Jesus' Terms & Conditions...Have you checked the box?...Matthew 16:21-28



A friend of mine took the step of baptism last Saturday afternoon.  He followed what he read of his Savior in the Scriptures and made a public testimony and demonstration of dying in Christ so we might live for Him.  This played right into the passage this Sunday as we looked at Jesus' terms and conditions of what it means to follow Him.

I encourage you to listen to the video below of the whole service from Sunday when we cover the passage Matthew 16:21-28. Jesus has just told His disciples of the road map going forward. They will be traveling to Jerusalem; Jesus will suffer many things from the hands of the religious leaders; He will be killed; and He will rise again on the 3rd day. Jesus will share this road map with His disciples many times before getting to Jerusalem and add more details along the way. This plan is not accepted by Peter and we assume the other disciples as well. Peter objects to the One he just called, "The (only) Christ, the (only) Son, of the (only) living God." This brings a response from Jesus that Peter's objection was from Satan that was on the heels of his statement that was from God. Jesus then pulls all the disciples together and lays out His terms and conditions if they are truly going to be His disciples. These terms and conditions are never updated and revised and they are not in fine print.


Term 1: Deny your very self and therefore replace yourself with Him. In a world saying to pursue finding yourself, Jesus says you need to lose yourself for HIs sake.


Term 2: Take up your cross and therefore in the context of the time, we willing to suffer and die for the One who was willing to suffer and die for you. In a world that seeks the easiest route and puts comfort about all things, Jesus says we need to put our commitment to our association with Him above all.


Term 3: Follow Me and therefore our new prime example to dictate our words and actions are based off of His words and actions. In a world that is singing "My Life", Jesus says we need to be singing "I'd Rather Have Jesus".


Have you checked that box? Have you agreed to Jesus' Terms & Conditions? What if I don't and kind of just make up my own ideas of what it means to be a Jesus' follower?


Condition 1: It is the difference between eternal life with Jesus forever and eternal death without Jesus forever. It is Jesus saying to you, "I never knew you."


Condition 2: You have selected the "lesser" that is offered. You have pursued what the whole world can offer you over the value of your soul that Jesus willing suffered and died for.


Condition 3: You will follow something or someone else and it will most likely be you. You will go for false gospels that stress a focus on you rather than a focus on Him.


Toward the end of the sermon I listed some of those false gospels. Each one focused on self rather than the Savior. They don't stress Jesus' terms and conditions. The last one I mentioned was the works gospel. If I do more good than bad I will get into heaven. It is based on what I do rather than what Jesus has done. It depends on me and my performance and therefore what Jesus did on the cross is nice but not enough. I also mentioned that this was recently in the news and said by a prominent person. I wish I had an audience with him because I would thank him for his service to our country and offer prayers for him but I would want him to know the truth that our good works are a result of salvation and not the cause of our salvation. A very prevelant false gospel that is a trap to create the salvation plan under our terms and conditions rather than God's.


So have you checked the box? Many who attend churches have not. They don't realize the commitment level that Jesus is calling His followers to. It requires a transformation that only He can perform with someone who comes humbly to HIm willing to deny his very self, willing to take up his cross of suffering and even death for Christ, and willing to follow after Him down a path that many are not taking. Is that you? Sometimes those in pews just do not know until they are presented with Jesus' terms and conditions. What will be your response to them today?


Pastor Adam




A simple man serving a great God and the local pastor of Stillwater Community Chapel (stillwater-chapel.org). We are in our 39th year of full time ministry. God directed us to this local body of believers on the Western Range of the Rockies to grow with them in mission and mindedness of Christ.

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