How to Get Eternal Life-Part 5

Transcript

08-16 How to Get Eternal Life – Part 5
How to Get Eternal Life – Part 5
Why It’s All Worth It

Sometimes as I drive down Aliso Viejo Parkway I glance over and see all these people in the gym running and sweating and working so hard. Sometimes when I’m stuck in traffic on the 405 up there by the airport I look over in that big glass wall that fancy gym over there. I think what are you guys doing in there? Looks so painful. I mean they’re all haaaaa – what are you doing? why would you do that? I ask the question that is until I see myself in a photo with one of them and realize I’m taking up much more of the picture than they are. See cause I realize they know they know why they’re there. They get it. They know why they’re going to the gym every morning or every afternoon. They have that goal in mind, that perspective. They’ve got a whole different mind set than me as I’m reaching across to the passenger seat for my box of Chee-settes. I get it. We’ve got totally two different priorities.

You know I’m sure the rich young ruler as he glanced over to that transient band of disciples – former fisherman and a couple of tax collectors thrown in – Luke 9 says with no place to lay their head. I’m sure he looked at those guys and said why would anybody want to live like that. Why do those guys do that? What’s with that? That sure looks like a lot of work. I know that when he was offered a position among the band of disciples. To be a part of this team where he was a follower of Christ and God was going to be his God, he said, no thank you. I mean not if it’s going to cost me that. I’m not interested if it’s going to be that tough and he walked away. Unlike some who read Matthew 19 carelessly, we’ve tried to read it with it’s intent in mind. I mean we’ve tried to get all of scriptures insight as we kind of look and approach this passage. If you have your Bibles turn there one more time to Luke (?) {Matthew} 19. I just want to make sure that we’re not careless even with that introduction in thinking that this is some kind of ingredients for varsity Christianity. That this is kind of the path for kind of that second level Christianity where the real committed Christians live and then the rest of us normal Christians well we can hang out over here and it’ll be OK. Take a look at it one more time.

Let’s start at the beginning and just glance through the passage we’ve been studying for the last four weeks when it says in verse 16, good teacher. Now a man comes up to Jesus and asks, teacher what good thing must I do to get eternal life? That’s the topic on the table and it hasn’t changed after the very unorthodox and approach to evangelism, verse 23, Jesus turns to his disciples and says I tell you the truth it’s hard for a rich man – now underline it, here’s what it means to get eternal life – to enter the kingdom of heaven. We’re not talking about second level Christianity. That’s like Christianity 101 – I want to go to heaven. Verse 24, I tell you again it is easier to cram a big stinky animal like a camel through the eye of a sewing needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. This is entrance stuff, not second level stuff. When the disciples heard this they were greatly astonished and they asked who then can be a super duper Christian. Is that what is says? No. Who could be saved? It’s about salvation. How do I get eternal life? Well at the end of all that Peter says in verse 27 after Christ says it’s not only difficult it’s impossible and Peter goes we’ve done the impossible. We’ve made God our God. We’re followers of Christ. We’ll do whatever you say. It’s anything, anyplace anytime for us. I mean you’re our God. We’ve repented of our sin and our path and we’re trusting fully in you. You’re our leader. You’re our savior. What’s there going to be for us then? Well let’s get through all the details. We’ll get to those, but the bottom line answer. Jesus starts the answer in verse 28 and the end of the answer, verse 29, we’re still back to the initial question. If that’s going to be the issue for you Peter well then you will inherit eternal life. I didn’t say earn it. Big difference between earning and inheriting. Right? Did you ever receive an inheritance? You don’t earn those things. An inheritance comes to you by virtue of your birth – birthright. It is what you get because you’re in a family. You inherit eternal life, you don’t earn it. Leaving everything to follow God, and we tried to make this super clear through this series it’s not some kind of works salvation. This is all about grace, but you come on his terms, and Christ’s terms aren’t well you can have other Gods and I’ll just kind of go along for the ride and give you eternal life. This is a full life exchange. My life for his. His life for mine. And Peter says, what are we going to get? That guy wasn’t willing to make you his leader. He wasn’t willing to let God be God. He wasn’t willing to repent of his path for yours. He wasn’t willing to trust you. What will there be for us? Well, you’ll get eternal life. More than that, let’s get the whole answer. Verse 28, Jesus said, I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things {he gets their minds not thinking future – long time future}, when the Son o f Man sits on his glorious throne, and that was kind of a joke at that point. Because we’d already learned Jesus is an itinerant rabbi going from place to place. He doesn’t own anything. He doesn’t have any animals. He’s got to borrow an animal to ride into Jerusalem down the road. He’s telling his would be disciples, well you know I’ve got no place to lay my head. You’re going to sit on a glorious throne? Yeah, the Son of Man is going to be exalted to the throne. He’s going to be kind. And I just want to let you know, you who followed me, and that’s uh, he’s looking specifically to the twelve, well minus one and plus one later. That’s another sermon. There was one not really following, just along for the ride. That was Judas. But those of you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, well that’s a joke too because they’ve got nothing, judging the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is not Judge Whapner or Judge Judy, right? Judging the tribes of Israel, that’s administrative, that the president, you’re the king, you’re the governor. You’re going to be vassals. You’re going to be leading on my behalf, by proxy. You’re going to be governors in this kingdom. Oh, unless you think this is just about twelve guys, he says in verse 29, everyone whose left houses or brothers or sisters, or father or mother or children or fields for my sake. If the following of Christ has impinged on any of these things that you love. Any of these things that you’ve said I’m not going to let these be gods in my life. Well you just need to know you will receive a hundred times as much and you’ll inherit eternal life. And then this mysterious statement in verse 30, but many who are first will be last and many who are last will be first.

More on that in a minute, but let’s start at the end of verse 29. Inheriting eternal life and all that goes with that. When Peter say there and watched the rich young ruler walk away and then he thought about his own sacrifice to follow Christ he’s thinking well what about us. And the answer is Jesus is trying to say don’t sweat the sacrifice because you get eternal life. And you and I as we think about this. Following Christ, well this is kind of a high bar, this is kind of tough, there’s a sacrifice involved – anything, anyplace, anytime – that’s tough Christianity. I don’t know. Is it worth it? Yeah, it’s worth it. You get eternal life. Number One on your outline you and I need to be motivated by that. We need to be motivated by the fact that we get eternal life.

1. Get Motivated by “Eternal Life”

I put it in quotations because we don’t quite understand all that that means as we toss the term around in church, but eternal life is first of all the most fundamental thing that we’re taught in Sunday school and let’s just summarize it this way.

A. We Get Grace, Not Punishment

When we die we don’t have punishment, Romans 8:1, there is therefore now no condemnation for those in Christ. Now we understand that we’re sinners, that we deserve to be punished, but before a holy God we don’t be punished. We get something we don’t deserve called grace.
That’s an amazing transaction and it’s one that you and I should say well I’m motivated then to do whatever it takes. Following Christ, whatever. It’s going to cost me something, but it doesn’t matter because in the end followers of Christ get eternal life. Now do they earn it? No, look at the wording again, bottom on verse 29. You will inherit eternal life. Now the images in scripture are helpful in this regard. You’re in Matthew 19 turn to forward a couple of chapters to Matthew 22. Pictures like this are helpful because they always put it into perspective for us. That the issue is not one of earning. It’s one of grace, but that grace demands from us our lives. And that is very important for us to get, and here’s a good picture of it, one of many that Jesus tells as he tries to get our minds back to, as we put it last week by someone’s helpful email. This kind of bifurcation of people into two categories and then that kind of mind set saying, well it’s either or. There’s two kinds of people those that get eternal life and those that don’t. That’s helpful here. Jesus does the same thing in this parable. We quickly referenced it last week. We didn’t look at it, so let’s look at it. Let’s at least get to the end of it.

Now this is the wedding guests. There’s two kinds of people that get to stay at the wedding feast and those who hear (?) get out of here. You don’t belong here, and look at the difference. Matthew 22:11. When the king came in to see the guests, OK, it’s a big wedding all filled with guests verse 10 says, big banquet. He noticed a man who was not wearing wedding clothes. Friend, the king asks, how did you get in here without wedding clothes. The man had nothing to say. He was speechless. Verse 13. The king told the attendants tie him hand and foot and throw him outside into darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. He’s just kind of careened over the edge of illustration to eschatological realities. Outer darkness, weeping and gnashing of teeth that’s Christ’s repeated description of hell. Being cast away from the presence of God. And he says, it’s all about what you’re wearing. About what you’re. Now that’s quite a harsh response for not wearing the right thing to a party. Right? Get out of here. You get to go gnash your teeth for eternity. Well see that’s the picture in scripture. It’s an issue of birthright. It’s an issue of inheriting and the picture of clothing yourself with Christ. I love that picture. It’s all over the Bible. Let me give you one example.

The Book of Galatians. Galatians 3. Take a look at this. I just want us to be clear. I know this is reiteration, but I want to make it super super clear. When it comes to following Christ we are not earning our salvation. It is a birthright. It is an inheritance. It comes by trusting in Christ. That does not relinquish us from the responsibility of following Christ and letting God be God, but it’s important for us to see that the issue of what we’re wearing is so important and this is put in the best possible way – the imagery is great. Galatians 3:26. You are all sons of God. Now what do sons get? Birthright, ancient eastern culture, you get the inheritance. You’re all sons of God. How do you get there? Through doing good deeds and a lot of them. Underline that in verse 26. Do you see that there? No. You get it through faith. You trust him. You trust in Christ. That means if you’ve had a whole life full of debauchery at the last moment if you’re a criminal being crucified by the state you could put your trust in Christ and you’re become a son. I know that stretches our view of grace, but I think that’s why Jesus made sure he died next to a criminal who put his trust in Christ at the very end. Now as I’ve said many times before I don’t recommend that. Don’t try to hold out till the end because you’ll find even in today’s sermon you’re going to find that you’d wish you’d done it sooner. The sooner the better on this whole thing about trusting Christ. This is great though Galatians 3. He says you’re all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus for all of you who were baptidsoed (Gr?) into Christ. That’s a transliterated Greek word. We’ve said this many many times. Baptized into the Christ. You’ve clothed yourself with Christ. Now we’re stumbling over baptism. We’ll see how many have been around Compass for a while. Does baptism save you? Wow. Sounds like a confused church. Now, you’re not supposed to answer with a yes or a no cause you can’t. If you know your Bible you’ve got to answer with a question. So now all the trained Compass people can answer. Does baptism save you? Which baptism? Exactly. Which one are you talking about? Right here is a picture of the first one. The one that the other represents by symbolic expression and it says, look at this, you’re all sons of God through faith in Christ for all of you who were baptidsoed. That means placed into, dunked into Christ you’ve clothed yourself with Christ. Does that save you? Absolutely. How do I get saved? I need to be placed into Christ and I need to be clothed in Christ. That way when I have the king walk in on my life on judgment day he doesn’t say tie him up and put him out into outer darkness where there’s weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. I need to be clothed into Christ. That means I’ve got to be placed into Christ. Does baptism save you? Absolutely, that one does. Now there’s another one where you kind of get embarrassed and wear funny clothes and get in front of people. Well we don’t wear funny clothes here, but at least you’re going to get wet and your hair is going to get all wet and you’ll look like you just got out of the shower and you get dunked in a pool of water, and everybody goes ah, that’s beautiful. And you’re going I’m embarrassed and you run back and towel off. That’s the other baptism and that’s called water baptism. Does that save you? No. It just gets you wet. If you haven’t bathed all week I guess it gets your clean. There are some advantages, but as Peter said it’s not the removal of dirt from the body, it’s the pledge of that conscience that good sincere conscience to God. Crying out to God. Repentance and faith. That’s the baptism that saves you. Baptism saves us. Which baptism? Being placed into Christ by faith. See? The other baptism is just an expression of the other baptism. The water baptism expresses the real baptism – the baptism where the spirit takes my file and places me into Christ. Now we can read this again. You’re all sons of God, verse 26, through faith in Christ Jesus for all of you who were placed into Christ have clothed yourself with Christ. That’s great. That didn’t happen by getting wet. Church leader can’t do that do you. This is being placed into Christ – being clothed with Christ. You can do that the last moment of your life. I don’t recommend it, and you would have entrance into the banquet hall. You’d get to be there. And guess what everyone of your who sits here today and you’ve done the self examination that this sermon series have called for and you’re confident that you repented of your sins and put your trust in Christ, guess what? When you die you don’t get punishment you get grace, and he puts his arm around you and says you’re welcome. Enter into, as Jesus often said, the happiness of the master. You get to go and be in a nice place. It’s good.

My old pastor used to say the problem with Christians is we forget what we’re missing and we forget where we’re going, and this is just one simple phrase. I’m trying to get that through. We get grace. We get in the words of our passage eternal life. And I know that for a lot of people is just like, yawn, OK, thanks pastor. Because that doesn’t mean much to you. It means as I often say kind of the cotton ball clouds and fat half-naked angels and see through people and Casper the friendly ghost. Which is not real appealing to me. Or if you go to a church like I did where the guy up there is leading hymns says, well we’re going to sing through the hymn book from the beginning to the end until we get to heaven, and then we’re going to start over and do it all again. And I’m going whew, wow, really? Mark Twain once said, you Christians are always talking about heaven, heaven you can have it. I’d rather go to Bermuda. And you know why? Cause Mark Twain had been to Bermuda. Have you ever been to Bermuda? I went over to Bermuda for my twentieth wedding anniversary, and we went out there and it was great. Weather was good. Nice white sandy beaches, friendly islanders, you know, hospitality, lush golf courses, great, great, place. Good stuff, good food we had a great time. Bermuda is great. The problem with heaven is we don’t really know what that is all about. That’s like a Hallmark calendar or something. I don’t quite get it. It doesn’t, I don’t know if it sounds all that appealing. Golf on a lush little tropical island – that sounds pretty good. Ah, heaven, I’m not sure. Now if I said to you here’s the deal. Pastor Mike has paid all expenses we’re all going to Bermuda on Friday. So make plans. Just come here meet in the parking lot. We’re going to take a bunch of buses. We’re going to go up to LAX and get on a plane, we’re flying to Bermuda. Isn’t that great? Great! That’s fantastic. So meet you here Friday morning 9:00. We’re going to Bermuda. So if I said that, ha, I’m not saying that, but if I said that you’d spend your week I trust getting ready. You’d make arrangements to be gone from work I trust. You’d figure it out. It’s all paid for. Pastor Mike paid for it all. It’s going to be great – going to be a great time. And then some of you would say well what is there to do? Mike mentioned golf, I’m not a golfer. I don’t know, what is there to do? You’d start probably going on the internet checking it out, right? What is there to do in Bermuda? I don’t know. You might run by Borders or Barnes and Noble and pick up one of those little dk travel guides with all the pictures – what to do in Bermuda. Right? You’d be interested, right? Because I’m saying I’m taking you to Bermuda on Friday, are you ready to go? Well, yeah, I guess but I don’t even know how to pack. What’s the weather like at this time of the year? What is there to do besides golf? I’m not a golfer. I need to figure it out. Funny how I say to people, put your trust in Christ we’ll spend eternity in the kingdom of God and we’ve not spent any time trying to figure out what that’s all about. I mean for us it’s just this real blurry picture of something that’s supposed to be good, and it’s better than the other place so I want to go there I guess. I hope it’s really not a hymnal sing the whole time, but I’d rather go there. I heard it’s good. And if we’re honest, maybe like Mark Twain, if it came to the choice of what do you want to do next week. A lot of us would choose Bermuda. That’s because we don’t know what we’re talking about. You need to take some time. Just like if I came to your house on Thursday if we were going to Bermuda on Friday I’d see that little travel guide next to your night stand. It would be good for you to do a little homework on the place you’re going to spend eternity at.

Back of the worksheet every week I give you some stuff to read and some extra sermons if you want to check out some stuff. There’s great resources there especially in the reading list this week. I mean just take the first one. Randy Alcorn’s book on Heaven. If you haven’t read that you should buy it and read it. You’re going to spend eternity there and this book gives you about 400 pages of taking every statement in scripture and thinking through the implications of what that means for us in eternity. Have you ever thought about that? You’re going there and you haven’t even read the travel guide yet. Let’s think it through. What is there to do? What’s is going to be like? Let me give you a little quick, quick brochure cover. Ok? Revelation 21. Just a quick look at the brochure at the end of the Bible. Here it is. Now what’s important about this passage is immediately we find it in verse 1 of Revelation 21 we find it called the New Earth. Now that’s very important, and Randy makes this point in his book, and it’s important for us to make this observation. If it were something completely different from earth it wouldn’t be called the new earth. If you’ve got a motorcycle and you’re going to get a car you wouldn’t call the car the new motorcycle. If you’re going to buy a house and you got a car you wouldn’t say well I’m going to get a new car. No, it’s a house. It’s totally different. This is called the New Earth cause it’s like the old one only better. When you trade up a get a better car, it’s the new car. It’s like the old car only it’s better than the old car it’s the new car. Do you understand we’re going to the new earth. Not Casper the friendly ghost club house. We’re not going to sit there and kind of waft through walls and see each other and try and hug and just go right through each other. You won’t be running around in more bizarre little mystical foggy land. As a matter of fact here’s how real the new Jerusalem will be. The Bible says in Isaiah you will look back on this life and that will be the blurry one. That’s the one you’re going to look at and I don’t even quite… what was that all about? I don’t know a place called California. Cali what? You lived where? I don’t, I don’t even know what that was like. I don’t remember. That place is going to be so real to you that that will be the place you experience what the concrete tangible reality of this life only without all the problems. Look at how it’s put. Revelation 21:1. Check this out. I saw a new heaven and a new earth. For the first heaven and the first earth had passed away and there was no longer any sea. Now don’t cry you sea loving people. Another sermon, but I know, oh it’s disappointing. Trust me. There’s plenty of water there. Water sports I’m sure. Verse 2. I saw the holy city the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. Time out Sunday school graduates. Do not read that too quickly because whenever you read bride, husband and all of that you immediately assign people to the analogy and we’ll do it wrong in this passage if we read it too quick. Who’s the bride of Christ? We are. That’s not this. This is a different analogy. A different use of the analogy of marriage about a whole different thing. Take a close look at that. The bride is not us and the husband is not Christ. Who’s the husband in the passage? Read it again. Look at verse 2. I saw the holy city the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. Who’s the bride? The city, not us. Who’s the husband? Us. Us pastors get a great view at the weddings. I get a great view. I don’t get to sit, but I get a great view. I stand there at the front. I’ve got the groom next to me. Mother-in-laws stand up everywhere. People stand up. Doors up and don-don-da-don and here comes this girl that looks nothing like the girl in pre-marital counseling. Is that her? Is that really her? And here she comes – beaming and glorious. Of course, the traditionalists, the traditionalist groom hasn’t seen her all day. He’s wondering is that really her? She’s beautiful! And then he starts to soak it in and he starts to blubber… she’s so beautiful… come to me. You know you have all those whatever scenes, you know. She looks good. Better than I’ve ever seen her look. Right? Here she comes and it’s all about this, ah, here she comes. That’s the picture here and you’re the groom, and his gift to you is a beautiful city. And it marches down from heaven and he says here is what you’ve been waiting for. Unfortunately a lot of us are going to go, well I wasn’t really even thinking about it. You need to start thinking about it cause here comes the bride and it’s for you, and it’s a beautiful city that you’re supposed to enjoy for all of eternity. Now there’s some great things about it. Says in verse 3, I heard a loud voice from the throne saying “now the dwelling of God is with men.” Now remember this if hell, we’ve defined this throughout the series is being cast away from the presence of God and from the glory of his power. Depart from me outside where there’s weeping and gnashing of teeth. If hell is the exclusion of God and his goodies and grace, what is heaven? It’s the reverse of that. God now comes close. He gets really close and all of the glory and majesty and gifts and blessings of God, who designed us by the way. He knows what we like. He made us for himself. Here he comes. And he now lives among us. Look how strong this is emphasized. Now the dwelling, verse 3 of God is within, he will live with them and they will be his people and God himself will be with them. As though we didn’t get it the first time. And he will be there God. And by the way if you’ve got God living in your neighborhood, he’ll wipe away every tear from your eye. No longer any death, no mourning, or crying or pain for the old order of things. Now that’s important because we’re still going to experience earth only it’s going to be different. It’s a new earth, but the old order of things has passed away. Now he who is seated on the throne is saying, verse 5, I am making everything new and then he said. Right this down. For these words are trustworthy and true. The new earth is like the old earth only a whole lot better. God comes close, brings all of his majesty and gifts with him, and we get to experience this place. Now we could spend a year going through the next two chapters in Revelation, chapter 21 and 22, but that’s got to be a homework assignment. Because that’s really not the focus of our sermon. The point is you need to be fixated on that because that ought to motivate you to say whatever I have to give up for following Christ, it really doesn’t matter. Because I’m motivated by the fact that I get grace at the end of my life and not punishment. Because the only other option is this, tie him hand and foot send him outside to the outer darkness where there’s weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth. And the difference is, is Christ really your coat? Are you clothed in him? Have you been placed in him? If you have all these little sacrifices, I know Peter you gave up that fishing business and I know that guy gets to keep his big lucrative entrepreneurial business, but you know it doesn’t matter. At the end of this thing you get eternal life. Doesn’t that motivate you?

Well it’s more than that. If you look back at our passage. Matthew 19. We started at the end with the lat phrase of verse 29, we’ll inherit eternal life. And that’s just a foretaste of it. You can do your own homework on that, but the jest of his response. Now I understand that in verse 28 it’s specific to the twelve apostles, but it’s really not about just eternal life. I mean the verbiage, at least statistically, is focused and weighted on reward. Take a look at it. I tell you the truth at the renewal of all things when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And don’t feel left out, verse 29, for the rest of us it says if you’ve made any kind of sacrifices as it relates your house or you brothers or your sister or your father or your mother or your children or your fields. If you’ve done that for me you need to know this you will receive a hundred times as much and then that whole great thing about grace not punishment. Put this down, letter B. We need to be motivated by eternal life cause with eternal life also comes this, number 2, letter B, you’ll get tangible rewards and the Bible’s big on this.

B. You Get Tangible Rewards

Now I’ve got a lot of people right now – I’m going to lose them in the message I guarantee it. They’ll be some who do not like this because you’ve been raised to believe in celestial communism. That’s the way I was raised. Celestial communism, right, you all get government issued jacket and government issued track housing and you get there and everybody’s the same cause that what’s good grand-fatherly deities do. Right? Can’t treat little junior different than his brother. They get the same. Right? God is not like that. I hope you understand God is a lot stronger than that. He’s a lot more masculine than that. He’s not there sitting, well if his gets a lollipop then he gets a lollipop too. That’s not God. God is a capitalist. I didn’t say Republican, but he’s a capitalist because here’s what he says over and over and over and over again. Let me give you two references at the end of the book, Revelation 22:12. Behold I’m coming soon. Listen carefully. My reward is with my and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. That means you do more you get more. That sounds pretty capitalistic to me. No celestial communism. If you give up for God, sacrifice for God, do for God you will receive according to what you’ve done. Now the interest rate is fantastic. Look at the passage again in Matthew 19. If you’ve done one things of sacrifice for the goodness of following God the Bible says you will receive, bottom on verse 29, what’s the percentage rate? Hundred times as much. That’s big. That’s better than any 401(k) or 403(b) or any the dumb investments I’ve ever made. Right? They never seem to work out, but that’s a pretty big one and it’s underwritten by God himself. What did Peter sacrifice to follow Christ that the rich young ruler wouldn’t sacrifice? Well his business. Entrepreneur is supposed to give up his business that was nothing like the rich young ruler’s business. Now I don’t know where Peter lived, but let’s just say it’s a 1,000 square foot condo. OK? Let’s just say that. Peter you walk away from that 1,000 square foot condo because I tell you to and I tell you leave that and come with me and you’re going to receive. What the interest rate? Hundred times as much. OK? What kind of place is he living in in the kingdom? That’s big. I mean that’s a big place. That’s a really big place and any other sacrifice you make you’ll receive a hundred times. Now I know that’s not an equation. This is not the prospectus from New Jerusalem or something, but the principal is clear isn’t it? God is going to reward you with interest for every sacrifice you make.

Another passage might be helpful. Jot down Ephesians 6:7 & 8. Serve God wholeheartedly. You’re serving the Lord he says, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does. There’s no little patting on the head. Well you get a red lollipop, well you get one too and you get a balloon, you get one too. You can’t have two he’s only got one. You know why we do that? Because we’re parenting sinful children, that’s why we do that. We don’t want jealous and envy and strife. There’s not going to be any of that in the kingdom, but there will not be equality in the kingdom. How’s that for heresy? Told you I was going to lose some of you. How’s that? There will not be equality in the kingdom. Matter of fact, the guy who left his little fishing business, look what he’s going to be, back in Matthew 19. It says in verse 28 I tell you the truth at the renewal of all things when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne you who have followed me, twelve guys – minus one – plus one later, will sit on twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Now the rich young ruler in the synagogue, he was leading a lot of people. I don’t know how big the synagogue was. But Peter one day, the little outcast band of former fishermen disciple guys he’s going to be on a throne one day and you might even be part of his tribe. He’s going to be your administrator, your boss, your president. You’re going to have to answer to him. Wow, talk about a turn around. Talk about somebody who was a low-life in the first century becoming “the guy” in the kingdom. You want to talk about the guy. You know what the Bible says? This is Revelation 21:14, says the twelve apostles names will be written on the foundations of the walls of Jerusalem. You’re going to walk by billboards that are going to say, Peter, right? Cephas. It’s going to be there. James. John, I don’t know you’re going to read it like that – big names. I don’t know, maybe a picture and you’re going to go, wow, look at that.

What are some of the rewards – just to make it tangible. Rewards, we don’t have time to look at all of these. I wish I could preach a whole other sermon on this, but rewards starts with an “R” so I put five “R’s” together for you and I’ll just throw them up on the power point just so you don’t have to turn there, you can get them all. Let’s talk about the first one. These are all tangible rewards that will all be determined on your sacrifice for Christ. First one…

– Riches – In the parable in Luke 16 Jesus said if you do riches now as a good steward a Godly steward as a follower of Christ then maybe God will entrust you, I love this phrase, with true riches. We’re all shooting for riches down here, right? Unfortunately, we’re chasing after it like all the pagans do, but the Bible says if you’re willing to not even worry about that, but just be a good steward of what you have. Treat your money as a good Godly follower of Christ. Give it up when God calls you to. You know what? Maybe I’ll entrust you with true riches. He keeps saying to us about our money it’s going to fail one day, but he says that money there will not fail. Well I thought the streets were going to be made of gold so it won’t really matter. Yeah, they may be made of gold, but there will be riches there. Think of, let’s just put it this way and I know we struggle against this, but if my… I’ve got a fifth grader at home. That’s my oldest kid. My fifth grader comes home from school on Monday and he says, dad, mom, I quit. What? I quit. What do you mean? I’m not going to school any more. I’m dropping out. You’re dropping out? Yeah, it’s too much work. Teachers homework and got a project this week, write a paper and that’s hard. Well son you’re going to school. No, I’m done. Well, Ok. All right. Well that will give you some extra time I guess. You can get a job at Wiener Schnitzel or something. Is that what I’m going to say. What are you going to say to your fifth grader that comes home and says he’s going to quit school. What? Shut Up! You’re going to school. Well Ok, but I’m just going to finish 6th grade and I’m not going to junior high. No, you’re going to junior high. Well Ok, but I’m not going to high school. No, you’re going to high school kid. Well that college thing you keep talking about, I’m not going to do that. Yeah, you’re going to do that. Why are we so comfortable doing that with our kids, hoping that maybe if they invest in their education they’ll have a payoff when they grow up. You don’t have a problem making your kid do his homework and get good grades because you want him to have a better place and a better standard of living in this life. Why are we so comfortable doing that? You hope he gets a better paycheck at 35 because he actually didn’t drop out in elementary school, right? You want him to finish the race of education so he can have a better. You know what, why is it that when we look at God – I think it’s because we don’t know what Bermuda is all about – we don’t know what heavens all about. We think I don’t care. I’ll just be glad to be there. I don’t care. Everything’s free. Where’d you get that verse? Think about it. My kid likes to play golf. My fifth grader likes golf. Here’s something I might say to him if he wants to drop out of junior high. Say hey kid you’ve got Pelican Hill in Newport Beach and you’ve got that little pitch and putt in Lake Forest you’ve been to before. Which one you want to play when you’re 35? You want to drop out of school, it’s pitch and putt, maybe. Right? I mean that’s a realistic conversation you have with a fifth grader. You don’t understand you can’t play the game you love that dad’s shelling out money for you to go play on vacation if you don’t get a job and they’re not going to give you a job if you don’t go to school. You awake now. Go to School. That’s what I want to tell my kid. You think that for some reason you’re just going to get to heaven and every course there is going to be free. Seriously? You think every course in heaven is going to be free. Well it has to be. Why? Cause we grew up with a flannel graph picture of heaven. There will be money there, riches. This money will fail; I get it. But the Bible says he will entrust us with true riches. I know we don’t believe that, but that’s what the Bible teaches. Check it out, and start to take our little Sunday school picture of heaven and retool it with the Bible. Cause not only will the Bible say there are riches and you’ll be rewarded according to what you’ve done. Here’s the second thing. Let’s keep them all “R’s” here, the second thing is real estate.

– Real Estate. Real Estate? What do you mean? Well you don’t own anything in heaven. God is a capitalist. Did I say that? He’s not a communist. The Bible is super clear that you in your life are living a life for Christ and it will determine your real estate in the kingdom. Two verses later same passage. He says listen if you’re not faithful in doing what a follower of Christ should do with his stuff in this life, your land in this life, he says, who’s going to entrust you(I love this) with property of our own. Now wait a minute I own property. Ask the title insurance guy, I own it. No, well you really don’t. Jesus is dissing our real estate ownership. Did you catch that in that verse. He says you know what if you treat your property here as a faithful, Godly follower of Christ maybe I’ll give you some real property. What do you mean? I’ve got real property? No, you don’t. Think about it. Are you going to live in that property? Yeah. For how long? Well, I don’t know. I bet it’s not a hundred years. Even if your kids stuff you and put you in a closet or something. You’re not going to be there a hundred years from now. You’re gone. That’s why Jesus looks at us and, what are you guys doing? Running around like a bunch of people trying to hang onto something that you can’t even keep. Remember that great Jim Elliott quote, “He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” Have you heard that one before? “He’s no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” Think about what Peter had done. I’m going to leave my fishing business behind, who by the way a hundred years from that decision he never would have had anyway, to gain what he cannot lose, according to this passage a hundred times as much. Are we thinking this through properly. Real estate, property of your own. I’m going to have property of my own one day, the question is how much. Now again I know I just want to get in, it doesn’t matter what I own, I don’t really care. You know you don’t care now. Think about this. It’s like the Bermuda. I said we were flying there, we’re not. We’re flying to New York and we’re getting on a cruise ship and we’re cruising over there. So bring your little patches and your wrist things cause we’re going to cruise over there. Now I know what you might tell your friends, I don’t care where I stay or how big my cabin is… I’m going to Bermuda! Guess what? It’s a long cruise to Bermuda and you’re going to care how big your cabin is. You might be happy to be there, I get it. But you know if your neighbor’s out on his veranda looking out over the ocean and you’ve got one of those interior closets they call an interior cabin, at some point you’re going to go, I really wish I had a cabin like that, because that’s pretty nice. You’ll care. Will there be envy, jealous and strife in the kingdom? Absolutely not, but there will be differentiations and you’re determining right now the size of your real estate. Thirdly, riches, real estate, how about this one, Matthew 25. Responsibilities.

– Responsibilities. Responsibilities and again I know what you’re saying – I don’t want responsibilities. Give me a hammock and let me just sit in my celestial backyard and I’ll be fine. I don’t want responsibilities. No, you will. Trust me you will. You know the reason we don’t want responsibilities in this life? Cause we are sinful people governing and being responsible for sinful people in a sinful world. And with responsibility in this life comes a lot of headaches. Have you noticed that? That’s why some of us who lead in this life or administrate in this life, there are days when we just say I don’t want to do it any more. Please, let me be a nobody and let me sit in my hammock and be a nobody for the rest of my career. That’s what I want to do. But you know there you won’t have that problem because you won’t be a sinful person, you won’t be administering sinful people and you won’t be living in a sinful place. Every big of responsibility will be great. Here’s the wording in Matthew chapter 25, he says in this parable about the ultimate judgment of our lives as Christians. “Well done good and faithful servant. You’ve been faithful with a few things I will put you in charge of many things.” Now again if you say well I don’t want to be cause that sounds like a lot of work, look at the next phrase. Come and share in your master’s, you know the next verse, happiness. With every bit of responsibility will come another measure of happiness. Responsibility in the kingdom is what you want. You want more responsibility. Look at our passage. Those twelve guys that gave up everything, the first line, first trusters of Christ – those guys are going to be responsible for entire tribes in the kingdom. That’s big. I mean that’s like states. This is huge. I wouldn’t want to be the governor. You will there. Trust me. Because with that responsibility and the measure of responsibility, let’s put the fourth one down now, the fourth “r” there will come increased reputation.

– Reputation. Now again I know we say, oh, I don’t really care. You will walk by the names of the twelve apostles on the walls of your eternal home. There will not be envy, there will not be jealousy, there will not be strife, but you will look at those name and go that’s really cool. JAMES, right on James really cool what you did. First line, first generation, truster of Christ, led the church, died for your faith, martyr for Christ. Look at that now. I mean you’ve got billboards with your name on it. Whew, cool. You won’t be jealous, you won’t be envious, but you’re going to say that’s great. They will have a reputation that is good. Mark 10 puts it this way as they are discussing who’s going to sit in the pecking order of the kingdom. Again he’s not a communist. The pecking order of the kingdom. When they’re all clamoring, who’s going to sit at my right hand and my left. Remember that? They’re asking, who’s going to sit at your right hand and your left? Jesus didn’t say, aw come on, stop with all of that. There’s not no order, hierarchy in the kingdom. That’s ridiculous. You’re all going to be the same. Is that what he said? You remember Jesus’ response to Mark 10? He says well I’m not going to tell you right now cause it’s really not up to me it’s up to my Father. And the places and the people that he’s appointing for that it’s his decision. So he’ll let you know. Think about that. Their clamoring for a position in the kingdom and he doesn’t say don’t do that, that’s stupid, there’s no positions in the kingdom. He says it’s really not up to me right now. It’s up to my Father. Those places belong to those for whom it has been prepared. Wow. That means there will be somebody at the right hand of Christ. Wow. That means there will be somebody at the left hand of Christ. There will be someone at the table, that seat. Do you ever see these world leaders sit with their big, you know, mahogany tables and they’ve got their staff around them. That’s what it’s going to be. And the greater your sacrifice and the more good you do for the kingdom, the greater your reputation.

Lastly, and if none of those hit home for you, maybe this one will.

– Relationships. Riches, real estate, responsibility, reputation and relationships and we could look elsewhere, but we might as well look at our passage. Our passage says, anyone that’s left houses and fields, that’s the first and last ones on the list, but look at the next, one-two-three-four-five he says brothers, sisters, father, mother or children. Hey if you’ve sacrificed a few little league games for your kids so that you could serve Christ and advance his cause and as a follower of Christ you’ve missed a few ballet recitals or maybe for your parents maybe you haven’t been all that you could be for them because of your commitment to Jesus Christ. Hey, the Bible says whatever that’s hurt you’re going to get a hundred times as much. Maybe a brother or sister that’s been totally offended by your commitment to Christ and they will not have peace with you because of your commitment to following Christ, the Bible says you’ll get a hundred times as much. This is a promise for better and increased relationships. Now I know there’s not any narcissistic sitting in the corner, “I’ve got no friends” in the kingdom. There’ll be none of that, I’ve got no friends, I’m going to have a party I don’t know who to invite, I’ve got no friends. You’re not going to have that. There will be no pity parties in the New Jerusalem. But you will want to have more friends, and the more friends you have in that circle the better. And the better those relationships the better. Again, how do you picture this thing? I think we picture it wrong. Either we picture it as non-tangible or we picture it as communist neither are true. So can you put up with a little bit of guff? For the fact that we get grace instead of punishment and secondly because you’re going to be tangible – I think so. I’ll gladly bear it. And think of it, my wife and I – we’re walking in and my wife’s got a Bible in her hand after Bible study and our neighbor cries out to her “WHAT DO YOU GUYS DO, YOU CARRY YOUR BIBLES EVERYWHERE YOU GO?” Seriously, we’re in our driveway… YEAH… I mean what do you say to that? We’re getting yelled at by neighbors because we’re carrying a Bible. Think about that. Now I know they’re not chopping our heads off yet, but I mean we do incur a little bit for being followers of Christ and you could – stick a smaller one so my neighbor doesn’t get offended. If we’re saying, I don’t care… yeah, we’re carrying our Bibles, come on over I’ll read it to you. You know. I mean if you’re ready to stand up for Christ and bear the reproach, you know what? The Bible says you’ll get a hundred – I’m going to have – and I don’t know it’s a new house and a new neighbor, I don’t know how bad he’s going to be. Ask me two years from now, but you know what the more I gladly bear that reproach for Christ the better my neighbors are going to be in the kingdom. You know what I’m saying? I can’t wait. Bring it on. Be a jerk. Call me names, call me goodie two shoes, ask me if I carry my Bible… What’d you memorize today? Did you go to church? Fine. Bring it on cause I’m going to have some sweet neighbors in the kingdom and the more I’m persecuted for Christ for that. You see what I’m saying? Do you think that way? Are you really willing or do we want to do what most Christians do – just cower. Oh, I don’t want to do that – don’t want to stand up for – don’t want to talk about Christ – I clearly offended them.

Now that’s the positive side of this. You know if you left everything. Big deal. You’re going to get rewarded for that. The inverse of that. I think the upshot of this whole passage on the other side of it is simply this. When Peter’s sitting there if there’s every that fleeting temptation to feel sorry about what he’s left behind; here’s the other side of the coin, number 2 on your outline. You and I we need to care less about this life. Just care less about it.

2. Care Less About This Life

You got bad neighbors. I don’t care. I don’t care. They think you’re weird; you’ve lost your reputation in your family. I don’t care. I mean I’ve got all kinds of people that hate me and some probably for good reasons, others for the wrong the reasons, others for the right reasons, but the point is… I don’t care. I don’t care. I need to care less and when it comes to sacrifices we make for the kingdom and I give up money to give to ministry or give to the church. I could do some more with that stuff… I don’t care. Care less about this life. Now, do we need to care about the life that we live. Absolutely, 1 Corinthians 7, I’m going to have to care about things in my life. Ok. If I’ve got a wife, especially, if I’ve got a family. I’ve got to take care of a few things there. Now I don’t need to run after all the things the pagans do the Bible says, but I’ve got to take care of a few things here. I get that, but I should care a whole lot less about this life because the next one is so much more important. Letter A and we don’t have time to examine all of this, but at least jot down 2 Peter 3:3-14 and then write this down. Here’s a great commentary – Mike Fabarez commentary on 2Peter 3 – ready? Letter A. The world, here it comes, is going bye bye. It’s going away.

A. This World is Going Bye Bye

Everything in this world is getting trashed. Everything in this world is going to be torched. That’s what the Bible says. Everything. I know we often sit around and we pray and we think and we talk about a building. Oh, we’d like to have a building for Compass Bible Church. Wouldn’t that be great? Wouldn’t have to be renters. We could buy a great place. You know, whatever. Whatever place we might buy is going to be torched one day. You know – even this building. This building it going to be a piece of ash one day. Everything according to 2 Peter 3 is going to melt in the intense heat of the coming of God to this planet. My house, my stuff, my car, everything on the planet is gone, and here’s the upshot question of 2 Peter 3. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, this is verse 11, what kind of people ought you to be? And I think first answer is, care a lot less about this life. You ought to live holy and Godly lives. If I told you right now that the vehicle you’re driving in the parking lot will be trashed. I mean a meteor from the sky is coming Thursday afternoon and it’s going to smash it into your driveway – depending on your car – some of you… well that’s fine with me. But let’s just say you’re thinking about Tuesday whether to get it washed or not. I’m thinking, no, I don’t care. Looks like you need new tires. I don’t care. Right? Seriously. You know you’ve got a little chip in that windshield, want to get it replaced? I’m not really caring about the windshield. You want to give me a free one – I know it’s getting trashed on Thursday, but I’ll have a nice windshield for Wednesday. That’s fine, but if it’s going to be a hassle then forget it cause I don’t care. Your whole life is like that car. It’s going to be trashed soon. So why are we worrying so much about job promotions and bigger houses and better cars and greater vacations. It doesn’t matter. Now do we have to take a vacation every now and then? Yeah, we’ve got to take vacations. You need a car to get around? You do, so you should pick one and buy one. Need a house to live in? Yeah that’s probably good, be better than walking the streets, but don’t worry so much about it. Because what we’re serving, who we’re serving, the cause we’re living for, that’s going to be realized there not here. Let’s put it this way, letter B, the king that you’re following is of another kingdom.

B. Your King is of Another Kingdom

Our king is over another kingdom. What we’re here doing this morning. What you’re investing in on Sunday morning is not for the here and now. It may have an effect on the here and now, but it’s for the then and there. Now we don’t have time to look at this one either, but at least jot it down. 1 Samuel 22: 1 & 2. You know the life of David. David is a kid. He gets anointed by Samuel the prophet. Now you became king in Israel when the prophet of God comes and pours a flask of oil on your head and says you’re the next king. David had that happen as a young man and here comes Samuel, looking at the brothers, sons of Jesse. Here that’s the one. Bring him in. Takes the flask of oil. Pours it on his head. David’s going wow that’s kind of messy. OK, I guess I’m the king. Question. The year after that happened. Five years after that happened. Ten years after that happened. Who was the king of Israel? Well, I guess it depends on who you’re asking. If you’re asking Jesse. He’s going to say, my son’s the king. If you’re asking the guy on the street. Well Saul’s the king. Did you know there was over a fifteen year overlap from the time Samuel anointed him with oil and called him the king of Israel and him actually becoming the king of Israel. At least fifteen years, the Biblical chronology, a little question here, but at least fifteen years. Think about that. You’re the king for fifteen – well here’s the passage I made you jot down, 1 Samuel 22: 1&2. The Bible tells all the exploits of David and you know what it wasn’t pretty and by chapter 22 it’s probably the low point of his life. He’s hiding out in the cave of Adullum. You know anything about the books of Samuel or First and Second Kings? You know what you did in caves? You went poo-poo in caves. That’s what caves were for. They were the port-a-potties of the ancient world. You don’t want to squat down in the middle of a field. You find a cave – a stinky, ugly cave. It was either a place to go to the bathroom or a place to hide and David was hiding from cave to cave, place to place. And the Bible says in 1 Samuel 22: 1 &2 there were people that came and said you’re our leader. Here’s how they were described. Those that were in distress. Well first of all, it started with his family, his family, his brothers and his fathers household. Those who were in distress. Those who were in debt which probably means they had taxes to pay to Saul and they couldn’t pay them. Or the discontented – I hate that Saul anyway – you’re our king David. They gather – you know how many people it says in 1 Samuel 22: 2? 400 people. How many people lived in Israel back then? I don’t know, but a lot, probably. Tens of thousands at least and the Bible says there were only 400 people that called David their king during that interim period of time. Who was the king? Well it depends on who you asked. Who’s the king now? But we’re in church so of course, Jesus, right that’s the right answer 90% of the time in church. Who’s the king? Jesus. Is he? 2 Corinthians 4:4. The god of this age is called Satan in that passage. Not Jesus. Well he’s the King. Well he’s been anointed as King; he’s been given the right to be King, but according to Revelation 11 he is yet to take his power and begin to reign. As Handel ripped off for his Messiah oratory. Remember that great passage in the song and in the Bible. It says the angels then cry out when finally it’s ready for him to take his great power and begin to reign and they say now the kingdom of the world has become the Kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ and he will reign for ever and ever. That hasn’t started yet. He’s the king, by the rights of the cross and the resurrection, but he’s not reigning as king right now. He might be reigning in your heart. You’re like the people in the cave of Adullum hiding out in the stinky cave and there’s 400 singing Jesus is Lord, Jesus is Lord. You know what? Your neighbor thinks you’re a joke. Mine does – thinks I’m a joke. Why? Cause I’m singing, Jesus is Lord, Jesus is Lord. Isn’t think cute – my neighbor thinks I’m a fool. But you know what, the Jesus we sang about this morning, he’s going to take his power and begin to reign. My jerky neighbor? The Bible says he is going to bow his knee to Christ and his forehead is going to be pushed to the ground and he’s going to say it, Jesus is Lord. You know when David got out of the cave of Adullum and by 2 Samuel probably chapters 4 or 5 he becomes the reigning king of Israel. Oh, he was the selected sanctioned king of Israel already. When he become the reigning of Israel, question. What do you think it was like for those 400 guys? That walked with David through the stinky caves of southern Israel and Philistia? Oh, I think they had it pretty good. I think they did alright. I think he looked at those guys and said, you walked with me when I was not the reigning king. You bowed to me when I was in a cave and no one else was seeing me as king. Hummm. I’ve got a good piece of real estate for you. You think those 400 made out alright? You think the 400 should be worrying so much about their accommodations in the cave of Adullum? I don’t think so. I think you and I should feel the same exact way. We’re sitting here singing about Jesus the king, the Lord. Just remember he’s not the king of this kingdom. The kingdom of this world though one day will become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ and then he will reign for ever and ever. And my neighbor if he never gets around to clothing himself with Christ will be tied hand and foot, caste out into outer darkness and told to go where there is weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth. And the 400 of us the malcontents of the world who never quite fit in down here, will be ushered into the kingdom with happiness and all those things we look at, riches, real estate, reputation, responsibility, relationships. And he will shower on us hundred fold investments that we’ve made for the good of Christ.

So where’s that leave us, letter C. I think this whole concept should bring us back to that very last verse, verse 30. Look at it with me one more time Matthew 19. Verse 30 says but many who are first will be last and many who are last will be first. Now I know a lot of people take that verse and think well there’s you’re celestial communism right there, cause here’s what they do. Now watch this you’ve got to see this one to get it. The first will go to the end of the line and then the end of the line will come to the front of the line and that just means everybody’s in the same place in the line. No, that’s not what it means. The first and last have already been identified for us in the passage. The first just walked away with his entrepreneurial job, his bank accounts, his Cd’s, his place in the synagogue, his rulership, his nice life, probably his good looks to boot, right there he goes. There goes Mr. First. And here’s Mr. Last that Mr. First didn’t want to hang out with Peter and the rest of the band. Former employed people. Traveling around with nothing. Following the King through his cave of Adullum; saying hey, we’re with you Jesus. You want to hire one of those guys in first century Israel you’re going to choose Mr. First not Mr. Last, but here’s what the Bible just said about Mr. Last. Mr. Last will be sitting on a throne judging, administrating, governing one of the tribes of Israel with his name on the wall of the eternal home of the King. Guess who’s going to be first then? Mr. Last will be first. You get it now. The first, rich young ruler – last, outer darkness. The last, little slimy, fisherman, disciple guy – first, reigning on a throne over the twelve tribes of Israel. Pretty good spot. Or to put it in the words of Christ elsewhere, he puts it this way. If you want to save your life, rich young ruler you’re going to save your life. Go keep it then. You’re going to what with you life? Lose it. Hey Peter if you’re willing to lose your life leave those nets behind and come and follow me. Make me the God of your life and here I go, trust in me, leave your own path, repent and put your trust in me. Ok. Lose your life for my sake, Jesus said, you will find it. You’ll save it. That’s the transaction of our passage. So number 3, I’m just saying if we’ve given up our lives for him, I’m just saying let’s make the most of it. Letter C. Let’s put it this way, we need to invest more in the next life. Let’s just see that as our constitution, our calling. Let’s invest in the next life. What do we have to lose? Only stuff we’re going to lose anyway. Did you catch that?

C. Invest More in the Next Life

What do we have to lose? Only stuff we’re going to lose anyway. And Jim Elliott said it best, “he is no fool to give up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” Who’s the fool in the rich young ruler passage? It ain’t Peter and the disciples. They look foolish. I get it. They look like the last of the last. They will be first. So Peter keep on serving; keep on sacrificing. Hey, James, John, Thomas, Philip keep on serving. Keep on sacrificing because every sacrifice you make is just more in your treasure in heaven. And does that sound familiar. Do not store up for yourselves treasure on earth where moth eat it up, rust destroying it and thieves break in and steal it. And, by the way, a few hundred years from now it’s all going to be ash anyway. Instead store up for yourself treasures in heaven. Does that sound capitalistic? Those aren’t my words those are Christ’s words, right? Matthew chapter 6. Where neither moth can eat it up, rust can’t corrode it and thieves can’t break in a steal it. For where you treasure is there will your heart be also. Is your heart bound up in the life? Or is your heart really bound up in the next? If it is you’ll have a few travel guides on your night stand. You’ll be thinking about the kingdom. And every day you’ll be saying I don’t care what I give up for that. That’s my eternal home. I’m ready to store treasure there. Where my treasure is there will my heart be also.

We’ve been looking at guys throughout this series who thought they were saved. Thought they understood this transaction, but they didn’t. I suppose it’s apt that we close with probably the most familiar story of all and that’s of a guy that not only everybody thought was saved, but he was so advanced in everybody’s eyes as a Christian that he was a teacher in a seminary. Now he graduated from Bible school and seminary and he was the lecturing professor in the Books of Psalms, Romans and Galatians. Can you imagine? Those are hard books. Think about that. He was lecturing in those three books. The sad thing was; he wasn’t a Christian. He was lost. He didn’t understand repentance and faith. He never really said to Christ, here I am. You’ve got all of me. I’m totally all about this and it’s not about head knowledge. It’s about repentance and faith. It’s about making your life mine and my life yours. He didn’t understand that transaction. He thought he did. So in a well know moment of crisis after jamming all this Biblical knowledge in his head God got a hold of his life and with genuine repentance and faith everything about this guys life was turned around. His name is Martin Luther, and I always say, have you ever heard of him? And I’ll say it again, you never would’ve had he not had that moment of conversion. Just another, you know, post medieval priest, but instead he became an on fire follower of Christ, and as Paul said, he didn’t love his life even unto death. He didn’t care. All he cared about was living for Christ, and because of that he turned the world upside down. Or maybe more accurately he turned a lot of the world right side up and got them thinking rightly about one passionate thing – the gospel. The names we’ve been through, think about this, Wesley, Moody, Spurgon, Edwards and Luther if there’s one thing about all those guys it’s crystal clear – their passion for the gospel. And not a low bar gospel an impossible gospel that all of them had to go through that moment of crisis and self examination to realize they didn’t have, and by God’s grace they all made a difference for the kingdom. I wonder what God will do with our lives, seriously. What will he do with us? What’s he going to make of your life? Well, you’re not even your family member; you’re not even his heir unless you’ve repented of your sins and put your trust in him, but then the decisions are made every single day. What am I willing to give up for the King. How far am I willing to go. Am I willing to go the extra mile? Stay the extra hour, spend the extra dollar for the good of the kingdom. If you are, the Bible says you’re getting a great, great return when you walk through the portals of the kingdom of heaven. He is going to richly reward you. I mean some of the last words in the scripture. He’s coming and his reward is with him, and he will reward each one according to what he has done. Are we saved by works? No. But we’re saved for them. Right? We’ve saved to do them. To do good works. To walk in that path he’s prepared for us. Let’s not give a rip about what it costs us. Let’s walk in that path.
It’s appropriate and by design that we scheduled the Lord’s supper at the end of this five part series. Cause I wanted it to be crystal clear that salvation was earned by Christ. So we’re going to take just another four minutes here, real quick. We’re going to pass these elements and if you know where you stand with Christ I want you to take a little piece of unleavened bread and a little cup of that grape juice that represent the body and blood of Christ. Doesn’t turn in to them. Their representative of those. Our ushers are going to pass them to you and I want you to spend time talking to God. I want you to make sure you know where you stand. If you’re not sure where you stand with Christ, just let it pass by, but spend some time with God. The lights are going to come down; Ty is going to play on his guitar. I just want you to contemplate the reality of what we’ve been dealing with for the past five weeks, and I don’t want there to be any confusion. If we’re ever going to be accepted in the kingdom, it’s because we’re clothed in Christ. Because we trust in the work of Christ. If you keep one eye open, these plates will come by grab a piece of bread and a cup and I’ll be back up in three minutes and we’ll take these elements together.

Recognize that old hymn that Ty was playing? When I Survey the Wondrous Cross. That was written by Isaac Watts over 300 years ago. We talked about John Wesley at the beginning of this series. His brother Charles Wesley was the prolific hymn writer. He once said about that hymn that Isaac Watts wrote before his day. He said I would have given up the authorship of every hymn I ever wrote just to have said that I wrote that song. When I Survey the Wondrous Cross. Because those lyrics are so poignant. When I survey the wondrous cross on which the prince of glory died, now listen to Matthew 19 here, my richest gain I count but loss and pour contempt on all my pride. Think of that transaction right there. The rich young ruler was not willing to part with either one of those. He wasn’t going to give up his riches and he wasn’t going to swallow his pride to hang out with the band of disciples. Isaac Watts and Wesley said if you do understand the cross you’ll do that. I mean that amazing transaction on the cross means everything. You know the last verse of that great hymn? Were the hold realm of nature mine {right if I were extremely rich} that would be a present far to small {couldn’t repay back God with that}. Love so amazing, so Devine {catch this now} demands my life, my soul and my all. We’re not saved by any devotion to God. Our works don’t save us, but if we understand the message of the wondrous cross; love so amazing, so Devine, demands our all. Everything. Our life, our soul, our all. That’s all the gospel is saving. That’s what we’ve tried to clarify for the last five weeks. We’re in Christ because of Christ. We’re a part of Christ because of God. Our righteousness comes from him. The two things I needed. He took the Passover meal and he made another symbolic meal the Lord’s Supper. He took out all the other things; the accouterments of the Passover and left us with two – the bread and the cup. And he said this is my body, and this is my blood. All symbolic; he made that clear. I won’t drink again from the fruit of the vine until I see you into the kingdom. He’s not turning into anything if you were raised in the that tradition. That’s not right. But his body and his blood; his life and his death. The righteous life I couldn’t live; I need this. And the death that I don’t want to die. The wrath of God pointed and pitted against me. I don’t want that. I need a substitutionary life. I need his substitutionary death. And I love the fact that he kept in the symbolic meal the picture of ingesting it all. I need his life; I need his death. Eating that. We’re saying we need it all. Now these are just pictures, but the imagery is rich. I want it all. I want Christ. I want his life. I want the benefits of his death. All validated by his resurrection. And to do that by faith is salvation. Now love so amazing, so Devine demands my life, my soul and my all. Let’s eat this bread and drink this cup together.

Pray with me please. God what an important morning for us to cap off this study of the gospel, understanding the truth from Matthew 29. That you require that God be our God and that we become followers of Christ – repentance and faith, turning and trusting, from my path to his, from trust in myself to trust in Christ. God this truth to be capped by a reminder of the central issue of the cross so important. We think about when we understand, when we survey the wondrous cross on which the prince of glory the perfect one died. God our richest gain, no matter what it is. The idols we’ll lay them on the alter. We’ll count it all loss and we’re willing to pour content on our pride. We’ll bear the reproach of Christ. Bring it on. It doesn’t matter. Cut our heads off. Calls us names. Make us lose our jobs. Make us lose our reputations. Take our money away from us. Confiscate our property. Doesn’t matter. We’ll bear it gladly for the King of kings, Lord of lords. Oh, that our hearts would be fully responsive to the call of sacrifice and following Christ with all of our hearts. Thank you for this reminder from Matthew 19. May we live it now I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.