* The following article was published in the March edition of
Reach Out Columbia Magazine. Part two of this series will appear in the April edition.
I love the outdoors. From climbing a tree in the woods to
casting a lure out on the open water, the outdoor world is the place for me.
It’s where I go to retreat and replace the busyness of life with refreshment
and replenishment for the soul. There’s nothing like spending time with the
Lord praying and reading his Word surrounded by his beautiful creation.
Several years ago I was turkey hunting in the eastern part
of North Carolina. Using an owl locator call, I had provoked a gobble way off
in the distance. Knowing that the turkey would soon come down from the roost, I
hurried to get in position. I set up along the edge of a field. With the decoy
in place, I hunkered down at the base of a large pine.
Everything was perfect.
As I continued to call, he ever so patiently continued in my
direction. My eyes were on him, but his were fixed on the decoy. I followed him
in my sights as he strutted across the field. I clicked off the safety and
slowly touched my finger to the trigger, merely seconds from taking the shot.
Then it happened…
The wind began to blow, and the decoy began to spin like a
top. After several rotations, the decoy achieved an Olympic-style dismount as
it spun off the stand and landed flatly on the ground. I couldn't believe what
I was seeing. How could this happen?
In the hustle and thrill of the moment I had forgotten to
fasten the decoy securely to the stand. Spooked and unable to interpret the
wild antics of what appeared to be a hen, the gobbler stopped in his tracks. After
a moment, he turned and trotted off. The hunt was over. Disgusted and dismayed
in the agony of defeat, I considered what I might take away from this miserable
yet valuable experience.
A decoy is a clever disguise. Appearing to be real and
genuine, especially from a distance, it can be very effective. The fake and
phony qualities are not apparent unless you get up close and personal.
Unfortunately, I believe these characteristics also describe many who call
themselves Christians.
In appearance, especially from a distance, they look real
and genuine. They attend church regularly, sing worship songs passionately,
carry their Bible religiously, and Tweet and post “spiritual” Facebook messages
convincingly. But when you get up close and personal and begin sharing life
together, you realize that Jesus is not who they are truly following. They are
more fake and phony than authentic and sincere.
As Christians, we are called to be disciples not decoys.
Tested by the religious Pharisees and Sadducees, Jesus
revealed the truth of who he is and what he came to do in Matthew 16:16. He is,
as Simon Peter rightly declared, “the
Christ, the Son of the living God.” He foretells his journey to Jerusalem
and the suffering and death of the cross, but also testifies of the glorious
resurrection on the third day. This reaches a climax in verses 24-27 when Jesus
describes the cost of being His disciple.
“If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself,
and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will
lose it; but whoever loses his life for my sake will find
it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his
soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is
going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and will then repay
every man according to his deeds” (NASB).
The essence of these verses can be summed up in this one
question: does it cost anything to be a follower of Jesus Christ?
There is a brand of Christianity propagated in our world
that says following Christ doesn't cost anything. To be a Christian, you just
walk an aisle, pray a prayer, or sign a card. This “easy-believism” philosophy
has gained tremendous popularity because it appeals to sinful human flesh.
Seeking satisfaction from the world, the flesh is attracted to any option that
will allow us to be friends with Jesus and lovers with the world. But, this is
not the Christianity of the Bible.
Jesus taught very clearly that there is a cost associated
with being his disciple. The cost involves changed life. The idea that someone
could believe the gospel, declare faith in Christ, be indwelt by the Holy
Spirit, and no fruit or evidence of a
changed life was simply unheard of in the first century. It’s still unheard of
today.
In this passage of Scripture, Jesus taught that there are
three main characteristics of a disciple. We’ll study the first characteristic
here and examine the other two in the next issue.
A follower of Jesus loves rightly.
Jesus says if anyone wants to be my disciple he must deny himself. Denying self is at the
heart of loving Jesus. There are many things in this world that compete for our
love and affection—relationships, careers, and material possessions are a few.
In his work, Summa
Theologica, Thomas Aquinas discusses ordinate and inordinate love. He
states that all the loves in our life should be rightly ordered in relationship
to God. The danger, he proposes, is not so much loving bad things, but loving
good things the wrong way. For example, we love our family, which is a good
thing. But, if our love for our family is not rightly ordered in relationship
to God, then we can love our family in the wrong way.
Jesus says in Luke 14:26,
“If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and
wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, even his own life, he cannot
be My disciple.” Jesus is not saying that we should hate anyone. This would
be contrary not only to his character (i.e. 1 John 4:8), but also to his
teaching that we are to love one another as he has loved us (John 13:34). Our
love for other things, including those whom we love most in this world, should
be as hatred compared to our love for Jesus.
A true disciple of Jesus denies himself. This requires
putting aside anything that would steal our love and affection that is due to
him. We must realize that Jesus is more beautiful and more satisfying than
anything else in this world. Friends, there is nothing in this world worthy of
our soul. If we have everything this world offers, but don’t have Jesus, we
have nothing. On the other hand, if we have Jesus and nothing else this world
offers, we have everything. Until we get to this point, we are more like a
decoy than a disciple.
In the next issue, I’ll share two more characteristics of
true believers. I hope you’ll join me.
BIO: Brett W. Marlowe is the senior pastor at Green Hill Baptist
Church in West Columbia, South Carolina. He is a graduate of University of
South Carolina and Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He loves being
outdoors and spending time with family and friends. You can follow him on
Twitter @brettmarlowe or find him on the web at http://www.brettmarlowe.blogspot.com.
