Luke 9: What it Means to Follow Jesus

We read Luke 9 and let Jesus confront how we approach Scripture, how we define “enough,” and what it really means to follow him. I connect the miracles and hard teachings to daily surrender, where God replaces my need for control and comfort with true life.
• coming to the Word expecting to hear from God
• Jesus sending the Twelve with authority over demons and disease
• Herod’s confusion and curiosity about Jesus
• feeding the five thousand by offering what we have
• Peter confessing Jesus as the Christ of God
• the call to deny self and take up the cross daily
• the transfiguration and the Father’s command to listen to Jesus
• Jesus healing a boy when the disciples cannot
• greatness reframed as welcoming the least
• refusing revenge when rejected by a Samaritan village
• counting the cost of following without delay or excuses
• naming what must die in us so we can truly live
Today, if you're feeling brave, would you just pray this prayer?
God, what do you see in me that needs to die?
What do I need to give up for your sake?

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Transcript

Open The Bible With Expectation

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Welcome back to the Out Loud Bible Podcast. This is Mike. I'm so thankful for you and for your time that you're spending in the Word with me here today. And not just to hear what the Bible says, as good as that is, but to also say, you know what, we're going to do something about this. I'm leaning into this with some expectation that I'm going to hear from God so that I have something to go do and respond with. Do you come into the Word of God with that expectation that I'm going to hear from God today? It's a living word of God. It says of itself. This is a living and active word. So when we open it, we should have this expectation that, you know, I think I could actually hear from the creator of the universe today. I think I can hear from my creator who knows me better than I know myself, who knows my situation better and bigger than I can see and understand. Who knows me and who loves me and cares about me growing in a healthy way. I think I'm going to hear from him today. And I got my ears open, I got my eyes open for whatever he may want to say to me. It may be encouraging, it may be convicting. He may point out some areas that aren't he's not exactly happy with. Not that he doesn't love me. In fact, because he loves me, he wants to point out these areas that are actually hurting myself and and and are making me sick and drawing me away from him. He may point areas for you to keep going, to be encouraged, to stay faithful in this. Might give you something to share with someone else. Ah, this reminds me of what my friend's going through. Maybe I can point this out to them and encourage them. Who knows? But come expecting to hear from God and be willing to do something about it. That's what we're here to do. We're going to be reading in the book of Luke as we've been doing. We've been doing one chapter a day this week, because the chapters, frankly, are a little bit longer than the average chapter of the Bible, uh, but they're full and rich of a lot of

Sent Out With Power And Simplicity

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things to think about, a lot of stories of Jesus, how he's interacting with people, dropping some truth bombs, giving some great examples of how to love. One of my favorite sections of the New Testament here is uh this Luke chapter 8, 9, 10, this section of scripture. I really enjoy this part. Luke does a great job of sharing these stories about Jesus. So let's keep reading with Luke chapter 9. This is the New English translation. After Jesus called the twelve together, he gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. And he said to them, Take nothing for your journey, no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, and don't take an extra tunic. Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave the area. Wherever they do not receive you, as you leave that town, shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them. Then they departed and went throughout the villages, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere. Now Herod, the Tetrarch, heard about everything that was happening, and he was thoroughly perplexed because some people were saying that John had been raised from the dead,

The Kingdom Message Reaches Herod

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while others were saying that Elijah had appeared, and still others that one of the prophets of long ago has risen. Herod said, I had John beheaded. But who is this about whom I hear such things? So Herod wanted to learn about Jesus. When the apostles returned, they told Jesus everything they had done, and then he took them with him, and they withdrew privately to a town called Beth Seda. But when the crowds found out, they followed him, and he welcomed them, spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and cured those who needed healing. Now the day began to draw

Five Loaves Become Enough

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to a close, so the twelve came and said to Jesus, Send the crowd away so they can go into the surrounding villages and countryside and find lodging and food, because we're in an isolated place. But he said to them, You give them something to eat. And they replied, We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people. Now about five thousand men were there. And then he said to his disciples, have them sit down in groups of about fifty each. So they did as Jesus directed, and the people all sat down. Then he took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them. And he gave them to his disciples to set before the crowd, and they all ate and were satisfied, and what was left over was picked up twelve baskets of broken pieces. Once when Jesus was praying by himself, and his disciples were nearby, he asked them, Who do the crowds say that I am? They answered, John

Who Do You Say I Am

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the Baptist. Others say Elijah, and still others say that one of the prophets of long ago is risen. But he said to them, But who do you say that I am? Peter answered, The Christ of God. But he forcefully commanded them not to tell this to anyone, saying the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and experts in the law, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. Then he said to them all, If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it. But whoever loses his life because of me will save it. For what does it benefit a person if he gains the whole world, but loses or forfeits himself? For whoever's ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when he comes in his glory, and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. But I tell you most certainly there are some standing here who will not experience death before they see the kingdom of God. Now, about eight days after saying these things, Jesus took with him Peter, John, and James, and went up to the mountain to pray. And as he was praying,

Glory On The Mountain

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the appearance of his face was transformed, and his clothing became very bright, a brilliant white, and then two men, Moses and Elijah, began talking with him. They appeared in glorious splendor and spoke about his departure that he was about to carry out at Jerusalem. Now Peter and those who were with him were quite sleepy, but as they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. And then as the men were starting to leave, Peter said to Jesus, Master, it's good for us to be here. Let's make three shelters, one for you, one for Moses, one for Elijah, not knowing what he was saying. And as he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. And then a voice came from the cloud, saying, This is my son, my chosen one. Listen to him. After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. So they kept silent and told no one at that time anything of what they had seen. Now on the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a large crowd met him. Then a man from the crowd cried out, Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, he's my only child. A spirit

Jesus Heals What Disciples Cannot

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seizes him, and then he suddenly screams and it throws him into convulsions and causes him to foam at the mouth. It hardly ever leaves him alone, torturing him severely. I begged your disciples to cast it up, but they couldn't do so. Jesus answered, You unbelieving and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you and endure you? Bring your son here. As the boy was approaching, the demon threw him to the ground and shook him with convulsions. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. And then they were all astonished at the mighty power of God. But while the entire crowd was amazed at everything Jesus was doing, he said to his disciples, Take these words to heart, for the Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. But they didn't understand the statement, its meaning had been concealed from them, so that they couldn't grasp it. Yet they were afraid to ask him about the statement. Now an argument started among the disciples as to which of them might be the greatest. But when Jesus discerned their innermost thoughts, he took a child,

Greatness Means Welcoming The Least

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had him stand by his side, and said to them, Whoever welcomes this child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. For the one who is least among you all is the one who's great. John answered, Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he is not a disciple along with us. And Jesus said to him, Don't stop him, for whoever is not against you is for you. Now when the days drew near for him to be taken up, Jesus set out resolutely to go to Jerusalem. He sent messengers on ahead of him, and as they went along, they entered a Samaritan village to make sure things

Mercy In A Rejected Village

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were ready in advance for him. But the villagers refused to welcome him because he was determined to go to Jerusalem. Now when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, do you want us to call fire to come down from heaven and consume them? But Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they went on to another village. As they were walking along the road, someone said to him, I'll follow you wherever you go. Jesus said to him, Foxes have dens, and birds in the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has

Following Jesus Without Delay

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no place to lay his head. Jesus said to another, Follow me. But he replied, Lord, first let me let me go and bury my father. But Jesus said to him, Let the dead bury their own dead, but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God. Yet another said, I'll follow you, Lord, but first let me say goodbye to my family. And Jesus said to him, No one who puts his hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God. Jesus clarifies some pretty tough expectations for those who want to follow him. It kind of reminds me of earlier in the chapter when we read in verse 23, Jesus starts to say, Hey, if anyone wants to become my follower,

What Must Die In Us Daily

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he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, that's an important word, and follow me. Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, is what he says. I don't think he's referring solely to literally dying. If you want to save your life, well then you gotta die for me. And while, yes, being martyred for your faith in Jesus certainly is a clear sign that you're following Jesus, the idea of losing your life or dying to yourself is more than about a physical death. We can lose our life now while we still live. Following Jesus and seeking his kingdom requires the death of certain things in your life. For example, I need to put to death my stubborn independence that wants to call the shots in my own life and find myself to be self-sustaining and taking care of myself. Really, I have to depend on Jesus. To take my five loaves and two fish of what little I have and give it to him, trust that he will do what he needs to do with it, and that he'll provide for me. I need to put to death that selfish bit of me that keeps wanting to do what I want to do and get what I want to get, and not regard how it affects other people. That has to die daily. I have to put to death my desire to be comfortable in this world. That's not Jesus' priority for my life, and so it should not be mine either. Surrendering those things daily, putting them on the altar of my heart and letting him kill them and take them, and replace them with true life is what he means when whoever loses his life because of me will save it, because as long as I'm holding on to those things, I do not have my hands and my heart free to receive life from him. The alternative is sure, you could gain the whole world, but he says you're going to forfeit your own soul. What makes it hard to kill those things and give up those things? Well, I think Jesus calls it out, it's shame. It's being ashamed of him. When we try to separate ourselves from the sin nature and trying to kill that on a daily basis, and letting Jesus do that work in our life, it's going to make us look less and less like the world, and therefore the world is going to alienate us more and more. The world's gonna hate us because they hate him if we follow him. And you know what? That makes living in this world very uncomfortable. And sometimes it's just like, you know what, I just don't want all the pressure of this world not liking me and not knowing what to do with me. And sometimes we try to keep uh a foot in the world and a foot in the kingdom, and Jesus says that's being ashamed of me. Today, if you're feeling brave, would you just pray this prayer? God, what do you see in me that needs to die? What do I need to give up for your sake? It's a bold prayer, maybe a scary

A Brave Prayer And Farewell

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prayer, but it's one that I guarantee Jesus will respond to in love and in truth and show you what really living looks like. Thanks for joining me here today on the Out Loud Bible Podcast. I'll see you next time.