SOLD OUT LUKE 18:18-30
“I’D RATHER HAVE JESUS THAN HAVE RICHES UNTOLD”

A) A wealthy man was moving into a new house and his next door neighbor just happened to be a Quaker … The Quakers, as you know, believe in simplicity and plainness of life!
* The Quaker neighbor watched as the movers carted in numerous pieces of furniture, a great deal of clothing, and many more decorative pieces.
* Then he walked over to his neighbor and said in his quaint, Quaker way, “Neighbor, if thee hath need of anything, please come to see me and I’ll tell thee how to get along without it.”
B) Jesus would have agreed with that advise, for He said one day in
Luke 12:15, 15 And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness,[a] for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”
* When Jesus made that statement, IT dropped into the crowd like an atomic bomb.
* Some of the people ridiculed Him and laughed out-loud.
* Of course a man can be measured by his wealth, everybody knows that … How else would you determine how much a man is worth?
C) Well, if wealth and possessions are the measure of a man, then Jesus is out of the running!
* He was born in a stable to a humble Jewish mother, who was married to a poor carpenter.
D) He left no safety deposit box when He died!
* If happiness and success depended on things, then Jesus was miserable and defeated.
* But we know for a fact that that wasn’t the case…
* No man experienced greater joy than He did in spite of His sufferings.
E) And no man ever accomplished a greater work than He did on the cross!
* A man’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things which he possesses.
* Jesus preached that … He practiced it … And His life proves that it’s true!

JESUS KNEW THAT THERE ARE SOME THINGS A MAN SIMPLY HAS TO HAVE
A) Matt. 6:32 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
* Men need food, clothing and shelter … These are needs.
* God created THINGS to be used for the benefit of mankind.
* He did not create things to be worshipped as gods, and this is where the problem lies today!
B) Too many people think that life can be built on the things that money can buy and they forget about the things that money cannot buy!
* It’s wonderful to have the things that money can buy provided you don’t crave the things that money can’t buy.
C) Story about a lady whose home was breaking up …….
* She wore expensive clothing, but underneath was a broken heart.
* She had a valuable diamond ring on her finger, but there was no love attached to it.
* She lived in a beautiful house, but for years, it was NOT a home.
D) Her life had been built on things that money can buy (Prices, not values) …….
* And now everything was about to slip right through her fingers.
* Let me make it clear … There’s nothing wrong with enjoying good things God has given us, provided they don’t become substitutes for the best things in life.
E) One of the mistakes of our society today is that of living on substitutes!
* Many people know the price of everything and the value of nothing.
* They have a false sense of security and a counterfeit feeling of satisfaction …….
* Like a child eating cotton candy at a carnival … These people are enjoying the taste of life, but getting nothing substantial to really live on …….
* Then when the storms of life start to blow, they topple over like trees without roots.
THE BASIC PROBLEM IS THIS …….
A) Instead of making God the center of their lives, they’ve made things the core of their existence.
* Instead of worshipping God, they’re worshipping things!
* A man can bow down to his bank-book just as easily a pagan can bow down to his idols of wood and of stone.
B) Our U.S. currency and coins carry the motto, “In God We Trust,” but I fear that this motto does not really express our nation’s faith!
* “In money we trust,” might be a more accurate expression!
C) Jesus said in
Matt. 6:33, 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
* In other words, “Things, the good things that God wants us to enjoy are not the center of life, but rather are the extra benefits we receive when God is given the rightful place in our hearts.”
* The man who lives for things and ignores God will lose both …….
* But the man who puts God first will have God and the good things that God wants us to enjoy!
D) This does not mean that every obedient Christian will become rich!
* But it does mean that he will receive the things that God wants him to have in his life.
* It seems to me that this is a very fair contract … God says, “Give Me first place in your life, and I will supply all of your needs.”
* When God is at the center, He gives us a deep satisfaction which nothing else can give us, and particularly not the world.
* We stop living on substitutes and start enjoying a daily experience of reality.
WELL, THINK ON OUR TEXT FOR JUST A MOMENT …….
A) A rich young ruler came up to Jesus one day and asked Him how to receive eternal life!
* He wanted to have his sins forgiven … He wanted to go to heaven.
B) This thought ought to be the desire of every man!
* Jesus gave him a strange answer … “Sell all that thou hast and distribute unto the poor …”
* Instead of obeying Christ, the young man turned his back on Him and went away very unhappy.
* The reason? … He was rich and he would not give up his riches – v.23.
C) There is a good lesson here … What was Christ teaching?
* Nobody was ever saved by selling out and giving to the poor.
* A man is saved by trusting Jesus Christ and being obedient to his plan.
* But this young man trusted his riches, and
Matt. 6:24 says, 24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
D) Jesus told him to give away his money, not that he might be saved, but that he might see the sinfulness of his own heart!
* His god was his money, and it’s impossible to trust money and trust Christ at the same time.
I HAVE OFTEN WONDERED WHAT THIS MAN MISSED BY LIVING FOR THINGS!
A) He missed sharing in the victory of Calvary and in the glory of the resurrection!
* He missed fellowshipping with the risen Christ and he missed praying with the apostles and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost.
* Sure, this young man had more of life’s riches than all the apostles put together … But they had riches that would last for all eternity!
* Jesus was at the center of their lives and if the center is right, everything else will be right.
* A man’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things which he possesses
B) Then what does life consist of you may ask?
* Jesus tells us in
John 17:3 3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
* Phil. 1:21 21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
* John wrote in
1 John 5:12 12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
* Life is not found in things that fade and decay and lose their value … Life is found in a Person, and that Person is Jesus Christ, God’s Son!

* Paul said in
1 Tim. 6:7 7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain[a] we can carry nothing out.
D) To live for things is to miss one of the most exciting experiences possible …….
* The day by day experience of trusting Christ and making Him the center of our lives …
* The experience of seeing God add to our lives the things that we need just when we need them …
* The experience of claiming God’s promises and seeing Him fulfill His Word.
A) Of what does your life consist?
* Suppose that tomorrow morning all the things that mean so much to you were taken away …….
* What would you have left?
B) Or suppose you become very ill and had to lie in a hospital bed for weeks …….

There is a story told about a boy that loved collecting marbles. He lived next door to a little girl who had a lot of candy.
She said to him: “If you’ll give me all of your marbles, I’ll give you all of my candy.”
He said he’d think about it. The next day, he hid a few of the marbles in his room and offered the rest to the little girl for her candy. That night, he couldn't get to sleep. He tossed and he turned and he turned and he tossed all night because he was so troubled.
And what do you think troubled him so much he couldn't sleep? What troubled him was the the thought:
“Did she really give me all of her candy?”
In our story this morning, we meet a man who wanted everything God could give. He came to Jesus and said: “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Luke 18:18
He wanted everything God could give.
In response, Jesus asked him for everything he could give: “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” Luke 18:22
If this young man wanted ALL that Jesus could give then he needed to give Jesus ALL that he had. Jesus was calling for him to be sold out for Him. In fact, Jesus did that repeatedly to everyone who wanted to follow Him. He repeatedly called for His followers to be sold out for Him. In Luke 9, Jesus said “… a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."
Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." (In other words, if this many followed Jesus, he might not have a place to live or sleep).
He said to another man, "Follow me."
But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father."
Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God."
Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-bye to my family."
Jesus replied, "No-one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." Luke 9:57-62
Over and over again, Jesus told these folks to pick up their crosses and follow Him,
He repeatedly called them to be sold out for Him.
Essentially, Jesus was saying: “if you’re not going to give me everything… don’t bother me.”
Jesus isn't interested in just some of their marbles…He wanted it all.
For Jesus – it was all or nothing.
We have to come to grips with the fact that God wants all of our marbles - all of our resources - and that He wants us to USE those resources to invest in His kingdom.
Ephesians 2:19-22 says 9 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
Romans 12:4-8 tells us that 4 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. 6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us,
• If it is serving, let him serve;
• If it is teaching, let him teach;
• If it is encouraging, let him encourage;
• If it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously;
• If it is leadership, let him govern diligently;
• If it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.”
We all have a body… and that body has parts that do different things.
My hands serve the body differently than my feet.
My ears serve the body differently than my eyes.
My heart serves the body differently than my lungs.
And yet my earthly body functions best when all those parts do their job.
The Body of Christ is made up of many parts, and the body functions best when all the parts do their part.
So the question for you this morning is this:
Are you doing your part in the Body?
Are you sold out for Jesus?
There are some that aren't sold out.
And you know why they’re not?
Well, one reason - for many - is a lack of trust in God’s promises.
Remember the story I told about the boy and the marbles? Remember why that little boy tossed and turned all night long? He wondered: Did she give me ALL her candy? Did she give ALL she promised?
And that’s why many people don’t sell out for Jesus. They don’t believe Jesus will give them ALL that He promised.
Jesus said: “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness…”
“Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness…”
Now, what is the rest of the verse?
“and ALL these things shall be added unto you.”

* In what would you find your joy and satisfaction?
C) Is it possible that you are living on substitutes?
* If so, then I pity you, because when the substitutes are gone, your life will go with them, and you will have nothing worth living for.
D) Why not trust Christ and start living for true riches … Riches that will last for all eternity?
* Trust Christ, and He will give you something worth living for!
* I’d rather have Jesus than riches untold!!!

SONG #1B
1. I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold;
I’d rather be His than have riches untold;
I’d rather have Jesus than houses or lands;
I’d rather be led by His nail-pierced hand
o Refrain:
Than to be the king of a vast domain
Or be held in sin’s dread sway;
I’d rather have Jesus than anything
This world affords today.
2. I’d rather have Jesus than men’s applause;
I’d rather be faithful to His dear cause;
I’d rather have Jesus than worldwide fame;
I’d rather be true to His holy name
3. He’s fairer than lilies of rarest bloom;
He’s sweeter than honey from out the comb;
He’s all that my hungering spirit needs;
I’d rather have Jesus and let Him lead

INVITATION

Contributing Sermon
Jeff Strite
October 2014