A Study of Luke 9: 23
IF
If, only two letters, yet one of the biggest words in our vocabulary. This one word has had implications of hurricane proportions on our lives, our businesses, and our culture. We have all had our "what if" or "if only" moments. I was recently impressed with the magnitude of this one little word in the hurricane that blew up concerning Chick-fil-A and the statements made by their president concerning marriage. I began to imagine, "what if" Truett Cathy, founder of the company, had never received Christ into his life. "What if" he had never transferred those same personal Christian values into his business. "If" he had not installed those values in his son, Dan Cathy, the president of Chick-fil-A. "What if" Dan Cathy had never taken the public stand that provided the opportunity for millions of folks to stand with them in their values.
Jesus uses that same word," if ", when He addresses His disciples in Luke 9: 23. "If anyone wants to come with Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me." For Truett and Dan Cathy, their " if " had been settled long ago. But what was it in their lives that enabled them to move forward in their relationship with Jesus?
We have stated that the most important word in John 3: 16 is the word BELIEVE. Just like the word IF, we must approach both words with full understanding before we can capture the reward offered by Jesus in each verse. What is it to believe? Many people believe about Jesus, but do not believe in Jesus. When addressing the Pharisees in Matthew 15: 8, Jesus states; These people honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me." To believe in Jesus, requires not only a decision to believe about Him, but to make a commitment to Him in such a way that it changes our lives. A friend of mine when announcing his decision to accept Christ would always state that he had his "want to' s changed. His "want to' s came from a changed heart.
It is, also, necessary that we really know Jesus, Many people, again, know about Jesus, but do not really know Him. In Luke 7, Jesus relates the story where He has been invited to dinner by a Pharisee named Simon. It was the custom in that day, when receiving guest in your home, to offer certain practices of recognition to the guest. Simon had done none of these when receiving Jesus. As the evening progresses, a strange woman enters the home and immediately goes over to Jesus and begins to wash His feet with her hair using her tears and some oils. Don't miss the message here. Simon was a devout Jew who had been raised from childhood as a devoted religious person. He attended church regularly, was a leader in his religion, memorized books of scripture, and was active in the moral and religious issues of the day. Yet, when sitting across from Jesus at dinner, he did not know Him.
We do not know much about this woman from scripture, only that she is a sinner. We must assume she had seen Jesus somewhere or had even heard one of his messages. Here was Simon, a man who had spent his life knowing about Jesus, and this sinful woman was the one who really knew Him. To know Jesus is to have Him within us. John 14: 17 tells us; " He is the Spirit of Truth. The world is unable to receive Him because it doesn't see Him or know Him. But you know Him, because He remains with you and will be in you."
Truett and Dan Cathy have had their "washing moment". The apostle Paul writes in Philippians, "I consider all things a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." He further states, "I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings." This is something that all of us must face at sometime in our life. Jesus offers the opportunity to believe and to follow. Have we had our washing moment? Have we settled our "if" question? Are we admirers of Jesus or followers?
