Hard Teaching

Hard Teaching
Words of Faith 1-24-2024
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2024
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

Mark 9
[30] They left that place and passed through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were, [31] because he was teaching his disciples. He said to them, "The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after three days he will rise." [32] But they did not understand what he meant and were afraid to ask him about it.

Teaching takes time. Discipleship requires a relationship. Jesus had some hard things to teach so He gave some attention along the way to insure a private time. In an ancient sort of way, Jesus asked that all calls be held. No interruptions, please. This was so that He might be with the disciples and convey some of the difficult but redeeming things that were soon to happen.
It was a hard thing to deal with the idea that Jesus would die. It was a difficult thing to hear. "The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after three days he will rise." It isn't easy to grapple with the cost of discipleship. It is even more difficult to grapple with the actual cost of salvation, but it is critical.
The reality is that unless we understand the cost, we will likely treat salvation lightly. We may cast it aside altogether. Or we may even be so deluded as to think that salvation is "free." Salvation is not free. Salvation is exceptionally costly. The wonder is that salvation has been paid for entirely at no charge to you, but it is not by any means "free."
So Jesus got the Twelve off alone. He looked into their eyes and made things clear. "The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after three days he will rise." It is a hard teaching, but absolutely necessary.

Do you have a time and a place of undisturbed fellowship with the Lord? Do you have a time and a place of undisturbed friendship with other disciples of Jesus? Do you have a place where the Lord can convey hard teachings to you? Do you have a place where you can count the cost of discipleship and the great cost of salvation? Such places are essential.
It is also important not to run away from the hard teachings of Christ. There is always a temptation to stay away or go to some other place whenever the hard teachings hit too close to home. But this will never get us to the place where God wants us as His disciples.
Have you spent some undisturbed time with the Lord lately? Do you have a group with which you can be honest? Hold the calls. No interruptions.

Lord, help me to find that place where I can draw near to You without interruption. Help me contemplate the cost of following You so that I may not take Your inexpressible gift of love lightly. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< ><> <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2024
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
SUBSCRIPTIONS - To receive the Words of Faith devotion five days a week, send an e-mail message addressed to join-words-of-faith@hub.xc.org. To stop receiving Words of Faith, send an e-mail message addressed to unsubscribe-words-of-faith@hub.xc.org. The daily devotion and archive are posted at https://www.faithfellowshipweb.com/blog
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2024 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.