Travel Tips for a Tough Trip

Good evening everyone. First of all let me say thank you for everyone for your many prayers

and encouragement and support over the past few months. Phoebe has arrived which was fabulous

and is fabulous and she's going fairly strong. She's in a tank thing but she's breathing on her

on her own so apart from the tank thing she's breathing on her own so we're and she's getting

stronger the doctor's very happy with her and all going well so thank you for that really appreciate

it. Let's pray. Gracious God thank you for your word we thank you for your many promises to us

Lord we pray that as we look at discipleship tonight what it means to follow you I pray

Father that you would encourage us that you would challenge us particularly over the next couple of

weeks as we walk with Jesus to Jerusalem as as we see what it means to follow him Lord I pray that

you would you would help us to understand it with clarity in a way that the disciples didn't understand

it so Lord that we might truly be your disciples challenge us we pray rebuke us we pray that you

would change us and encourage us as your people amen. It was December 2000 and Natalie and I had been

planning to go on a holiday to the UK it was the first time that we'd been overseas and it was kind

of one of those things we had been planning it for you know six months or something like that and

we'd planned every contingency. We'd spoken to a number of people who had been to places like the UK

and so they gave us all the bits of advice and we wrote all the advice down and covered all our bases

so we had everything covered we organized our passports we had clothing for every kind of

weather contingency in the UK both cold and freezing we we had medication for every known disease

that we may potentially pick up on the way we had pre-booked accommodation put cars

tours I think even meals I think we'd pre-booked basically everything we had we figured we had

everything we were so you know had all the pamphlets and books and we you know our bags were just

completely loaded we're so looking forward to this and you know we had it all prepared and I was we're

flying out on a Sunday afternoon and so I decided I would preach and do services that Sunday morning

and then left church and went straight to the airport and so I arrived at the airport we're excited we're happy

booked in and all that sort of stuff and we got to the back of the plane and which is where we were seated

right at the very back of the plane and I sat down and then I went oh no I'm not ready for this

I had it was the first time that it dawned on me that it's a long way from Australia to the UK

and I got to sit in this plane and that guy there is too close to me and that seat is too close to me

and there are too many people too close to me and I got I realized however that there was a map on the

back of the plane on the back of the seat and so I watched the map basically all the way to the edge

of Australia and so it was like five hours and I got on the plane I didn't have a change of clothes

I didn't have a book I had I had nothing I literally walked out except for my sermon notes

is all I had I hopped on this plane and I got to Singapore and it was like is there any other way

to get to London than to get back on that plane I'm just not ready for this I just this is this is I

mean we have we're not even halfway there yet and I've got to get back on this plane and fly the rest of

the way it was yeah I got to say it was probably the worst travel experience of my life I just had

not at all mentally prepared I prepared everything else it was down there in the dungeon the plane

somewhere but I had not actually mentally prepared for the actual trip at all and and I just fidgeted and

I whinged and I complained all the way I didn't sleep a wink all the way and this guy beside me wanted

to talk for most of the way it was mind-boggling I said to that I got to the UK and I said look if we

can book a boat home that would be fantastic I love the boat dates what we're about to embark on here

is a journey that Jesus is beginning with his disciples and it's a journey that we have to prepare for

it's a journey that we have to be clearly prepared for because Jesus talks about it in the end of

that verse 62 he talks about fickle following he talks about fickle following he wants to make it

very clear what we are to expect if we're going to be his disciples and follow him and he says this in

verse 62 no one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God

what Jesus is saying is you want the good stuff you want heaven but you're ready for the trip

are you ready for the trip to get there because we can have this idea of heaven and the trip's going

to be like heaven as well and Jesus said guys it's not quite like that this is the most significant

turning point in Luke's gospel we've seen the great things that Jesus has done we've seen his

compassion for the lost and we've seen his authority over all that is and now it says in chapter 9 verse 51

having just moments before had Peter's confession that you are the Christ and God himself saying

this is my son whom I will please it's quite clear who Jesus is now what does it mean to follow this

Jesus and so in 951 it says Jesus said his face for Jerusalem that's what it literally means he

resolutely set out for Jerusalem he said his face for Jerusalem and so we are about to embark on this trip

with Jesus let's turn however to chapter 19 because in chapter 19 we get the end of the trip

where Jesus is just about to arrive so Luke chapter 19 it's the last week of his life and Jesus says this

Luke 19 · chapter mention

in verse 37 when he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives the whole crowd of

disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen blessed is the

king who comes in the name of the Lord peace in heaven and glory in the highest it needed to be said

as Jesus arrived at Jerusalem it needed to be said blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord

Jesus said it had to be said the Pharisees and the teachers of the Lord said Jesus tell your disciples to

shut up and Jesus said if they do not speak that which is true the stones would speak it it had to be

said the king has arrived I like to think of our worship in this age as a rehearsal for the age to come

I like to think that as we gather week after week that that's what we're thinking as we come to church and

worship it's a rehearsal of that which is to come in the age when we are gathered around the throne

one day we who by God's grace have been faithful to the Lord are going to stand with innumerable

millions of believers from Bangladesh and Poland and Egypt and the United States and Iceland and Cameroon

and Ecuador and Burma and Borneo and Japan and thousands of tribes and peoples and languages

all purified by Christ with palms of praise in their hand and when we raise those palms of praise in salute to our King Jesus

he will see almost an endless field of green shimmering with life and pulsating with praise

and then like the sound of a thousand choruses we will sing our song of salvation while the mighty Christ with heartfelt love

looks out over those whom he has brought with his own blood

that is the future that is the worship that we are in rehearsal for right now

but as Jesus approached Jerusalem

if he had taken his throne on that day at Jerusalem

none of us would be robed in white

none of us would be waving palms of praise

in the age to come

there had to be a cross

and this is what the disciples had not yet understood

so back in chapter 9

flick back to Luke 9

as Jesus resolutely sets out for Jerusalem from Galilee

he tried to explain this to his disciples

in verse 22 of chapter 9 he said

the son of man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders

the chief priests and the teachers of the law

he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life

and then in verse 44 he says to them

listen carefully to what I'm about to tell you

I mean you should pick up at that point

the son of man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men

but verse 45 tells us

they did not understand what this meant

it was hidden from them

so they did not grasp it

and they were afraid to ask him about it

you see clearly their understanding of Jesus' last journey

to Jerusalem was actually flawed

they saw him as a king who was moving in to take control

and he was

but they could not grasp that the victory that Jesus would win in Jerusalem

was over sin and Satan and death

and all the enemies of righteousness and joy

and that this victory would be won through his own horrible suffering and death

and that the kingdom which they thought was going to be established immediately

was going to take thousands of years

to be established

and their misunderstanding of Jesus' journey to Jerusalem

resulted in a misunderstanding of what it meant for them to be disciples of Jesus

this is why this is so important for us to see

lest we make the same mistake as those disciples

in Luke chapter 9 verse 51 to 56

Luke 9:51–56

we learn how not to understand Jesus' arrival in Jerusalem

as the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven

Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem

to resolutely set out is to set his face towards

to doggedly, stubbornly, determinedly

head for Jerusalem

and it meant something very different for the disciples

than it did for Jesus

you can actually see the visions of greatness

that danced around in the disciples' minds at this point

verse 46

an argument started amongst the disciples

as to which of them would be the greatest

it's like Jesus, we're almost there

another week and we're going to be there sort of stuff

we're going to be in Jerusalem

you're going to be king

and let's fight over who's going to be foreign minister

and deputy prime minister

and you know

who's going to be the greatest in your kingdom

Jesus

because Jerusalem and glory

were just around the corner

for the disciples

oh what it would mean for them

when Jesus took his throne

but Jesus had another vision in his head

and one wonders frankly

how he carried it for so long

and alone

here's what Jerusalem meant for Jesus

Luke chapter 13 verse 33

Luke 13:33

in any case

I must keep going today

and tomorrow

and the next day

for surely no prophet can die

outside Jerusalem

Jerusalem meant one thing for Jesus

certain death

and he was under no illusions

as to whether it was going to be a quick death

or a heroic death

he pointed out in chapter 18 of Luke

verse 31 onwards

we are going up to Jerusalem

and everything that is written by the prophets

about the son of man will be fulfilled

he will be turned over to the Gentiles

they will mock him

insult him

spit on him

flog him

and kill him

when Jesus

set his face to go to Jerusalem

he set his face to die

so he sets out

and he says in chapter 9 verse 52

he sent messengers on ahead

who went into a Samaritan village

to get things ready for him

but the people there did not welcome him

because he was heading for Jerusalem

it doesn't really matter

whether his rejection

is because Jesus

and his companions were Jews

and the Samaritans hated Jews

or whether the rejection

is a more personal rejection

because they didn't want Jesus

being their Messiah

that what matters for this story

is simply that Jesus

is already being rejected

and then what happens is

this focus shifts from Jesus

to the disciples

and their response

and especially the response

of James and John

you see it there in verse 54

they said to Jesus

Lord

do you want us to call down fire

from heaven to destroy them

you get a glimpse here

why Jesus called these guys

the sons of thunder

and you know frankly

I can imagine being there

I can imagine saying it

you know Jesus

do you want me to whip the guns out

you know come on Jesus

you know we're on our way to victory

nothing can stop us now

let's let the fire fall Jesus

let the judgment begin

oh Jesus how Jerusalem

is going to tremble

when they see us coming Jesus

let's get on with the business

right now

and Jesus turns to them

and rebukes them

in verse 55

and they simply went

to another village

those couple of verses

help us to see

that a mistaken view

of Jesus journey

to Jerusalem

can lead to a mistaken view

of what it means

to be his disciple

if Jesus had come

to execute judgment

and take up

an earthly rule

then it would make sense

for the sons of thunder

to launch missiles

at this Samaritan village

but if Jesus had come

not to judge

but to save

then a radically different

form of discipleship

is required

and so here is the question

I think that this passage

is asking every believer

does discipleship mean

deploying God's missiles

against the enemy

in righteous indignation

or does discipleship mean

following him

on the Calvary road

which leads to suffering

and death

the answer in the whole

New Testament

is that the surprise

about Jesus the Messiah

is that he came

to live

a sacrificial

dying service

before he comes

a second time

to reign

in glory

and the surprise

about discipleship

is that it demands

a like of sacrificial

dying service

before we reign

with him

in glory

what James and John

had to learn

and what we must learn

too

is that Jesus'

journey to Jerusalem

to die

is our journey

to Jerusalem

to die as well

there are certainly

those that view it

as the exact opposite

that since Jesus

suffered so much

and died in our place

therefore we are free

to go straight

to the head of the class

we skip all the exams

he suffered

so that I could have

comfort

he died so that

I could live

he bore abuse

so that I could be

esteemed

he gave up all the

treasures in heaven

so that I could build

up treasures in earth

he brought the kingdom

and paid for our entrance

and now we live in it

with all its earthly

privileges

but that goes against

the plain teaching

of the Bible

even the plain teaching

the context here

Luke chapter 9

Luke 9:23

verse 23

and 24

Jesus says

if anyone

would come after me

he must deny himself

take up his cross

daily and follow me

whoever wants to save

his life will lose it

but whoever loses

his life for me

will save it

friends what I'm saying

here is that

when Jesus

resolutely set out

for Jerusalem

to walk that

Calvary road

he was not merely

just taking our place

he was setting

our pattern

he's not just

our substitute

he's actually

our pace setter

if we seek

to secure

our life

through returning

evil for evil

or surrounding

ourselves with luxury

in the face

of human need

this passage says

we will lose

our life

we can only

save our life

if we follow

Christ on the

Calvary road

Jesus

died

to save us

from the power

and punishment

of sin

not from the

suffering

and sacrifices

of simplicity

for love's sake

Jesus

died to save us

from the power

and punishment

of sin

not from the

suffering

and sacrifices

of simplicity

for love's sake

and so

verses 56

to 62

are Jesus

way of correcting

the misconception

of discipleship

the misconception

of all the

glories of

discipleship

that James

and John

had

three times

here in

these passages

these verses

we see the

word follow

to describe

what it means

to be his

disciple

verse 57

I will follow

you

verse 59

follow me

and verse 61

I will follow

you

the point is

that being

a disciple

of Jesus

is more than

just learning

about Jesus

it's actually

following Jesus

where Jesus

goes

and as it

says in Luke

Luke 14:27

14

verse 27

whoever does

not bear

his own

cross

and come

after me

cannot be

my disciple

when Jesus

says these

words

follow me

he says

it in the

context of

having just

been rejected

at Samaria

as he said

his face

to go to

Jerusalem

and so

just for a

moment

I want to

dwell on

those words

those two

little words

follow

me

and if

you're dozing

off at all

right now

you need to

tune into

this bit

follow

me

follow

me

what I

want you

to do

tonight

after church

is go

home

pick up

your Bible

turn to

Luke chapter

Luke 9 · chapter mention

9

and you

dwell

on those

two words

you hover

over them

you meditate

on them

you read

them

you think

about them

you incline

your heart

to them

you ask

God to

pray

you pray

to God

ask him

to bend

your heart

to understand

those words

follow me

follow me

follow me

until they

burn

until they

burn

deep in

your heart

and in

your mind

and if

they're not

burning deep

in your heart

and in

your mind

you read

them again

you ponder

you meditate

you think

you pray

you ponder

you meditate

you think

you pray

again

and again

and again

until they

burn

deep

in your

heart

because my

guess is

for most of

us

we read

those versus

and we skip straight over them.

Follow me, follow me, follow me.

And they are so significant.

They reveal two things.

They reveal a person and they reveal a path.

They reveal Jesus, they reveal his mission.

They reveal a sweetness and they reveal a suffering.

When Jesus responded the way he did

to these three would-be followers,

he was teaching that the Calvary Road through Jerusalem

would be a hard road

and would require personal sacrifices.

And he was testing, testing, testing

to see if he, the me in the follow me,

was their greatest treasure.

There are two things happening here.

Firstly, Jesus is offering himself

for our fellowship and our friendship

and our partnership.

Just think about that.

This is the me bit.

This is the me of the follow me.

The creator of the universe,

the king of kings, the lord of lords,

the one who upholds everything

by the power of his word,

the one who is from everlasting to everlasting,

that's mind-boggling in of itself,

born of a virgin, the holy one of God,

perfect in obedience, triumphant over sin

and death and hell and demons.

In him are hidden all the treasures

of knowledge and wisdom.

And this Jesus, this me,

says follow me.

Me.

Me.

Do you get who's saying follow me

on this Calvary Road?

The significance of those words.

And the second thing that Jesus is doing here

is testing us.

Testing us

that if

this

is in actual fact

enough.

In other words,

he's testing us.

Do you know

who's calling you

to follow him?

Is it enough

to have Jesus?

Is it enough

to be satisfied

in him?

Is he your treasure,

your joy,

your security,

your hope,

your friend

in times of loneliness,

your home,

your father,

your mother,

your power

to look straight ahead

rather than to be turned aside

in fickleness

of discipleship?

When Jesus says

follow me,

he wants us

to be satisfied

in him

and not to be satisfied

in our homes,

our furniture,

the security system

which keeps it safe,

the manicured garden,

the climate controlled atmosphere,

the cockroach,

mouse free,

ant free,

fully automated kitchen,

not even the cosy comfort

of the bedroom

where we lay down

our head at night

and cuddle up

under a doona

because the son of man

has no place

to lay his head.

No place to lay his head.

He wants to know

are we satisfied

in him?

In him.

We don't need to make

these words

any harder

than they are.

Jesus isn't saying

there will never be

a time

when you will have

a bed

or a pillow

or a roof.

Jesus is not saying

that one of the criteria

of being his disciple

is that we must sleep

standing up

but it has

something to say.

It has something

to say about

how many beds

and how many pillows

and how many rooms

and how many doonas

we have.

It has something

to say

about how many

places we've invested

in to lay

our head,

how much comfort

and luxury

that we seek

to surround

ourselves with.

It has got something

to say about that.

Brothers and sisters,

we're 16,000

people groups

in this world

still waiting

to hear the gospel

and millions

of children

and people

starving

through no fault

of their own

and many people

in our own country

hard pressed

because of jobliness

and just emptiness

of the soul.

It is inconceivable

that a disciple

of Jesus Christ

can go right on

pursuing the great

Australian dream.

What excites me

so much

is when I see

Christians

who have

an alternative

dream,

a dream

of breaking

loose

from the shackles

of this

self-serving

consumer

culture

in which we live,

a dream

of doing

something radical,

something

radically loving

with your house,

something radically

loving with your

portfolio,

something radically

loving with your

income,

something radically

loving with your

free evenings

or mornings

or afternoons

or weekends

or something

radically loving

with your job.

Some of us

have discovered

such wonderful

freedom from

the love of

things,

but some of us

are yet to

discover it.

Likewise,

Jesus isn't

saying here,

it will always

be wrong to go

to your dad's

funeral.

The point is

that Jesus

Christ is

absolute

and all

other allegiances

are relative

to that.

That's the point

Jesus is making

here.

Jesus isn't

trying to

create a bunch

of laws

that all

disciples have

to keep.

This is where

we get bogged

down so much.

We fight

over,

thou shalt

not give

all your money

or thou shalt

not have a bed

or thou shalt

not go to

your dad's

funeral.

And we forget

about the

me,

who it is

that's called

us to follow

him.

We get so

caught up in

the follow

bit and we

forget about

it's me,

the me that's

called us

to follow

him.

The point of

this whole

passage is Jesus

sets out to

Jerusalem

is that he

knows our

idols.

He knows

it.

He knows

perfectly

what is

competing

in your

heart

with

affection

for him.

He knows

it.

It's why

he raises

the question

in verse

62 about

fickle

following.

It's the

danger of

indecisive

discipleship.

No one

after putting

his hand

to the

plough

and looking

back is

fit for

the kingdom

of God.

In other

words,

you can't

plough in a

straight line

if you're

looking behind

you.

No, I

know it.

I come

from the

country.

I've

tried it.

You

cannot

serve

Christ.

You

cannot

make

Jesus

look great

to this

world if

you're

always

second

guessing

whether

or not

he's

worth

following

and

trusting.

Looking

back

means

longing

back.

It

means we

are not

really

sure if

he's

worth

following.

It's

having a

divided

heart

and James

says that

the double

minded person

is unstable

in all

they do.

Friends,

tonight

Jesus

is coming

to us

through

his word

and he's

looking

in our

faces

and he's

looking

straight to

our hearts

and I

want to

say please

let him

do it.

Please

let him

do it.

Let him

mess with

your heart.

Let him

mess with

your heart.

Let these

words

follow me

burn.

Burn

deep

within you

until you

burn for

a passion

for his

glory.

Burn

for a

passion

for his

kingdom.

Jesus

is worthy,

he is

worth

following

even

through

Jerusalem,

even to

the cross

and from

there

to all

the nations

of the

world.

Yes,

he died

just outside

of Jerusalem

but it's

not bad

news.

His

death

is our

life

and so

follow

him.

Follow

him.

sh

고�

him.