“Have you ever faced a difficult task or calling? Have you ever faced the
most difficult task and calling of life? Well, there is one that exists
this very moment that applies to every living soul, and today we'll face
it together.”
I’m Dennis
Finnan, host and speaker on the World, the Word & You! Broadcast and in a
moment on today’s broadcast, we’ll talk about the worth of a soul…
… Now as I
opened the broadcast with a special challenge for you, I want to devote
today's message to what I believe is indeed, the most challenging and
difficult task, and calling, anyone can ever face! Furthermore, and most
sobering of all, everyone sooner or later will have to face this challenge and
calling of life itself. Speaking of life, isn’t it a wonderful thing? It
matters not if we enter it physically whole, or even crippled, no one polled
would ever say it is better if we had never been born or lived. Of course,
there will be those who after life is lived may feel that way, but for the
most part life is precious to all, and we are thankful to be alive to
experience it with all our senses.
However life,
which is a gift from God Himself, is something many are not aware of carried
with it accountability for how and why it is lived. Now our broadcasts are
mainly aimed at speaking to the spiritual needs of the secular mind. However,
whether you are of the non-religious secular world we are all born into, or
you have been born-again by the power of God through Jesus Christ, this most
difficult task and calling I’m going to talk about, falls upon all. So today,
after we pause one more time to hear another musical expression of joy,
happiness and praise, I'll open for you the inspired, inerrant and matchless
Word of God and what it says about who you are, and what God expects from the
gift of life He gave you…
… Without a
doubt, the greatest man who ever lived was Jesus of Nazareth! No man ever
affected and changed the world like Him. His short thirty-three years of life
profoundly changed His followers through the centuries, with life altering and
eternal consequences. The words Jesus Christ spoke always touched the hearts
of every hearer. In fact, the Bible reinforces this for every reader to know.
In the Scriptures we are told,
Psalms 45:2 (NIV) "You are the most excellent
of men and your lips have been anointed with grace, since God has blessed you
forever."
Luke 4:22 (NIV) "All spoke well of him and
were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips…
Luke 4:32 (NIV) "They were amazed at his
teaching, because his message had authority."
John 7:46 (NIV) ""No one ever spoke the way
this man [Jesus] does,"…
Indeed, Jesus of
Nazareth was the greatest orator who ever lived, for His words change
countless lives for good and God, and His words to this day have the same life
altering effect to those who listen to Him. Now in light of that I want to
take you to what I believe is the most difficult task and calling any human
being will ever face. For the words of Jesus were designed to create
confrontation and change in the hearts of His hearers. Let me read a portion
of Scripture I'm particularly referring to, so you too might face these
unadulterated words head on and respond in kind. I open my Bible to Mark's
Gospel chapter eight and read verses 34-38…
Mark 8:34-38 (NIV) "Then [Jesus] called the
crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after
me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35 For whoever
wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for
the gospel will save it. 36 What good is it for a man to gain the whole world,
yet forfeit his soul? 37 Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? 38
If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful
generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his
Father's glory with the holy angels.""
Here stand
through the centuries the most difficult task and calling any human being
saved or unsaved can ever face. It is the call to total sacrifice and
surrender -- of our minds, our hearts, our will and even our physical life!
These words Jesus spoke to saints and sinners alike. The "crowd" was surely
composed of every variety of people of His day, and yet Jesus' universal call
went out. This call was actually something that no being could answer from a
human point of view. Here the Lord Jesus was first asking those who followed
Him, to consider there is a price to pay for true discipleship. Jesus knew
that the crowds were following Him only because of the miracles, and that most
of the people were unwilling to pay the price to become true disciples.
So Jesus lays
down three conditions for following Him: The first is (1) we must surrender
ourselves completely to Him; the second, (2) we must identify with Him in
suffering and death; and the third, (3) we must follow Him obediently,
wherever He leads.
However if we
don’t meet these conditions, and we live for ourselves, we will lose the true
and rewarding value and purpose of life; but, if we meet these conditions, we
will find the true and meaningful value of life itself.
Here we see that
Jesus was no deceiver. He didn’t hold back the truth as unpalatable as it
might have been to the minds of men. He called for followers to join Him and
He frankly told them there were costs. Indeed, the honesty of great leaders
has always been one of their sterling characteristics. During WW II, when Sir
Winston Churchill, became the Prime Minister of England, all he could offer
the people under severe attack by the Germans was "blood, toil, tears and
sweat." Jesus more than Churchill, and all the world's great leaders, was not
one who deceived those who followed Him. He never sought to lure men and women
by phony offers of an easy and profitable way. He "sought to challenge them
and awaken the sleeping chivalry in their souls." The Bible shows us Jesus
came not to make life comfortable and easy, but to make men and women great in
the eyes of God! It is here in these passages and call to His followers that
the Lord Jesus Christ, the Creator of the universe, made this humanly
impossible request!
Yes, I was a
request that He Himself was not asking of them alone, for He was going to lead
them in the very same way Himself. What Christ demanded of His followers then
and us now, the Lord Jesus was personally willing to face first. So then,
let's examine portions of these passages Jesus spoke thousands of years ago,
and see how they apply to us today.
First of all,
Jesus' call and request brought His hears to a strange paradox. We read in,
Mark 8:35 (NIV) "For whoever wants to save his
life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will
save it."
There are
certain things lost in life, by reason of trying to keep them. For instance, I
think of a Christian’s gifts and talents. God grants to every human being some
particular talent and after they are saved from their sins, spiritual
supernatural gifts and abilities -- something that you can not only do well
far above others, but in your doing it, will bring you and others great joy.
Yes, every true believer in Jesus Christ is given special gifts along with
life’s talents so you would use them for others and give them that joy, hope
and help along life’s way. If you use them as such, they will develop and grow
in you, but if you refuse to use them and share them with others, it will
wither on the vine of life and in the end you will lose them and the rewards
God intended them to bring you.
In the same
manner, life is exactly like that! Jesus here was referring to the fact that
every man and woman is given the gift of life, and this life is ours to share
with others. If we keep it to ourselves, and never share our love, care, our
gifting and abilities with others, we become the most miserable and selfish of
beings. But here the Lord Jesus goes further than just talking about general
living of life. He was speaking specifically to believers who had followed
Him. Their following entailed more than just head knowledge, or a half-hearted
acceptance of Him as their Savior. This was a genuine call to “discipleship”
for every follower of the Lamb of God. All who would confess Christ as their
Savior were also to acknowledge Him as their Lord.
Now, I don't
want to get into the "Lordship Salvation" issue which I believe is no issue at
all. For I believe both sides of the conflict are saying almost the same
thing, for each is looking at the flip side of the same coin. Here in this
text of Mark 8:34-38, Jesus was explaining to those who chose to follow Him
what it would essentially cost them. Thus, to be a real genuine Christian, one
had to be willing to give up even his or her own preferences for life; if and
when God’s particular call would come to them to do it. For the disciples who
became apostles, that call came early, and the giving of their lives even
later unto death completed this call. But for most of us, this call simply
means giving of our lives not in death, but in "life," to be lived fully for
the pleasure of Jesus.
Say friend, are
you a professing Christian? If so, have you faced these compelling words of
your Savior, the Lord Jesus? Have you truly surrendered your life to Him to be
used as He might call? Are you living today fully for Him, serving Him, and
loving Him?
You see, the
Lord has no place for alternate gods, or loves in the lives of those who
follow Him. It's all or nothing, if you want to have an intimate fellowship,
great power and abundant grace of God to fill and occupy your life. How sad,
so many Christians remain in the crowds, and do not step forward and say
"yes," Lord I will follow You at whatever cost, and serve you fully till my
days on earth are over. For those who do, the Lord has a special intimacy, an
increased measure of peace, joy and inner happiness and great reward in
eternity waiting for you.
Well after Jesus
spoke these words, the crowd became silent. They knew what He was talking
about and they "knew" they had not made such a commitment! Yet, God wants us
all to know He gave us life not to keep and spend upon ourselves, but to spend
it for Him and for His glory! But if we keep it and spend it on ourselves,
such a life in the end becomes a bitter pill to swallow and a lonely one at
that.
So there you
have it! Every follower of Christ must step forward from the crowds and fully
commit their entire life to loving and following the Lord Jesus. For all who
do there is never a disappointment or regret. You know just thinking about it,
I've never met a missionary, pastor, or committed Christian who fully devoted
and gave his or her life for Christ, who in the end of their days regretted
doing so. Paul the great apostle knew the rewards for losing his life for
Christ when he said,
2 Timothy 4:6-8 (NIV) "For I am already being
poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7 I
have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8
Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the
righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me, but also to
all who have longed for his appearing."
Indeed, Paul and
literally thousands of others down through the centuries have learned and
experienced that true life, abundant life can only come when we are willing to
surrender our all to God through Christ. Have you listening friend, or are you
like most a bit scared? Do you think you'll lose something of temporal value,
which will be regretted? Oh, trust the Lord, and remember He gave you life to
begin with, and offers you His eternal life to live and be with Him forever.
Will He not give you the greatest satisfaction and joy as a result?
Lastly, the Lord
Jesus did not leave off speaking only to His followers who had trusted Him, He
then spoke the most difficult words to the "unsaved" crowd. Listen to the
words that cut to every sinner's heart that day,
Mark 8:36-37 (NIV) "What good is it for a man
to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? 37 Or what can a man give in
exchange for his soul?"
Many years ago
before I was saved, I was an Account Executive in an advertising business
firm. I worked hard at it and had just received a prestigious award in the
business for being the "salesman of the year" in the Tampa Bay area of Florida
where I lived. This award I shared with a salesman friend named "Frank." Frank
was an extremely tall and handsome man. He towered over me, although I am
tall myself. Frank was 6'7". He was a successful charming man, and had the
physique of a well tuned body builder. Financially, he had achieved a measure
of success in life and had what the world would say, was "everything he
wanted." Now, I had tried to witness about Jesus Christ to Frank for months
prior to this award, but after hours the next day at work, after receiving the
awards, I sat in his office and again talked to him about his need for Christ.
I reminded Frank of the words of the Lord Jesus,
Mark 8:36-37 (NIV) "What good is it for a man
to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? 37 Or what can a man give in
exchange for his soul?"
Well, I left the
office to go home for the evening and the next day, when Frank appeared, he
had the biggest smile and peaceful look on him I had ever seen. I said, Frank
what happened you look so happy? He said, " I gave my life to Christ during
the night and now I am so relieved and at peace inside." “I struggled with
those words Jesus spoke and about losing my soul, so I turned on the radio for
a bit and a Christian program came on that spoke the same words. I listened
and then knew what was troubling me and missing in my life. I needed Jesus
Christ, so I prayed for the forgiveness of my sins, and for Christ to take
over my life.” I smiled and said, Yes, I know that feeling, and thank God you
have come to the same joy and blessing every Christian down through the ages
has too.
Well I don't
know where Frank is now, that moment’s been almost thirty years ago, but if he
truly surrendered his heart to Christ, I will see him again one day in
eternity and we will enjoy the abundance of eternal life together forever and
ever. Say friend how about you? Do you know Christ personally by a commitment
of your heart and life? I'm not asking if you attend church and believe in
God. You know, the Bible says the "devils believe and tremble." We must do
more than mentally assent to the existence of Christ. We must as Jesus calls,
"lose our lives for His sake, so we might find it." I found it, and millions
of others have too in Christ. His fellowship is sweet, and His love is
forever.
Yet nothing in
the world is worth the cost of securing it at the expense of losing our souls.
No amount of money earned or amassed, no power or fame can ever substitute as
an adequate exchange for forfeiting our lives for eternity. As such, we all
face this task and calling of deciding whose life will be lived in you. Will
it be Jesus Christ in you, or will it be yourself alone? How have you
responded? Are you tricked to believe this temporal life, its pleasures and
allurements are worth losing your soul in Hell for eternity? The Bible makes
it clear there is no neutral ground where you can have both. It's either we
seek the world and all that is perishing, or we wholeheartedly seek Christ.
The choice is yours as it was for this crowd that stood around Jesus that day
long ago. Choose you this day whom you will serve. Be it the world and self,
and lose your soul for all eternity or Jesus Christ and gain the glory and
goodness of God that will be yours forever and ever.
So then, how
important it is that we see our lives as gifts from God to be used for His
glory? Whatever we give back to the Lord and use for Him, will never be lost.
But what we keep, or bury away and try to preserve for ourselves, will one day
be lost and bring shame and regret. Consider these words of Jesus Christ as
His to you today my friend, and then make your choice. I trust you will follow
Jesus wholeheartedly, that you will fully surrender your life afresh to Him
and that you enter His inexplicable joy and blessing of intimate fellowship.
Such is His offer now and forever to all who seek Him. Well friend, may God
grant you the right choice, and may you come to a new and meaningful
relationship with Christ, the Savior of the world. In Him, through Him and by
Him we can have life more abundantly now and forevermore. Amen.
