
[00:04:29] And some think he's John the Baptist.
[00:04:32] Others, well, maybe he's Elijah.
[00:04:36] Maybe he's Jeremiah or one of the prophets.
[00:04:39] That's interesting.
[00:04:40] And then he says, but who do you say that I am?
[00:04:43] and peter who is often one to speak first uh he comes up and he says thou art the christ the son of the living god you know really this is the most important question when it comes to the
[00:04:57] christian faith who do you say that i am after all we're called christians right that means followers of christ well you got to know who you're following before you can follow him right So who is Christ is the most fundamental element of being a Christian.
[00:05:15] And if we don't get that right, then how are we going to understand what it means to be a Christian?
[00:05:20] And not just understand, but if we don't understand, how can we walk in it?
[00:05:24] How can we live the Christian life?
[00:05:27] And so it's extremely important.
[00:05:29] Who do you say that I am?
[00:05:30] And as we see, Peter gets it right.
[00:05:34] But then later he gets it terribly wrong.
[00:05:37] And not much later.
[00:05:39] So let's take a look at this fundamental question.
[00:05:43] For all of us who call ourselves Christians, it's extremely important to know who Christ is.
[00:05:47] Well, that's easy.
[00:05:48] We know Peter told us he is the Christ, the Son of the living God.
[00:05:52] Pastor Joseph, I got it.
[00:05:54] Let's move on.
[00:05:55] Well, Peter thought he got it too.
[00:05:57] And then he got rebuked when he was trying to rebuke his Lord, who he had just called the Son of the living God.
[00:06:05] And let's make sure that we don't fall into the same problem and dilemma that Peter did.
[00:06:10] Because Jesus was not, how shall I say, soft or seeker-friendly in his words to Peter.
[00:06:19] He actually called Peter who? Satan.
[00:06:23] And so this is serious business, folks.
[00:06:26] The man who just said, you are the Christ, the son of the living God.
[00:06:31] And then just moments later, he called Jesus, says, you're Satan.
[00:06:34] or is his get behind me Satan let's take a look is it possible to say Jesus is Lord but to be contrary to him absolutely let's make sure that that's not the case with us you know notice what Jesus says to Peter says you didn't
[00:06:49] figure this out yourself that's not his words his words are actually blessed art thou Simon bar Jonah for flesh and blood has not revealed this unto thee but my father which is in heaven and so understanding
[00:07:05] who Jesus is anyone with a brain can understand who Jesus is based on the information in the Bible but understanding and then actually believing and trusting is a different thing we need a revelation we need to
[00:07:20] understand you know Jesus was on earth and John the Apostle John the Gospel of john first second and third john they were very close john was even calling himself the disciple who jesus loved at the table the last supper he reclined in jesus bosom very familiar they handled
[00:07:39] they touched jesus they worshiped jesus but they they lived with him and ate with him and slept and but then when john sees jesus the resurrected jesus in revelation 1 he doesn't say come over
[00:07:52] here let me lay up against your bosom jesus appears in his glory and john falls like a dead man to the floor that's a revelation and that's by the way why it calls the book revelation
[00:08:06] it's not revelations most people think the book of revelations plural no no it is revelation singular because we need a revelation of who jesus christ is our whole faith is based on this and again let us not feel that this is too elementary we must go back to the first
[00:08:24] principles and understand who christ is because our salvation is based on him the whole religion is based on him our whole life is based on him according to the word of god and so peter says
[00:08:36] you're blessed jesus says to peter you're blessed because god has revealed this unto you now jesus tells us in other places john chapter 6 verse 44 no man can come to me except the father draw him
[00:08:50] The Father has to draw him.
[00:08:51] The Father who sent me draw him.
[00:08:53] And then he says, and I will raise him up at the last day.
[00:08:56] So we can't just decide, I think I'll become a Christian today.
[00:08:59] No, God's got to work in our heart and our spirit.
[00:09:03] And that's what happens with Peter.
[00:09:05] Jesus commends Peter.
[00:09:07] Jesus speaks of how this is right, this is true, and you're blessed because you got this revelation.
[00:09:13] But remember, everyone doesn't have this revelation.
[00:09:16] In the book of 1 Corinthians 2, verse 4, it says, that the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit you know you can tell some people about Jesus you can tell him
[00:09:26] about your testimony how you've been saved all the wonderful things that happen your life and you know it's kinda smile haha haha isn't that nice thank you so much what are we doing for lunch
[00:09:36] right the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit and because he cannot understand them he is not yet been born again why turn to second Corinthians and understand this principle In 2 Corinthians chapter 4, there's a blindness.
[00:09:54] There's a spiritual blindness that's involved.
[00:09:56] 2 Corinthians chapter 4, verse 3.
[00:10:00] But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost.
[00:10:04] In whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
[00:10:16] There's that revelation, that shining.
[00:10:18] for we preach not ourselves but christ jesus the lord and ourselves your servants for jesus sake for god who commanded the light to shine out of darkness that's how he created the heavens and the earth right it was dark and then he says light be by the way god when he created in genesis 1
[00:10:35] how did he create he used his his word and who is the word amen he said light be that's the physical creation for god who commanded the light to shine out of darkness physical creation has shined in
[00:10:51] our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of god in the face of jesus christ that's why we're called to be new creations right if any man being christ he is a new creature a new
[00:11:01] creation behold all things have passed away behold all things have become new and so just as god is the one who created the heavens and the earth it is also a creation a new creation when that's why
[00:11:11] you got to be born again brothers and sisters we're created anew in the image of our heavenly father and light shines in but those who have not received that there is a blindness and when christ
[00:11:26] comes the blinders can be taken away praise god yes and this is what's being said but that's the bad news right say with those poor people how will they ever get saved or or you may even say well
[00:11:38] well, I'm not sure that I'm not blind.
[00:11:40] Well, the good news, before we move on, I want to tell you there is good news about this blindness because Paul wrote more of the New Testament than anyone else individually, all of them inspired by the Holy Spirit.
[00:11:53] And when Paul was called to ministry, we have an account of that in the end of Acts, in Acts chapter 26, verse 15 to 18, as he went and shared the gospel with the Gentiles.
[00:12:10] And who are the Gentiles?
[00:12:12] I imagine all of us.
[00:12:13] If any of you can claim your descent from one of the tribes of Israel, praise the Lord.
[00:12:18] So he's going to the Gentiles to do what?
[00:12:21] What was his ministry?
[00:12:23] According to what Jesus said to him when he appeared to him on the road to Damascus, he said that he's going to deliver thee from the people who want to kill him, now the Jews,
[00:12:33] and from the Gentiles, Acts 26, 17, unto whom now I send thee to open their eyes and to turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God that they may receive forgiveness of sins
[00:12:53] and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.
[00:12:59] We don't have to go get a fortune cookie to be enlightened.
[00:13:02] That's a different kind of light.
[00:13:03] No, the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world, the light of the world is Jesus.
[00:13:10] And we need that light to be saved.
[00:13:12] And that light comes through revelation, and that revelation comes by the Holy Spirit, and normally it comes by hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ.
[00:13:21] And that's why I'm so glad you're here, because faith, we're saved by faith, right?
[00:13:25] By grace, through faith.
[00:13:27] And faith comes how?
[00:13:28] By hearing.
[00:13:29] By hearing what?
[00:13:30] And you're here.
[00:13:32] so if you're born again may your faith grow and if you haven't yet been may those blinders fall off and may you be enthralled with the light of god and may that light enter in and the whole body
[00:13:45] be filled with light and salvation to the glory of our triune god this very day amen now peter shares this this testimony and jesus says god gave it to you and then he says some things that have
[00:13:59] often been quoted and misused by different folks for different reasons.
[00:14:04] But he says in verse 18, he says, you are Peter. You are Peter and upon this rock, what is he going to do?
[00:14:16] He's going to build his church. Now, this is not the establishment of the Roman Catholic Church, by the way.
[00:14:24] Notice in Romans, I'm sorry, in Romans, the Roman catholic church matthew sorry matthew chapter 16 and our text at hand he says thou art peter in verse 18 and upon this rock i will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail
[00:14:43] against it the greek word peter is petros it's masculine and then that word rock is petra which is the he which is the feminine but they actually have different meanings petros is more like a
[00:14:54] little stone or a pebble and petra is a huge rock like a cliff or something and so you're peter and upon this foundation i'm going to build the church who he doesn't say you're peter and upon you i'm
[00:15:09] going to build the church he doesn't say that he says you're peter and it's a play on words in the greek because petros and then rock we don't have it in the english peter rock there's no connection
[00:15:19] in the greek petros your petros your peter and on this petra on this huge rock i'm going to build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it who's the big huge rock not petros
[00:15:32] but jesus and the confession upon this rock what rock the confession you just made that i am the christ the son of the living god and then this will he build his church and the gates of hell
[00:15:44] will not prevail against it and they have not since he said that the church has continued to grow ever since then i wish i could say pastor andy our church continues but you know praise god for everyone who's here today
[00:15:56] but the church universal from the time of christ until now has always grown it never shrinks because whoever is born again doesn't get unborn again and when we die the church doesn't get smaller it just moves and relocates i'm looking forward to relocating how
[00:16:12] about you? Hallelujah. Praise God. If you know Christ, you should be able to say amen. And so continuing on in verse 19, he talks about, and I'm going to give you the keys of the kingdom.
[00:16:21] Well, he says the same thing to all of the disciples later in Matthew chapter 18. What are the keys of the kingdom? How do I get into the kingdom of God? That means getting saved. How does
[00:16:31] that happen? By grace through faith, by sharing the gospel. And Peter is seen as the first one that brings the gospel to the Gentiles and the first Gentile to believe is who exit 28 Cornelius that's exactly right very good and so and so that is the keys
[00:16:48] of the kingdom and there's more there but I want to focus on this next section after that he tells the disciples okay you know who I am but don't go and tell anybody not yet now later after he's you know resurrected he to tell the whole
[00:17:04] world but right now don't don't focus on telling people that they already are confused and there's a lot of things going on and by the way when he is convicted by the romans uh and the for what crime
[00:17:17] according to the sanhedrin the jews is he delivered to the romans to be crucified blasphemy saying what that he is the christ the son of the living god just don't tell anybody not yet i asked because
[00:17:32] he tells them later that is what's going to get him killed notice what he says in verse 21 from that time forth after they have this profession jesus begins to show unto his disciples how he
[00:17:44] must go to jerusalem this hasn't happened yet but he's saying look guys this is what's going to happen i'm going to go to jerusalem i'm going to suffer many things at the hands of the elders
[00:17:53] and the chief priests i'm going to be killed but on the third day i'm going to rise again I think Peter only heard one word out of that killed only he heard killed now remember Peter if you were Peter now all of us have pride we have to get over it
[00:18:08] right but if it was any moment for Peter to be proud it would be now he has said this wonderful profession of faith in Christ before all the other disciples Jesus says my father in heaven revealed it to you and you're blessed he didn't
[00:18:22] say the rest of the disciples they were blessed although they were and then because I'm going to give to you, on this rock I'm going to build the church.
[00:18:29] Peter might not have understood, maybe he thought it was him.
[00:18:31] And I'm going to give you, Peter, the keys to the kingdom.
[00:18:34] Hence we have all these jokes that people die and go to heaven, they see Peter.
[00:18:38] That's where these silly jokes come from.
[00:18:40] And so Peter may very well have thought, wow, I'm hot stuff.
[00:18:44] I don't know, if I'm wrong, Lord, if I'm wrong, forgive me.
[00:18:47] And I'll certainly ask Peter's forgiveness.
[00:18:50] And so when he hears this business of Jesus going to die, immediately there's this strong reaction notice peter who's the servant who has just said that jesus is essentially god on earth he goes and he begins to rebuke god something doesn't compute
[00:19:11] notice uh here in verse 22 after jesus says he's going to be killed then peter took him and began to rebuke him saying be far from the lord this shall not be unto thee because peter has an idea
[00:19:23] in his mind what the messiah should look like strong savior he's going to save us he's going to deliver us from the romans everything's going to be great and and hey i might be at his right
[00:19:33] hand you know maybe i'll be his vp or something i don't know and this is kind of the idea but this isn't what's planned of god and so instead of saying oh peter thank you so much for your care
[00:19:45] for me i really appreciate that it's quite different notice he says get me behind me satan wow that's pretty strong language you say well he'd never say that to me this is this is the
[00:19:58] closest thing to you and me that he could have had at that point one of his closest disciples if not the closest who has just professed what we profess to be born again right now at the christ
[00:20:07] the son of the living god get behind me satan we'll say well pastor what do you want me to do well notice you can have correct theology you can understand who he is you can answer the right
[00:20:17] questions on a test but if you haven't bowed the knee to who he is and what his will is you haven't really received him you can have the best theology in the world but if what's here doesn't get here
[00:20:32] and doesn't transform all of this it is not a pleasing thing to the lord and as a matter of fact he not only caught now what does the word satan mean now we know this he by the way in matthew
[00:20:45] chapter 4 verse 10 he says the same thing almost to who satan himself he says satan be gone very similar in the greek there is one word different and that's when satan is tempting him
[00:21:00] and jesus says almost the same thing to peter the difference is he doesn't tell satan in matthew 4 10 get behind me because that language in the greek spizo it means get back behind me get back under
[00:21:13] my mission get back and follow me you're out ahead of me doing things that are not in accordance with the will that god has given me whereas in satan he doesn't say get back behind me satan's already
[00:21:27] gone he says get away you see and so there's hope for peter and and so satan certainly refers to the devil but what does the word mean etymologically anyone know in the in the greek satanos adversary
[00:21:41] adversary you're an adversary to me why because though what peter wants he thinks is nice it's not what god wants and how many of you know if you want something god doesn't want it's not nice
[00:21:57] have you ever said i hope the lord is on my side how about think about it this way i pray that i'm on the lord's side okay and so he says to peter give thee behind me satan thou art an offense
[00:22:12] unto me scandalon you ever heard the word scandal that's where this comes from the greek word scandalon which means stumbling block you're a stumbling block you're going to cause you're trying to cause me to get out of the way from where i've been called i've just told you where
[00:22:29] were going right and you're a stumbling block get down behind me get back under under me and in in my will you're an offense unto me why this is key number one is who do you say jesus is and you say
[00:22:43] oh yeah he's he's the christ son of the living god okay good now here's a test whether you really understand that not or not do you savor the things that be of god or the things that be of man this
[00:22:56] is what he says he says you're an offense under me why notice thou art an offense unto me for here's the reason thou savorest not the things that be of god but those that be of men so in
[00:23:08] other words yeah you've got the right theology but when it really gets down to it you want jesus your way then jesus as he has his own way and he is the way is that something what about you and me do we
[00:23:20] savor more the things of man or the things of god why is this christianity i call it that they call it that that's on tv a lot of times come to jesus you'll be rich you have a learjet you have a rose
[00:23:32] royce you have a 10 000 square foot house you'll never get sick everyone will love you and then you know whenever you decide to die if you're 100 150 180 whatever you like you'll go to heaven it's
[00:23:41] a wonderful thing come and give your best gift right now is that the christian faith then why do they have literally millions of people that follow them because they savor the things that be of men and not of god i'll have a car i'll be rich i'll be healthy and that's what it's
[00:24:03] all about isn't it that has nothing to do with what it's all about all of that's laid up for us in heaven our treasure should be in heaven where your treasure is that's where your heart
[00:24:15] will be these people are preaching a treasure on earth and if your heart is on the earth you savor the things that be of man and not of god and if you savor the things that be of man and not of god
[00:24:25] jesus says you're an offense unto me you're a scandal on you're a stumbling block and even satan himself because you're an adversary our will should be his will should be our will and he explains this now in the last part so number one who do you say that i am number two do you savor
[00:24:46] the things of man or the things of god and then number three jesus says well here's the answer here's here's the way we get there how do we get there okay pastor joseph maybe i do savor
[00:24:58] the things of man sometimes more than of god help me i can't but jesus can and this is what he says he says if any man if any man come after me if any man come after me let him deny himself
[00:25:16] and take up his cross and follow me if any man wants to come after me who's that say well that's just for missionaries and pastors that's what y'all get paid to do anyways no this is anyone
[00:25:27] who calls himself a christian anyone who calls himself a christian if any man come after me it's very interesting in the greek this word come is the same greek word spizo that is used up earlier
[00:25:40] where he says get behind me get behind me spizo it's the same greek word that he says every man come after me Peter you should be coming after me not going before me and trying
[00:25:50] to tell me what you think you know and so it's the same word if any man come after me then let him deny himself take up his cross and follow me until studying for this sermon I thought deny himself I thought that meant well you
[00:26:04] know I'm gonna deny myself Sonny's barbecue I'm gonna save money I'm gonna fast you know whatever I'm gonna deny myself a particular thing that I might like that may not be pleasing to the lord that's but i had a revelation i believe and if i'm wrong
[00:26:22] correct me but i don't think that's what this means let him deny himself what are you denying not these particular things you like i'm denying me i'm denying me that i i am the sovereign of
[00:26:37] my decisions that i am the one it's my will no we have to be like jesus uh nevertheless not my will but thine be done peter is basically says my will is not for this to happen and
[00:26:47] therefore it cannot be good so jesus you need to get back in line with me no denying myself means denying that i have any rights with god denying that it's all about me that's the satanic
[00:26:58] trinity me myself and i no it's all about god the lord says you shall love the lord your god with all your heart soul mind and strength he didn't say you shall love uh me with all your heart soul
[00:27:09] mind and strength and you shall love myself as yourself and i no you shall love the lord your god with all your heart soul mind and strength number one love your neighbor as yourself number
[00:27:19] two and what does that make you a distant number three and and who else is ahead of you everyone else so but who wants to do that but this is what jesus is calling us to deny yourself why isn't
[00:27:35] that radical pastor joseph because as long as it's all about you it's not about jesus and if it's not about jesus then why call yourself a christian at all he's either lord or he's not
[00:27:48] how many of you are familiar with the chronicles of narnia anyone my children like that i'm not so big into fantasy but i can appreciate the truths that are there do you know who wrote
[00:28:01] those books? C.S. Lewis. C.S. Lewis wrote a lot of other books. Mere Christianity is a great apologetic work. And in it, he presents to us a dilemma. It's called liar, lunatic, or Lord.
[00:28:15] He says, if you want to talk about Jesus, Jesus says, who am I? You need to understand you only got three choices. He's either a liar, God forbid, a lunatic, God forbid, or he's Lord. And here's a
[00:28:26] a brief quote from his book mere Christianity C.S Lewis I'm trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Jesus that I'm already I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher but I don't accept his claim to be God this is the one thing we must
[00:28:49] not say a man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher he would either be a lunatic on the level with a man who says
[00:29:01] I'm a poached egg or else he would be the devil of hell you must make your choice either this man was and is the son of God or else he's a madman or something worse you can shut him up for a fool you can spit on him and and kill
[00:29:19] him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God but let not come up with any patronizing nonsense about him being a great human teacher. He has not left
[00:29:34] that open to us. He never intended to do that. He's either liar, lunatic, or Lord. And as for me, in my house, folks, he's Lord. Amen? Well, I want to ask you then, how about you? Do we savor the
[00:29:58] things that be of God, or the things that be of men. If any man come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me. Real quickly, he's already addressed this subject in Matthew
[00:30:09] chapter 10. If you'd turn with me there for just one verse, well really there's a few verses before it, but 10.38 is what I want to get. And he that taketh not his cross and followeth after me is
[00:30:21] not worthy of me. You see that? Matthew 10.38. And he that taketh not his cross and followeth after me is not worthy of me. I've always thought in this passage that he's saying, hey, if you don't
[00:30:33] take up your cross and follow after me, you're not worthy of me. Well, yes, but looking at it again and praying after, what if it means, and I think it certainly can grammatically, he who comes after
[00:30:45] me and does not take up his cross is not worthy of me. You get it? You see the difference? In other words, he who comes after me and says he's a Christian, but does not take up his cross is not
[00:30:57] worthy of me wasn't that where Peter was at that moment now praise God Peter got right but he that taketh not his cross he who doesn't take his cross but he does follow after me is not worthy of me
[00:31:11] so if you're saying you're a Christian and you don't take up your cross you're not worthy of Jesus it's this is not optional this is not just for ministers and pastors and missionaries and super Christians and oh I'm just a scrub I just hope to have a little cabin somewhere in glory
[00:31:27] land if i could just get through by the skin of my teeth no no no every believer every born again child of god is a saint okay you're a child you've been born again into the family of god
[00:31:39] and so we are called to take up our cross deny ourselves take up our cross and follow him now that doesn't really sound fun does it you know deny yourself come to our church and be denied
[00:31:56] That might not be something to put on the sign to get new visitors, right?
[00:32:01] Come to our church and be crucified.
[00:32:07] But is this just what Jesus says?
[00:32:10] What does Jesus say?
[00:32:11] Come to our church and get rich and be healthy and everything will be perfect and go home happy and feeling good about yourself.
[00:32:17] Is that what he says?
[00:32:19] No.
[00:32:19] If any man comes after me or woman, man's not in the text, man, woman.
[00:32:24] If any person comes after me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me it sounds pretty hard and yet it's beautiful why well because he says in this very text matthew chapter 10 notice he says in the next verse verse 39 he that findeth his life shall lose
[00:32:43] it and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it folks everyone in america is trying to find their life trying to find fulfillment i got to get a bucket list i got to do this this and
[00:32:54] this or or you know if i can just get a certain amount of money so i can retire if i could just get this job or if i could just get this kind of a marriage or this kind of this or that or
[00:33:02] the other thing we're all looking for fulfillment we're all looking for purpose but when we leave christ out you're not going to find it you're going to lose it that's what jesus says he that
[00:33:12] findeth his life himself without christ shall lose it but he that loses his life for my sake shall find it isn't that what it means to deny yourself lose your life for his sake then you'll
[00:33:23] find it have you found it are you savoring the things that be of god or the things that be of man brothers and sisters all of this really comes down to one thing who do you say that i
[00:33:44] it's fine to say that jesus is lord that he's the son of god that he died on the cross for my sins yes pastor i know can we get something else but how does that relate to your life how do you look
[00:33:56] look any different from anyone else in the world when you go to places and and there's all kind of curse words going do you join in do you laugh or do you do you say you know hey let's talk about
[00:34:07] jesus let's not curse or whatever i mean is there anything different between you and the world do you savor the things that be when difficult questions come up when it comes to things like our money uh-oh pastor talking about money uh tithing or whether it comes about time you know
[00:34:25] and our time. He always wants us there. I tell you what, that pastor he wants us there on Sunday mornings. And if that's not enough he wants us there on Sunday night. And then he thinks you're supposed to come Tuesday morning and Tuesday
[00:34:37] night, Wednesday morning and Wednesday night, sometimes Saturday morning, always Saturday night. That guy's nuts. How much more do I get paid from doing anything but Sunday morning? Nothing. Zero.
[00:34:52] And who is the one who decided to have all those services a long time ago before Pastor Andy got here.
[00:34:58] Me.
[00:34:59] Do I get any extra money for it?
[00:35:01] No.
[00:35:02] Then, Pastor, why would you do that?
[00:35:04] I came to this church with black hair.
[00:35:06] Now I got gray hair.
[00:35:07] You say, see, Pastor Joseph?
[00:35:11] Do you know why I do it?
[00:35:14] Because I need it.
[00:35:16] I need it.
[00:35:18] I need that accountability.
[00:35:20] And if I need it, and I'm your pastor, I imagine there's at least one of you that need it too.
[00:35:26] That's why I do it.
[00:35:30] The real question is, who is Jesus?
[00:35:33] Not just, thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
[00:35:37] Now let's go eat.
[00:35:40] But what does that do to your life?
[00:35:42] How does it change your life?
[00:35:44] Your life is supposed to be gone and hidden in Christ.
[00:35:49] You see, Jesus is what it's all about.
[00:35:55] That's why it's called Christianity.
[00:35:57] Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega.
[00:36:00] He's the first and the last.
[00:36:01] jesus is the one in whom the worlds were created god created uh through his word and and his word is jesus and what's the first thing that he said let there be and of course jesus is the light of
[00:36:14] the world we've already talked about if you're born again god shines his light upon us and and we are saved that new creation is through the work of christ and so just just for a moment just give
[00:36:26] me a few moments who is christ he's the one who made you who is christ he's the one that your next breath depends upon who is christ he's the one that holds together the atomic structures of
[00:36:40] every fiber of your being who is christ he's the one who loved you and gave himself to die for you who is christ he is the one that makes the sun to shine and gives us life on this planet who
[00:36:54] is Christ he is the one that sooner or later will have to face some people like to put Jesus off I don't believe in that some people give lip service to Christ and then say okay I went to church we probably have some visitors in a couple
[00:37:13] weeks they're called CEOs Christian Christmas and Easter only and you know I i was at church twice in a year isn't that good what more do you want and then some people just would prefer not to deal with jesus at all let me tell you you can only put off jesus so long
[00:37:34] sooner or later you will have to deal with jesus not as you like and not on your terms don't his turn jesus makes the world go round by the way what year is it is that 2026 years from
[00:37:52] the life the birth of muhammad maybe from buddha maybe elon musk i don't know how about jesus christ jesus is all over jesus is throughout the bible you know about that right from the beginning to
[00:38:09] the end in genesis he's the seed of the woman in exodus he's the passover lamb and leviticus he's our great high priest in numbers he's a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night
[00:38:20] and deuteronomy he's the prophet that's going to be raised up like unto moses that you must listen to and joshua he's the captain of the lord's host that leads his people into the promised land
[00:38:31] in judges he's the faithful and right and true judge that we long for today in a place where there is so much uh calling evil good and good evil all around us in ruth he is our great kinsman
[00:38:44] redeemer and first and second samuel he's our ebenezer that stone and rock of help and first and second kings in first and second chronicles he is our eternal davidic king that reigneth forever and ever over his people and of over all kingdoms of the world yes and then we see
[00:39:03] in ezra he's our faithful scribe that instructs us in nehemiah he's the one that rebuilds the the church the walls of the church that have been broken down in esther he's the unseen savior of
[00:39:14] his people the god who hears uh prayers in job he is the redeemer who will stand in the latter day upon the earth and though job's flesh be destroyed he will see with his own eyes that
[00:39:25] redeemer jesus christ in psalms he's david's rock and strong tower he is the good shepherd in proverbs he is the tree of life he's also wisdom in song of solomon he is uh the beloved
[00:39:39] the husband who loves us of the beloved we find in isaiah that he is the son of the virgin that's going to be born his name is emmanuel he's the child that is born the son that shall be given
[00:39:53] who shall be called wonderful counselor the mighty god the prince of peace the everlasting father and he's also the suffering servant whose chess our chastisement of our peace was laid upon him in jeremiah he's the righteous branch in ezekiel he is the great davidic shepherd king who brings
[00:40:10] us a covenant of peace yes and in daniel in daniel shadrach meshach and abednego in the fiery furnace praise god there's a fourth man and his name is hallelujah and then we find in hosea he is our
[00:40:23] faithful husband in joel he is the one who is going to send his spirit uh on his sons and daughters in the latter days and they will prophesy and give praise unto the lord and amos
[00:40:35] he's our burden bearer and then obadiah he is our mighty god he is the one who has come on mount zion with deliverance and with holiness we find in jonah he's the great foreign missionary
[00:40:52] he's the one who brings life out of death just like jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights so to the son of man in the heart of the earth three days and three nights
[00:41:00] is all this coincidence as i'm making it up no go read your bible jesus from the beginning to the end throughout the entire bible micah he's the one in micah chapter 5 2 whose goings forth
[00:41:10] have been from old even from everlasting who will be born a ruler and a child in bethlehem that's prophesied 700 years before jesus is born hallelujah we think of nahum he's the avenger of god's elect and habakkuk he is the god who cries out in the midst he is the evangelist who cries
[00:41:27] to god in the midst of the years revive your people o lord hallelujah we find in zephaniah he's the god mighty to save and he's the one who rejoices over us with singing in haggai he's the
[00:41:39] desire of all nations and zechariah he's a fountain open in the house of david for sin and uncleanness and malachi he's the son of righteousness arising with healing his wings the lord whom you seek
[00:41:52] that'll suddenly come to his temple from genesis to malachi from the beginning to the end jesus is what it's all about he is god but then there's a new testament and in matthew he is the king
[00:42:09] of the jews and he is the messiah and in luke in mark he is the miracle working servant and luke he's the son of man and john he's the son of god in acts he's the savior of the world who sends
[00:42:19] his holy spirit upon his church in first corinthians he's the power of god and he's the wisdom of god in galatians he is the one who was cursed and redeems us from the curse of the law
[00:42:30] for he was cursed for us being hung on a tree in the book of ephesians he is the great head of the church in the book of philippians he's the one who been in the form of god father not robbery to be
[00:42:39] equal with god but made himself of no reputation and humbled himself to the form of a servant even to the point of death of the cross there in philippians in colossians he's the one in whom
[00:42:49] all things consist. They hadn't quite figured out the nuclear forces and the nucleus. You know, everything's created by atoms. Have you ever seen one? Neither have they. Go study it carefully.
[00:43:04] No one has ever seen an atom. They say, we don't believe in God. We can't see him. I don't believe in atoms. I can't see them. But maybe there are atoms. The point is, atoms or no atoms, Jesus is
[00:43:17] one that holds it together he is the one in whom all things consist in first and second second thessalonians he is our soon coming king in first and second timothy he is the one mediator between
[00:43:30] god and man uh in titus he's our blessed hope in philemon he's the one that sticketh closer than a brother in the book of hebrews he's the express image of god and he is the author and the finisher
[00:43:40] of our fate in james he is the one who forgives our sins and the one who heals our diseases when we pray in the name of the lord in james chapter 5 we find in first and second peter he is our
[00:43:53] chief shepherd and cornerstone who will soon appear in first second and third john he is truth he is love he is god incarnate in the book of jude he is the one who's coming with ten
[00:44:05] thousands of his saints and then we find in revelation he is the king of kings the lord of lords the lamb of god upon the throne from a to z from genesis to revelation it is all about
[00:44:19] christ so i ask you brothers and sisters who do you say that he is today and when you ask him what does he say oftentimes i am i am who is christ i am what more do you want to know he
[00:44:42] He said, verily, verily, I say unto you, before Abraham was, I am.
[00:44:48] I want to end with this.
[00:44:53] As we're looking to Easter in just a couple weeks, I know and I have been told, even by my sweet wife, that sometimes my messages are not always that encouraging.
[00:45:12] I'm sure Melanie doesn't say anything like that to Pastor Eddie, but my wife.
[00:45:18] So I want to end on an encouraging note, because the gospel is encouraging, amen?
[00:45:25] Pastor Joseph, denying myself, taking up my cross, this is not easy.
[00:45:33] Because the cross is a symbol of shame.
[00:45:36] It's not easy.
[00:45:37] You're going to be ridiculed.
[00:45:39] You're going to be, sometimes, you know, people are going to say, you know, he's kind of a Christian.
[00:45:43] He goes to that church.
[00:45:44] Don't hang out with this guy.
[00:45:45] Who knows what it might cost you.
[00:45:48] But let's go back to the text where we began, and that's where we'll end in Matthew chapter 16.
[00:45:53] Remember I said when Peter heard what Jesus told him I think he only heard one word and he freaked out And what was that word?
[00:46:04] Killed Far be it from you And isn't that like us today?
[00:46:08] When you really think about it Isn't death like really kind of the elephant in the room?
[00:46:13] Like when the pandemic comes Do this or you'll die Okay, I'll do it Don't go to church or you'll die Okay, I won't go to church Put on a mask or you'll die Okay, I'll put on a mask
[00:46:24] you know what is it next I don't know what's next but people just followed in line because of the fear of death that was the main reason and this is what Peter is afraid of and especially for his Messiah who in his mind he's got to
[00:46:38] do all these things he's got to kick the Romans out and this and that the other thing and when Jesus says killed Peter goes nuts and starts to rebuke he forgets himself and begins to rebuke Jesus but he missed the most important
[00:46:50] part and that's the part I want to leave you with which I pray is encouraging especially in view of Easter he says from that time forward Jesus says I have to go to Jerusalem I'm going to Jerusalem and verse 21 I'm gonna suffer
[00:47:11] many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed that's what Peter heard but I don't think he even once he heard that word he went nuts his ears turned off because he didn't hear the good part and be raised again the third day
[00:47:30] if he would have just focused on that oh really how are you going to do it that's going to be wonderful all he could see was death and by the way for us folks let's beware whatever fears we're
[00:47:40] facing ultimately are bound in the fear of death but in hebrews chapter 2 one of the reasons christ came was to deliver us from those fears because the bible says those who are afraid of death are
[00:47:50] in bondage they're slaves to that fear christ came to deliver us from that bondage and to destroy him that had the power of the fear of death which is the devil and that's why he told
[00:47:59] satan to get and that's why he told peter to get back in line because anything that's contrary to his will is not pleasing to him and so we rejoice that uh that he did rise again and this let me
[00:48:11] just tell you before you uh leave he said the same for you and for me because remember we already quoted in john 6 44 about revelation no man can come to me except the father which hath sent me
[00:48:27] draw him and then what does he say and i will raise him up at the last day hallelujah this is good news not just does jesus rise on the third day but we are raised up praise
[00:48:44] god yes pastor joseph at the end of time when jesus comes back the graves will open and we'll go up to heaven and what a glorious day that'll be and that's wonderful and that's glorious but
[00:48:54] the bible says in ephesians chapter 2 that if you've been born again he's already raised you up and made you to sit in heavenly places in christ jesus right now ephesians chapter 2 verse 6 it has been done it is half it is finished you if you're a child of god have a placeholder in the
[00:49:12] heavens at the right hand of god the place of power in the body of christ who is the beginning the end the alpha the omega the creator of the heavens of the earth and the creator of you and
[00:49:22] me if we are born again in and through him new creatures in christ and so we are called to live that heavenly life now we are called to have a life that is hid with god in christ jesus
[00:49:35] at his right hand and so when troubles come we don't look at them from a earthly carnal oh how will i overcome this it's so hard we look at them from heaven itself and it's not the false gospel
[00:49:48] no trouble is going to come to me i just rebuke him no that it's that troubles will come but praise god they're in god's providence and i can do all things through christ who strengthens me
[00:49:58] i am more than a conqueror through christ who gave himself for me i have been given the victory over sin death hell and the grave for the glorious resurrection of christ that resurrection in which this body though be eaten with worms one day will take part in and be raised to the heavens
[00:50:17] to be ever with the lord but right now the spirit's already been raised up you say he's raised up all right praise god all of us should be raised up and excited and filled with the very
[00:50:28] life of god because he poured it out so that you might have it might receive it might live it the most exciting greatest highest calling of any human on planet earth to deny himself take up his cross and follow after him amen amen let's pray the heavenly father we come before you
[00:50:57] help us lord we have heard your word we have heard your voice now help us to obey for your glory honor and praise in christ's name we thank you amen who gets the glory that's