This Week's Sermon Companion
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The Cost
“And he said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.’”
What Luke 9 Tells Us, Mark 1 Shows Us
Last week we looked at the invitation: “If anyone would come after me.” This week we look at the cost: “let him deny himself.” Jesus didn’t say, “Deny yourself something.” He said, “Deny yourself.”
To see what that looks like in real life, we turn to Mark 1. Four fishermen were doing an ordinary day’s work in the family business when Jesus walked by and said, “Follow me.” They left their nets.
Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him.
For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
An Ordinary Day
Peter and Andrew just went to work that day. So did James and John, in the family business. It was right out of that ordinary, everyday life that Jesus called them.
Surrendering the Right to Define Yourself
Mark makes a point of telling us they were fishermen. That was who they were. When Jesus called, they dropped the nets. There’s nothing wrong with the family business. It’s a state of the heart: I define myself by who the Master says I am.
Surrendering the Right to Direct Yourself
“Follow me” means Jesus decides the direction: where I go, when I go, how I go, and why I go. Self-denial is not seeing how much I can give up. It is saying that Jesus has the first claim on me. Hold on to your life, and you lose it. Lose it for His sake, and you find it.
Trusting Jesus With What You Become
The fishermen didn’t negotiate or ask for the plan. Jesus said, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” We don’t figure out God’s plan and then ask Him to check it off. We follow, and He makes us into who He wants us to be.
The Right to Say “Not Yet”
“Michael didn’t leave his kayak behind that night. He left behind his right to say not yet.” Michael had trusted Christ years before, but he never got baptized, and he drifted. God had been calling him back home. At the river baptism, he took his next step. He wasn’t on the registration list, but as someone told him afterward, his name was in the book.
“Even if you’re saved, there’s a next step for you.”
A Closer Look: “Deny”
The word Luke uses for “deny himself” (Luke 9:23) is the same word he uses later when Peter “denied it, saying, ‘Woman, I do not know him’” (Luke 22:57). To deny yourself is to say of your old self-rule, “I don’t know him anymore.” That’s why it’s more than giving something up.
The Christian life isn’t a series of destinations. It’s a journey, and every step is a statement of faith. The question is simple: What is your next step?
Next Step: Four Weeks in Luke 9:23
- Oct 11 · The Invitation
“If anyone would come after me” · Luke 9:23; Mark 10:17–27 - Oct 18 · The Cost This week
“Let him deny himself” · Luke 9:23–24; Mark 1:16–20 - Oct 25 · Dying to Live
“Take up his cross” · Luke 9:23; John 6:60, 66 - Nov 1 · The Daily Walk
“Daily” · Luke 9:23; Ephesians 5:16
Looking Ahead
Next Sunday we take the next phrase: “take up his cross.” Before then, read John 6:60–69 and notice who walked away and who stayed.
For You
These answers are for you alone. Nothing is sent anywhere.
For Your Life Group
- Jesus said to fishermen, “I will make you become fishers of men” (Mark 1:17). Why do you think He used the language of who they already were?
- Luke 9:24 sounds backward at first. How have you seen it be true?
- Why do you think the fishermen didn’t negotiate? What would you have wanted to ask first?
A Prayer from Luke 9:23 and Mark 1
Lord Jesus, You are King, and I am Your subject. You are the Master, and I am Your servant. You are the Teacher, and I am Your student. Today I take my name off the top of the chart.
I surrender my right to define myself. Tell me who I am. I surrender my right to direct myself. Lead me where You want me to go. And I trust You with what I become. Make me into the one You want me to be.
Show me my next step, and help me stop saying “not yet.” Help me to be a true disciple: a learner, a follower, and a servant. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Stay Connected
Sunday worship at 8:00 and 10:30 AM, Bible Study at 9:15 AM. Wednesdays at 7:00 PM.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved.