JESUS TEACHING ON DISCIPLESHIP
All Things Are Possible
When Jesus came down from the Mount of Transfiguration with Peter, James, and John, the multitude was greatly amazed. No doubt His face still reflected the glory of the Father as did Moses' when he came down from Mount Sinai. Upon reaching the multitude, Jesus observed that the scribes were questioning the disciples, perhaps about their inability to heal a boy who was possessed with a dumb spirit.
The father of this boy had brought him to the disciples for healing. They had tried to cast out the devil but could not. Jesus rebuked the devil, and the child was healed. "Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you."
Often we hear quoted, "With God all things are possible," but Jesus also declared, "If ye have faith ... nothing shall be impossible unto you."
The Way of Faith
Many people want to do works to please God, but Abraham pleased God by also believing Him. Jesus said, "This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent" (John 6:29). "The just shall live by faith" (Hebrews 10:38). How to get faith is the question in many minds. If there is something in your life that hinders, if there is something that clogs the faith channels through which the blessings could flow, the Lord is faithful to disclose it and reveal to your knowledge just what hinders your faith.
The trouble with many people is that they do not walk in the light which God sheds upon their pathway. When God sends His shafts of truth down into their hearts, they think they can tell for whom it is, but do not believe it is for themselves. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God, if we hear with a purpose of doing the Word.
Holding On
After telling His disciples that it was because of their unbelief that they could not cast out the devil, Jesus said, "Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting." This lets us know that one who possesses faith does not give up when prayers are not answered immediately, but keeps on trusting like Abraham who "staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; and being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness'" (Romans 4:20-22).
The Prejudiced Samaritans
Because of their prejudices the Samaritans passed up the op-portunity that was theirs to receive Christ. The woman at Jacob's well voiced the opinion of the Samaritans, "Our fathers worshipped in this mountain." No doubt it was because Christ was going to Jerusalem and not stopping to worship in the mountain of Samaria that caused these Samari¬tans to reject Christ. Many people today let false reports and opinions of friends keep them away from the true Gospel. If a person is honest and open to the truth he will recognize the truth regardless of the evil that may be spoken against it.
Jesus' Mission
In their zeal for their Master, James and John wanted to destroy these Samaritans, but Jesus rebuked them with the words, "The Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them." In these few words Jesus expressed His mission to the earth — Salvation. The message of the angel was, "He shall save his people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21). The attitude of Christ toward those who rejected Him was that of mercy. When crucified, He prayed, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34). Jesus wants His followers to love their enemies. Peter told of Christ, "Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not" (I Peter 2:23). Paul testified, "Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it: being defamed, we intreat: we are made as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring of all things unto this day" (I Corinthians 4:12, 13).
Self-Denial
"If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me" (Luke 9:23). When a certain man said to Jesus; "Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest," the reply of Jesus was, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head." This reply explains a little of the meaning of the words of Jesus, "Let him deny himself." The Creator of Heaven and of earth — He "for whom are all things, and by whom are all things" — set the example of self-denial by leaving Heaven and taking on the form of a servant and dwelling among men. "The Son of man hath not where to lay his head." It is easy for some people to become so concerned with their homes, work, and temporal affairs that they do not have time to follow Christ.
Paul warned against worldly entanglements, using the example of the soldier. "No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier." It takes a surrender of one's life to God to become a Christian. Afterward there is a dying daily — a denying of one's self to continue in the way.
God First
To the call, "Follow me," a man replied, "Suffer me first ...." That is the attitude of many who hear the call of God. They say, "Let me first do something else, and then I will serve God." God demands first consideration, the first place in our hearts. His commandment in the Old Testament was, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." Israel broke that commandment many times and served idols. In essence, many are break¬ing that commandment today in allowing temporal pursuits to take first place in their lives. "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness."
Once in the way, keep your eyes on the goal and your heart set upon the prize at the end of the way. If you begin to look back, thinking about those things you left behind, you will deviate from the course and miss the mark. Looking back will make you unfit for the Kingdom of God. Be like Paul who said, "I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:13, 14).