Questions Jesus Asked – 8 – Is Anything Worth More?
- This is our 8th week, and we are winding down in the series. The longer we go, the more serious the questions get, and today’s question is deep. It is a question that we all have to contemplate, and it is a question that we should contemplate often. It’s not just a matter of people who have not prophesied faith in Christ that need to contemplate this, but this is a matter answering this question especially if you are of those who are already following Christ.
- “A question opens the mind, and a statement closes it.” I hope and pray that you allow God to open your mind today as you answer this question.
- Is anything worth more than your soul?
Scripture:
Matthew 16:24-27 Jesus Predicting His Death
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. 25 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. 26 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?[l] Is anything worth more than your soul? 27 For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father and will judge all people according to their deeds.
Point:
- What do you want?
- You have to come to a point in your life when you are completely honest and transparent about the things that you want! If you haven’t sat down and come up with a list of things in your life that you want, you really need to do that! And I’m not talking about a Christmas list or cheap items. I mean like, what do you want your life to culminate to?
- Not stuff, but big things that you have an impact on, but you also know that you need something more than yourself to accomplish them. You need God!
- Marriage
- Children
- Good parent
- Great job
- Millionaire
- Famous
- World changer
- Happiness
- Health
- Peace
- Joy
- Fulfillment
- Confidence
- Stability
- Passion
- Meaning
- Hope
- There are a lot of things that people want. There are a lot of things that we want. But we eventually have to come to the point where we have to decide if we want Jesus or not. We have to decide if we want the world, or we want Jesus Christ.
- Many of us have been lied to for a long time. We have been told that salvation is free and that all we have to do is accept Jesus as Lord and Savior and we will have eternal life. Just pray a prayer. Well, it’s a half truth. Yes, Jesus did die for you. Jesus paid the penalty for your sins. He made it possible for you to have eternal life. He paid the price that you couldn’t pay. But you still have a cost.
- And you say oh James, please be careful, you are tiptoeing on heresy.
- Well let’s see what scripture has to say about that…
- Luke 14:28-29 Cost of being a disciple
28 “But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? 29 Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you.
- Some may say, well now that’s being a disciple, that’s not being saved. Let me tell you something. Jesus looked at his disciples and said if you don’t give up your life for me, you will lose it. They were already disciples! They were already followers and yet he was still calling them to more than they had given at the moment.
- Don’t think for one second that God doesn’t want more from you than what you have given in this moment! The father of faith, Abraham, had left all and done all that God had commanded and God still tested him one more time by asking for his one and only son.
- Luke 14:26-27
26 “If you want to be my disciple, you must, by comparison, hate everyone else—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. 27 And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.
- Don’t fall for the lie that you can just get by on the skin of your teeth. Jesus wants all or nothing!
- Matthew 7:21-23 True Disciples
21 “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. 22 On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ 23 But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’
- I don’t know about you, but I don’t know many people that are prophesying and casting out demons in the name of Christ. There will be many people that did amazing things in the name of Jesus that Jesus doesn’t even know who they are!
- What do you want?
- What do you benefit?
- Well, this is going to be a short point! What do you benefit if you gain the whole world and lose your soul? Absolutely nothing! Anything that you could gain in this world is going to be left behind. What has been given will be taken. What has been achieved will be surpassed. What has been awarded will be stripped. There is nothing that you truly benefit from.
- You are only a temporary steward of anything that you can see, touch, or possess in this world. You are not going to be here forever! So, what do you benefit if you gain everything and yet lose everything? Absolutely nothing.
- My parenting tactic with our kids to not destroy our house is to constantly remind them that this will one day be theirs. Don’t tear up the walls! Whatever money we have to spend on fixing them is less money you will get. Don’t leave the lights on or the water running. That’s less money for you!
- Worldly things amount to nothing because we are just passing them on!
- What is worth more than your soul?
- This is a question that you answer in every decision that you make. What is worth more than my soul? Whatever you are choosing at the moment!
- Sitting here this morning you would never look at anyone beside you and say sports is more important than my soul. You would never tell that to your child. But you communicate your answer clearly anytime it comes first.
- You would never say that your spouse is more important than your soul, but you communicate it clearly when you put them first. You would never say that your child is more important than your soul, but you communicate it clearly when you put them first. Your job, your friends, your hobbies, your stuff, you would never say it out loud, but we tell Jesus everyday what is worth more than our soul!
Ending:
- Now James, you are being too hard. I don’t like what you’re saying. This doesn’t make me feel good and it doesn’t make me like coming to church. That’s not my job! My calling is to communicate what I believe to be the unchanging, unwavering, true word of God and if this offends you then the only thing that I can tell you is to take it up with Jesus because he is the one that said all these things!
- When is the last time you hated your family and even your own life in comparison to your love for Jesus. When is the last time that you had to explain to your parents or your spouse, or your children that you don’t hate them, but you love Jesus so much and you believe in it so much that we are doing this because this is right even though it isn’t the most fun or the coolest thing to post about? When is the last time that you consistently chose Jesus over yourself? When is the last time you chose scripture over tv, prayer over hobbies, church over entertainment, fasting over indulging, ministry over hurrying to the next thing?
- What is worth more than your soul? Well, most people communicate everyday what is worth more to them? If you want to change that answer, today might be a good day to say, “Jesus, you are worth more than anything else in this world. Help me not to just say it but help me to live it out in every ounce of my being. Every day, in every decision that I make, I want to show you and the rest of the world that you are the only thing that I want!”
- 2 Corinthians 6:1-2
6 As God’s partners,[a] we beg you not to accept this marvelous gift of God’s kindness and then ignore it. 2 For God says,
“At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.”[b]
Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.
