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SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2007

THE FIFTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

Luke 14:25-33 (Discipline is the cost of discipleship)

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SERMON THEME:

To be a disciple of the Lord, we must -- by definition -- live under discipline. God’s discipline. And that means putting God first in our lives one situation at a time, one relationship at a time, one day at a time. Daily discipline -- one step at a time, one day at a time -- IS the cost of discipleship.

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1. Without a doubt, we are in the middle of an incredible weekend for sports. I am not going to mention names, but “some of us” are in sports heaven. College football season has begun, and already there have been some fantastic upsets. Baseball season is entering the final seven weeks. The National Football league begins officially this weekend. The U.S. Open Tennis tournament is in its final days. The PGA season is winding down. And the NHL and NBA seasons are just around the corner. As my old college baseball coach used to say, “It just doesn’t get any better than this.” BUT I MUST CONFESS TO YOU that something hit me very hard this past week --something I have not thought much about. And here it is, in a nutshell:

A. The best men’s tennis player in the world, Roger Federer of Switzerland, is just now 26 years old.

B. The No. 1 women’s tennis player -- Justine Henin of Belgium -- is 25.

C. Tiger Woods, who seems to have been around for ever, is only 31.

D. Alex Rodriguez, who HAS been around for ever, is only 32.

E. Super Bowl MVP Peyton Manning of the Indianapolis Colts is only 31.

F. Lebron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers is just 22.

G. The best swimmer in the world, Michael Phelps, is 22.

H. The best women’s gymnast in the world, Carly Patterson, is 19.

I. Women’s golf sensation Michelle Wei of Hawaii is now only 17.

Do you see anything amazing in all of this? That men and women so YOUNG can be at the absolute TOP of their fields.

2. For just a moment, let us consider two of these young athletes -- two who have been at the top of the world for most of the last decade: Venus and Serena Williams, from the world of professional tennis. Six summers ago -- in 2001 -- the two sisters played EACH OTHER for the U.S. Open title (with Venus winning 6-2, 6-4). At the time, Venus was 21 years old and Serena was 19 years old. And they were ranked Number 1 and Number 2 in the entire world, in women’s tennis. Make no mistake about it. They were literally at the TOP of the world six summers ago. And do you know what it took for them to get there? And to stay there? Basically, Venus and Serena Williams had to give up ONLY THREE THINGS in order to get to the top:

A. First, they had to forfeit their childhood years. Both began playing tennis as babies. And from the beginning, they had a single-minded determination to be the best. From the time they learned to talk, and to walk, they learned to swing tennis rackets. And they swung, day in and day out, throughout their childhood years. They began competing against each other, and against other children, from the time they were old enough to go to school. And that’s not all.

B. Second, they had to forfeit their adolescent years. These wonderfully talented sisters did not grow up as ordinary teenagers. They did not date. They did not hang out with friends. They did not waste time experiencing the things that most teenagers experience. They played tennis. They competed at the highest levels of the sport, from the time they were able to enter junior competitions. While students of their age were hanging out, kicking back, wasting time, and relating with others, Venus and Serena were playing tennis. And that’s still not all.

C. Third, they had to forfeit (and are continuing to forfeit) their young adult years. Young people their age are attending college and graduate school, getting married, having babies, starting careers, and setting out on their own apart from their families. And Venus and Serena are still playing tennis. And they are still practicing. And still competing at the highest levels.

3. We can say the same about Carly Patterson, the gymnast; Michael Phelps, the swimmer; Roger Federer the tennis player; Justine Henin the tennis player; Tiger Woods the golfer . . . And dozens and dozens of others. How can we ever forget:

A. Tara Lapinksy, the 15-year-old Houston girl who won the gold medal in figure skating at the Winter Olympics of 1998?

B. Or Sarah Hughes, the 16-year-old who won the gold in figure skating at the 2002 Winter Olympics?

C. Or cycling superhero Lance Armstrong, who won SEVEN straight Tour de France races?

DO YOU BELIEVE THAT ANY OF THESE PEOPLE HAD ANYTHING LIKE a NORMAL childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood? Take Lance Armstrong as an example: Lance was a national competitor as a tri-athlete at the age of 13. And he was a superstar long before he developed (and overcame) testicular cancer at the age of 25. And he only had to give up THREE THINGS to get to the top of the cycling world: His childhood, his adolescence, and his young adulthood.

4. OK. With all of these great athletes in mind, let us now hear the words of the Lord Jesus in our Gospel lesson this morning. From Luke Chapter 14, we hear these words:

(1) “You cannot be my disciple unless you put ME first in your life -- above fathers, mothers, wives, children, brothers, sisters.”

(2) And, “You will have no part in ME unless you carry the Cross daily and follow ME where I lead.”

Let us put these words of the Lord Jesus in a little different context: To be a disciple of Jesus, and a citizen of His Kingdom, we must have a devotion to Him that is GREATER than our natural affection and loyalty to family, friends, jobs, worldly possessions. That is to say, our love for Him must transcend our devotion to all of these other things, and people. HE MUST BE THE MOST IMPORTANT PERSON in our lives. We must love Him, and be devoted to Him, to such a degree that we willingly and joyfully embrace whatever LIFE He gives to us -- even if it includes taunting, ridicule, insults, complaints that we are “old fashioned” and “out of touch” with the “real world.” He must be FIRST in our life. Second place is not acceptable.

5. All of this leads me to the point I want to emphasize today. A very simple point. Not an easy point. But a simple point. And here it is:

REMEMBER: Roger Federer only gave up three things to get to where he is today. And so did the Williams’ sisters. And Carly Patterson. And Justine Henin. And Lebron James. And Michael Phelps. And Tiger Woods. And Peyton Manning. Only three things. Childhood. Adolescence. Young adulthood.

BUT PLEASE HEAR THIS: EVERYTHING THESE GREAT ATHLETES HAVE ATTAINED WILL ALL PASS AWAY.

FAME. Fortune. Money. Power. Prestige. Public acclaim. All of it will pass away.

To have the fullness of eternal life promised to us by the Lord, we must CHOOSE HIM and follow HIM where He leads. As His disciples, we must live under His discipline.

6. As Moses says in our first lesson this morning (from Deuteronomy Chapter 30, verse 15):

RE’EH NATATI’ LEFANEEKHA HA’YOM.

ET’HAKHAYIM VE’ET’HATOV.

VE’ET’HAMA VE’ET’HA’RA.

“See! I am setting before you this day a choice.

Life and goodness. Or death and evil.”

As we move forward this Fall in our various ministries and programs, let us CHOOSE EACH DAY to seek the Lord’s wisdom, the Lord’s guidance, and the Lord’s discipline. It’s all there for us. All we have to do is ask. One situation at a time. One day at a time.