The fanfare, the trumpets of the monarchy have been well noted and documented for millennia. It's because of America's fascination with the British monarchy that we have paid careful note to their goings and their comings. Queen Elizabeth II visited the United States in the 1990s, and reporters were awash with eagerness to report of the logistics of simply getting her here and helping her return. She traveled with 4,000 pounds of luggage, including two outfits for every occasion, a mourning outfit in case someone died, 40 pints of plasma, and white kid leather toilet seat covers. She brought with her her own hairdresser, two valets, and a host of other attendants, by one writer's calculations, that brief visit for the queen to any foreign country could easily ring up a $40 million bill in 2023 currency. striking, humble contrast, we think of the King of Kings, the Lord of the cosmos coming to this earth. He had no hairdresser. He had no valet. He had no bodyguard. He didn't come with trumpets and fanfare. He didn't have a multi-million dollar budget. When Jesus was born, he didn't have a kingly suite in which he was placed. No, it was a borrowed feeding trough. There were more animals in attendance at Jesus' birth than there were people. And yet, this one shaped and transformed eternity. How silently, how silently the wondrous gift is given. Jesus traveled light, and he traveled light for a very specific reason. Strategically, Jesus came without the fanfare, without the hairdressers, without the entourage. He came for this specific purpose, to redeem mankind. So he had to come as an infant in order that he might live a morally flawless life. He had to come as a human in order that he might offer himself up as a sacrifice for sinners. but it was not in the mode of earthly kings. It was different. If you have a copy of the Scriptures, I want you to turn with me to the book of John, chapter 18. Toward the end of that chapter, We find the Roman official, Pilate, interviewing Jesus. And Pilate asks Jesus, verse 33, are you the king of the Jews? Jesus answers, verse 36, my kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, then my servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not of this realm. Therefore Pilate asked of him, so you are a king? Jesus answered, you say correctly that I am a king. For this purpose I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth." So was Jesus a king? Was Jesus the king? Was Jesus the king over every other ruler, every other authority ever created? Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely, yes. He was nothing less than a king. But His coming was veiled. Jesus didn't want to be distracted, didn't want to be dissuaded from His mission. He came with an intended purpose to redeem mankind. And so he came in the most unusual, unexpected, different way. Not in the way of normal monarchs. Jesus came as if he were an alien, as if he were a stranger, as if he were a foreigner to the world he owned and created. Jesus was fully in work mode when he was here on earth. He was laser focused on getting the job done, the job of redeeming mankind. Put aside all of this fanfare and the trumpets and all that other stuff, that just gets in the way. He came with one purpose in mind, and that he accomplished. Now, this is what's interesting to me. When Jesus came as an alien stranger, a foreigner, he came to call men and women unto himself. And in so doing, he lets them in. He gives them a part of the kingdom mission for which he came. In Genesis chapter 21, we read this of the father of the faith, Abraham. Abraham lived as a foreigner. Then in Genesis 26, God similarly directed Abraham's son Isaac, live here as a foreigner in this life. The author of Hebrews wrote of Abraham and his clan in this way, Hebrews 11. died in faith without receiving the promises, but having seen them, and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth, for those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. They desire a better country that is a heavenly one. And here's the point, Christmas, the true meaning of Christmas, Christmas is not for wimps. If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, If you were one of His disciples, you have had your citizenship here on earth revoked, and you have been pulled out of the kingdom of darkness, and you are a slave to Christ, and you are not your own. have been purchased." Positively said, if you were a believer in Christ, you have been given new citizenship papers, and you are now part of a new kingdom. Now you are no longer a slave of sin, you are a slave of Christ. You are a son, a daughter of Christ. You have been welcomed into the family of God, and you have been called to be an alien, a stranger. foreigner to this world and the world's system in order that you might participate with Christ in his process of redeeming fallen men and women. Our text of Scripture this morning is taken from the ninth chapter of the book of Luke. A pivotal chapter in Luke's gospel record. I invite you to turn there with me. In Luke chapter 9, we find some very pivotal things taking place based on what Jesus says and what Jesus does and what Jesus demands. Now those are not the three points of my message this morning. Those are three points giving you the context for our primary text this morning at the end of Luke chapter nine. But I want you to look at verses 23 and 24 in that chapter. This is what Jesus says. If anyone wishes to come after me, follow him, be his disciple. He must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake, he is the one who will save it." What Jesus says is not something that's going to make you feel warm and fuzzy. He's demanding a death, a death to self, a death to sin. Verse 51 in chapter nine, what Jesus does is the hinge upon which the rest of the book opens. It says this, when the days were approaching for his ascension, Pause right there. Dot, dot, dot. When the days were approaching for his ascension. Isn't that an interesting way to speak of what's to come? It's like it opens the door and reveals what's coming later in the rest of the book. Jesus is focused not just on His death, though we talk very frequently about that, not focused on His resurrection, though we talk very frequently about that. He is focused on that time following His death, following His resurrection, where He ascends back to heaven and assumes His rightful place as the King of all kings. when the days were approaching for his ascension. He was determined to go to Jerusalem. So we know from this point on, Jesus is laser focused on the task given to him, that specific task of redeeming mankind. Proven by his resurrection. Always looking forward to the return to heaven, His ascension, His coronation, the giving of that name which is above every name by the Father. In light of this, this is the context in which Jesus has a series of conversations with three gentlemen at the end of chapter nine. This is our text this morning. This is what Jesus demands. This is what Christmas is all about. It's this text that reveals why Christmas is not for wimps. Read with me verse 57 and following. As they were going along the road, someone said to him, I will follow you wherever you go. And Jesus said to him, the foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of God has nowhere to lay his head. And he said to another, follow me. But he said, Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father. But Jesus said to him, allow the dead to bury their own dead. As for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God. Another also said, I will follow you, Lord. But first, permit me to say goodbye to those at home. Jesus said to him, no one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God. Three conversations, three different men, three different followers, in air quotes, of followers of Jesus, and they inform us of the cost To follow Jesus, there is a price to be paid. Peter says twice in his first epistle that we are aliens and strangers in this world. And twice in that same epistle does he speak of the kind of lifestyle that must be true of those who are indeed aliens and strangers in this world. We are called to be like our master. We are called to be different. When we come to faith in Christ, we are dead to the stuff of this world. We are alive to Christ and have been enveloped, brought in together to participate in his kingdom work. Well, the first gentleman that came to Jesus was what I'm calling this morning a social media follower. I can envision him with a pad of paper and a Sharpie in his hand, and as Jesus is walking among the crowds, it's as though he's looking for an autograph. I will follow you wherever you go. I call this guy the social media follower because social media is very popular in our day. And there are some benefits, maybe. Mostly not. The whole social media platform is built on Photoshop and plastic surgery. And hey, look at me and how wonderful my life is. How plastic, phony baloney is that? Well, it's because of the age in which we live where advances in medicine and in digital photography allow us to present ourselves as something that we are not. I wonder if this gentleman came to Jesus, and if he had social media in his days, if he would have liked Jesus, or if he would have had a thumbs up for Jesus. Or if he would have had lots of clicks for Jesus. As if being an admirer is the equivalent of being a disciple. Are the two the same? No, not at all. In Luke chapter 6, verse 40, Jesus said this, a pupil is not above his teacher, but everyone after he has been fully trained will be like his teacher. An admirer stands in the background and says, oh I like this, I like that, but one who follows is not in the background at all. They are ones who seek to be like the teacher. That's a true disciple. We must not be enamored with the things of this world, but put them in their proper place. We have a different set of values different raison d'etre, a different reason for existing because of Christ. The Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, 1813 to 1855, knew nothing of our present social media in our day, but he knew very well the distinction between following Jesus and admiring Jesus. Rod Dreher in his 2002 book, Live Not by Lies, quotes Kierkegaard, who said, quote, Christ's whole life on earth, from beginning to end, was destined solely to have followers and to make admirers impossible. The admirer never makes any true sacrifices. He always plays it safe, though in words, phrases, songs, he is inexhaustible about how highly he prizes Christ He renounces nothing. He will not reconstruct his life. He will not let his life express what he supposedly admires. Not so for the follower. No, no. The follower aspires with all his strength to be what he admires. And then remarkably enough, even though he is living amongst a Christian people, in air quotes, he incurs the same peril as he did when he was dangerous to openly confess Christ. Dreher comments, the true follower of Christ recognizes the cost of discipleship and is willing to pay it. This does not mean that he is obligated to put himself at maximum peril at all times, or stand guilty of being an admirer, but it does mean that when the Gestapo or the KGB shows up in his village and demands that he bow to the swastika or the hammer and sickle, the true follower of Christ will make the sign of the cross and walk with fear and trembling to Golgotha. The social media follower admires Christ from a distance, but stays disengaged, uninvolved, unwilling to pay the price. So rather than be a social media follower, Write this down in your notes, be a spiritually minded follower. Now what I mean by that is this, if Jesus is the Lord and Master, if he's the teacher and I'm the student and the teacher has nowhere to lay his head, I as the student wanting to not just admire, but to be like the master, must be willing to live the life of an alien, a stranger, a foreigner, a homeless person, Jesus a lot. It was part of His assignment. So laser-focused was He on His task that He was a homeless man. And some of those who are true disciples of Christ will follow literally in the footsteps of their master and have nowhere to lay their head. So to be a spiritually minded follower is to be one who is so trusting in Christ that I am depending on Him to provide me a place to lay my head tonight. I am so committed to His work, His kingdom work, His work of redeeming mankind. I am so committed to that that I am willing to give up anything and everything That's why I say Christmas is not for wimps. There is a high price to be paid to follow the Lord Jesus. Now, this is the first verse of the Christians' life song. If you look with me over, keep your finger in Luke 9, we'll be right back. But if you look with me over in the book of Galatians chapter 2, you'll find the refrain to the Christian's life song. Galatians chapter 2 verse 20, I have been crucified with Christ. And it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself up for me. I am dead. I am dead to this world. I am dead to the values of this world. I'm not a citizen here anymore. My earthly citizenship has been revoked. I'm an alien. I'm a stranger. I'm a foreigner. Second page of your notes. Gentlemen, number two. Now in verse 57, first gentleman initiates a conversation with Jesus. He's got his his pad, his sharpie, he's looking for an autograph, he admires Jesus so much. Verse 59, we don't find this gentleman initiating a conversation with Jesus. No, it's just the other way around, but this is not unusual at all for Jesus. He says to another man in the crowd, follow me. Well, What did Jesus do with the 12 that he called his original disciples? He spoke to each one of them. He initiated the conversation. And he said to them, to Matthew, to John, to Peter, and all, he said, follow me. So this is not unusual for Jesus to say such things. But look at the response that he got from this man, Lord, Permit me first to go and bury my father. What do you think of that? Is that a reasonable request? Jesus, I've got this obligation to take care of. Give me some freedom here a little bit. I need to take care of my dad. Well, at first glance, we'd say, yeah, that sounds like a very reasonable request. But as we look at it a little more carefully, and as we look at Jesus' response in the next verse, we find out it's not reasonable at all. Three reasons. Number one, physically, if his dad had died, That man would not have been there in that crowd. Now, it was true in the first century Middle East culture. It's true in the 21st Middle East culture. You bury someone within 24 hours of their death. Our Egyptian friend and missionary that we support, when his father died, He could not be at his father's funeral. He is the eldest in that family of 11 children. But he couldn't get back there in time. There weren't the right flights and airplane connections to get him to his hometown in Upper Egypt within that 24-hour period of time. that causes us to wonder, well, is his father dead? Well, it is possible that this man put his father in the grave that morning. Maybe he died just yesterday and maybe there were still some some details that he needed to take care of and so he was speaking in these kinds of terms of burying his father even though physically maybe they already did that. That's possible. However, point number two, we realize this is not a reasonable request because ceremonially if his father died He was unclean for a week. So a good and responsible Jew had no business being in public until after that week had fully passed. So we know this is an unreasonable request physically, ceremonially, third, spiritually. We know from verse 60 that Jesus is omnisciently able to get into the mind and the heart and the soul, the motivations of this particular man. And he says this, which is kind of cryptic, kind of odd. He says, allow the dead to bury their own dead. Well, literally, You and I both know that a dead person has no ability, capacity to do anything. So Jesus is obviously not talking literally about a dead person burying another dead person. And he's not saying that we have the right or it's appropriate in any way to abandon our parents No. Jesus is showing this is a fence-sitting follower. He has one foot in spiritual things, in the things of eternity. He's hanging out with Jesus. He's interested in hearing and in seeing and participating in what Jesus is about. Jesus is an amazing guy, and he wants to be part of that. He has one foot there in kingdom work, but he has his other foot in the stuff of the world. Reading between the lines, this gentleman is interested his inheritance his dad is not dead his dad is not even on his deathbed this gentleman is hedging his bets and waiting for his dad to pass so that he can get the stuff of this world that's coming to him he's a fence sitter he wants the stuff of this world And when he gets around to it, he wants the stuff of the world to come. And Jesus will have none of it. He says to him, middle of verse 60, as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God. Now again, Jesus is not against taking care of family. but he's using family as an excuse to keep him from being part of the main thing. You see, if we truly understand what Christmas is all about, what the incarnation is all about, when we understand the nature of discipleship, that the student is to be just like the teacher, When we begin to understand all of these things, we realize that our earthbound priorities must change. They must be transformed into kingdom priorities. it's good to take care of your family, Jesus says, but keep the main thing the main thing. Your main thing, if you are a true disciple, is to proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God. That's my part. That's my place in While I'm here on earth, while I am an alien, while I am a stranger, while I am a foreigner here, I have the task of making Christ and His gospel known. Period. That's what I'm about. That's who I am. This fence-sitting follower had split affections. He was double-minded. So rather than being a fence-sitting follower, instead, be this. Write this down. Space is provided. Be a single-minded follower. Sometimes we use social obligations, business responsibility, health concerns, financial struggles, as excuses to not be giving our time and attention to the things of the kingdom. Kingdom work must be our priority. we must be careful to remove distractions. Well, we've just sung the second verse of the Christian's gospel song, and here's the refrain, I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live, yet not I, but Christ who lives in me." It's all about Jesus. Gentlemen, number three. Another one comes forward. Here's another voluntary expression of at least admiration. I will follow you, Lord. that first permit me to say goodbye to those at home. Does that sound like a reasonable request? We might even put a label on it of a scripturally okayed request. And I get that from 1 Kings chapter 19. It's in this chapter, you'll remember, that Elijah, having beat up on the prophets of Baal, has run away from Jezebel, he's tired, he's worn out, and the Lord said, yep, yep, you're about done, you're about done, guy. But there's a couple things that you need to do, and one of those things is you need to, tap out the next guy who's going to fulfill the prophetic office and the prophetic responsibilities that have been yours. And so Elijah is tasked with putting the mantle, the authority, the prophetic authority on Elisha. And in verse 20 of that particular chapter, having had that mantle placed on his shoulders, Elisha says, please let me kiss my father and my mother, then I will follow you. Oh, that sounds a whole lot like what we just read in Luke chapter 9 of this gentleman. I want to tell my friends and my family what's going on. I want to inform them of why I'm going to be out of town for a number of months and why I'm not going to be home for dinner. Jesus, let me do that and I'll follow you. That sounds reasonable. But Jesus omnisciently is able to look into this man's heart. He looks into his soul. He looks at his motivations and he realizes It's not all that it looks like on the surface. And Jesus says this, no one after putting his hand to the plow and looking back is fit for the kingdom of God. Now, you don't have to have grown up on a farm to realize that if you want to make a straight row, you fix your sights on that which is right in front of you, and you just head toward that mark. Well, if you look behind you, if you are distracted and look to the side, wherever you might look, it's very easy to see how the slight turning of the wheel will take you way off course another hundred yards down the road. What Jesus is getting at here is this particular follower is what I'm calling a look-at-me kind of individual. He wants his friends and family to pat him on the back and say, oh, we're so proud of you. Are you going to be a pastor? Are you going to be a missionary? Oh, that's so wonderful. It's all about him. No. If we are to follow Jesus, if we are to truly understand what the incarnation means and how it affects our life, we understand that to follow Jesus is not like taking on a second job. To follow Jesus is not like adding Jesus to our list of things to do and things to talk about. No, to follow Jesus means that He is my reason for existence. He is my total commitment. He is all there is. No more excuses, no more distractions. No, I want to put my sights on Jesus and not look to the right, not look to the left, not look behind me. I have a different value system now. So rather than being a look-at-me kind of follower, write this down, I put space in your notes, be an it's-all-about-Jesus follower. It's all about Jesus. He owns me. I am his slave. Oh, that sounds so demeaning in our culture right now. Oh, but it is so freeing, because I formerly was a slave of sin. I formerly was a slave of my own lusts and desires, but now I've been freed from that. I have been released. from that kind of slavery, and now can serve the King of all kings. And now for the third time, we sing the refrain. I've been crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live, yet not I, but Christ who lives in me. the life that I live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who gave himself up for me, who loved me and gave himself up for me. So let's think about these three individuals again for just a couple minutes by way of application. Let me ask you some questions. Do you admire Jesus but have not yet surrendered your life to Him? Is He the ruler and the master and the king over your entire life? Don't be a social media follower that's enamored with the phony, the plastic, the photoshopped, things that are not, rather, be a spiritually-minded disciple. Trust him. Prayerfully depend upon him for everything. Secondly, Are you a fence-sitting follower? That is, are you seeking to hang on to the stuff of this world and dabble in spiritual things too on occasion? Stop being double-minded. Be single-minded. Your laser focus must be just like that of Christ's. You're here for kingdom purposes. You're here for a very short time. You're here as an alien, a stranger, a foreigner. You have one purpose in mind. You are to be Christ-honoring and Christ-centered in all things. Third. When you are with other people, church people, non-church people, doesn't matter, when you're with other people, do you seek to draw attention to yourself? Or are you so committed to Christ that in conversations, everything that you're doing, you are seeking to honor Him, and speak of Him. Now, you may think, well, when I'm at work, I'm kind of in my work mode, albeit an earthly work mode, and I have a particular task I have to focus on. That's good, but in the back of your mind, even the expression on your face can describe your greater priority. True discipleism, it's an all about Jesus followership. So let me give you, in just a couple minutes, let me give you three take-home ideas, three very practical, tangible things you can do this afternoon. to take another step toward spiritual maturity and be the kind of disciple that God desires us to be. Number one, read your Bible. You'll find these in the back. I've been doing this for a long time, putting just a suggested Bible reading that'll take you through the Scriptures in a year. This last year, I finished it a few weeks ago. This last year, I read through the entire Old Testament, just like it is, and then the New Testament. Make this your own. The idea, the purpose here is not to cross off boxes and to say, yep, get that one done. That's not the idea. The idea here is to spend time in what God has left us as written revelation. While I was on sabbatical, I did a lot of study and reading on philosophy. That's one of the things I love, philosophy history. And philosophers have said for a very long time that our best knowledge is knowledge that we gain through the senses, seeing, smelling, hearing, tasting, et cetera. Well, no Bible-centered individual will deny that there is a great deal that we can learn from our senses, but that's only one source of information. Truth comes to us not just from this world, but from what God has personally revealed to us. Spend time in the Scriptures, not just reading, but meditating. There's the key. Taking a verse, a paragraph maybe, maybe a whole chapter, and rehearsing that in your mind of what's happening, who said what, what is the Holy Spirit leading, teaching, instructing? We need that. OK, that's point number one. Point number two, daily, ask yourself the question, what distractions do I need to remove from my life? And honestly, social media is one of those things that might need to go. I mean, Facebook and all of it. There's so much that's not true there. And honestly, a lot of it is simply the promotion of gossip and stalking. And I've heard so many people say, but that's how I connect with my friends. Here's a thought. Call them and have a real conversation. Remove Oh, and there are so many. Here's third. Memorize, if you haven't already, Memorize Galatians 2.20 and rehearse that daily. I, as a believer in Christ, have been crucified Nevertheless, I live, yet not I, but it's Christ who lives in me." Notice in the Scriptures a heart that removes distractions, my soul that is fixated on my identity with Christ. Father, we thank you for the joy that is ours to look into the Word and see your glorious, gracious design, to redeem us from ourselves, from sin, from the influence of the evil one. God, would you be moving in our hearts, even this afternoon, to remind us of whose we are and what we must therefore be all about. It is for your glory that we pray these things and give thanks to your holy name.