All the Losers Win
Luke 9:23-25
Your mom will tell you that losing builds character...which is all well
and good, I suppose—if you’re into that sort of thing—but for me,
losing at anything pretty much stinks
-your mom will also tell you that it’s important to be a good loser...
and I would agree with her...but losing’s not something you want
to be too good at...personally, I prefer being a really good winner
--sorry, mom, but winning is a whole lot more fun...but...
Some of you will remember the story of when I was in the fifth grade
and our teacher let us challenge someone to a boxing match during
our class’ Valentine’s Day party
-as I always say, “Nothing says “I love you” like a good right hook”
--well, I was challenged by 4’ 10”, 82 lb. Julie Michaels (a girl)
-there were only two rules: no hitting below the belt; no hitting
above the shoulders
--Julie Michaels sauntered out to the middle of our makeshift
ring and proceeded to punch me in the nose...which, the last
time I checked, is above the shoulders
-one punch and it was over...our teacher declared me the winner
on a technicality (cheating!) but everyone knew who really won
--I wish I could say that a lot of character was built that day, but
but the only thing I learned is sometimes cheaters do win...
and sometimes losers are laughed at...a lot
Fast forward six years to the auditions for The Sound of Music
-since the first time I saw the movie I had wanted to play Rolf, the
local dentist...no, Rolf, the messenger boy who gets to kiss Leisl in
the gazebo after
singing Sixteen Going on Seventeen
--this was a sure thing—as a sophomore, I had the second male
lead in Carousel...there was only one other guy with any talent
...plus, I was the teacher’s pet
-but the lead role of Captain von Trapp went to a guy who’d never
been a play before...which means the talented guy got the role of
Rolf...and I got the part of Franz, the family butler...and Franz
didn’t get to kiss anybody
--my dramatic line consisted of: “Captain, there is a Herr von
Hoffergeorgesteinbrennerstein is here to see you, sir.”
Losing isn’t any fun because you actually lose something
-I realize that’s like stating the obvious...
--in 5th grade I lost my dignity...and consciousness momentarily
--as a junior, I lost a great role, a great song, and some great lips
-and because we all know how painful losing can be, we resist it at
any cost just so we can try to hang onto what little we have
--we do it with our money...our time...our career...our future plans
...and even our lives
In 1904 William Borden finished high school in
-as heir to the
Borden Dairy estate, he was already a millionaire
--his parents
gave him a trip around the world for a graduation gift
-as he traveled,
however, he found himself drawn to those shut out
of society...the
losers...and God instilled in him a burden for the
hurting people of
the world
--while still
on his journey, he wrote home: “I'm
going to give my
life to prepare for the mission field.”
--then he wrote
two words in the back of his Bible: "No reserves."
-talk about a
loser...giving up prestige, comfort, pleasure, wealth
--yeah, but
evidently he’s just the kind of loser Jesus is looking for
Read Luke 9:23
There have always been people who’ve wanted to be around Jesus
-they figure they can
remain on the fringes...they can stay when
it’s
convenient...and then they can always slip away and go back
home if things
got too uncomfortable
--funny, isn’t
it—how there are still a lot of people who have that
same
attitude...I’ll be on Jesus’ team as long as we’re winning,
but if this
thing starts to go south, I’m outta’ here faster than
you can say
“Judas Iscariot”
---I’m a winner
and I only hang with winners
-Jesus has this way
of filtering through the crowds and separating
the true
disciples from the groupies
--did you hear
His ridiculous demands?
---self-denial?...obviously for losers who don’t
have a life
----winners are all about self-fulfillment, self-enrichment,
and, well, pretty much anything to do with “self”
---carrying a cross?...again, that has “loser” written
all over it
----winners are all about grabbing the
gusto, here-and-now
---follow Him?...without a plan, a map, a
compass, a GPS?
----winners have strategies and precisely articulated goals
....and they have no time for wasting time on losers
William Borden went on to hold nothing back
-while at Yale, he
became a pillar in the Christian community
--one entry in
his journal defined the source of his spiritual
strength:
"Say no to self and yes to Jesus every time."
-during his first
semester of his freshman year, he started a small
prayer group that
would transform campus life
--this group birthed
a movement that spread across the university
---at the end
of his first year, 150 freshmen were meeting for
weekly
Bible study and prayer
---by the
time Borden was a senior, 1,000 of Yale's 1,300
students
were meeting in such groups.
He felt called to make sure every student on campus heard the
gospel...and he was
often seen ministering to the losers in the
streets of
-but his real
passion remained world missions
--God was
guiding him, he said, to minister to the
in
-when he graduated
from Yale, Borden wrote two more words in
the back of his
Bible: “No retreats.”
Read Luke 9:24
C’mon Jesus...that’s a tad extreme, isn’t it?
-seems like He’s
saying that eternal life is only found in martyrdom
--at least that’s
how I’ve always interpreted that verse
---let me
make it clear that completely selling out can very well
result
in losing your life for Christ...and without a doubt,
Jesus
is well-aware of that distinct possibility
-but there’s
something else in Christ’s words that, frankly, may be
far more
challenging than dying for Him...it’s the call to live for Him
-Paul captures the
heart of Jesus’ message in Galatians
2:20 à I
have
been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives
in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith
in the Son of God
who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
--this puts a
new and true spin on the phrase “dead man walking”
Following his calling, Borden turned down several
high-paying job
offers, enrolled in
seminary, and continued preparing
-like the
missionary with New Tribes Mission said à Our greatest
fear should not be failure, but
succeeding at something that
doesn't really matter.
-after graduating
from seminary, he left for
because of his calling
to work with Muslims in
--while in
-within a month,
the 25-year-old young man was dead
--when friends
and family looked through the few possessions of
this
millionaire, they came across his Bible
--in the
back, beneath the words “No reserves” and “No
retreats,” he had written: “No
regrets.”
Jesus is not only the greatest teacher ever...He is
unmatched in
asking profound
questions that appear to be so simple
-earlier in Luke 9:20 we heard Him ask Peter à
But what about
you? Who do you say I am?
--the answer is eternity-defining
---to say
Jesus is good man or even a prophet as Muslims
concede...sounds fine and dandy, but it sells Jesus short
----we don’t have those options...He repeatedly claims
to be the Son of God, Messiah, Savior of the world
-----so if He’s not...then He can’t be good, because
He would
be a liar...and neither can He be a
prophet because He would be
wrong...wrong
about the
most fundamental, most crucial
thing of
all—His own identity
---of
course you have the freedom to reject His somewhat
outlandish claims...or you can, as Peter did, as I have,
and as have millions throughout the last 2000 years...
acknowledge
in faith Jesus is your Savior and your Lord
Five verses later, in Luke
9:25, Jesus poses a rhetorical question
that leaves His
followers (and us) speechless
-this single
question puts life in its proper perspective [Read]
-you’d think the answer would be a no-brainer for everyone...let’s
see, maybe 50, 70, 90 years of chasing after the best in this life
--or eternity in heaven...where there is no more death, mourning,
crying or pain...and where I am in the very presence of God
Yeah, it seems so cut and dry that you’d figure no one would
be
foolish enough to
turn down God’s gracious offer of genuine life
-but it happens
every day
--sure, there
may be a variety of reasons why a
perfectly logical
person
would reject Christ’s forgiveness and salvation, but I’m
convinced
it eventually all comes down to one basic issue
-surprisingly, I
discovered the reason on the back of a t-shirt
--a high school
student’s cross country team had a fantastic
motto à “The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender.”
---taken in the context of running, it’s so true...you may want
to quit when the hill’s steep and it’s pouring down rain and
your feet are cold and the mud is globbing on your shoes
----but then you remember all the miles you’ve put in...
and all the intervals you’ve run...and how you kept
running through the burning pain in your lungs and
legs when you ran sprint after agonizing sprint
-----trust me, Lindley’s would have to carry you off
that course before you give in
---taken in a spiritual context, it’s just as true...you may know
deep down that your only hope is to surrender your life
to Jesus Christ...but then you remember all the times you
said “no” to grace—supposing grace is for losers who
can’t make it on their own—and you reckon that you’ve
spent the last 50-60 years struggling to live a decent life
...that you’ve simply worked too hard to surrender now
Read Luke 9:25 again
Jesus defines reality this way
-you can appear to be a winner today...but be a loser for eternity
-or you can appear to be a loser today...and because of Christ’s
death on the cross and His victory over death, hell, and the grave,
end up being a true winner for all eternity
You might argue, “But it’s my life...but it’s my career...but, I planned to
retire, relax, and enjoy life...but, I can’t take my family overseas
-and you try so hard to win...that you end up losing
--what good is it—really—to win the whole world...and lose your
very soul?