The Death of Comfort

So I'm reading my Bible today and was reignited by a wonderful chapter of scripture - Luke 9. Now i've read Luke many times before, but today - as i was reading - i found myself saying, 'That is deep!' or 'That makes so much sense!' over and over again. I'd find one verse and say, 'i should blog on this' and then find another and say the same thing. It's definitely worth a glance if you've been wanting to read the Bible and unable to know where to start. Take a minute and read through chapter nine and see what you think. For me, today, i want to just take four verses and let them melt into my soul for a second. They are verses 23-26.

"Then he (Jesus) said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self ? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels."

These four verses are filled with key slogans of the Christian faith like 'deny yourself' or 'take up your cross' or 'gain the world yet forfeit your soul', but what amazed me was how they were all wrapped up in this pretty little package of Jesus. They are there - one after another - in a discourse that is taking place immediately after Peter's declaration that Jesus is the Messiah and Jesus' declaration of what would happen in the days to come - His death and resurrection. Then, when all the cards have been laid on the table and there is no longer any question of the purpose or plan of Jesus or God, Jesus brings some sound advice and challenging words. These words are as true to us as believers today as they were for the first disciples who sat at Jesus' feet and listened to them. Let's break them down a little and look at these different thoughts.

If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow me: This has been commentized to death, but is way too important to overlook. Jesus is saying, 'The choice is yours and if you choose to come after me there is a MUST that's gonna follow. This isn't a suggestion. This isn't a recommendation. This is a mandatory requirement. You must take us your cross every day and follow me.' Please understand that a cross was not a cute necklace or a chiseled penny to keep in your pocket - but a device used for torture and death. And honestly, in our culture, the sheer reality of denying yourself is in itself a form of torture. The reality of not getting what you WANT in order to give someone else what they NEED is torture. The idea that we are not our own world and that the entire cosmos does not rotate on our axis is torture. The concept that God would ever have us do something that would hurt - whether our flesh or our pocketbook - is torture. However, this is His call to his disciples and one which we must take seriously in our lives today.

For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it: You cannot read that verse without thinking about martyrdom, but i believe it is so much more than this. It ties in perfectly with the idea of denial and cross carrying. It is making the decision that life desperately needs to be about more than just you. It is coming to the realization that there is a world out there that is so much bigger than just 'us' and that God has a job for us to do in it. I heard a saying once than really spoke to my heart and it went like this, 'I'd rather be someplace very scary and dangerous, not having a guarantee of daily food or security over a safe home in a safe neighborhood with a safe job, if i knew that it was where God wanted me to be. I'll trade security for God's will any day of the week.' This willingness makes the difference. Will God call all of us to become actual martyrs? Maybe not in the death of our flesh, but always in the death of our comfort.

What good is it for a man to gain the whole world and yet lose, or forfeit, his very self: The idea here runs in the opposite direction of the Western mandate. Aren't we called to gain the whole world? Aren't we called to harness ambition and allow it to make positive steps in our nation which not only help our pocketbooks, but the standard of living of all Americans? However, we can't forget that we were created by God with a purpose - a specific purpose - which may not always link up with what our thoughts on 'success' may be. Jesus is letting it be known, that there is a possibility that you could have everything this world (kosmos) has to offer and still miss it. And when we forfeit the perfect plan of God for the 'kosmos' which surrounds us, the Bible tells us that we are destroying or doing damage to our very selves. Tying in with the last point - the perfect place for us to be is in the perfect will of God. No matter how scary it seems. No matter how dangerous it looks. No matter how uncomfortable it is. There is a perfect place for you to be.

Now you have to ask yourself, 'Am I there now or have i deviated off the path because it was too difficult... too scary... too unsure?' If you know you're not there, it's not too late. I'm reminded of Jonah who spent some time in an unlikely place thinking about the uncomfortable place where he had to go. Let's turn back today and not wait for that 'big fish' experience. Hear the voice of God whispering to your soul today and respond...

Grace and Peace!

GP
www.gphintz.com