mySundaySermons

As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.’” 20 He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.” 21 Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” 22 When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions. 23 Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 They were greatly astounded and said to one another, “Then who can be saved?” 27 Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.” 28 Peter began to say to him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” 29 Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, 30 who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age–houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields with persecutions–and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.” [NRSV]

Discipleship: Following Jesus

1. Is it actually that impossible?

a. John Wesley offers three simple rules for disciples: Do No Harm, Do all the Good you can, Practice piety.

b. Jesus has one rule, give up that which is most important to you and then you can follow.

c. Who can do what no one else can do? Not Me. But what does it mean to have Jesus in me?

2. What is at stake?

a. The truth about our piety and other acts of kindness and faithfulness

b. What do people say discipleship is?

c. What Jesus says discipleship is all about..

3. Last Things First!

a. Where to start? At the end of the story: We start at the Resurrection and Death of Jesus, we know the end of the story

b. We know how things can turn out if we trust the start of the story.

c. Give it a test, give up what’s holding you back and watch Christ be revealed in your life.