February 14
Ex 37:1-38:31 | PS 34:11-22 | Prov 9:9-10 | Matt 28:1-20
A decision had to be made. In fact, this is not past tense, but present tense, every day a decision has to be made. It's not a matter of good and bad, but good and best. When I gave my life to Jesus Christ many years ago, I soon realized that there is a finite amount of time that God gives me every day. As a physician my daily responsibilities have no down time. In my office, due to the number of patients and the time I allow for patients to speak freely with me I'm always backed up. So, I can either stay current in my profession at the expense of sitting as a disciple of Jesus, sitting at His feet to learn from Him, or the other way around. In my only time that I have daily, every morning when I get up around 4:30 am, I choose Jesus. I choose to be His disciple and to carry His teachings with me daily to the workplace and to my surroundings. I feel staying current with Jesus far surpasses staying current with the most recent trinket in medicine. The question is: "Are you a disciple?" Being a Christian is not a denomination; it is a calling which comes with a decision. In Luke 14:33 it says, "So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own." Jesus explained that following Him was not something that was to be added in, but was a decision with a cost, as we read in Matthew 16:24, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me." We have created designations such as believer vs. disciple. But these are constructs which do not emanate from our Lord. To follow Him, to be one of His sheep, means to be His disciple. Are you?
We read the Great commission in Matthew 28:18-20, "Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Notice that we are commanded, not suggested, to make disciples, not individuals who make a verbal or mental assent to the facts surrounding our Savior. It is more than a short emotional prayer. It is a lifelong relationship and it necessitates we come to Him in humility and obedience. Jesus does not become something to be stuffed into our free time, or a nice thing to do on Sundays, He becomes the focal point of our existence. It means that we open our eyes in our mission field and actively disciple others.
So, the question is, "Who are you currently discipling?" As important, if not more so, are you indeed His disciple? If not, it is time to first, reassess your daily life. Please don't state that you are not a morning person. Jesus died for our sins, a death we cannot even fathom, He took our sins to the cross and felt the full weight of God's wrath poured out because of our sins. His actions do not allow a casual mental assent. His actions require us to act. Your loved ones: spouses and children require time and attention. Our spouses would not tolerate being unavailable in the morning and night for whatever reason one might choose to use, what makes us think our Savior should? We read in Galatians 2:20, "My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." Have you rid yourself of your old self or are you trying to assimilate your new life in Christ into your old self. There is no greater calling than to be His disciple. There is no better peace than to be in Him during the storms of life. There is no better relationship with others than that which is centered on and based upon the Person of Jesus Christ.
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: