Two Simple Words: Follow Me

In this message from Matthew 4:18–22, David Platt urges us to consider Jesus’ costly call of discipleship. 

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Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
You are listening to David Platt Messages, a weekly
podcast with sermons andmessages from pastor, author,
and teacher David Platt.

SPEAKER_01 (00:08):
What is a disciple?
What is a disciple?
This is going to launch us inthe next six weeks of what it
means to make disciples.
We got to know what a discipleis.
When you look in the NewTestament, you see the word
disciple mentioned about 269times.
Just by way of contrast,comparison, you see the word
Christian mentioned three times.
Disciple is mentioned over andover and over again.

(00:30):
What is a disciple?
Now, when the New Testamenttalks about disciples, it talks
about disciples in differentways.
I want you to see three maincategories.
First of all, when the NewTestament, you see the New
Testament talking aboutdisciples, sometimes it's
referring to a casual listener,a casual listener.
People who are in the crowdsfollowing Jesus, listening to
what he is saying, a casuallistener.

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Then you take a step deeper andyou see some people referred to
as disciples more along thelines of being convinced
listeners.
And by that I mean they're notjust casually listening.
There's some buy-in there.
Okay, I believe what this guy issaying.
I'm embracing what he's saying.
I'm convinced he is who he sayshe is.
And so you've got convincedlisteners.
And then you've got a deeperlevel.
Beyond that, not just casual orconvinced listeners, but you've

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got a committed lifelong learnerand follower described as a
disciple in the New Testament.
What's interesting is that it inthe New Testament, when we see
all these references todisciples, the greatest number
of people that are calleddisciples fall into one of those
first two categories.
Either casual listeners orconvinced listeners, thousands
of people that would followChrist, many that had some

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buy-in.
But when you take that thirdstep and you get to committed
lifelong learners and followers,the group gets really, really
small.
For example, in Acts chapter 1,verse 15, all it says is that
after Jesus had left this lifeon earth, ascended into heaven,
there's only 120 people that areleft.
Now, thousands of people hadfollowed him during his life
here, but only 120 people thatare actually doing what he told

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them to do, committed lifelonglearners and followers.
Now, that's the picture in theNew Testament.
Let's take a step back.
Let me ask you a question.
Where do you think the largestnumber of people in the church,
particularly in the Westernworld, fall into when it comes
to these categories?
I'm guessing the first two.

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That I can say with pretty goodconfidence that the majority,
the multitudes, even who mightcall themselves Christians, when
it comes to this word disciples,would probably be classified as
either casual listeners who,okay, I can go along with this
Jesus and a church thing.
Or probably even more so,particularly in our culture here
in the Southeast, convincedlisteners.

(02:42):
A lot of people in our churchculture that have buy-in.
Yeah, I believe Jesus who is whohe says he is.
I believe this is true, and arecontent to go on living the
Christian life as a convincedlistener.
But when you get to this idea ofa committed lifelong learner and
follower, do you take a stepmuch deeper?
And the number gets a lotsmaller.

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And I believe we've created asituation where we've created
discipleship to be optional inthe church.
What it means to follow Jesusreally truly at its core, the
deep foundations of what thatmeans.
That's relegated for the superChristian disciple, disciple
making.

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That's only a few over here.
And we've made it possible.
We've created an atmospherewhere it is okay to become a
Christian but not a disciple.
We've relegated discipleship,really following Christ in
radical devotion over here.
And it's possible to be aChristian and have absolutely no
progress in or towarddiscipleship in our lives.

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And I think that's a problembiblically.
And I'm convinced when it comesto the need in the church today,
because that picture isreflected in the stagnancy and
spiritual weakness of the churchacross the Western world.
I'm convinced that the need inthe church today is not more
money, it's not more power, it'snot more prestige, it's not even
more people, it's not moreeducation, it's not more

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political influence.
I believe the greatest need inthe church today is more men and
women and students who havebelieved in Jesus Christ,
embraced him to rise up and bethe disciples that the scripture
teaches us to be.

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Listen to this.
He said the greatest issuefacing the world today, with all
its heartbreaking needs, iswhether those who by profession
or culture are identified asChristians, if they will become
disciples, students,apprentices, practitioners of
Jesus Christ, steadily learningfrom him how to live the life of
the kingdom of heaven into everycorner of human existence.

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Will they break out of thechurches to be his church, to be
his mighty force for good onearth, drawing the churches
after them toward the eternalpurposes of God and on its own
scale, there is no greater issuefacing the individual human
being, Christian or not.
And what I want to say to youthis morning, based on the
authority of the Word of God, isI want to be a part of the
church that is impacting theworld with the goodness of

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Christ for the glory of Christ.
I want to be a part of a body ofbelievers that is not casual and
convinced in our approach toJesus, but we are committed
lifelong learners and followersof Him who are embracing Him and
making Him known in Birminghamand all the world.
Now, before we get there, weneed to take a look at what that
means and to consider what itcosts to be a disciple of Jesus.

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Come with me to Matthew chapter4.
Look at verse 18.
This is a passage that I'mguessing is familiar to many of
us.
I pray that God will give usfresh eyes this morning to see
and understand the mammothtruths that are located in this
passage.
Look at verse 18.
As Jesus was walking beside theSea of Galilee, he saw two
brothers, Simon called Peter andhis brother Andrew.

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They were casting a net into thelake, for they were fishermen.
Come follow me, Jesus said, andI will make you fishers of men.
At once they left their nets andfollowed him.
Going on from there, he saw twoother brothers, James, son of
Zebedee, and his brother John.
They were in a boat with theirfather Zebedee, preparing their
nets.
Jesus called them, andimmediately they left the boat

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and their father and followedhim.
Now, Jesus comes on the scenehere.
Now, this is probably not thefirst time these guys have met
Jesus.
A lot of people think that John1 gives us the initial picture
of these guys being introducedto Jesus.
This may have been a second orthird occurrence where they
interacted with him.
But Jesus comes to them and hesays two words, follow me.
Literally, come after me.

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And in those two words, we beginto unpack what it means to be a
disciple of Christ.
What does it mean to followJesus first of all?
It means radical abandonment forthe glory of Christ.
Radical abandonment for theglory of Christ.
Now, in order to see that, weneed to look at the context that
Matthew chapter 4, 18 andfollowing comes in.

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So back up with me to verse 12.
And I want you to read with methere what leads up to this
picture of Jesus initiating thisfollowship with these guys.
Matthew chapter 4, verse 12says, When Jesus heard that John
had been put in prison, hereturned to Galilee.
Leaving Nazareth, he went andlived in Capernaum, which is by
the lake in the area of Zebulunand Naptali, to fulfill what was

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said through the prophet Isaiah.
From that time on, Jesus beganto preach, repent, for the
kingdom of heaven is near.

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Now what we've got to realize isthis is the very beginning of
Jesus' ministry.
Beginning of this chapter, he'stempted, resists temptation, and
then he starts his publicministry.
And from the very beginning, onemessage resounds from his mouth.
Repent, for the kingdom ofheaven is near.
That phrase is used, not justthe whole phrase, but especially
the kingdom of God or thekingdom of heaven, is repeated

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over and over and over againthroughout the book of Matthew.
And what it is, it's not akingdom as in a place.
It pictures the rule and thereign and the dominion and the
authority of God.

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Now, where do you get radicalabandonment for the glory of
Christ from there?
Well, what I want you to see isthat over and over again, as the
kingdom is mentioned, it isalways accompanied by great
cost, by great abandonment andsacrifice for the king.
I want you to see that.
Let me take you on a littletour.
Turn one chapter over to Matthewchapter five.

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Maybe circle a few differenttimes in the book of Matthew
where you see the word kingdom.
And I want you to see theabandonment, the sacrifice that
it's associated with.
Look in Matthew chapter 5, verse3.
Blessed are the poor in spirit,for theirs is the what?
Kingdom of heaven.
So, in order to have the kingdomof heaven, in order to inherit
the kingdom of heaven, you'vegot to be poor in spirit.

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Look down at verse 10.
Blessed are those who arepersecuted because of
righteousness, for theirs is thewhat?
Kingdom of heaven.
If you want the kingdom ofheaven, you're persecuted
because of righteousness.
That's a sacrifice.
There's a cost there.
Well, it continues on.
Look over in Matthew chapter 13.
And we're skipping over tons andtons of instances where kingdom

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is mentioned.
But look with me at Matthewchapter 13.
Look at verse 44 with me.
This is a couple parables thatJesus uses to talk about how we
can inherit the kingdom, what wewould do, what we would give to
be a part of this kingdom, toexperience the glory of this
kingdom.
Look at chapter 13, verse 44.
It says, The kingdom of heavenis like treasure hidden in a

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field.
When a man found it, he hid itagain, and then in his joy, he
went and sold all he had andbought that field.
Again, the kingdom of heaven islike a merchant looking for fine
pearls.
When he found one of greatvalue, he went away and sold
everything he had and bought it.
Do you see the picture there inthat parable?
The kingdom is worth sellingeverything you've got in order

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to get it.
Leaving everything behind.
Let me show you a practicalpicture of that.
Go over to Matthew chapter 19.
You mean literally giveeverything, everything up, leave
everything behind, abandoneverything to have the kingdom?
Well, look at Matthew chapter19, verse 21.
This is a story known as therich young ruler, the rich young

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man.
It's a man who had great wealth,many possessions, comes up to
Jesus, says, How can I inheritthe kingdom?
How can I have eternal life?
What does Jesus say in verse 21?
If you want to be perfect, gosell your possessions and give
to the poor, and you will havetreasure in heaven.
Then come follow me.
Give away everything you've got.
And the young man heard this andhe went away sad because he had

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great wealth.
This is a huge passage for us.
All of us in this room,incredibly wealthy compared to
the rest of the world.
Jesus said to his disciples, Itell you the truth, it is hard
for a rich man to enter thewhat?
Kingdom of heaven.
Again, I tell you, it's easierfor a camel to go through the
eye of a needle than for a richman to enter the kingdom of God.

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When the disciples heard this,they were greatly astonished.
They said, Who can be savedthen?
Jesus looked at them and said,With man this is impossible, but
with God all things arepossible.
And Peter answered him, We haveleft everything to follow you.
What then will there be for us?
We've abandoned everything.
So Jesus said to them, I tellyou the truth, at the renewal of
all things, when the Son of Mansits on his glorious throne, you

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who have followed me will sit ontwelve thrones, judging the
twelve tribes of Israel.
And everyone, listen to this,who has left houses or brothers
or sisters, or father, ormother, or children, or fields,
who leaves everything for mysake will receive a hundred
times as much and will inheriteternal life.
Many who are first will be last,and many who are last will be

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first.
Do you see the cost of thekingdom here?
Let me show you one othergospel.
Look over in Luke chapter 9.
Look at Luke chapter 9.
Want you to look with me atverse 23.
Unpacking what it would mean toabandon everything for the
kingdom, the glory of Christ.
Look at this.

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Luke chapter 9, verse 23.
Jesus has got people followinghim.
And so what does he say in verse23?
It says, He said to them all, ifanyone would come after me, he
must deny himself and take uphis cross daily and follow me.
For whoever wants to save hislife will lose it.
But whoever loses his life forme will save it.

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What good is it for a man togain the whole world and yet
lose or forfeit his very self?
If anyone is ashamed of me, inmy words, the Son of Man will be
ashamed of him when he comes inhis glory.
And the glory of the Father andthe holy angels.
Listen to verse 27.
I tell you the truth.
Some who are standing here willnot taste death before they see
the what?
Kingdom of God.
You come after me, you denyyourself, take up your cross,

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follow me, you lose your lifefor the kingdom.
Some of you will not taste deathuntil you enter the kingdom of
God.
Same chapter over in verse 57.
Some guys come up to Jesus, theyare eager to be his disciples.
We want to follow you.
Look at verse 57.
They were walking along theroad, and a man said to Jesus, I
will follow you wherever you go.
Here's a prospective disciple.
What does Jesus say?
Jesus replied, There's no richcarleton on this road.

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Foxes have holes, and birds ofthe air have nests.
The Son of Man has no place tolay his head, no shelter.
That which you considerindispensable, you sacrifice for
the kingdom.
He said to another man, Followme.
And the man replied, Lord, firstlet me go and bury my father,
let me take care of my family.
Jesus said to him, Let the deadbury their own dead.
You go and proclaim the what?

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The kingdom of God.
Verse 61.
Another said, I'll follow you,Lord, but first let me go back
and just say goodbye to myfamily, the people that I love.
And Jesus replied, No one whoputs his hand to the plow and
looks back is fit for service inthe kingdom of God.
Abandoning family.
Even in time of need, rightthere.
Let the dead bury their owndead.

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Abandoning comfort and shelter.
Let me show you one more.
Look at Luke chapter 14.
Luke chapter 14.
I want you to see, look with mein verse 25.
This is the context.
In verse 15, he just begins totalk about the kingdom of God.
And he comes to verse 25.
Let these words soak in.

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Large crowds, all these casualand convinced, maybe even
listeners, were traveling withJesus.
And turning to them, he said, Ifanyone comes to me and does not
hate his father and mother, hiswife and children, his brothers
and sisters, yes, even his ownlife.
He cannot be my disciple.

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And anyone who does not carryhis cross and follow me cannot
be my disciple.
Are you getting a glimpse hereof what it means to follow
Jesus?
To be a disciple of Jesus.
Anyone who does not hate hisfather and mother, his wife and
children, his brothers andsisters, even his own life, he
cannot be my disciple.
What does that mean?

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Well, come back to Matthew 4.
We've got this picture.
Think of how all of that wasbeing played out in their lives.
Look at the cost.
You've got a list of thingsthere in your notes.
What Jesus is teaching us hereis that it has his disciple, we
leave behind all things.
We leave behind all things.
And it takes place in variousways in this little passage in

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Matthew chapter 4.
Think about what these guys wereleaving behind.
First of all, we leave behindour comfort.
All that was familiar to them,all that was comfortable to
them, all that was natural forthem, they're now leaving
behind.
We leave behind our comfort.
We leave behind our careers.
These guys were completelyleaving behind their profession
as fishermen.
It was a radical reorientationof their entire way of life.

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What would that look like foryou to leave behind your entire
way of living for a completelydifferent way of living because
of simply being a disciple ofChrist?
They left behind their careers.
Third, their possessions.
It's at this point that we havethis over-exaggerated picture of
the socioeconomic level of thedisciples.

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Many times we think of them asvery poor, and they certainly
weren't elite and incrediblywealthy, but they did have a
very solid business asfishermen, had property, had
boats, able to do this, had whatthey needed to carry out that
business.
They weren't well off, but atthe same time, they were not the
peasants of their day either.
They had a lot to lose when itcame to leaving their nets

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behind.
So they've got a lot to show usin a 280 world today.
You can't be a disciple of Jesusand love your house and love
your car.
You can't be a disciple of Jesusand love your possessions, your
TV, your stereo system.
You can't be a disciple of Jesusand hold on to any possession in
this world.

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Our comfort, our careers, ourpossessions, our position.
And this is one of those areaswhere we've got to understand
that in this day, people wouldattach themselves to rabbis in
order to promote their position.
You would find a great teacherand you'd go learn from him so
that you could become like himand then move on to a greater
teacher, move on to a greaterplace.
And so this was a way that yougain more social status.

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You climb the ladder.
Does that sound familiar?
Jesus says, You come to me, youdon't climb the ladder, you take
steps down.
It's not about position here.
Son of man doesn't even have ala place to lay his head.
We take we we we abandon ourcomfort, our careers, our
possessions, our position, ourfamily.
Man, this is heavy.

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These guys left their father,Zebedee.
We know from other clues in thegospels as well as tradition
that many of these disciples hadwives.
Now, did Jesus call them toleave their wives and never see
them again?
No.
But he did call them.
I think we see much evidencethroughout the New Testament of
these guys spending even largetimes away from their family as

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they follow Jesus.
Their devotion to Jesus wouldsupersede even the closest
family relationship there is.
Our family, our friends, thosewho they know best, our safety.
Our safety.
It's not a good thing when therabbi, the teacher, says, I send
you out like sheep among wolves.
That's not an encouraging thing.

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As you go, guys, Matthew 10, allmen, just want you to know, all
men will hate you because of me.
They're starting to look at eachother, are we sure we should
have signed up for this thing?
And he continues on, if theypersecute me, they're gonna
persecute you too.
That's not good news when yousee Jesus going to a cross.
Their safety was completelyabandoned.

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There's no regard for theirsafety.
As a disciple of Jesus Christ,please don't mess it with me
this morning.
Going to the darkest places ofthe inner city and the most
dangerous places of the world isnot a question.
Is it safe?
It's no longer a concern for adisciple of Jesus.

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Why?
Because it's an abandonment weleave behind ourselves.
Anyone want to come after me?
He must deny himself, even hisown life.
Luke 14.
Everything in our culture isabout promoting self, protecting
self, preserving self, takingcare of self.

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And Jesus comes on the scene andhe says, slay yourself.
You die, you give your life.
This was a counterculturalmessage in Matthew chapter 4,
and it is a counterculturalmessage 2,000 years later, that
you leave behind all things.
What would happen?

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What would happen?
If if one of us in this room didexactly what we see happen in
Matthew chapter 4 today, whatwould happen if you did that?
Think about it.
If in a matter of an instant youleave behind your entire
profession, your whole career ofwhat your life is about.

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You leave behind your family forextended periods of time.
You leave behind all yourpossessions, you let them
completely go and you begin tofollow.
Nothing.
House, home, car, nothing.
People would think you're crazy.
People would think you've lostit.
Religious fanatic, even yourfamily would think you don't

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care about them.
And I know that.
Because in small ways, I've seenit.
I travel to student conferences,college conferences, and
Christian students praying aboutmaking the gospel known in other
countries and other contexts inthe world.
And the number one thing theysay is, How can I tell my
Christian parents that I want togo over there?

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They don't want me to go.
They want me to continue and getmore education and get a nice
job and have a nice home andfamily and establish myself.
And they want what's best forme, they say, when what is best
for me according to scripture isthat I deny myself, I take up my
cross and I follow me.
How do I reconcile that?
Being a disciple of Jesus is aradical abandonment of all of

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these things.
Now, some of you are thinking,Dave, you lost your lid.
I don't know what happened overthe holidays.
But what do you mean?
Abandon all of these things, ourcareers, our possessions, our
position, our family, oursafety, ourselves?
What do you mean?
Wow, think about it practically.

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How does this look practically?
Think what this means is.
And he may not call you to leaveyour profession this week, what
you've built your whole liferevolving around doing.

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Or to say, my family is going tobe in the background of my
devotion to Jesus and the waysthat these disciples did.
But what he is showing us here,what this means is that all of
those things in our lives wehold so loosely to.
So loosely.

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And we grip, we cling to sotightly the person of Jesus
Christ and the glory of thekingdom of God, and we live for
that.
And if that means we let go ofthese things, we're glad to do
it because we are embracingChrist with all of our hearts.
That is radical abandonment forthe glory of Christ.
What if he did call you to dosome of these things

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specifically?
What if he did?
And then think about it onanother level.
How does this look practically?
Remember the kingdom of God, hisrule, his reign.
What happens when we take everyfacet of our lives, all these
things, and we bring them underhis rule, and under his reign,
it radically changes the way ourlives look.

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Our comfort is now under hisreign, and if he chooses to give
us comfort, then God beglorified in that.
But if he takes it away andgives us suffering, God be
glorified in the suffering weexperience.
Our comfort, our careers, mywhole life as an accountant or
as a teacher, as a lawyer, as adoctor, is now brought under the
rule and the reign of God.

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And I live as a doctor to makehis kingdom and his glory known
in every single day, eight tofour of an eight to five of my
job, whatever it may be.
Your career now comes under hisrule and his reign.
And it's not about making moremoney and it's not about being
the most successful, it's aboutexalting the glory of God in
that workplace.

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Our possessions, what happenswhen we don't live like the rest
of our culture to get, we liveto give our possessions for the
kingdom of God?
Our position, our family.
What happens when Jesus is thesupreme affection in our lives?
It changes the way we love ourwives, it changes the way we
love our husbands, it changesthe way we lead our families,

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when his kingdom is evident inour homes.
All of these things are friends,our safety.
When we stop saying, we stopsaying I can't do that because
it's not safe.
And we start saying, God,whatever you will have me do,
whether in my life or in mydeath, glorify your name and

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your kingdom.
And some of you are sitting herethinking, Why would I want to do
that?
Let's be honest, Dave.
I may not say it out loud, butI'm at least thinking.
I can be a Christian, forgivenof all my sins, because of what

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Jesus did on the cross for me,and live here on this earth with
eternal security.
And I can live and enjoy thepleasures of this life, and then
because I've been saved andforgiven of my sins, I know I'm
guaranteed to enjoy thepleasures of eternal life.

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So why would I want to take thisstep to go from being a casual
or convinced listener to being acommitted lifelong learner and
follower?
Why would I want to abandon allthese things?
Why would I want to go soradical?
Haven't you heard, Dave?
Christians aren't expected to beradical.
They're not perfect, they'rejust forgiven, right?

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I don't buy it.
I don't buy it because it's notbiblical.
We are not just forgiven.
Yes, praise the Lord.
Praise God.
My salvation is completelydependent on the work of Jesus
Christ on a cross.
And there is nothing, absolutelynothing I can do to earn my

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salvation or merit salvation.
He does that all for me.
It is free and it is gracious.
But the very purpose of mysalvation, the very essence and
purpose of Christianity is notto save me, not just to save me
from my sins.
Do you catch that?
The purpose of your salvation isnot to save you from your sins.

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That is an American gospel, andit is a diluted gospel.
The purpose of our salvation isnot to save us from our sins.
We have created a Christianityand a gospel that centers around
us, where everything is made tobe on my achieving forgiveness

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of sins through Christ.
And so when Jesus died on thecross, he died just for me.
And while I in no way want totake away from the extremely
personal nature of God's mercyand loving grace for every
single one of you in this room,I do want to say to you this
morning that when Jesus died onthe cross, he did not die just
for you.
He died, Luke 24, 47 through 49,so that repentance and

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forgiveness of sins would bepreached in all nations, so the
kingdom of God would beproclaimed among the whole
earth.
That's why he saved us from oursins.
To make his glory and his graceand his majesty and his mercy
known throughout Birmingham andthe world.
That's why he saved us.
We are not just forgiven.
We are part of a purpose tomagnify the glory and the

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kingdom of God.
So we leave behind all thingsand we live for one thing.
What do we live for?
We live for the honor of theKing.
That is the thing that drivesus.
That's what we wake up in themorning and we say, God, make
the glory of the king knownthrough me.
I live for the honor of theKing.
And we've got to see this.
We've got to see this.

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This is a radically differentway to look at Christianity.
I've got the contrast there, andsome might think I'm being a
little too stereotypical here,overstating the case, but I
don't think I am.
American Christianity, I believeat its core, is radically
self-centered.
Or everything centers around us.
And I'm convinced if we begin tolook at scripture and what it

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means to follow Christ, we willdiscover that biblical disciple
making is radicallyGod-centered.
Because now the purpose of oursalvation is not just us.
The purpose of our salvation isto show the grace and mercy of
Christ to all the people aroundus to reproduce that in people's
lives throughout Birmingham andthe entire world.
He is our motivation, he is ourgoal.

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Everything revolves around him.
You will not see in the gospel,in the New Testament for that
matter.
You'll not see a people who aresatisfied to receive forgiveness

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at Jesus' expense and go onliving in a casual acquaintance
with him.
It's not biblical.
Radical abandonment for theglory of Christ.
Alright, diving in deep.
Let's go another step.

(29:43):
Not only radical abandonment forthe glory of Christ, but radical
second, radical dependence onthe grace of Christ.
Now here's where it gets reallygood.
Here's where it gets reallygood.
When you get to Matthew chapter4, verse 18, it says Jesus was
walking along the Sea ofGalilee, and he happened upon
these guys, these four guys.
And we see him call them tohimself, follow me, and I will

(30:04):
make you fishers of men.
What we're seeing there is aprocess, a process that he's
about to take these guys throughfor the rest of their life, a
journey that he's about to takethem on.
And the process that's initiatedhere in Matthew chapter 4, verse
18, has a lot to teach us aboutthe process he does in our
lives.
I want you to think about it inthree steps or three levels.
First of all, Jesus in Matthewchapter 4 and in our lives, he

(30:27):
takes the initiative to chooseus.
He takes the initiative tochoose us.
Now, this is this is so verydifferent from the way things
worked in that day.
What you had was a rabbi who waswell respected, and potential
disciples would come to him andask to be taught by him, ask to

(30:48):
be to be under his tutelage, hislearning.
And so you would go, if you werea student, you would go and seek
out a rabbi who would help youmost advance yourself.
You would seek that out.
What we're seeing here is notthese guys coming to Jesus,
we're seeing Jesus going tothese guys.
The teacher is initiating therelationship.
It's what we see all throughoutScripture: God choosing his

partners (31:07):
Abraham, Noah, Moses, David, the prophets, even
Israel, the nation of people ofGod itself, chosen to be a royal
priesthood, a kingdom ofpriests, partners with God.
And the disciples, you see thisin Matthew 4, you get to John

(31:28):
chapter 15.
What does he say?
You did not choose me.
I what?
Chose you.
I chose you and I appointed you.
And what we're seeing here is aradical picture of the grace of
Jesus Christ and initiating therelationship with these guys.
And I want to remind you.
I want to remind you that notone of us in this room is able

(31:54):
to be a follower of Christ apartfrom the initiative and grace of
a gracious God who reached outhis hand into your life and into
my life.
Not one of us deserves to behere this morning.
We are here because he haschosen to pour out his grace on
us.
Now, before you let those words,he chose you.

(32:18):
Get you a little big headed.
I want to bring it back in foryou for a second, alright?
It's at this point where manysermons I've heard on Matthew
chapter 4 and many commentariesI've read on Matthew chapter 4
begin to talk about how Jesuschose these disciples, or these
fishermen to be his disciplesbecause of all the

(32:38):
qualifications that fishermenhave.
They have this perspective orthat perspective.
They're used to doing this orthat, and that would be good for
his kingdom.
And so they start talking aboutall the characteristics of
fishermen and how that's goodfor them to be disciples.
But if we go there, then we missthe whole point of this passage.
Jesus did not initiate thisconversation with these guys,
this relationship with theseguys, because of anything they

(33:00):
brought to the table.
He actually initiated theconversation because they
brought absolutely nothing tothe table.
They weren't the sharpest toolsin the shed.
Let's think about it.
Galileans, the social rednecksof the day, is literally the way
this picture plays out.

(33:21):
These are the commoners, thenobodies, the guys from out in
the country that people justdon't spend a lot of time
around.
They certainly weren't theelite.
Many teachers would draw theelite to them of noble birth.
These guys don't feel thatqualification, even spiritually.
These guys are not that sharpspiritually.

(33:43):
They're pretty arrogant, prettynarrow-minded.
For a worldwide mission, theseguys are pretty ethnocentric,
focused on the Jewish people,constantly bickering with each
other.
You almost see them as a burdenthroughout the disciples,
throughout the gospels, toJesus.
But Jesus didn't call thembecause of what they brought to
the table.
He took the weakest and thelowliest and those who nobody

(34:05):
would have expected, and hechose them.
And his plan hasn't changed.
So how does that make you feel?
Is that encouraging to us thismorning?
1 Corinthians 1, Paul says, Godhas chosen you, the foolish

(34:25):
things of the world.
Hmm, okay.
He's chosen the weak things ofthe world.
Is he talking about us?
He's chosen, he literally saysthe things that are not, like
you're not even there.
That's not a compliment in 1Corinthians 1.
And so I'm not, I may not evenbe building you up by telling
you that God chose you.
You're in here actually becauseof your weakness.

(34:48):
Because of the very few thingsyou bring to the table.
One of the favorite guys thatI've studied in the past in the
second century, uh, he lived inthe second century.
I didn't study then, but thisguy, he was a critic of
Christianity, and I want you tohear what he said.
This is one of my favoritequotes from him.
He's a critic, he criticizedChristianity, atheist.
He said, if any man is ignorant,if any man is wanting in sense

(35:10):
and culture, if anybody is afool, let him become boldly to
become a Christian.
We see them in their own houses,wool dresses, cobblers, the
worst, the vulgarest, the mostuneducated persons.
They are like a swarm of bats orants creeping out of their
nests, or frogs holding asymposium around a swamp, or

(35:32):
worms convening in mud.
That's what he thought ofChristians.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome tothe worm convention this
morning.
Not one of us is in here becauseof what we bring to the table.
We are in here because of ourweakness, and that puts us all
on the same plane, and we have aGod who delights in showing his

(35:54):
power and our weakness, hisstrength when we are weak.
And that's good news.
That makes us completelydependent on his grace.
Not one of us is qualified, notone of these guys was qualified.
So what does he say to them?
Follow me and I will what?

(36:15):
I will make you.
He doesn't say, follow me and gobe fishers of men.
That's not what he says.
He says, I will make you fishersof men.
These guys were anything butpassionate about the kingdom of
God at this point.
They didn't have any clue whatthe kingdom involved.
But Jesus would go through aprocess with them where he not
only takes the grace, takes theinitiative to choose us, but he

(36:36):
provides the power to use us.
And he would impart compassionand gentleness and humility.
He would give them these things,he would enable them to proclaim
the kingdom.
It was his work in them.
Now, why was it designed thatway?
Why did Jesus do that?
He takes the initiative tochoose us and provides the power
to use us so that he gets theglory through us.

(36:58):
So that he gets the glorythrough us.
And this is the great thing.
When you look at the disciples'lives, from Matthew chapter 4 to
Acts chapter 1 and 2, in thebeginning of the New Testament
church, there is a processwhereby these guys go from being
completely unfit for the kingdomto being powerful in the kingdom
of God.
Proclaiming the gospel withgreat power.

(37:18):
Peter.
From the guy he was, the guywith a foot-shaped mouth.
He comes to Acts chapter,somebody will get that later on
today.
He comes to Acts chapter 2 andhe stands up and he preaches the
first Christian sermon, and3,000 people plus are saved.

(37:40):
Church grew by over 2,500% inone day.
Through that man.
John.
Always wanting to debate who'sgoing to be the greatest.
Jesus takes him.
And he writes these books thatwe have in the New Testament
that are leading people toChrist 2,000 years later.

(38:01):
And all the other guys, Philip,Thomas, Bartholomew, Andrew,
James, and how they scatteredout to literally turn the world
upside down.
Acts chapter 17, verse 6.
That's what these guys did theirwhole lives.
This process was a testimony tohis glory.
Jesus designed it so that in theend, only his power could be the

(38:23):
answer for why they were usedlike that.
And this is good news for us.
Here's why.
I am convinced that across thisroom, there are men and women,
students, who the adversary hasconvinced you that you have too
many shortcomings and too manyweaknesses, too many failings to

(38:46):
be used mightily for the kingdomof God.
And they render you useless.
Maybe not useless, but at leastnot as useful as some other
people in the church.
And I want to remind you that ifthat's what you believe, it is a
lie straight from the devil.
Because the beauty of the truthof God's word is that it is our

(39:07):
shortcomings and our weaknessesand the things that we're not
good at that are actually theexact tool that God uses to show
his power and his glory and hisstrength most clearly through
you.
And so we rejoice in ourweaknesses the New Testament
says.
That's weird.
Why do we rejoice in ourweakness?
Because when I am weak, he isstrong.
And so God takes us and it usesus to show his glory through us.

(39:31):
What this means is.
What this means is, from thispoint on, we're gonna draw a
line in the sand.
From this point on, it is notpermissible for anyone from the
church at Brook Hills to eversay the statement I cannot
impact nations for the glory ofChrist.

(39:54):
Putting the line down.
We can't say it anymore.
That it would never be said whenwe gather together, I cannot
impact nations for the glory ofChrist.
Because here's the deal thatstatement sounds humble and it
sounds self-effacing.
I can't do it.
But at the core, that is aprideful statement because what
you have said is I deny thepower of Christ in me to

(40:17):
accomplish his purpose for me.
And we're gonna stop denying thepower of Christ, and we're gonna
start experiencing the power ofChrist for the purpose of
Christ.
And we're gonna say, you'vetaken the initiative to choose
us, provide the power to use us,and God get the glory through
us.
Our prayer, my prayer.
God, make us a trophy of yourgrace.

(40:40):
Make us a trophy of your grace.
That's the prayer for my life.
I want my life to be a trophy ofhis grace.
People look at my life and say,only God could take that and
produce that.
And I want this church, I wantour church to be a trophy of his
grace.

(41:00):
To where there's no question afew years from now.
When people say, if God can takethat group and do that through
that, then he can definitely doit in your life.
So that his glory might spread.
Okay, we're gonna fly throughsome of the stuff on the back
here.
You don't have to get out yourlunch.
We're gonna fly through some ofthis.
Okay, here we go.
Radical abandonment for theglory of Christ and radical

(41:21):
dependence on the grace ofChrist.
Third, following Jesus,discipleship at its core is
radical adherence to the personof Christ.
Jesus says, follow me.
We've got to see how personalthis is.
In light of the context of thatday, what you would do with a
rabbi or a teacher is you wouldgo and you would sit and you

(41:42):
would learn information, youwould learn dogmas and rules,
procedures and regulations,teachings, and then you would
follow those teachings.
So you would constantly listenand then try to do those things.
That's not what Jesus is doinghere.
What I want you to see, we'regonna fly through these, the
essence of Jesus' method.

(42:02):
First of all, Jesus is gonna,okay, Jesus is gonna train all
these guys.
How's he gonna do it?
Well, first of all, no formalschool.
There's not gonna be a formalschool to train these guys.
If I'm gonna train guys toimpact the world, he says, no
formal school.
Second, no seminaries.
You don't see seminariesanywhere in the New Testament.
So that means that you can'tsay, well, if I had a seminary
education, then I could do morethings.

(42:24):
Absolutely not.
Now I'm not against seminaries,employed by one, but no
seminaries.
Third, no membership classes.
No membership classes.
Now, this is not againststarting point, membership class
at Brook Hills, but no timewhere you signed up as a member
in this discipleship group.

(42:45):
No highly organized proceduresor formulas.
We don't see that anywhere.
Don't miss it.
Jesus was his own school andcurriculum, his person.
And as a follower of his, youdidn't just go listen to his
teachings.
You don't just go and listen tothe laws and dogmas that you

(43:06):
need to follow now andrabbinical law.
Instead, you give yourself to arelationship with him and you
stick to his person.
You adhere to him, you associatewith him.
It's not information beingdisseminated, it is a
relationship with individualsbeing poured out, Jesus
investing his life into others'lives.

(43:26):
It's not a list of rules youneed to follow, it's a picture
of walking with Christ.
And this is huge.
Because even in the way we thinkabout learning and discipleship,
we often think of a classroomand learning teachings.
Now I go out and do them.
But at the core, that's not whatJesus is modeling for us here.
And it's not what disciplemaking is about.

(43:48):
Disciple making centers, notaround a classroom or a seminary
or religious rules andprocedures that we follow.
Disciple making revolves aroundthe person of Jesus Christ and
our relationships with eachother.
Implications, two implications.
Don't miss them.
First of all, we are free.
Ladies and gentlemen, we arefree from legalistic ritualism.

(44:09):
We do not come in here thismorning to get a bunch of rules
and laws to follow and go outand do them this week and then
come back next week and try todo some more.
And more and more and more andmore.
We walk with Christ.
Now that doesn't mean we ignorehis commands.
No, but what we do is we come inhere this morning and we
delight, we lift our hearts tothe person of Christ.

(44:30):
We lift our lives to him and wesay, God, Jesus, I walk with
you, enable me to obey yourcommands.
And then his message, if youlove me, you obey my commands,
begins to make sense.
Not earn my love, but experiencemy love as you walk with me.
We are free from legalisticritualism, and we all know how
easy it is for our Christianityto quickly deteriorate into

(44:55):
legalism.
It's following, doing the drill,and misses the whole point.
We're free from legalisticritualism, and second, we are
focused on building individuals,not an institution.
We are focused on buildingindividuals, not an institution.
Jesus comes on the scene and hesays, I'm not setting up an

(45:19):
organization here.
He's got scholars, even thescholars who think the most
time, about three years ofpublic ministry.
Out of three years, he says, I'mnot going to set up one
organization.
He said, I'm not setting up anorganization, I'm setting up
relationships.
And so I've got a feeling if hewere here today, he would scream
out to us, don't give the worldan organization.

(45:41):
Give the world relationships inline of all the needs in the
world, and in line of all theneeds in Birmingham and the mass
needs of a lost and dying world.
Don't give an organization, aninstitution to them.
Give yourselves.
Don't build up programs andprocedures, and certainly don't

(46:01):
spend all your time fighting inthe church over programs and
procedures.
Give the world the person ofChrist displayed in your
personal relationships withthem.
Now we're starting to get atwhat disciple making is all
about.
Can I say to you this morningthat as the pastor of this

(46:22):
church, I do not live for theinstitutional survival of the
church of Brookhills.
We don't live for theinstitutional survival of the
church of Brooke Hills.
I live, we live for theindividuals in this room.

(46:42):
And the individuals outside ofthis room who don't know about
the glory of Christ.
And men and women in the entireworld.
That's who we live for.
And that changes ourChristianity.
Radical adherence to the personof Christ.
Fourth, radical trust in theauthority of Christ.
Radical trust in the authorityof Christ, following Jesus.
If we had time, I'd go over toLuke chapter 5 at this point.

(47:04):
But let me just give you asynopsis of what happens there.
It's the parallel account thatLuke gives us of this
occurrence, many scholarsbelieve, in Matthew chapter 4.
These fishermen have beenfishing all night and they've
caught nothing.
And so they come in in themorning, got nothing to show for
it.
Jesus comes up and he says, Whydon't you let your nets out and
catch some fish?

(47:25):
Thanks, genius, but we'vealready tried that and it didn't
work.
There's no fish out there.
We're just going to pack up ournets and move on.
Jesus says, Let out your nets.
So they go back out.
All of a sudden, fish filteringthe nets.
They got to bring another boatover to bring enough, bring all
the all the fish in.

(47:45):
And they realized something inthat moment that would transform
their relationship with Jesus.
They realized Jesus knew a lotmore about fishing than they
did.
Because he created the fish andthe water and the fishermen.

(48:09):
He could be trusted with hisauthority and his dominion and
his power.
Now, fast forward 2,000 years,I'm guessing the majority of us
in this room are not fishermenby trade occupationally.
We have many differentoccupations represented around
this room.

(48:30):
I wonder if Jesus was heretoday, he might not ask us, why
don't you respect me more inyour area of work?
And your area of study and yourexpertise.

(48:51):
Because here's what we do werelegate Jesus over to the side
here.
We disassociate him fromintellectual capacity and we put
him over here in the religiousand the spiritual realm.
But when it comes to managing abusiness, when it comes to
creating a network of computers,when it comes to leading a
classroom, when it comes tohandling litigation, or when it

(49:12):
comes to selling stocks, we'reon our own.
But it's not the case.
It's not the case.
Jesus has all authority.
This is something I'd love forus to explore in the future some
more.
But suffice to say, at thispoint, in the New Testament
church, these early Christians,Colossians 2, verse 9 said, We

(49:32):
believe in Christ there is allwisdom and all knowledge.
So he can be entrusted witheverything everything in our
lives.
And your notes there, he ismaster of every domain in our
lives.
He is the master in every domainin our lives.
And this is where the kingdom ofGod and the mission of God to

(49:53):
make disciples of all nationswill begin to take hold when
people of all kinds of differentoccupations in this room and all
kinds of different familysituations and social situations
and economic situations begin tolet Jesus be king at the center
of every domain in our lives.
He knows.
He knows what we need to do, howwe need to lead, how we need to

(50:16):
work to glorify his name.
Not just to business, at home.
Guys, he understands your wivesbetter than you do.
That's good news.
Women, he understands yourhusbands completely.
Believe it or not, he ispowerful enough to understand

(50:39):
them.
He understands your children,students, kids, believe it or
not, the God of the universedoes understand what's going on
in your parents' minds, lives.
He has all authority.
If he is master of every domainin our lives, then he must be
Lord of every detail in ourlives.

(51:00):
And this is where followingJesus begins to infuse our
day-to-day life.
And it's not just a Sunday or aspiritual, even a quiet time
thing over here.
What it is, it's a reality inevery second of our day.
Radical trust in the authorityof Christ.
Finally, radical obedience tothe mission of Christ.

(51:23):
Radical obedience to the missionof Christ.
Now, the mission, we know.
Follow me, and I will make youwhat?
Fishers of men.
Okay, we got Matthew 4.19probably memorized this morning,
so mark that one off, okay?
Fishers of men, that's themission here.
Now, what I want you to see ishow unconventional this plan is.
Think about it.
The unconventional plan ofJesus.
If he's got three years tocreate a worldwide movement for

(51:48):
the glory, the kingdom of God,three years, how's he gonna do
it?
Get together a PR specialist andsome other folks and draw
together the largest crowd,start doing some conventions,
get this thing as wide and asfar as quickly as possible,
bring all the multitudestogether.
But that's not what Jesus did.

(52:08):
He would have multitudes, massesof people following him.
And he'd turn around and say, Bythe way, unless you hate your
mother and father, you can'tfollow me.
And they're all gone.
Just like that.
The disciples looking at eachother, what was that about?
Next time they get a crowdfollowing him, James turns to

(52:31):
John.
He's probably gonna say the hateyour father, mother thing.
They're gonna be gone.
Now, is that because Jesusdidn't have compassion or care
for the masses, the multitudes?
No.

(52:51):
But the genius of his strategyand his life and discipleship
was he would pour his life intoa few men, who would pour their
lives into a few, who wouldimpact eventually the masses for
the glory of Christ.
2,000 years later.
Jesus knew what he was doing.

(53:12):
And that's why, that is why whenwe get a hold of disciple making
all across this room and webegin to follow Jesus' example
and do what he has shown us howto do as we studied over the
next few weeks, when we begin todo that, then we can say, I'm
impacting nations for his glory.
We can be a part of impactingthe masses for his glory by
doing what?
By making disciples.

(53:35):
Man, this is too good not to bea part of.
And so these guys wereunhesitant in their response.
Matthew 4.19, 20, 21, 22, atonce they got up and followed
him.
Immediately it says later on inthe passage.
Same word in the Greek,different translation here, but
what we've got is immediately,right then, they got up and they
followed him.
These guys, they they lacked alot of things.

(53:57):
But one thing they had wasobedience.
Their hearts were fired andemblazoned for Jesus, and their
minds were gripped with amission to establish a kingdom
on earth that Jesus of Nazarethwould be the king of.
And that mission compelled them.

(54:19):
It gripped their entire destinyin life.
It drove them.
And I'm confessed that in thechurch today we have stopped.
We stopped.
And we left this mission overthere.

(54:42):
And I want to challenge us torise up and at once immediately
take hold of this mission.
The ultimate question for thechurch is this Will we obey his
plan?
Will we obey his plan?
That's the ultimate question.
This is the good news.
It's good news for the pastorwho has now pastored a grand

(55:06):
total of six months.
He's trying to figure out whatthis looks like.
This is good news because wedon't have to come up with a new
strategy or new plan or a newmethod throughout the years,
throughout the centuries, yearafter year, century after
century.
The church comes up with newstrategies, new plans, new
methods.
Let's sacrifice them all to themethod Jesus has given us.
And let's say we're not going tocome up with a new plan or a new

(55:27):
program.
We're going to give ourselvesthe plan that we already know
Jesus has promised by his ownvery character to bless.
He will bless the church that isgiving itself to make disciples
of all nations, guaranteed basedon the word of God.
So I say we obey the plan that'sbeen revealed to us and expect
his blessing.
Take him at his word and see himshow his glory through his plan.

(55:47):
What's the plan?
How do you do this?
Well, you follow him.
And as you follow him, you sayto others, follow me.
Don't mess in.
Christianity just went to awhole new level in our
understanding right there.

(56:08):
Because now following Christ isnot about my life and what's
going on in me.
Now my relationship with Christ,I'm accountable for showing
others to it.
I'm accountable for leadingothers to see his goodness and
his glory and his grace and hismercy.

(56:30):
Christianity is now shiftingfrom being self-centered to
other-centered for the glory ofbeing God-centered.
And that's a huge statement.
That we are supposed to say,don't miss it, that we're
supposed to be able to say topeople in the community around
us in Birmingham, follow me.

(56:50):
Follow me, and you will befollowing Christ.
That's exactly what the NewTestament teaches us.
1 Corinthians chapter 11, verse1.
Paul says, Imitate me, follow meas I follow Christ.
And I believe it is high timefor the church to raise up and
stop shirking the responsibilitywe have to show the glory of
Jesus Christ to the peoplearound us, to show his goodness
and his grace and his mercy andhis care and his compassion and

(57:13):
his word.
It is time for us to rise up andtake responsibility for the
reason for which we have beensaved.
Follow me as I follow Christ.
Well, there it is.
It comes down to the questionwill we follow Jesus?
I want to I want to challengeyou this morning to consider two
things.

(57:35):
First of all, to consider veryseriously the cost of
discipleship.
Radical abandonment to hisglory, radical dependence on his
grace, adherence to his person,radical trust in his authority,
and radical obedience to hismission.

(57:57):
Your life is not your ownanymore.
You've surrendered every rightto determine the direction of
your life.
That is a great cost.
But lest we focus completely onthe cost of discipleship, I want
to challenge you also toconsider the cost that I think

(58:20):
is much greater, and that's thecost of non-discipleship.
What do you meannon-discipleship?
I want to challenge you toconsider the cost.
What if we don't give ourselvesto following Christ so that
others follow us?
What if we don't give ourselvesto making disciples of all
nations?

(58:40):
What if we sit back at thechurch at Brook Hills for the
next 10 or 20 years and coastand live out the American dream
and enjoy the pleasures of thisworld?
Maybe even grow as a church, butleave the mission on the side
with our eternity secure.
What if we take that route?

(59:02):
Well, there's a cost there forus.
And the cost for us is we willmiss out on the peace and the
grace and the power and themercy that God desires to show
in us.
God desires for us toexperience.
We will miss out on his verypresence.
Matthew chapter 28, verse 20.

(59:26):
We'll miss out big time on theabundance that Jesus came to
give us.
But not just us.
The cost is also for ourcommunity.
And if we coast out and ignorethe mission, then the city of
Birmingham gets a greatinstitution called the Church of
Archills that people come toonce a week.

(59:47):
But that has little to no realeffect on the social, spiritual
conditions of people livingthroughout Birmingham, Alabama.
And they miss out on seeing hisglory.
Thousands miss out on coming toknow his grace.
Not just for us and not just forour community.

(01:00:07):
But consider the cost ofnon-discipleship for the world.
If we coast, the next year 47million more children are born
into unreached people groupsthat have no knowledge of the
gospel.
And the next year, 47 millionmore.
And the next year, 47 millionmore, and the next year 47

(01:00:27):
million more.
And while hundreds of millionsof people in the world go on
without having even heard thename of Jesus, we sit here
thousands of miles away and haveour comfortable services,
business as usual, Sunday afterSunday.
Yes, the cost of discipleship isgreat, but I am deeply convinced

(01:00:51):
that the cost ofnon-discipleship is much
greater.
So which will we pay?

SPEAKER_00 (01:00:59):
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David Platt Messages.
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