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["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] being the link of easter i'm going to go ahead and preach a sermon on that this morning or this evening so we'll get the first king's 14 either sunday night or next week i'm not sure yet but that's what you can expect tonight and then of course we've got the salvation of baptisms listed below that we'll go ahead and count up the salvation going back to monday or tuesday is there anything for today tune for today and then anybody having a wednesday i don't know about the time but just check and then we've got a couple notes there regarding the church please be sure to sign your cell phones homeschool field trip is coming up very quickly so that's tomorrow i don't see anybody signed up but if you wanted to go you still could but i even know what they said below that we've got the hopi reservation mission trip coming up they got the first trip on this friday that's still open available with anybody again there's gonna be more in these trips i spoke with brother ramin last night he's probably gonna do what about one a month so if that's something you want to do i'll try to do this much uh much leeway that are much advanced notice and then if you ever wanted to go if people wanted to go i would be more willing to shut up at least shuttle you up there and get you back get you to tempe and maybe take from there but if you want to participate in one of these just speak with me and work out those details don't forget if you complete the 90 day new testament challenge go ahead and sign up back there on that sheet if you have already done so we got the weekly vital memory passage in the back as well as the announcement regarding the pizza party for those who completed the 90 day new testament challenge that's gonna be on friday april 29th at 7 p.m so come on out for that we'll probably we'll just have pizza ping pong and maybe we'll even push some of these chairs out of the way and play some cornhole too while we're at it let's let some of the older guys get the cornhole all right that ping pong's for kids and for children the man's game is cornhole and then we've got the mother mother daughter tea party on our Monday schedule for saturday may 14th so the date has changed on that yours says the seventh but it's actually going to be a week after that so we can accommodate more folks and then we've got the meds preaching night from the end of the month and don't forget the church camp that's going to do it for announcements let's sing one more song we're going to preach inside that's song number 207 only a synth is my heart say is my grace say my grace is hopefully as the plate goes around let's turn our bodies to hebrews chapter 12 that's hebrews chapter 12 as always we'll read the entire chapter please follow along silently as we read from hebrews chapter 12 hebrews chapter 12 hebrews is what son is he is but they dare me for a few days chasing us after their own pleasure to keep our own heart and we might be partakers of this holiness and i'm chasing into the present scene joy is so previous nevertheless afterward they yield the peace and the fruit of righteousness from the lamb which are exercising right therefore lift up the hand which hangs down and a few means make straight paths with feet and establish his land he turned out of the way whether you rather heal oh peace with all men and holiness without which no man shall see the lord who can deal with him as any man fail and grace and god listen to the bitterness of you and thereby many be defiled a serene orator or a profane person and he saw or a more show of breath meat for his birthright for you know how that afterward when you would have inherited the blessing who was rejected for he found the face of repentance though he saw the character of the tears he did not come to the mount that may be touched with that burn with fire blackness and darkness and tempest and the sound of trumpet and the voice of words which voice they that heard and treated that the word should not be spoken for them in the north that it cannot endure if that was his command and if so much as a beast touched the mountain he shall be stoned and thrust through with the dark and so terrible was the sight and what was said exceeding the fear wait here comes the mountainside come outside into the city of the living god of the heavenly Jerusalem and to the normal company of angels assembly and church of the first one which are written in heaven and to god the judge of all and the two spirits of just man in perfect which jesus the mediator of the new covenant into the blood of sprinkling that speak of better things and that of acres see that you refuse not him not speaking birthday escape not to refuse him that's fake on earth much more shall we not escape and we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven whose voice that shook the earth and now he had promised saying yeah once more i have shaken out the earth only but also heaven in this word and once more signify the removal of those things that are shaken and the things that are being that those things cannot be shaken they remain therefore we are receiving the kingdom which cannot be moved let's have grace whereby we may serve god acceptively with reverence and godly fear for our godly consuming fire brother adams pray for us your father just thank you for receiving service lord thank you for all the goodness in your life we're going to just pray that you bless those souls that were safe today and just uh be with them and just walk with them work out and just allow them to grow spiritually lord and that's going to bless the rest of the service and the program spirit and just give us ears of understanding lord in jesus name we pray amen amen amen so of course this is the time of year where we think about the resurrection of christ of course you can't have the resurrection without the crucifixion so i wanted to preach a sermon tonight entitled consider the cross consider the cross and there's several things that we would probably consider when we think about the cross i'm just going to point out three thoughts this this evening about what i believe we should consider when we consider the cross and i get that title from hebrews chapter 12 where it says there in verse one wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses let us lay aside every weight in the sin which does easily so beset us and let us run with patience the race that is set before us so of course this is a very familiar passage but i'll remind us again that paul is telling us that there is a race that we have to run that our christian life is not just we don't just get saved and then live passively as christians that god wants us to work that god wants us to do as he did and to serve to serve him and to make sacrifices for him that's why he's saying look you need to lay aside every weight you know the things that would slow us down the things that would hinder us from running this race well we need to lay aside every weight and the sins as well so even the things that aren't necessarily sins in our life could still slow us down they could prevent us from living the christian life from serving god the way that he would have us to serve him so there's that admonition there in the beginning to lay aside those weights to lay aside that sin and to run that race with patience and he goes on and says looking unto jesus the author and finisher of our faith of course he's the author and finisher how did he finish that by dying on the cross he says he's the author and finisher of our faith for the joy that was set before him endured the cross despising the shame and is set down at the right hand of the throne of god for consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself lest you be wearied in your minds and faint so he's saying as you're running this race as you're living the christian life and as you're as you're serving god if you begin to be weary if you begin to faint in your minds one thing you need to learn to do in the in order to endure in order to continue to serve god and not wash up and not wash out in the christian life is to consider him okay and of course we understand that the him there is jesus and not just consider him in the sense that you know one day we're going to see him one day we'll give an account to him one day we'll be rewarded by him or not rewarded by him one day we will stand in his presence but specifically consider him and what he did and it's there that it says that he endured such contradiction of sinners against himself and he's referring of course to the crucifixion that's the context of this passenger he's saying look consider what jesus did for for you when the christian life gets hard and it will get hard when it gets difficult when the the temptations are there when the persecution comes when the when the desire to quit comes and it will when the flesh doesn't want you to serve anymore and you feel like quitting you need to consider him and what christ went through got to consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself lest you be wearied in your minds and faint look if you don't learn to think about what christ went through for us if we don't stop and consider you know we will become weary we will faint in our minds there is a possibility that we will uh quit serving christ you know those that don't let uh don't don't consider for at least from time to time and really this is something we should think about you know often daily really what christ did for us and of course you know that's something i can preach every single service you know but if we're reading our bibles regularly you know we'll we'll be reminded of the sacrifice that christ made for us it's interesting that you know the birth of christ isn't mentioned in all four gospels but the death is the resurrection is it's there it says you know i'm not by no means am i de-emphasizing the birth of christ i'm just saying there's an emphasis on the death burial and resurrection of christ it's as if god wants us to consider him he wants us to think about these things and all throughout the new testament and all throughout the old testament we see pictures of christ we're reminded and we're told to consider him and to consider specifically the cross and what he went through and if we do that if we consider him that endured such contradictions we won't be wearied we won't faint in our minds it will renew us it will cause us to push forward and continue to serve god and stick by the stuff it says in verse four you've not resisted on the blood striving against sin that's the conclusion that we come to when we consider what he endured for us when we consider the contradiction we say yeah i'm going through a lot yeah it's difficult yeah this isn't easy but you know what they haven't uh beat me they haven't spat upon me they haven't beat me they haven't mocked me and ridiculed me and humiliated me and pulled out my beard and nailed me to a cross they haven't pierced my side they haven't whipped me like they whipped christ you've not resisted unto blood striving against sin and that's what christ did you know he was tempted in all points like as we are yet without sin and we often think oh it must have been easy for him he must have just you know but it wasn't you know we haven't you know he did strive against sin he even prayed father if it'd be possible you know let this cut pass for me nevertheless thy will be done you know there was a part of him that had that he had to force himself to go through that okay so that's the thing that's what i want us to consider here i want us to consider a few things about the cross tonight consider first of all the sacrifice i've already been talking about that consider the cost or the sacrifice that's what we have to consider if you would you can leave hebrews and go over to luke chapter 14 luke chapter 14 and just keep something in luke for the rest of the night we'll be in luke and right around luke but go to luke chapter 14 the first thing you have to consider when you consider the cross is the cost of it the sacrifice that came with it that's the probably the first thing that most people think about is the sacrifice that christ made that there was a cost there that it cost him his life that he had to go through that humiliation that he had to go through that pain that suffering there was a cost to it look at luke chapter 14 and verse 26 he said if any man come to me and hate not his father and his mother and his wife and his children and his brethren and his sisters yet in his own life also he cannot be my disciple and just as christ you know when we consider his cross we consider the the cost that he paid the sacrifice that he made we also need to consider the fact that we have a cross to bear that there is a cost to the christian life not only did it cost christ his blood not it always cost his life but it also cost something of us now of course to be saved we understand is a free gift but to serve god to be his disciple as jesus is saying here you know there is a cost to discipleship salvation is free and look we go out we knock doors and people get saved all the time but that's all the further they go in the christian life and one day they'll regret it one day when they stand before and they'll say i i know i should have gone to church i know i should have gotten involved i know i should have served god but that's not us you know we're here on a midweek to acknowledge the the crucifixion to to be in the house of god with god's people we have to understand that that comes at a cost i mean it didn't come at a cost tonight to come down here it cost you your time it cost you your gas which is getting steep right it costs you something to serve god that's what jesus is saying here obviously the sacrifices you made tonight to be here are very small in comparison to the things that jesus actually requires of us if if needs be and you know it might be that a relate it might cost us a relationship it might cost us a friendship it might cost us you know some from some familial bonds that might cost us these things but you know what you have to consider that and you say well i don't know if i'm willing to pay that price well consider him that endured such contradiction against of sinners against himself he says in verse 27 and whosoever does not bear his cross they come after me cannot be my disciple so consider the cross tonight consider the cost that it comes to be a disciple of christ to follow him and to walk with him look at verse 28 he said for which of you intending to build a tower sitteth not down first and counteth the cost what he's saying here look if you really want to be my disciple if you really want to live for me if you really want to serve god you need to sit down and count the cost of what it's really going to take because so many people today think that they you know they think that serving god and serving jesus and living for the lord is going to be easy and and look he did say you know my yoke is easy and my burden is light you know the way of the transgressor is hard you know it's a lot it's a lot easier to serve god than it is to go out and serve the devil it's more far more rewarding there's no there's no grief there's no shame there's no regret that comes with serving god but that doesn't mean it's going to be easy that doesn't mean that it's not going to come at some kind of a cost to you and he's saying that's what he's saying he's laying it out say look you want to follow me you need to count the cost and it might and you need to learn to be willing to bear your cross count the cost whether he has sufficient to build it less happily after he laid the foundation is not able to finish it all that behold it begin to mock him you know in the world and people you know and your family and your friends you know if you washed out of the christian life i guarantee there'd be somebody that that just might mock i mean i remember being told after i got saved and got in church and started living for god saying oh i give you a few more months you'll be out of this by the end of a year and i know some people in my life that if i were to you know crash and burn they would they would mock they would ridicule they would scorn and it would be reproach in the name of christ verse 30 saying this man began to build and was not able to finish oh what happened i thought you were christian i thought you got saved i thought you were gonna you loved the bible i thought you loved going to church and winning souls i thought you were this big christian now what happened consider the cost you know consider the cost of what it will cost you if you quit if you don't endure if you if you don't uh you know if you don't uh uh if you be if you do weary in your mind if you do faint you know there's it's not that it's gonna not cost you anything then either you're still gonna have to deal with the mocking and the ridicule of others the shame that you're gonna have before god it's gonna cost you something verse 31 oh what king goeth to war go going to make war against another king seteth not down first to consulteth whether he be able ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand or else while the other is a great way off he senteth an ambassage and desires conditions of peace so likewise whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath he cannot be my disciple you know that's that's a hard saying now i believe that in the specifically at this time this was a much more applicable when jesus is literally on the earth and his and conducting his earthly ministry that's not the time to say oh you know but my my father you know let me do this let me go bury my dad let me go whatever all the things that the people came up with an excuses he's saying look i'm only here for three three years you better if you want to get on board my ministry it's now or never but there's still this principle that that lays over for us today and you know jesus at this time is saying forsaken all that he hath you know it'll be pretty i i think most of us hopefully would probably have a pretty easy time of doing that if jesus were here if we were alive back then during the earthly ministry i mean that'd be a pretty easy decision to make i would think if we truly understood who he was and we believed and we saw those miracles i mean what would you give to go see to be an eyewitness to christ i mean whatever you want it's yours let me see this once in a lifetime opportunity and yet people get stopped from serving god by so much less today don't they well it's it's just too far it's a 45-minute drive we hear it all the time we're 15 minutes away from the building oh you're way up there it's like good night i'm not asking you to walk you got a car we'll pick you up if you want to come but people let so much less stop them from serving god i want you to say oh but if jesus with i was alive in jesus day i'd have forsaken all i wonder i wonder when we can't make even the smallest sacrifices to serve him today go to luke uh chapter nine just go back a few pages there luke chapter nine he said and jesus said unto him foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests but the son of man have not to wear where to lay his head here's the thing you know jesus saying look at that time you had to forsake everything you should be willing to give up everything no relationship no earthly possession should stop you from being my disciple well that sounds kind of steep yeah but you know what consider him he's not asking you to do anything that he himself has not done he had nowhere to lay his head he left everything he left father he left mother he left kindred he left home he left all the comforts and went and ministered to those that could give him nothing go to john chapter 15 john chapter 15 he said in matthew 10 the disciple is not above his master why should we think it's going to be any easier for us even though when in comparison it is easier as i said earlier no one's chasing us down no one's trying to arrest us yet the disciples not above his master another servant but of his lord it is enough for the disciple to be as his master and the servant as his lord if they have called the master of the house beelzebub how much more should they call them of his household well you know i i'd go to that church but you guys got a reputation i go to that church but i saw that your pastor was in the news you know i read an article on an atheist blog about your pastor you know my my you know my relatives know who your pastor is i'd go there but man i don't know i don't want people to find out they might hate me they might not like me as much well you know what the disciples not above his master he said in john 15 i had you go there verse 18 if the world hate you you know that it hated me before i hated you so consider that when we consider the cross tonight when we consider the things that that christ was willing to go through in order to obtain our salvation to purchase us the price that was paid the cost of it all it and consider this that there is a cost to being his disciple to serving christ today and as the world gets worse and worse and worse that cost is going to go up and up and up he said in verse 19 if you were of the world the world would love his own but because you're not of the world but i have chosen you out of the world therefore the world hateth you remember the word that i said unto you the servant is not greater than his lord if they have persecuted me they will also persecute you if they have kept my saying they will keep yours also go to philippians chapter 3 philippians chapter number 3 look we have to consider the fact that there is a cost to serving christ real christianity comes at a price especially these days and even these days we still got it pretty good i mean i know we've got brethren that and you know fellow churches that have gone through things and and have suffered persecution but really you know and i don't mean to make light of it but they would probably be the first ones to tell you it's a light affliction compared to some of the things that others have gone through not just christ i mean other christians you know even with everything that they that they've suffered anything that we might suffer in the future here you know it it's it's not striving on the blood and they hate us well so what they hated christ why should that surprise us it's going to come at a cost that's the point i'm making we all know second timothy 3 verse 12 yay all that and all that live godly in christ jesus shall suffer persecution it's guaranteed that's a cost that's going to come for living for christ philippians chapter 3 verse 7 where you are but these things which what things were count were gained to me those i counted lost for christ i mean paul looked at it and said i'll pay that price he said i'll count that all lost for christ yay doubtless i count all things but loss isn't that what jesus said forsaken all that he hath he cannot be my disciple paul heard that paul realized that and said oh i'll pay that price anything else that was the price he was willing to pay he considered that cost and said that's a that's a good deal that's a bargain to be used in the way that he was used yay doubtless i count all things for the excellency of the knowledge of christ jesus my lord whom i have suffered the loss of all things he said i paid the price and do count them but dung that i might win christ i mean we like to talk about everything that paul did we we read all the things that paul wrote and all the things that paul did we say what a powerful preacher what a great soul winner what a great leaner what a great example to look to you know we read about paul we're inspired but do we consider this that that all came at a cost that that all came at a price and it was a price that paul was willing to pay and it was it's the cost that jesus asks he says this is the cost of discipleship it could cost you everything but again it's not it's a it's a cost that he was willing to pay so when we consider the cross and when we consider him consider that's a price that he paid he he went even beyond that we can't even match the price that he paid we can't even come close he said i am the good shepherd the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep i mean he paid he gave everything and i wanted to bring i wanted to begin rather with the cost that's the first thing that needs to be considered when you consider the cross because the next thing you need to consider is commitment you need to consider the cost first you can't consider the commitment say oh i'm going to be committed i'm going to i'm going to live for the lord i'm going to serve him all my days i'm going to be a disciple i'm going to commit to the christian life well you have to consider the cost first once we've considered the cost then we could talk about considering being committed only then can you be committed go are you still in luke go to luke 9 luke 9 we're going to be in luke 9 several times luke 9 verse 20 he said unto them but whom say ye that i am peter answering said the christ of god and he straightly charged them and commanded them to tell no man that thing saying the son of man must suffer many things and be rejected of the elders and priests and scribes and be slain and be raised the third day that's i mean he's predicting his own death he's telling them this is what's going to happen he's not he didn't say you know this is what i'm supposed to do you know the the this is what my father wants me to do but i'm i don't know i'm on the fence what do you guys think you know christ was committed from day one when he stood up and he left he left glory when he left heaven's throne and came down here he was committed it wasn't something he had to think about wasn't something he had to wonder if he was going to go through with it again we understand that in his flesh his humanity there was a struggle but he was committed nevertheless thy will be done you know and and i'm not going to sit get up here and say that you're never going to be tempted to quit on the christian life but if you're committed you won't and you'll only be committed when you've counted the cost and you won't be willing to do all that when you consider him be committed christ was committed and he's saying look this is what's going to happen i'm going to go through with it i'm going to be slain and i'll be raised the third day look at verse 51 it came to pass when the time was come there was a an appointment there was it was there was a time to come it was set there was a date that he had when the time was come that he should be received he steadfastly set his face to go to jerusalem i love the the way it phrases he set his face to go to jerusalem and he said that's where i'm going that's the direction i'm headed nothing's going to stop me it's commitment that's what you're seeing here and he sent messengers before his face and they went and entered into a village of the samaritans to make ready for him and they did not receive him because his face as was as though he would go to jerusalem and he was so committed people looked at him they're like you're not going to stop by here you're going to jerusalem you look like you got somewhere to be you look like you got somewhere to go you look like you have a prior commitment jesus that's because he did and that commitment we know that was with the cross so consider that this easter consider that that if you're going to live the christian life you have to be committed you have to be committed go over to acts 21 acts 21 you know paul was somebody also that was committed it says in acts 21 verse 10 as we tarried there many days there came down from judea a certain prophet named agabus and he was come unto us he took paul's girdle and bound him hands and feet and said thus saith the holy ghost so shall the jews at jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle and shall deliver him into the hands of the gentiles and when we heard those things both we and they have that place besought him that he would not go up to jerusalem kind of reminds you of somebody doesn't it somebody would set their face to go to jerusalem to be somewhere at a set time at a set place that had made a commitment and he's got these people here is trying to stop him he's got someone coming saying look this is what's going to happen to you you're going to be bound then paul answered why i mean you to weep and to break mine heart for i'm ready not to be bound only but also to die at jerusalem for the name of the lord jesus i mean that's commitment and he would not be persuaded when he would not be persuaded we ceased i mean i hope we can all say that about ourselves that we're not going to be not do what we need to do to serve christ did you know the world's going to try and persuade you to not serve christ there's going to be people in your life that are going to try and persuade you to stop you to say don't go there don't go do that don't go to that church don't read that bible don't say that don't believe that they're going to try and persuade you and hopefully we can say like paul i will not be persuaded i'm ready to die for this i'm ready to go and bleed and die for this and when you would not be persuaded we see saying the will of the lord be done in isaiah 50 i'll just read to you go back to luke 9 is a isaiah chapter 50 it says in verse five the lord god hath opened mine ears and i was not rebellious neither turned away back you know isaiah speaking isaiah had to go deliver a hard message didn't he had to go talk to you know go preach and rip a bunch of faces of a bunch of hard-hearted and stiff-necked people and just preach gloom and doom and destruction he said the lord open my hath opened mine ears and i was not rebellious meaning i didn't say well i can't say that i'm not going to preach that neither uh neither turned away back he said i was committed that's what he's saying i gave my back to the sminers of course this is prophetic of christ and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair i hid not my face from shame and spitting you know i believe isaiah did went through the same things but it was also prophetic of christ i mean that's that's some pretty intense stuff i mean i've got my little julie when i hold her man you know before i got the haircut it was getting kind of shaggy around here she was grabbing a handful you wonder why i got that haircut she was just pull and i just say how much can i take you know fortunately she never came out with a handful you know but man that's what they're doing it wasn't just a little you know one-year-old pulling at him it was grown men grabbing a handful of you know your beard and ripping it out of your face but you know why he hid not his face from shame and spitting but i wonder if we'd be persuaded you know to to not go through something we might find uncomfortable well i'd go soulwitting but i don't know how that person's going to react at the door i'd go knock on that door but you know there's a star of david on the front it's going to be awkward so what it's not going to come out and spit in your face well they might that's not going to come out and you know smite you pluck off the hair for the lord god will help me therefore i shall not be for counted therefore have i set my face like a flint like a stone like a rock i know that i shall not be ashamed you're there in luke chapter 9 verse 23 look when we consider the cross we need to consider the cost of it the sacrifice that needs to be made the sacrifice that he made the sacrifice that we need to make in order to be his disciple and understand that once you you know once you've done that once you've considered the cost only then can you decide whether or not you're going to be committed you can't put one before the other say yeah i'm going to serve god all the days of my life you haven't even considered the cost yet consider the cost first luke 9 verse 23 and he said taught them all if any man will come after him let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me for whosoever will save his life shall lose it but whosoever will lose his life for my sake the same shall save it for what is a man advantaged if he gained the whole world and lose himself or be cast away oh i'm committed but you know i don't want to give up these worldly pleasures i you know i would i would do this or that but then that means i wouldn't be able to enjoy this you know that's par for the course and i wonder if you've really you know if that if you're that easily persuaded and not serve christ because of just some earthly vain thing have you really considered the cost if you gain the world and lose it himself or be shall be cast away what is the man advantaged if you gain all these things you know there's a there's a cost that comes to serving christ that's what i've learned in the last three years and i'm not bemoaning my position believe me i'm grateful it's an it's a great privilege to be up here and to just be involved in the work of christ to every my whole life revolves around it it's a huge privilege but that doesn't mean it doesn't come without some some sacrifice go look at my front yard there's a list of things that i would like to do that just just gotta get put off gotta you know gotta be there gotta get down there gotta get prepared gotta do the work gotta get after it right and that's a very small thing obviously that's no great sacrifice but you know what there are some things that maybe we would say well i'm not going to serve god because i'd rather do this this career is going to pull me away from serving god this you know this potential relationship this spouse this person's going to pull me away from serving god he said in first timothy chapter four verse nine this is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation for therefore we both labor and suffer reproach we labor and suffer reproach because we trust the living god who's the savior of all men because we trust in the living god because we trust in the savior that's why we labor we've considered the cost that there is reproach that comes with it but paul is committed saying we do this you say well what in the world why would anyone sit down and count the cost did we count the cost tonight did we look at it yeah it could cost you everything i'm not saying it's gonna not saying you're gonna have to forsake all forsake everything but maybe one day you might i don't know but don't sit there and tell me you're gonna be willing to do that if you can't give up a sunday morning or you can't find some time to go soul winning you can't find time to read your bible you can't time find to pray you can't find time to for the preaching the word of god you can't find time for the things of god you know what then you're not willing to pay the price to be the disciple the smallest tiniest little price well i'd preach i'd go down there and i'd lead that church but you know i want to make sure my yard's looking nice what a joke what advantage would that be you know what that's so cheap to sell out on the christian life over something so cheap and worthless over just worldly ambitions over just worldly things the people do it all the time we've cut but we we looked at the cost didn't we you say well that's kind of a steep cost i mean that that's that could get up there and then we looked at the commitment well that's you know if you want to be committed you got to consider the cost i mean who in their right mind why in the world why did anybody want to pay that price and commit to something like that and serving god i mean what what what is it paul why did you say uh you know that you counted all things but loss and you count them by dung that you might win christ what in the world makes a man say that what compels him to say something like that well it's the last thing i want us to consider this is what compels us i believe at least it ought to be is compassion when you when you consider the cross you know we consider the sacrifice the cost that was made the commitment that christ made but let's not forget the compassion because that's really what it was all about wasn't it his love for us for god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that's what should compel us as well you're there in luke nine look again at verse 53 speaking and they the samaritans who were not friends of the jews and they did not receive him because his face was as though he would go to jerusalem and his disciples james and john saw this they said lord wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven and consume them even as elias did but he turned and rebuked them and said you know not what manner of spirit you're of for the son of man has not come to destroy men's lives but to save them that's what compelled christ it's compassion and we don't ever want to lose that and look you might look at the cost and say it's high you might look at the cost and say that's steep you might look at the commitment and say i don't know if i can do that but you know it'll make it a lot easier to do that to commit and to pay that cost is compassion i'll go ahead and give up my saturday and go out soul winning i'll go ahead and give up my sunday afternoon and go out soul winning i'll go ahead and go out give up my hour or two or whatever it is that you do a week and go out and preach christ to somebody that doesn't know me because of compassion i'll go out there and potentially embarrass myself or get some awkward situation or make somebody mad or maybe even get somebody saved because of compassion that's what's going to compel you that's what we need to consider when you consider the cross tonight is the compassion that christ had look at luke 23 and go there to luke 23 and we don't ever want to end up like the disciples and get in the flesh like they did here like like james and john let's call down fire from heaven and burn them turn them into some crispy critters let's have uh some samaritan s'mores and people get in the flesh and there's zeal and they think they're just so gung ho they're just so hardcore for christ and they forget compassion first corinthians chapter 13 verse 3 you're in luke 23 you said until i bestow all my goods to feed the poor though i give my body to be burned and have not charity it profit me nothing you know you gotta have compassion you gotta have love that's the only thing that's going to cause you to be committed and be willing to pay the cost is compassion luke 23 verse 23 or 33 excuse me it says and when they were come to the place which is called calvary there they crucified him and the malefactors one on the right hand and on the excuse me and the other on the left then said jesus father forgive them for they know not what they do and they parted his raiment and cast lots you know when he when he prayed that prayer when he said god father forgive them i mean these guys are right there they hear it they said oh do you hear that he's asking god to forgive us let's cast lots and see who gets his coat it was like nothing to them but did that stop jesus from having that that compassion for them i mean we we get some door slammed on our face by time where the curb like probably a reprobate i'm gonna split hell wide open buddy if you get in the flesh that's how you can be they've got him hanging from the cross about to die and go to hell to pay for our sins when he's done nothing wrong and he still has compassion go to effusions chapter four effusions chapter four we can never lose compassion for the lost and it's easy to do especially these days when people are so selfish and rude and dismissive and uninterested and cold it'd be real easy for us to just get hard hard and say what's the point no one wants to hear it anyway you have to understand second corinthians 4 it says but if our gospel be hid it is hidden to them that are lost in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not lest the light of the glorious gospel of christ who is the image of god should shine unto them you know when we're preaching to some rough looking character you know somebody maybe that that we wouldn't otherwise want anything to do with rather than being you know if we feel ourselves getting a little perturbed or upset or short or impatient or uncompassionate towards them because of the way they are you have to understand the the reason they are the way they are is because the god of this world has blinded their minds they're just being led of the devil effusions 4 where you are verse 17 this i say therefore and testify in the lord that he henceforth walk not as other gentiles walk so he's saying don't walk like these other gentiles but how is it that the gentiles walk in the vanity of their mind and we see that don't we i mean just the vanity of their mind just the things they just are obsessed with are so vain all these worldly things it's just the vanity of their mind having the understanding darkened so why don't they get it they can't being alienated from the life of god why can't they just live a godly life they're alienated from it why is their life just wracked with sin why is their life just falling apart why are why are they the way they are why can't they figure it out because they're alienated from it it's like there's a barrier there through the ignorance that is in them because the blindness of their heart say why don't you get it it's like telling a blind man hey what color is this they're blind they can't they don't know they can't see who being past feeling have given themselves over into lasciviousness to work all cleanness with greediness yeah they get pretty wicked don't they but you have not so learned christ you know the truth is is a lot of us were the same way and if we never were we all have the potential to be the same way because he says there you have not so what learned christ we had to learn not to do all these things we had to learn oh i'm like that i need to get saved oh i need to quit doing this sin oh i need to start doing this and quit doing that that's stuff that we learned and you know knowledge puff puffeth up but charity edifies yeah i've learned a lot of things about the christian life and i've really got it together and you know what i'm glad you do but you know what charity edifies charity's not gonna lose compassion for the lost and start to look down on others go to titus chapter three i'm almost done titus chapter number three i'll begin reading in verse one of titus chapter three we're considering compassion because compassion is what's going to compel us to stay committed even after we've counted the cost and seeing that it can get pretty steep titus chapter three verse one put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers to obey magistrates to be ready to every good work to speak evil of no man to be no brawlers but gentle showing all me showing all meekness unto the guys that you like to the people that don't rub you the wrong way the people that treat you nicely and aren't jerks no it says to all men and look he says put them in mind to do this this is something we have to be reminded of and reminded of and reminded of someone i have to remind myself of all the time don't tailgate that person don't don't call them that name hold that door open don't yeah they're a little funny yeah she's got a purple streak in her hair and and yeah she's got two piercings here and two right here and another one in the tongue and she's not dressed right but god wants her saved just the same so maybe i could just look past all that and ask compassion just go ahead and preach the gospel speak evil of no man showing all meekness unto all men verse three for we ourselves also were sometimes the same way the same way man i'd preach this guy but he's just look at the place just beer bottles everywhere coffee can full of cigarette butts smell just pouring over but by the grace of god that's me and there's nothing saying that can't be me tomorrow i could start down that same path for we ourselves also were sometimes foolish disobedient deceived serving diverse lusts and pleasures living in malice and envy hateful and hating one another i mean the world's got it bad enough the lost have got it bad enough don't they hateful and hating one another they're just cantankerous and angry and they don't know why it's because they need to get saved and if we don't have some compassion who's gonna tell them nobody but after that the kindness of love and love of god our savior toward man appeared that's the only reason you learned christ it's the only reason you got saved is because of god's kindness because of his love because of his compassion because the fact that he was willing to pay that cost because the fact that he was willing to stay committed to that cause and that's the only reason we know anything about the compassion of christ um go to mark 10 mark 10 we'll end there i read mark 10 today and my devotion said well you know i gotta add this on there because it's just it's such a great story and it just shows us the compassion of our lord i mean as if it wasn't evident enough when he's praying for the very people that put him on the cross to be forgiven he says in mark 10 verse 17 when he's gone forth and away there came one running and kneeled to him and asked good master what shall i do that it may inherit eternal life and jesus said unto him why call us thou me god there is none good but one that is god thou knowest the commandments do not commit adultery do not kill do not steal do not bear false witness defraud not honor thy father and mother he answered and said to them master all these i observe for my youth saying perfect i got it check i'm a good person and he answered i've i've observed all these things for my youth then jesus beholding him loved him you know some people really are trying out there aren't they and they're just spinning their wheels trying to get to heaven so you know i don't know what's worse the guy that's just a wicked sinner and he knows it and and just like yeah i'm on my way to hell or the person who thinks that they're on their way because they've observed all these things because they haven't killed anybody because they haven't committed adultery i don't know what's worse but jesus it says there verse 20 then jesus beholding loved him and said one thing thou lackest go thy way sell whatsoever thou hast and give to the poor and thou shalt have treasure in heaven and come take up the cross and follow me and he was sad at that saying and he went away grieved for he had great possessions you know we we need to have the same attitude that christ has here then when we behold people who are puffed up they think they're good enough or if they're you know just just really down in the dumps either way we gotta we have to behold these people and love them when we behold the lost we should we should have compassion because i'm telling you it's compassion that's going to compel you to stay committed it's compassion that's going to cause you to be willing to pay the cost of discipleship without compassion without a love for the lost you'll say what's the point because what is the point i mean what are we here for i mean what are we here for if not to preach christ i mean if that's not what we're here for i i don't know what is i just i've been thinking i just don't know what it is i mean yeah there's a lot of things we get to enjoy along the way we've got other responsibilities but it's it's like well lord i'd pass and all that if we could just go to heaven right now i mean there's a lot of things i'd like to see but they're not going to compare to christ well i'm gonna keep you there well why because there's people that we need to reach and we won't do it without compassion we won't stay committed to that cause without compassion so consider the cross tonight you know when we're thinking about the cross and the resurrection this easter season you know yes we often think about the the cost that christ paid for us but consider also that there's a cost that he asked us to pay to be his disciple we think about how committed he was to going through everything that he went through but consider also that you know we need to commit to christ after we've counted the cross commit to being a disciple commit to serving him in the face of hardship in the face of difficulty in the face of persecution and suffering and mocking and ridicule and yea even physical torment and death that came to that we're committed consider that and you'll be able to do all that if you consider the compassion that christ had for us and hopefully we can you know display that same compassion towards other others who desperately need it just as we desperately needed it let's go ahead and pray dear lord again thank you for the great price that was paid for our salvation lord i pray you'd help us to think about it every day lord that this wouldn't just be something that we think about once a year but that we would daily consider that great price that was prayed the precious blood of christ for our salvation lord i prayed help us to preach it and lord that we'd be able to see many souls saved and lord that you would build this church and help us to be your disciples lord that you would fill this church with people who love you who love your word and who want to serve you with their lives we ask in christ's name amen all right we'll go ahead and sing one more song before we go amen song number 147 leaning on the upper last we are from all me the everlasting of all the everlasting the everlasting everlasting so so so so