Transcribed by Beluga AI.
Please turn with me to Luke 14. It’s going to be a different message today. I’m going to read from Luke, but we’re going to be covering various passages in the Gospel of John. But we’ll start with Luke 14:26-33.
If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.
Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?
Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to mock him, saying, this man began to build and was not able to finish.
Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with 10,000 to meet him who comes against him with 20,000?
And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. 27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. 28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:26-33, ESV)
Okay, let’s pray. Lord, you’re giving us very clear terms about discipleship and what it takes to be a disciple of Jesus and all of us here, our various stages of our spiritual journey. But I pray that deep down inside, every one of us here wants to be a disciple of Christ. And we trust that you will meet us in your time and your way.
Lord, we do our part. We open up our heart wide to you, Father. Draw all of us to your son. Holy Spirit, may you blow in your time and your way to soften hearts and open up eyes and ears.
May we come face to face with an encounter of the living Son of God, Jesus Christ, in this service. Thank you. We exalt you. We lift up your name. Be glorified. Thank you. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
One of my favorite toys growing up was Transformers. They were popular in the 80s and 90s. And there are these figures that you would move, change into a car or a ship and a plane, and then they turn into robots, of course.
And the toys came with these cards. And the cards had various strengths that were hard to read. But if you got out this red screen and then you put it on top of the card, suddenly you would see the score for strength. It has a strength of 80 out of 100, has an agility of 50 out of 100.
And all of these transformers had different abilities, and the motto for the transformer is more than meets the eye. So today I want to go through the Gospel of John, and I think there’s more than meets the eye looking at the seven signs that Jesus performed.
I’ve never studied it this way, but this past week, the Lord, he just pointed them out to me and he said, why don’t you just meditate on the seven signs that Jesus performed in the Gospel of John? Why did Jesus perform each of these signs?
Because if you look at the concluding verse of the Gospel of John, it said if all the things that Jesus did were recorded, there’s not enough books in the world to contain them.
That’s how many signs, miracles, things that the disciples witnessed. And the Gospels, the first three, were written earlier from if Jesus was crucified and resurrected around AD 33, around 40 to 70, there about that range.
The first three Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, were written, and then 70 to 90. That’s the estimation of when John was written. So John had the first three Gospels, and so he is, with the help of the Holy Spirit, bringing things from remembrance.
So if you can think of John and all the memory of the countless signs and wonders and things that Jesus did, so much so that all the books in the world cannot contain them, yet he distills it down to seven.
So we have to ask, why these seven? And what kind of a hidden message is there for us believers? I think we’re going to see. There is a roadmap here for the Christian journey of discipleship. A disciple of Jesus.
This is my summary statement after studying the seven signs. A disciple of Jesus is someone who knows how to surrender, repent, and follow Jesus, no matter the cost. A disciple of Jesus is someone who knows how to surrender, repent, and follow Jesus, no matter the cost.
If I were to define surrender, surrender is when you give something or someone to Jesus Christ and you say, I trust you about such and such. I surrender to you, Lord Jesus, take care of it. I know it’s in your hands. I trust you. That is what surrender is.
Repentance is going to Jesus and saying, I’m sorry, please forgive me and help me not to sin in this way again. It’s a change of mind leading to a change of life. The key in surrender and in repentance is Jesus, going to Jesus with your surrender, with your repentance. That is the life of discipleship.
The seven signs that Jesus performed. The first one, the wedding at Cana. John 2, he changes water to wine. The second sign, healing of the royal official’s son in Capernaum. John, chapter four. The third sign, healing of the paralytic at Bethesda. John, chapter five.
The fourth sign that Jesus performed, feeding of the 5,000. John, chapter six. Fifth sign, Jesus walking on water again. John, chapter six. The sixth sign, healing the man born blind from birth. John, chapter nine.
And number seven, the raising of Lazarus. John, chapter 11. On our church website, all the transcripts are there. So if you don’t, if you can’t catch it, you’re going to be able to read the.
Read the transcript. But this is something that you’re going to have to take home with you and study for yourself, because I can only give an outline. And it’s for you to take this and ask the Lord, is this true? And read the verses for yourself and encounter the Lord Jesus through his word.
The first sign and the seventh sign contain two amazing promises. The first one, the wedding at Cana. Water to wine, is a promise of transformation and a life with Jesus that gets better and better and better.
The seventh sign is the raising of Lazarus. And that’s a promise. If you hold on to Jesus until the last breath, you have eternal life waiting for you.
Sandwiched between these two promises are five warnings, each providing a different reason why some believers can be derailed spiritually and possibly miss out on these promises of transformation and eternal life.
Let’s look at the wedding at Cana. John 2. The promise of transformation. There is a wedding. And the worst thing happens that you could think of at a wedding, the wine runs out.
And I’m not encouraging drinking, but at the time, that was one of the safe drinks that you can drink through fermentation. And I don’t want to get into it. I personally don’t even drink one drop. I think as a believer, it’s safer that way.
And it’s a witness to the Lord, especially those who’ve struggled with alcoholism. We don’t want to stumble brothers, and say, well, you’re struggling, but let me pull this out in your presence. And then you stumble, and then I’m at fault, and I’ve sinned against you.
So just my position.I’m not encouraging the drinking of alcohol, but here they ran out of wine, and the mother of Jesus brings the situation to Jesus. It’s a metaphor for prayer.
2 Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. 3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” (John 2:2-3, ESV)
And there are six water jars,20 to 30 gallons each. These jars were filled with water for ceremonial cleansing. Jesus tells his servants, why don’t you fill these water jars with water? And the miracle happens.
These water turns into the best wine that these people have ever drunk. Usually, the best wine is served first. And then when people can’t tell anymore, you pull out the inferior wine. But the master of the feast said, this wine is the best wine I’ve ever tasted. Why are you saving the best for last?
And this is a promise of transformation. And Jesus says, if you follow me closely in Christ, you will get better and better. Maybe not your life, maybe not your circumstances, maybe not your loved ones, but you as a disciple, you will get better.
And such a great promise that a better you is waiting for you in Christ Jesus. That if you stay close to Jesus and you keep on bringing yourself to Jesus, all of your heart, all of your personality, all of your desires, and all of your decisions, if you bring yourself to Jesus, a better you is waiting for you in Christ Jesus.
A transformation of water to wine. The old you will become a new you. The old creation has passed away. The new creation has come. It’s all possible for those disciples who stay close to Christ in Christ. A promise of transformation.
Let’s look at the last one. The raising of Lazarus. A promise of eternal life. Jesus hears about his good friend Lazarus, who had died. And he decides to delay even further because he wants the glory of God to be revealed. And he’s making sure everybody knows that Lazarus is not. Doesn’t need resuscitation. He needs to be resurrected. He is,in fact, dead.
And so by the time that Jesus gets to the home of Lazarus and his sisters Martha and Mary, it has been four days. And Jesus performs another sign. And he tells a dead man to come alive. And Lazarus comes out of the tomb as a promise of eternal life.
Transformation, Wedding of Cana. Eternal life. Two promises. With this one, we see that if you’re born twice, you die once. But if you’re born once, you die twice.
For most people, they are born once physically. And that’s the only birthday they’ll ever experience. Because they don’t know who Jesus is. And they die physically and, to their horror, awaiting them is a second death. Eternal death and separation from God.
But for the believer, we are born again. So we are born twice. And for us, we experience one death, but it’s not really death. New life, eternal life, is waiting for us. Two amazing promises that start these seven signs of Jesus: Wedding at Cana, raising of Lazarus.
So let’s look at the warnings in these other five signs that are given. And this is a roadmap of discipleship for the believer. Healing of the royal official’s son in Capernaum in John 4.
The first reason from this passage that we can discern, a reason we can be derailed spiritually and miss out on God’s promises, is in fact our loved ones and the grip that we have on our loved ones and our inability to let go of our loved ones.
This is a possible reason for spiritual derailment and forfeiture of promises of God. There’s an official at Capernaum; his son is dying. He goes to Jesus. It’s an act of prayer.
And Jesus. The man was hoping that Jesus would go with him to his house. But Jesus just declares, your son will live. And this man believes just based on the Word, he goes back home.
The servants meet him on the way back. And the man asked the servants, when exactly did my son start to recover? He said, they said, at the seventh hour. And then the man remembered, that’s exactly the time when Jesus said, my son will live.
And he goes home. He sees his son recovering. He believes, and his entire household also believes. What we can learn from this is the most loving thing we can do for our loved ones is to love Jesus, to believe in Jesus, and to become a true follower and a disciple of Jesus. That is the most loving thing.
Oftentimes, when our loved ones are going through some kind of a crisis, what happens is we become so consumed with the crisis, it becomes everything. And moms, I think, really feel this acutely.
There’s such maternal affection for the children. And when they’re going through a rough patch, spiritual life collapses. And especially spiritually, if they’re walking away from the Lord, it has a tendency to grip the parent with fear, doubt, anger, and just despair.
Spiritually, they don’t realize it, but they are failing their own discipleship. They’re forfeiting the promises of God, and they themselves are drifting away from Jesus.
And Jesus is saying, I love your child more than you, so surrender them to me. Surrender your loved ones to me in the crisis. Don’t let the crisis consume you. Surrender them to me. I’m going to take care of them. You follow me.
That is the most loving thing. If you are close to Jesus and you pray as somebody who is close to Jesus for your loved ones, please meet them, Lord Jesus, that is the best and most loving thing you can do.
Rather than being consumed by the crisis, Jesus is teaching us about discipleship. And so what do we do as a disciple of Jesus? We surrender. All disciples of Jesus, we have to be good at surrender. We surrender our loved ones.
A disciple of Jesus has to be good at repentance. We repent about our lack of trust, thinking we need to solve this issue. And this crisis is consuming me. But that’s how I express my love. No, that’s not how we express our love.
We repent of our idolatry, of our children and our needing to control the situation. And we don’t want them to suffer. And that’s why we are so spiritually damaged by this crisis.
And we say, Lord, that’s not how you want us to be. We surrender. We repent of our idolatry. And we say, can you love them? Can you meet them? I trust you. I will follow you. This thing is not going to derail me.
The next sign is the Healing of the Paralytic at Bethesda, John 5. We see a second reason we can be derailed spiritually and miss out on God’s promises. And it’s our own sins.
A paralyzed man is sitting beside this pool at Bethesda. He’s been there 38 years. And people there, all kinds of sick people, are lining the edge of this pool because they believe this myth that when the waters are stirred, the first one in would be healed.
And do you think a paralytic would ever be the first one in? He can’t even move his body. Only if somebody foregoes their healing and drops this paralyzed man, that’s the only way he would ever be healed.
And so people with minor issues like a paper cut, they’re diving into the pool and they’re coming out saying, look, I’m healed. I feel great. It was just a paper cut. But this man, he has no hope.
People experience their paralysis, their brokenness, their sin, and they’re looking for a solution. Oh, it’s in therapy. Oh, it’s in this drug. Oh, it’s in this issue. This career change. There’s something that will fix me. And it’s a pool of water that has no power.
And so this man is stuck. He’s been there 38 years, and he will be there longer if it were not for Jesus. Jesus comes and meets him at the pool, and he asks him a simple question. Do you want to be healed?
Very straightforward question. Do you want to be healed? Jesus is asking you, do you want to be healed of your brokenness? Do you want to be healed of your sin, your depression? Do you want to be healed of your pride and your personality flaws and your harshness?
6 When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” (John 5:6, ESV)
Do you want to be healed of your doubting because your kids are struggling? Do you want to be healed of all of this mess? And like the paralytic, we also have our own paralysis.
And we don’t give Jesus a straight answer. And like this man, we say, well, no one’s helping me. He’s just looking to other situations, other people to blame. When the problem is within, I am the problem.
The biggest problem that you and I have is our own sin. It’s not the other person’s sin. It’s not your sibling, it’s not your parent. It’s not your child, it’s not your boss.
It’s not the world. The biggest problem for all of us is me. I am the biggest problem for myself. And Jesus is asking, do you want to be healed of this? And this is the first encounter. Jesus tells the paralytic, get up and walk. And he walked.And he still has no idea who did this.
I bet even if you don’t believe in Jesus, you can look back and maybe at some point you’re going to be able to look back and say, oh, look at all the ways that God met me. Look at all the ways that Jesus met me. Look at all the ways I was protected. I didn’t even know it.
This man met Jesus once. Jesus heals him; he doesn’t even know who did it. So what does Jesus do? Jesus meets him a second time. And so for us, we have to meet Jesus over and over and over, and follow him daily, and deny ourselves daily, and surrender daily, and repent daily. We have to meet him over and over again.
Because the second time that Jesus meets him, he says,sin no more, or something worse will happen to you.
14 Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.” (John 5:14, ESV)
He’s saying this paralysis is caused by sin. And if you keep on sinning,something worse is going to happen. It’s not always the case that sickness or paralysis is caused by sin, but for this man, it was sin. And Jesus meets him a second time and says, sin no more.
Jesus is the truth. And when you meet the truth, John 8, the truth, sin sets you free. So the patterns of sin, the more you meet Jesus, they break and you become a new creature. And the things that used to bind you no longer bind you because you’re free.
32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32, ESV)
There’s so many people, even in the church who say, everybody sins. What are you so uptight about? No, that’s not the Bible that I read.
If you meet Jesus regularly and you’re holding onto Jesus, it is actually impossible to sin. You sin because you let go of Jesus all the time. But if you hold on to him, it is impossible to sin while you’re holding on to him.
Jesus says, sin no more. It is a promise for all believers. If you hold on to me, you will not sin. And so when we surrender our life and we repent of our sins, be specific. Be specific. Don’t. Don’t repent. Generally, I’m a sinner. No, repent specifically.
I said this. I thought this. I did this. I repent of it. Please forgive me. But if you keep on doing it and it’s a vicious cycle,maybe something is missing. Maybe you’re not bringing your repentance to Jesus.
It’s easy to mouth the words that you feel bad, and it’s just a vicious cycle over and over. But if you actually consciously say, Jesus, I’m bringing you this. I’m so sorry. I am so sorry. Please forgive me of my sins. I don’t want to sin anymore. You say, sin no more.I’m bringing you this sin. And then you say, Jesus, help me.
See, that’s different than you feel bad, and you look down, and you’re not even looking to heaven and just say, I’m sorry. Please, please forgive me. And you repent.
It’s different. You look him in the eye, and you say, okay, Jesus, you promised that you will help me to sin no more. Now I’m bringing you this issue. I’m repenting. I feel sorry. I don’t want to do it again.
You bring it to him. You ask him for help, and the next time the temptation to sin in that way happens, right away before you sin, you ask Jesus for help. That’s how we start overcoming our sin.
Maybe you fall flat on your face. You get back up again. You say, I repent. Please forgive me. I’m about to sin again.I feel tempted. You bring the sin to Jesus. You bring the repentance to Jesus. You bring the temptation to Jesus.
He will help you. And in time, you will overcome.You will be set free. Because the truth sets us free.Jesus will help us to overcome our biggest problem, which is our sin. Disciples repent and surrender.
Feeding of the 5000, John 6. A third reason we can be derailed spiritually and miss out on God’s blessing is our physical wants and desires.It’s different than our needs. Our needs are guaranteed from heaven.
Food, clothing, and drink are guaranteed for all followers of Jesus. you’re never going to starve. you’re never going to die of thirst. you’re never going to be a beggar who’s naked on the street.
You’re going to have all the basic necessities covered. Guaranteed from heaven. Everything else is not guaranteed. And so we surrender all of our wants because Jesus, he encounters a crowd. They’re hungry. And so Andrew,he finds a boy who has five barley loaves and two fish.
9 “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” (John 6:9, ESV)
And there were 5,000 men, presumably more because of. If you add the women and children. So is it 10,000, 15,000? How far can five loaves and two fish. Maybe one. Oliver can eat that whole thing by himself. Oliver loves food. But 10,000 people, 15,000 people, impossible to feed that many.
Jesus, he prays to God, he thanks God, he serves the meal he experienced. There’s a miracle that everybody could eat as much as they wanted. And there’s leftover. It’s a miracle, a multiplication of this food.
And then Jesus perceived the crowd. They want to come to him and they want to make him a king. And by force, they want to force Jesus into their image and to do what they want. And Jesus perceives that, so he disappears.
And so what does this crowd do? It’s like Jesus is their meal ticket. So they’re going to keep on looking for him. So they look for him. They get in a boat, they find him. Jesus sees their heart, he sees their motives.
26 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. (John 6:26, ESV)
And he says, you’re seeking me not because of the sign which points to who I am. You seek me because your belly is full and you want another handout, don’t you?
That’s not why I came. And then he says in John 6:35, I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall never hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.
35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. (John 6:35, ESV)
It’s like John 4, the Samaritan woman who’s at a well. And Jesus saying, if you knew who I was, you would ask me for drinking. You have living water. You will never thirst.
10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” (John 4:10, ESV)
And she’s still thinking physically, yes, give me this water that I can drink. I’ll never be thirsty again.
The same kind of mentality this. These people are just thinking physically, give me a meal that will satisfy me so I will never be hungry again. But Jesus says, that’s not why I came. I am the bread of life.
How many times do you think about food in a day? Three times, minimum. For many people, college students, four times, five times. you’re not even thinking about the meal for today. you’re thinking about the meal you’re going to have tomorrow with your friend.
If you’re in college, you’re thinking about, okay, I’m going to go home. What kind of meals can I get at home? you’re thinking 10, 20 times a day. you’re thinking about the belly.
On top of that, there’s so many things that we want. How many times do we think about what we want? I want this. I want a boyfriend. I want a girlfriend. I want a spouse. I want a job. I want more money. There’s so many things on top of just our belly, our needs.
We think so much about what we want in life, and Jesus is inviting us. Surrender it all, all of your wants. Did you ever ask God once, God, what do you want from me? It doesn’t actually matter what I want for my life, what God wants for my life matters, and that’s it. Did you ever ask him, what do you want?
Like, I want to do this. I want to be this. I want to go and do this and live here and do that. And did you ever ask God, what does he want? What does he want from my life?
We surrender all of our wants, and we repent of all of our greed. How many times do we ask God over and over for the same thing, out of greed? And we never even pause and wonder, God, do you even want this for me? And we stress out about food and finances when it’s all covered.
God says it’s all covered. Don’t stress, don’t stress about it. It’s all covered. Stop being greedy. Repent of your greed. Trust me. Surrender and repent the life of a disciple.
Walking on Water, John 6. A fourth reason we can be derailed spiritually and miss out on our circumstances, miss out on God’s promises, is due to our circumstances. Disciples are on a boat by themselves, without Jesus.
A storm hits, and they’re frightened. Jesus is walking on the water. They think it’s a ghost. And Jesus says, it is I. Don’t be afraid. Matthew’s gospel, chapter 14, adds another detail. Peter is in the boat. He says, Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water. And Jesus says, come. And Peter gets out. He is the only man, except for Jesus, who actually walked on the water.
28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.(Matthew 14:28-29, ESV)
Two men who ever experienced walking on water: Peter and Jesus. But as soon as the wind came and Peter was afraid because he took his eyes off of Jesus, he focused on the wind, the storm, the circumstances. Immediately in that moment, he began to sink.
It tells me the moment we take our eyes off of Jesus and focus on circumstances, the wind, the storm, the waves, the emergency, the crisis, the moment that becomes our focus, we begin to sink spiritually.
And either you and I in Christ walk above the water, above the waves. We overcome the circumstance, or the circumstance, the wind, the wave, the situation overwhelms us spiritually,and we fall away from Christ.
And so, as a believer, we surrender our circumstances to Jesus. We say, I can’t handle this. But Lord, nothing is impossible with you. I give it to you. I give you my circumstance. That’s surrender.
But on top of that, we repent. Like Peter, he fell into the water. He began to sink because he doubted and he lacked little faith. He lacked faith. And Jesus says you of little faith.
And so what do we repent of? We repent that not only did we look away from Jesus, we repent that our faith is so little, or it could be almost zero in some cases where we really were consumed, and this circumstance exposed our lack of faith.
Healing of the Man Born Blind, John 9. This is the fifth and final reason we can be derailed spiritually and miss out on God’s promises, and it’s people. Specifically, the fear of man.
John sees a man born blind. He spits on the ground. He makes mud with the saliva. He puts it on this man’s eyes and he tells him, go wash in the pool of Siloam. This is the first encounter. I don’t know why it was done this way. We know that Jesus can just say a word and a dead man can rise from the tomb.
I don’t know why it had to be this way, but this person had to have faith. To go to this pool, to be humiliated with mud on his face while he’s going to the pool. It’s a humbling thing, but he did it and he trusts it.
He obeys. He experienced this miracle that on the way back he could see. And news is breaking out. The Pharisees and the Jewish leaders, back then, were the big deal. They were the gatekeepers for the Jewish people.
They allowed people in the in crowd, or you’re on the outsider. You are welcome to be a member of good standing in the synagogue. Otherwise, we’re going to cast you out, and we’re going to put someone at the door to make sure you don’t come back in unless we allow you to come back in.
And so these people controlled society and life. They were like the VIPs. Everybody looked to these men, and they wanted to be in the good graces of these men.
And so the Pharisees, they interrogate the men,and they criticize Jesus for being a sinner because he broke the Sabbath law. This man is not going with the program. He defends Jesus.
He says, no, this man’s a prophet. And so they’re not getting anywhere with this man who is healed of blindness. So they talk to the parents of the man. Was he really blind from birth? And so they’re asking him. They say, yes, he was blind from birth.
And they keep grilling the parents. And the parents are members of the synagogue. And they are afraid that, okay, if I say the wrong thing to these VIP religious leaders who control society, then I might be cast out of the synagogue.
22 (His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.) (John 9:22, ESV)
So they say, well, I don’t want to talk anymore. Why don’t you talk to my son? He’s of age. So they’re cowards. If you’re truly a person of faith and your son that you know was blind from birth, experienced this type of miracle, would you care about what the Pharisees and Jewish leaders think of you? And yet these people still care.
It’s the fear of man that grips people. We just care so much how we look, what people say of us, what our parents will say of us, what society says of us. Do you have MD or PhD after your name? Are you a part of a profession that has a fancy title? And people know right away, oh, you’re smart, oh, you’re talented, and they respect you.
Do we play that game? If you are gripped by the fear of man, in some ways, you will forfeit discipleship because you’re going to just do what you want, or you will do what others expect you to do. And you’re just going to follow a prescribed road, unfortunately, to hell.
But a disciple of Jesus says no. The Pharisees are getting frustrated with the parents, so they go back to the man and they say, why don’t you denounce Jesus? Why don’t you denounce Jesus? He is not the Son of God. He is a sinner. And this man refuses.
And he remembers, he hasn’t even seen Jesus yet with his eyes. He just knows a man named Jesus did this for him. And he’s defending Jesus. And he says, never has anyone ever healed a man born blind. He must be from God. He must be a prophet.
17 So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.” (John 9:17, ESV)
And in anger, the Jewish leaders did what the parents feared they would do. They kick this man out of the synagogue, and he’s labeled an outsider of society.So Jesus meets him a second time.
Now the man can physically see him, and he professes his faith in Jesus. You are who you say you are. And not only is he physically able to see, now spiritually, he’s able to see. He becomes saved in that moment. And he confesses what every new believer confesses at conversion. I was blind, but now I see.
25 He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” (John 9:25, ESV)
To me, there’s no better statement. To summarize your life before Christ,you are utterly blind. You are utterly blind. You didn’t know who Jesus was. You didn’t. You didn’t know about spiritual life.
You read the Bible and nothing made sense. It’s so boring. You didn’t step foot in church. Or if you stepped foot in church, you’re in the back row, you’re falling asleep. Nothing’s interesting. That’s how you lived your life. Utterly blind. And your eyes are only open to fame and pleasure and money and everything that the world chases.
That’s where your eyes were fixed on spiritually, your eyes were closed. You are blind. And Jesus says of these Pharisees, because they think they see, their guilt remains. They are blind to who Jesus is.
But because this man admitted that he was blind, now God opens up his eyes. He can truly see what life truly is. It’s to be a follower of Jesus. And he surrenders his life.
And as disciples of Jesus, we surrender our life. And from the point when you meet Jesus and going forward, you have a new life, a new master, a new set of eyes, a new set of ears, a new heart, a new mind. Everything about you is renewed as you hold on to Jesus more and more.
So we surrender our life as a new believer, and we repent of our fear of man. And we say, I follow Jesus. And by following Jesus, what happens? All the world turns on you because you’re a follower of Jesus.
And they hate on you because you’re a follower of Jesus. Even in churches, when you talk about Jesus too much, people get irritated and bothered. Why do you keep talking about Jesus? Even in the church, people are hating on Jesus. They only tolerate Jesus for a small portion.
If you keep on talking about them to churchgoers who really don’t know Jesus, they too will turn on you and hate on you.
So we repent, and we surrender. This is the life of a disciple. These are the five warnings. But if we overcome all of these things, and we surrender and we repent, there’s a promise of transformation by holding onto Jesus and a promise in the future of eternal life.
And I want to end with Luke 14:26, the passage that we started with. If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.
26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:26, ESV)
The people closest to us, if we love them our way, that has a real potential to derail you spiritually. So Jesus at the outset says, you have to love me the most.
Your love for me has to be so high, so supreme, that other loves that you have, even for your spouse, even for your parent, even for your children, it has to feel like hatred because the gap is so large.
And if the gap is large, you’ll never be tempted to let go of Jesus and be gripped by the crisis in your family. But if your love for Jesus and your love for your family is kind of even, and then your loved one is having an emergency, easily you let go of Jesus.
Because they’re all on the same level. It’s just, okay, I love my child about the same as I love Jesus. And so if my child needs me, Jesus, okay, you can take a back seat. I’m gonna take care of this. I’m gonna be really consumed by this crisis with my loved one.
And Jesus says, if that’s you, you’re not ready to be my disciple. You really have to love me more, higher and higher and higher. Raise up the love that you have for me.
And then he says in verse 27, whoever does not bear his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.
27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:27, ESV)
Whatever situation you’re in, it is tailor-made for you. Either it was something that you did, and you made mistakes, you made bad decisions, and you’re stuck in that set of circumstances, or it’s God-ordained, and it’s a path designed for you and only you.
As you follow Jesus and your disciple, as he disciples you, you take up your unique cross. Nobody else can take it up. It’s your cross. It’s different than my cross. And Jesus’ cross is unique. It’s his cross alone to take care of the sins of humanity.
Your cross is your set of circumstances. The people in your life, everything, your sphere of influence, it’s your life. And Jesus says, take it up. I’m going to ask you to do things you don’t want to do. Who wants to die on a cross? Jesus himself struggled at Gethsemane.
There are things that only he can ask you to do. You have to be willing to take up your cross in your unique set of circumstances and decide to go against what you want to do and do what God wants you to do.
And then he says in verse 28, for which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, this man began to build and was not able to finish.
Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he’s able with 10,000 to meet him who comes against him with 20,000? And if not, while the other is a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.
28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. (Luke 14:28-32, ESV)
When Jim or Ron are working on some kind of construction project, they have to, in the beginning, assess: Do I have the funds? Can I actually pull this off? I want to renovate this. It’s going to cost $100,000. I only have $50,000.
I probably shouldn’t even try. And so you do an assessment. Can I actually pull it off? Can I actually finish the job? Jesus is saying, before you start, make sure you know what is being required of you. And make sure you’re the kind of person who’s going to finish.
Make sure you’re going to finish. He doesn’t need people who are half-hearted. Because if you’re half hearted, you’re not going to make it to the end.
If your love for Jesus and your love for family is on par, you’re not going to make it to the end. If you’re unwilling to take up your cross because you only want to do what you want to do, you’re not going to make it to the end.
You got to be all in. Discipleship is all in. You surrender your entire life. And that’s why he ends with Luke 14:33. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:33, ESV)
Did you know that? This is surrender. All that you have, you put on the table. My talents, my time, my youth, the rest of the years that I have, it’s all yours, Lord.
You don’t have to become a pastor. You don’t have to do missions, but everything you do is on the table. He may call you, he may not. He needs people everywhere. He needs people working in Bellflower. He needs people on the Ranch, he needs people working in their field. But everything is on the table. Every day, every year.
At the very least, we assess, I’m going this path this next year. Do I keep going this path? Or does God have something new? We have to keep surrendering our lives. At any point, he can reroute us. At any point, he can say, let down the net, follow me. I have something new for you at any point.
That’s the heart of a believer. We give it all, we put it all on the table. I surrender. I repent. A life of a believer – if you don’t have that heart, likely the storms are going to come. You’re going to sink. The crisis will come in your family. You’re going to sink. You’re going to forfeit the blessings. You’re not going to finish.
Jesus is looking for people who are going to finish. Cross the finish line. Let’s be that kind of a disciple. I want to cross the finish line. I’m going to hold on to Jesus no matter how hard the wind blows, no matter what the world says.
If the world says that I’m a loser or I have nothing going for me, I don’t care. I’ve silenced the voice of this world and Satan’s mockery. I don’t listen to that. I listen only for the Shepherd’s voice. If he says go, I go.
Okay, let’s pray. Father, we look at the seven signs that you performed in John, the apostle many years after you resurrected, as he kept fellowshipping with you in the Spirit, as he asked the Holy Spirit.
And then he penned this letter inspired by the Holy Spirit. He took all of the hundreds and thousands of signs that Jesus performed. He only handpicked these seven.
And we see the promises of God, of transformation, of eternal life. We see the warnings that you give for people who won’t finish, who have not counted the cost.
So Lord, we want to spend time counting the cost. Are we all in? Do we renounce all that we have? Do we put our love for you on a higher level than our love for our loved ones? Do we see that requires all of us to be a disciple?
There’s no half-heartedness. There’s no one foot in, one foot out. It’s all in, Lord. As a disciple, we want to be good at surrender and repentance. So if we’ve not approached our discipleship in this way, we want to start today.
Today is a new day. We want to become a true disciple. We want to count the cost. Thank you, Lord. We pray all this in your son’s Name, Amen.