Complete Commitment

John 15:18-25

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%2015%3A18-25&version=NIV;ESV

  

On January 8, 1956, Jim Elliot and four other missionaries, were killed by members of the Auca Indians in Ecuador. They had landed their plane to make friendly contact with the tribe.

 

On April 20, 1999, Rachel Scott was the first student to be shot and killed in the Columbine High School massacre. One of the shooters asked her if she still believed in God. When Rachel answered him that she did, he killed her.

 

Although very different circumstances, these six people died because of their faith in Christ. There have been many other Christian martyrs during the past two thousand years. In fact, according to an April 14, 2017 Fox News report, as many as 90,000 Christians each year are martyred.

 

Jesus spoke the following words to his disciples as he prepared them for what was to come. He seems to be saying, get ready to be martyred for following me.

 

¹⁸ “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. ²⁰ Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.     ESV

 

Jesus spoke these words to his disciples at a specific moment in time and in history. What do they mean to us today? Should we expect to be martyred? And if we’re not, does that mean we’re not following Christ? I don’t believe so.

 

For sure, Rachel Scott did not anticipate that on that day she would lose her life because she said that she believed in God. She was being obedient to Christ. That is what we are called to do regardless of whether it means going to the jungles of Ecuador, the hallways of your high school or the office at your job.

 

The good news is that regardless of where God is calling you to serve Him, He promises that you will not be alone; that you will not struggle alone. In John 14, Jesus made this promise to his followers.

 

¹⁵ “If you love me, keep my commands. ¹⁶ And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— ¹⁷ the Spirit of truth.     NIV

 

His promise is still true today.

 

 

 

Jump!

Titus 3:3-8

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Titus%203%3A3-8&version=NIV;NLT

 

 

Might as well jump. Jump!           Go ahead, jump.
Might as well jump. Jump!           Go ahead, jump.

In 1984, the rock group Van Halen, released a song by the title of Jump. The chorus wasn’t real creative.

 

 

My daughter was 4 years old at the time. After dinner I used to play the record really loud and we would jump around together. When it came to the chorus, I would lift her up by both hands singing “Jump”! While she would laugh and giggle.

 

Today, when either of us hear the song come on the radio, that person will get the other on the phone, crank up the volume so that we can both hear it and relive the memory. We’ve been doing this for years.

 

That’s an example of how you invest in your children; how you invest in your spouse; how you invest in those you love. By spending time with them; pointing them in the right direction; doing everyday things together.

 

Titus was assigned to disciple the churches that Paul founded on the island of Crete. There are many instructions in this letter including how to set up Elders and how to

relate to various groups of people. But none are more critical than these.

 

When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, ⁵ he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. ⁶ He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. ⁷ Because of his grace he made us right in his sight and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life.         NLT

 

Of all the things Titus could do for the believers on the island of Crete, the most important was to point them to Christ. Of all the things you or I can do for others, the most important is to point them to Christ.

 

My daughter will soon give birth to her third child, or I should rephrase that to say “our third grandchild”. I’m not sure she has introduced her kids to Jump, but for sure she has pointed them to Christ. Let us do the same for those who the Lord has brought into our lives to love and to serve.