Welcome to this Theology Thursday on the blog! As always, I invite you to open your Bibles with me as we look at another passage on the cost of discipleship.
In Mark 6:7-34, the gospel writer employs one of his favorite literary techniques to emphasize what it means to be a disciple of Christ. In this 'sandwich' or story-within-a-story, Mark tells us about the sending out and return of the 12 apostles and the beheading of John the Baptist.
While the two stories in this sandwich are connected by the idea of teaching everyone- the apostles are going out to the surrounding country to proclaim repentance, and John is killed because he taught King Herod that his marriage was unlawful in God's eyes- they also emphasize that the cost of discipleship is everything.
Throughout John's ministry, it is obviously that he has given his life for the Lord (dwelling in the wilderness, teaching the Word, dressed in camels' hair, eating locusts and wild honey, etc.), and at the end of his life on this earth, his martyrdom reiterates that he had indeed put to death his old man daily.
The apostles are just beginning their ministry when they are sent out two by two with nothing but the gospel and their trust and faith in the Lord to aid them in their journey. As they return at the end of this passage to tell Jesus of their travels, Christ again shows them by forfeiting His own rest to show compassion on those in the multitude who are like sheep without a shepherd that being like the Lord means daily self sacrifice to His work!
As we saw in Luke passage last week, Christianity only leads to daily death on the cross, and we must be willing to pay this price to truly follow the Lord.
As a Christian, wife, mother of a little girl and two fur-babies, Mississippi State Bulldog, and PhD, I lead a very busy life. If you add on top of that my obsession for organization and loves for couponing, sewing, knitting, cooking, reading, gardening, and a host of other random hobbies, you've got the recipe for...well...variety. And variety is the spice of life!
Showing posts with label cost. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cost. Show all posts
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Thursday, January 5, 2012
MrsDrPoe: The Cost of Discipleship, Part I
Once again Theology Thursday is upon us here at the blog! Today I'll begin a two-part series on the cost of discipleship looking at some passages from Mark and Luke. As always, I invite you to open up your Bibles with me as we look at these portions of God's Word.
Luke 9:23-27 says:
Then He said to them all, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels. But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God."
The first verse in this passage is pretty well-known and often taken out of context and misapplied. People say that an illness, a financial burden, or even a mother-in-law is their 'cross to bear,' but that is not what the cross is in this passage. The cross leads to death (picture a modern day electric chair), which is obvious from the next few verses: we must loose our lives to Christ to save them.
Colossians 3:1-11 talks about the need to put to death the "old man with his deeds" in order that we may live as a "new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him." Thus our commitment to Jesus is denying our fleshly desires, daily taking up the cross to put to death our old self who was slave to sin, and following Jesus in His actions and teachings. The fact that Luke includes the word "daily" in his account of this teaching of Jesus is significant because it tells us that we must be ever watchful of the old man and the old desires and temptations that will try to sneak back into our lives. We must die daily to serve the Lord.
Next week we'll look at another passage that exemplifies death as the cost of discipleship.
Luke 9:23-27 says:
Then He said to them all, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels. But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God."
The first verse in this passage is pretty well-known and often taken out of context and misapplied. People say that an illness, a financial burden, or even a mother-in-law is their 'cross to bear,' but that is not what the cross is in this passage. The cross leads to death (picture a modern day electric chair), which is obvious from the next few verses: we must loose our lives to Christ to save them.
Colossians 3:1-11 talks about the need to put to death the "old man with his deeds" in order that we may live as a "new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him." Thus our commitment to Jesus is denying our fleshly desires, daily taking up the cross to put to death our old self who was slave to sin, and following Jesus in His actions and teachings. The fact that Luke includes the word "daily" in his account of this teaching of Jesus is significant because it tells us that we must be ever watchful of the old man and the old desires and temptations that will try to sneak back into our lives. We must die daily to serve the Lord.
Next week we'll look at another passage that exemplifies death as the cost of discipleship.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)