Uncomfortable Week 4 – Fred Gallop – August 2, 2020
In this concluding message for our series, we will be looking at what it means to follow Jesus after we have denied ourselves and taken up our crosses. There is security in following Jesus.
Uncomfortable: Follow Me
Main Scripture: Mark 8:34 NLT
Then, calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, “If any of you wants to be my follower (disciple), you must give up your own way (deny yourself), take up your cross, and follow me.
Big Idea: Follow Jesus.
Parable: a simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson.
Matthew 13: 34-35 NLT
34 Jesus always used stories and illustrations like these when speaking to the crowds. In fact, he never spoke to them without using such parables. 35 This fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet: “I will speak to you in parables. I will explain things hidden since the creation of the world.”
- There are no excuses…
- You are invited…no matter what you’ve done.
- Following Jesus gives us purpose…
- There are no excuses…
Luke 14: 15-20 NLT
15 Hearing this, a man sitting at the table with Jesus exclaimed, “What a blessing it will be to attend a banquet in the Kingdom of God!” 16 Jesus replied with this story: “A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations. 17 When the banquet was ready, he sent his servant to tell the guests, ‘Come, the banquet is ready.’ 18 But they all began making excuses. One said, ‘I have just bought a field and must inspect it. Please excuse me.’ 19 Another said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of oxen, and I want to try them out. Please excuse me.’ 20 Another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’
Man who prepared a feast: God the Father.
Feast: Heaven or the Kingdom of God
Servant: Evangelist
Invitations: the Gospel of Jesus Christ
Invited guests: the Hebrew people.
2) You are invited, no matter what you’ve done!
Luke 14:21 NLT
21 “The servant returned and told his master what they had said. His master was furious and said, ‘Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’
Matthew 5:3 NLT
“God blesses those who are poor (poor in spirit) and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.”
3) Following Jesus gives us purpose…
Luke 14: 22-24 NLT
22 After the servant had done this, he reported, ‘There is still room for more.’ 23 So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full. 24 For none of those I first invited will get even the smallest taste of my banquet.’”
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