Is Christ Worth It?

“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:26–27)

Jesus is unashamed and unafraid of telling us up front the “worst” — the painful cost of being a Christian: hating family (verse 26), carrying a cross (verse 27), renouncing possessions (verse 33). There is no small print in the covenant of grace. It is all big, and bold. No cheap grace! Very costly! Come, and be my disciple.

But Satan hides his worst and shows only his best. All that really matters in the deal with Satan is in small print on the back page.

On the front page in big, bold letters are the words, “You will not surely die” (Genesis 3:4), and “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me” (Matthew 4:9). But on the back page in small print — so small you can only read it with the magnifying glass of the Bible — it says, “And after the fleeting pleasures, you will suffer with me forever in hell.”

Why is Jesus willing to show us his “worst” as well as his best, while Satan will only show us his best? Matthew Henry answers, “Satan shows the best, but hides the worst, because his best will not [counterbalance] his worst; but Christ’s will abundantly.”

The call of Jesus is not just a call to suffering and self-denial; it is first a call to a banquet. This is the point of the parable in Luke 14:16–24. Jesus also promises a glorious resurrection where all the losses of this life will be repaid (Luke 14:14). He also tells us that he will help us endure the hardships (Luke 22:32). He also tells us our Father will give us the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13). He promises that even if we are killed for the kingdom, “not a hair of your head will perish” (Luke 21:18).

Which means that when we sit down to calculate the cost of following Jesus — when we weigh the “worst” and the “best” — he is worth it. Abundantly worth it (Romans 8:18; 2 Corinthians 4:17).

Not so with Satan. Stolen bread is sweet, but afterward the mouth is full of gravel (Proverbs 20:17).

John Piper 

You are loved perfectly

BIBLE MEDITATION:

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

When you read the verse, “Perfect love casteth out fear” what’s your reaction? You may be thinking, “I can never manage to achieve perfect love.” But that’s not what John is saying. Think of it this way: you have no need to fear Someone who loves you perfectly.

God’s perfect love can eliminate all dread. It’s not our love for Him, but His perfect love for us that will cast out our fears.

Are you gripped with fear about something? Do not give in to despair. There is hope. Love is the answer to overcoming your fear because love is the Christian’s security blanket.

When you were a child, did you have a teddy bear or blanket that gave you a sense of security—something you wanted to hold close and get wrapped up in? Well, dear friend, the Holy Spirit of God is the believer’s warm, loving security blanket.

ACTION POINT:

The question isn’t “Am I brave enough?” The question is “Do I trust His love enough?”

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Jesus Knows His Sheep

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them.” (John 10:27)

Jesus knows those who are his. What is this knowledge?

John 10:3 is a close parallel to John 10:27. It says, “The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.”

So, when Jesus says, “I know them,” this means at least that he knows them by name; that is, he knows them individually and intimately. They are not anonymous, lost in the flock.

John 10:14–15 provides another insight: “I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father.”

There is a real similarity between the way Jesus knows his Father in heaven and the way he knows his sheep. Jesus sees himself in the Father, and he sees himself in his disciples.

To some degree Jesus recognizes his own character in his disciples. He sees his own brand mark on the sheep. This endears them to him.

He is like a husband waiting for his wife at the airport, watching as each person disembarks from the plane. When she appears, he knows her, he recognizes her features, he sees in her eyes a happy reflection of his own love. He delights in her. She is the only one he embraces.

The apostle Paul puts it like this: “God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: ‘The Lord knows those who are his’” (2 Timothy 2:19).

It is hard to overemphasize what a tremendous privilege it is to be known personally, intimately, lovingly by the Son of God. It is a precious gift to all his sheep, and it contains within it profound, personal fellowship and affection and the promise of eternal life.

John Piper 

Is anything beyond God’s control?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:11

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT: 

What’s under Jesus’ control? Mark chapters 4-5 show us some of what God has placed under the authority of our Lord Jesus.

You’ll find Jesus stilling the storm (vv. 4:35-41); He is the Master over disaster. You’ll find Him healing a demon-possessed man (vv. 5:1-20); He has authority over demons.

Jesus heals a woman who had been bleeding for 12 years; disease is under His domain (vv. 5:24-34).

Finally in these chapters, He raised Jairus’ daughter from the dead; Jesus has authority over death (vv. 5:38-43).

So what’s under Jesus’ control?

    The weather/disasters

    Demons

    Health issues

    Death

Whatever befall—disaster, demons, disease, or even death—Jesus Christ is Lord!

ACTION POINT:

Friend, meditate upon this passage and rest in Him today, for He has it all under His control. 

19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might

20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,

21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, - Ephesians 1:19-22

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

God Works for You

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. (Psalm 121:1–3)

Do you need help? I do. Where do you look for help?

When the psalmist lifted up his eyes to the hills and asked, “From where does my help come?” he answered, “My help comes from the Lord” — not from the hills, but from the God who made the hills. “My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”

So, he reminded himself of two great truths: One is that God is a mighty Creator over all the problems of life; the other is that God never sleeps. “He who keeps you will not slumber.”

God is a tireless worker. He never wearies. Think of God as a worker in your life. Yes, it is amazing. We are prone to think of ourselves as workers in God’s life. But the Bible wants us first to be amazed that God is a worker in our lives: “From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who works for those who wait for him” (Isaiah 64:4).

God is working for us around the clock. He does not take days off and he does not sleep. In fact he is so eager to work for us that he goes around looking for more work to do for people who will trust him: “The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him” (2 Chronicles 16:9).

God loves to show his tireless power and wisdom and goodness by working for people who trust him. The sending of his Son, Jesus, was the main way the Father showed this: “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve” (Mark 10:45). Jesus works for his followers. He serves them. The gospel is not a “help wanted” sign. It is a “help available” sign.

This is what we must believe — really believe — in order to “rejoice always” (1 Thessalonians 5:16) and “[give] thanks always and for everything” (Ephesians 5:20) and have “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding” (Philippians 4:7), and “not be anxious about anything” (Philippians 4:6), and hate our lives “in this world” (John 12:25), and “love [our] neighbor as [ourselves]” (Matthew 22:39).

What a truth! What a reality! God is up all night and all day to work for those who wait for him.

John Piper 

You’ve got the “Lord of the Angel Armies” on YOUR side

BIBLE MEDITATION:

Now therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways.” Haggai 1:5

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

What does “the Lord of hosts” mean? “The Lord Almighty,” and it speaks of the greatness of God. One translation puts it, “the Lord of the angel armies.”

In his hymn “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” Martin Luther uses the Greek word for “the Lord of hosts” when he writes, “Christ Jesus, it is He; Lord Sabaoth, His Name, from age to age the same, And He must win the battle.” Lord Sabaoth is the Lord of hosts, the commander of angel armies.

When David faced Goliath, he used the same name for God. He challenged Goliath with these words: “You come to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts” (1 Samuel 17:45). Though Goliath was a huge man, he wasn’t too big to hit if God was on David’s side.

ACTION POINT:

What does it do for your spirit today to know that you have with you the Lord of hosts? This same Lord, the Lord Almighty, says, “And call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me” (Psalm 50:15).

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Do you want a second chance from God?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. Hebrews 8:12

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Have you ever felt like you’ve used up all your “second chances;” that God’s reservoir of forgiveness is bone dry? Perhaps you’ve thought, “I don’t have a right to come and ask Him to forgive me again.” Friend, it doesn’t matter how many times we have sinned.

Suppose you came back to God the 5,000th time with the same sin. Will He forgive you? Yes, He will. As far as He is concerned, it is the first time you have come to Him. Why? Because He has forgotten all the other times. 

Our God doesn’t hold grudges. He does punish sin, but He doesn’t hold grudges. The God of Jonah, David, Mark, Peter, and Jacob is your God and my God. Each one of these famous men in the Bible famously failed Him! I have come to Him so many times and asked Him for a second chance. And guess what? He has given it.

ACTION POINT:

If He can give Jonah, David, Jacob, etc., a second chance, He will certainly give you another chance. Failure is not final.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers