Pentecost 5 - mid-week

Luke 9:18-24
When it comes to the confession of Jesus Christ, two patterns of faith emerge from our text; one for the Savior the other for the believer. The Savior has provided for us a pattern of faith. It was and is a way of living, believing and acting out our faith. It is a pattern for the Savior and also for every single believer. These words of the Savior are very familiar to us. Lets see how the play out this morning.
I. For the Savior – Jesus reminds us that The Son of Man must-
A. Suffer many things. The sufferings Jesus were not limited to what He endured on the bloody and cruel cross. His entire life was that of enduring suffering. He endured suffering to identify with you. Sometimes it might feel as if you are suffering alone. Not so! Your Savior knows your plight. He knows your situation, and you are not alone by any stretch of the imagination.
B. Be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law. The pattern of faith for the Savior was to be rejected by the Elders, priests, and teachers of the Law. Why? Because they had developed a pattern of faith, in which, they were more interested in form rather then faith. They were more interested in ritual rather then in relationships. They were more interested in legislation rather then love.
C. He must be killed. The pattern of faith for the Savior was that He must be killed. The reason Jesus came into this world was that He would carry out the burden of redeeming us to Himself. It was the only way to win for us salvation. You can be assured of your salvation.
Illustration: You might remember the hit song It had as the refrain: I’m all yours- signed, sealed delivered. How do you know that your salvation is complete? How can you know that “it’s all yours?” We know it is ours for our salvation was signed, sealed, delivered. It was signed in Jesus’ blood. It was sealed in Jesus’ cross; it was delivered to you in God’s Holy Word.
D. On the 3rd day Jesus must be raised to life. The pattern of faith for the Savior was to rise from the dead on the 3rd day. This is at the core of everything Christianity stands for is in relation to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Remove from the equation the resurrection and you have nothing. The resurrection of Jesus Christ and His appearance to individuals for a 40 day period of time is on what the Christian faith will stand or fall.
Transition: There is a pattern of faith for the Savior. There is a pattern of faith for the believer. Jesus says if any would come after Me He first must:
II. For the Believer – If any man would come after me
A. He must deny himself. This runs contrary to the conventional thinking of this world today. In our world what is really important and what gains all of the focus are three little words, Me, Myself and I. In our world today it’s all about the self, it’s all about Me with each promoting their own agendas, their own plans, their own ideas. Yet, John the Baptist wound remind us, “I must decrease while He must increase.”
B. Take up His cross. The pattern of Faith calls for the believer to take up his cross daily. This calls for us to submit to the Father’s will. To identify with Jesus in our sufferings is to think more of Him and only of Him. Christ must be at the center of all that we do. Best summed up in the hymn; “Jesus I my cross have taken all to leave and follow thee; Destitute, despised, forsaken, Thou from hence my All shalt be. Perish every found ambition, all I’ve sought or hoped or known; Yet how rich is my condition! God and heaven are still mine own.” [TLH #423]
C. Follow Me. The 3rd pattern of Faith is for the believer to follow Jesus. “Let us ever walk with Jesus, Follow His example pure, Flee the world, which would deceive us, And to sin our souls allure. Ever in His footsteps treading, Body here, yet soul above, Full of faith and hope and love, Let us do the Father’s bidding. Faithful Lord, abide with me; Savior, lead, I follow Thee.” [TLH #409]
There is a pattern of faith for the Savior and also for the believer perfectly outlined in these two powerful verses. May this be our pattern of living. In the Savior’s Name. Amen