Allen Jackson - Breakthroughs Declined - Part 1
We’ve been working through a study on breakthroughs, those points where God intervenes in our lives. Outcomes that can only be explained by God’s participation, when you arrive at a place in your life and there’s really no imagined outcome that’s acceptable, without God’s intervention. What you need is a breakthrough. And we’ve tried to understand that a little better because I don’t think they’re random. I don’t think they are just arbitrary. I think we can actually make choices that will facilitate those moments in our journey.
As I worked through the study, and did my preparation, I learned something really unexpectedly, to be honest. That, in scripture, there are more breakthroughs that are refused than were accepted. The list of people, it seemed to me who were presented with opportunities for those breakthroughs, for those interventions from God, and declined them, actually exceeded the people that accepted them. And I wasn’t prepared for that to be something that I learned, as I did my work. So I want to do a session or two on those breakthroughs that are declined. It may seem irrational, or illogical, but as I reflected on my own journey, I could see there were places where I’ve cooperated with the Lord and there are times where I’ve chosen not to.
And it’s not always between moral and immoral, or godly and ungodly, or good and evil, sometimes there’s a sense that God puts something in front of you and you’re just like, «No, I’m busy». Or, «I don’t really wanna do the work». Or, «I don’t wanna practice generosity, there». Then I take a pass and, in the moment, I wasn’t conscious that I was actually declining an invitation from God that would have led to something of greater significance, but in hindsight, it became pretty evident to me I have done that, more than once. I can point to places where I’ve said «yes» to the Lord, but I think the candor to recognize both is very, very important. And at this season of my life, I’m determined, with the help of God, not to decline any of those invitations. I don’t wanna leave any of those things unaccepted. Too important, too important.
So my goal, in this session, is to help us understand a little bit about those breakthroughs that have been declined, so that we don’t do that. And I’ll start with a line from a song I bet you learned as a child, I did. «Jesus loves me, this I know,» you know that little chorus? You know, I find that I still will hum that or, if I sing, it’s usually because I’m on the tractor. I’ve got this old, raggedy diesel tractor that makes enough noise to wake people. And on that tractor, I feel confident singing. Because you’ve got to be within five or six yards to hear above the rattle of the engine, and I feel protected. And I’ll find myself singing that little chorus, «Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little ones, to him, belong».
There’s comfort in that to me, even at this point in my life. And I would have to say to you, I think that’s been a predominant message of American evangelicalism, for decades. «Jesus loves you! Jesus loves you. Did you know Jesus loves you»? And you know, it’s true he does love you, that’s absolutely true. But the fact that Jesus loves you is not sufficient to ensure your participation in his kingdom, spoiler alert. Hell will be filled with people that Jesus loved. Now, that message we don’t talk about as much. Breakthroughs that are declined.
You see, I’m far more aware of this, having spent a few weeks, and even months, with the topic. So I want to start with a pretty familiar narrative, it’s in Mark chapter 10, it’s repeated in multiple Gospels. It’s this young man, a wealthy young man, a man with authority, a godly young man approaches Jesus. «As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and he fell on his knees before him». So at the very introduction to this narrative, before you know anything else, this young man is kneeling at the feet of Jesus, in public. When was the last time you knelt before somebody, in public? Been a day or two, it didn’t mean something different in the first century than it does, now. It’s an expression of yielding, it’s an expression of honor, all sorts of things.
«'Good teacher, ' he asked, 'what must I do to inherit eternal life? ' Jesus answered, 'Why do you call me good? No one is good, except God alone. You know the commandments: „Don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t give false testimony, don’t defraud, honor your father and mother,"'» He’s listing the Big Ten, you know, the ones we’ve kind of put away. «And he declared, 'Teacher, all these I have kept since I was a boy.'» Wow, imagine having a one-on-one with Jesus and saying, «I’ve kept all the rules». Jesus was more polite than I am, he didn’t snicker. But Mark, it gives us an insight.
In verse 21, it says, «Jesus looked at him and he loved him». There’s a little chorus, «Jesus loves me, this I know». He loves this man, he tells us that. So he’s gonna give him an invitation. He said, «There’s one thing you lack, go and sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you’ll have treasure in heaven. Then come follow me,» there it is. «Come follow me,» it’s what he said to Peter, it’s what he said to James, it’s what he said to John. Their lives were changed. They walked away from businesses, families, friends, routines, habits, their whole lives got disrupted. «Come follow me,» he said, and they said, «Okay». He says the same thing to this young man, godly young man, a man yielded to the authority of Jesus, he’s inquiring.
«The man’s face fell. He went away sad, he had great wealth. Jesus looked around to his said to his disciples, 'How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! '» Then this next phrase intrigues me, it’s verse 24, says, «The disciples were amazed at his words». They weren’t prepared for this. I know this feeling a little bit, you know, if you engage in serving the Lord, and trying to establish ministry, and the disciples have done that, they want to see Jesus’s ministry expand, his influence to grow. I’m certain that’s a part of the nature of this relationship that they’ve engaged in. It feels somewhat similar to the world I’ve spent my adult life in, and there are times you meet people and you think, «If that person would get on board with this, they’d use their influence. If everybody else saw that person raise their hand and go, 'I’m for this, it would make the lift easier.'»
And when this young man came up, with his authority, with his influence, with his resources, you can almost see the disciples going, «Yes»! And the young man walks away. And Jesus said, «It’s really difficult for him,» and «the disciples are amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, 'How hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! '» «How hard it is to enter the kingdom of God». Wait a minute, that’s not in the little chorus, «Jesus loves me…» «How hard it is to enter the kingdom of God». We haven’t talked about that, folks. I’ve been in thousands, and thousands of church services. I’ve heard more sermons than you have, and you’ve suffered! And we don’t hear very many messages where people say, «You know, it’s really not easy».
Jesus said to his closest friends, «It’s hard to enter the kingdom of God». He’s not finished, «'It’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.' The disciples were even more amazed». In verse 24, they were amazed, but in verse 26, Mark adds in here, so there’s an emphasis, they’re even more amazed! And they said, «Well, then who can be saved»? And «Jesus looked at them and said, 'With man it’s impossible, but not with God; All things are possible with God.' And Peter said, 'We’ve left everything to follow you! '» You got a Peter just blah. And Jesus replied, «I tell you the truth,» and you know by now when you see that phrase, he’s about to drop something completely unexpected.
«I tell you the truth, no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me or the gospel will fail to receive 100 times as much in this present age. Homes and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and fields- and with them, persecutions. And in the age to come, eternal life. The many who were first will be last, and the last will be first».
That’s a fascinating passage. We could spend a lot of time here, more than I’m going to, today. Jesus said one of the things that will come with all the blessings are persecutions. We are living in a season where there has been a tremendous initiative demonstrated on behalf of people of faith and organized religion to avoid any kind of persecution. We’ve hidden from the truth. We don’t want to talk about the truth. We prefer our favorite passages. We try to be embraced by the culture. We want to be loved by the culture. We want to be applauded by the culture, folks. Holding out the truth will not always bring applause. You don’t have to be intentionally obnoxious, we do that well enough without trying. But we have to be willing to tell the truth.
I want to make an observation from this passage, because it’s about a very remarkable young man, a man with tremendous potential, a godly young man, a young man interested in serving the Lord, a man of great resources, a man that Jesus loved, specifically. Who’s given a personal invitation, and yet, he declines the breakthrough. He takes a pass, it’s not convenient. And the observation, it seems so simple, but it needs to be noted: not all who reject breakthroughs are wicked and ungodly.
See, I think we’ve imagined that the categories are «good people say yes to the Lord» and «wicked people say no to the Lord,» and it’s that neat and clean. And we point to these biblical characters, «Pharaoh, he refused to cooperate with God». Yeah, he did. Think how different Egypt would have been if Pharaoh had said to Moses, on their first visit, «You’re right, we’ve mistreated the Hebrew people. We will not only release you, we’ll give you all the provisions you need to make it to whatever destination you feel led to». Imagine the difference that would have met in Egypt. Imagine if Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor, when he had that private audience with Jesus, and said, «Listen, I’m a political animal myself, and I see the political jealousy that’s being directed at you, and I’m gonna stand up on your behalf».
Imagine the different future Pilate could have had, but we know Pilate chose to crucify Jesus, and Pharaoh chose to persecute the Hebrew slaves, and they both suffered greatly for it and we put them in the «villains» category. But not everybody that rejects, or declines, these breakthroughs, in scripture, in fact, the majority of the people aren’t villains. They’re the covenant people of God, standing on the Jordan River, looking into the promised land going, «No, thank you». And in this particular case, in Mark’s Gospel, it’s this rich young ruler. Not everybody who rejects breakthroughs are wicked and ungodly.
We have to recalibrate, folks. We’ve got to stop telling our God stories in terms of what we have done, and pointing at our conversion date, and our baptism date, and the Bible studies we led, and the times we volunteered, and the dollars that we have given. I’m appreciate all of those things, they’re a part of my own journey, as well. But what’s relevant for me today is, «Am I gonna say 'yes' to the Lord»? «Well, Pastor, what are you suggesting, that we earn our way»? No, I’m not talking about earning your way to anything, I’m talking about saying «yes» to the Lord. I don’t know the ultimate outcome of this young man. He steps completely out of the narrative, we don’t see him again. He may have ended up in the crowds, he may have been a supporter of Jesus, I don’t know. I know he didn’t follow him, I know he didn’t make it to the inner circle. He missed his breakthrough.
There’s some things you’ll need, there’s some things that’ll have to be in place, to be prepared to accept the breakthrough. I can’t spend much time on them, but I can tag them for you. As I have walked through this list, one of them is you’ll have to have the will to bear discomfort. It’s not always gonna be easy. This young man missed it because it wasn’t comfortable or convenient. And we are way too committed to comfort and convenience, in the context of our faith. I can’t tell you, you may know, how bent out of shape we get if we can’t park where we want, or sit where we want. We’re building more parking, I love you, it’s okay! But we’ve got to be honest, folks, we have somehow distilled our faith, it should be easy.
It should be well-organized, and orchestrated, and I’m for all those things, I love a plan, when it works. But we don’t serve God, based on comfort and convenience. We’re gonna have to be willing to bear discomfort. That means you’ll have to deconstruct disappointments. Things won’t go the way you like and you can’t withdraw. Things will happen in your life that God could have prevented, or caused a different outcome to be, and he won’t, and some of you will be tempted to say, «I’m so disappointed, I quit».
Please don’t do that. Serving the Lord, joining his kingdom, being a part of what God is doing in the earth, doesn’t mean it’s always easy. None of our heroes had it always easy. None of them, Jesus didn’t. You’ll have to deconstruct those disappointments. You’ll have to empty yourself of your entitlement. Folks, that’s a pandemic that makes COVID look like a starter set. We are entitled. «Well I just think I deserve», and out rolls the list. And it’s amazing, if we’ve never been here before, «I deserved better treatment. I was a guest and they should have known». If you’ve been here for 80 years, «Well, I’ve been there for 80 years»! It doesn’t matter, we just feel entitled. And it’s not just in church, we just feel entitled. You’re gonna have to lay that down. You’re not special, I’m not special.
«Well, we’re children of the King»! Yes, you are, but you didn’t deserve it, you didn’t earn it, it was a gift. You didn’t qualify for it. If it was merit-based, you wouldn’t be in the family. We’ve been pumping this message out, through pulpits, for way too long. Folks, you are not entitled. I don’t want what I deserve. I’m not pounding the gavel, demanding justice. I’m going to get in the «mercy» line. There’s something else you need, if you’re gonna be able to cooperate with the breakthroughs, and that’s a disciplined life. You can’t be a disciple without discipline, that’s not rocket science. I know you understand, but it means there’s a leaving behind. This young man had some things he would have had to left behind.
There’s a separation that comes. You will not find God’s best, unless you’re willing to leave behind some things. Not everybody will go that way. You hear all kinds of expressions about this, you know, in sports, you hear it in business, you hear it, you know, if you’re gonna succeed or you’re gonna do something that’s not just normal, well in in pursuing the Lord, if you’re looking for the minimal daily requirement, «What’s the least I can do and still just get in»? Please begin by recognizing how offensive that is. Imagine a proposal of marriage, on those terms. «Would you marry me? Before you say 'yes, ' I have a follow up question: Would you be willing to tell me, what’s the very least you would expect of me? How often do I have to come home at night? How do you define 'faithfulness? ' Is taking out the trash, like, a make-or-break thing? How truthful do I have…»
Can you imagine, I mean, it’s kind of an offensive, right? If one of your children said they had proposed to someone and that was the response, I think you would say, «Run»! And yet, we kind of approach God that way. «What’s the very least I could do and still get, like, in the door? I don’t wanna be, like, an overachiever. I don’t wanna be, like, a hyper-Christian». Well we’ve got them, in our head. There’s a leaving behind, there’s some separation that has to come. It’s a disciplined life. The kingdom of God, Jesus said, «It’s difficult to enter». You gotta live with that a little bit. «I didn’t expect it to be difficult». You’re not reading! It’s just not easy. This time of year, all of us want to lose five pounds.
If you don’t want to lose five pounds, we don’t like you. «Jesus loves you,» I’ll sing you the little chorus, but we don’t like you. But it’s not really, like, a mystery, we should eat less and move more. But I’m watching late-night TV, looking for a cream I can rub on my belly, right? And I will pay $19.99 plus shipping and handling. I’m looking for my phone, I’m dialing that number, they have got me. And we do that with our faith, it’s difficult stuff, and yet, Jesus said, «All things are possible with God». And all of my brokenness, and all of my inconsistencies, and all of the things that I’m not, nothing is impossible without God. Even, God could help me even lead a disciplined life.
And then I think, if we’re gonna have these breakthroughs, it’s about seedtime and harvest. I don’t like this part. I’ve confessed before you, before, I could be impatient. Microwaves seem really slow to me. We invented the microwave 50-years-ago. Could we not have improved by now? What’s beyond the microwave? What’s faster than a microwave? Why does it take a minute and a half for it to boil a cup of coffee? Can’t we do that in 10 seconds? What are we doing? Come on! And there’s something in Genesis, God said that as long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest. Now, I had the privilege of growing up in a bit of a rural setting, Murfreesboro used to be different.
And so, I got to plant some things, and you know, you can’t hurry that. I love summertime vegetables, in Tennessee, but it’s just hard to get good Tennessee tomatoes, much before July 4th, because if you plant them in February, they’re gonna freeze. And you gotta wait until you’re not gonna have any more frost, and maybe you’ll get it right one year, so you plant every February if you want, but you’re gonna lose more tomatoes than you grow. Seedtime and harvest, and if you’re trying to grow oak trees, that’s a whole different discussion. I like trees, I love big, beautiful trees. They’re amazing to me, they’re expressions of the power of God, and I just like trees, but, oak trees. Seedtime and harvest. Jesus used the imagery. He said, «You’ll receive 100 times as much». «As much as what»?
As much as you sacrifice, as much as you plant. Oh, and he said, «And there’ll be persecutions». Seedtime and harvest means there’s sacrifice. You have to acquire the land, you have to prepare the land, it’s hard work. Planting and cultivation is just hard work. We have become a society that avoids work. We don’t wanna work. We want to recreate, we wanna play, we want to pursue our dreams and passions. Folks, all the best things in life are on the other side of «difficult». And that’s true in the kingdom of God, too. And we’ve got this easy believism. Bonhoeffer called it, «Men without chests, sloppy grace».
I believe in the grace and the mercy of God, I’m the poster child for those things, but I intend to be caught giving God my best, and I would invite you to a similar path. He deserves nothing less than that. He gave us his best, so let’s decide we’re gonna do difficult. That we don’t want to leave any breakthroughs unexplored. We are the beneficiaries of the grace of God. I wanna look at one more narrative, and I’ll do it quickly because I’m rattling on. But you can’t separate the grace of God. The grace is undeserved blessing, unearned merit. Things that come to you that have nothing to do with merit. If you earned it, it isn’t grace. And we are creatures of grace, we stand in the grace of God.
Having said that, if we’re going to live out the benefits of breakthroughs, it requires a response of us, and we reject more than we accept. We decline more breakthroughs, typically, than we accept. In John chapter 9, we are introduced to a man who’s born blind. And Jesus extends to him, an opportunity for healing. It’s uninvited, the man doesn’t ask. This isn’t Bartimaeus that screams loudly enough, «Have mercy on me»! This man says nothing, he doesn’t ask Jesus. The disciples draw Jesus’s attention to him. And Jesus, it seems, at first glance, almost makes a mockery of him. He smears mud on his face. And then he tells him to go wash in the pool of Siloam. Siloam’s at the lowest point in the city of Jerusalem. Jerusalem is a city built on hills, and Siloam is the water source at the lowest point in the city. And so Jesus is sending a blind man, that he’s just smeared mud on his face, on a journey through a very crowded city. Without explanation, he just says, «Go and wash». And in the understatement of scripture, it says, «The man went and washed and he came home seeing».
I wanna pray with you before we go that God will give us a revelation of himself, beyond church, beyond just information. A revelation, something beyond study, to help us understand who God is, and his love for us, let’s pray.
Father, I pray that you would give us a spirit of wisdom and revelation, that we might know you better. Far beyond sermons, or church, or Bible studies, or small groups, by the Spirit of God, give us an understanding of your majesty and your power, in Jesus’s name, amen.