Admonition Podcast

footprints of Jesus.

Sweetly Lord, have we heard Thee calling, come follow me.

And we see where Thy footprints following lead us to Thee.

Appreciate Aaron leading that song for us today as we begin this lesson and looking at the
footprints of Jesus.

Now, as a younger brother, I have to say what I saw my brother do is most often what I
did.

You follow as siblings, you follow in the footsteps of your older brothers or your older
sister.

And when we think about Christ, He is our older brother, if you will.

He is our brother just as much as He is our King.

And so we follow His example, but it's hard to follow an example that we don't know.

It's hard to follow in Christ's footsteps if we don't know what His footsteps are.

If we don't know how He walked.

If we don't know where those footsteps lead.

And so as we go through this lesson, I want us to keep in mind this image of looking on
the sands, as you see behind me on the PowerPoint, the idea of looking at these footprints

on the sand.

And what does that cause us to do?

Well, first thing is that when we see footprints on the sand, if we know who made those
footprints, it calls us to follow after them.

It calls us to follow in those footsteps.

Now, when we think about Christ, we think about the footprints that He left for us, we
think about the fact that He is calling.

We see His calling.

But the question that comes is, well, who is He calling?

Who is it that Christ is calling?

In Luke 15 verses 4 through 7, we have the example, or the parable rather, of the lost
sheep.

And this section of scripture where Christ is trying to get the Pharisees and the Jews to
understand how they are to view the lost.

To understand how they are to view those who come back to God after having been gone away
for a long time.

He tells the story of a shepherd who loses one sheep.

Now he had a hundred sheep, but he lost just one.

Well, what does the shepherd do?

He goes and he looks for that sheep.

He does not say, well, I have ninety nine, so that's fine.

What's one sheep?

Right?

No, he goes and he searches for that sheep.

He calls for that sheep.

And when he finds that sheep, what does he do?

He rejoices.

And he calls all of his friends and neighbors together to say, come and rejoice for I have
found that which I lost.

I found that sheep that went astray.

When Christ, when we look at who He's calling, Christ is calling the lost to come to Him.

He's calling those sheep that have gone astray to come back to the fold.

But He's not just calling the lost.

He's also calling the weak.

Look with me at John chapter 9.

John 9, starting in verse 1.

Here we have a situation in which Jesus finds a man who is in need of help.

Being blind, he is weak in the sense of not being able to sustain himself back in culture
such as that in the first century.

John 9 starting in verse 1, and Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from birth.

And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin?

this man or his parents that he was born blind.

Jesus answered, neither hath this man sinned nor his parents, but that the works of God
should be made manifest in him.

I must work the works of him that sent me while at his day the night cometh when no man
can work.

As long as I am in the world, I am, notice this, the light of the world.

And this light of the world shines a light for the man who has never seen light before.

Verse 6, when he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle, and
he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay, and said unto him, Go wash in the

pool of Siloam, which is by interpretation, sent.

He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.

As the light of the world, Jesus is calling those who are weak to come to him for sight,
to come to him to have strength.

to come to Him to have what is truly their problems corrected.

This man, they had a serious problem of being born blind, of not being able to see, but
there is a problem that is far worse.

The problem that we talked about first off with being lost.

Jesus calls those who are weak, He calls those who are lost, but He also calls the rich.

For this, at, look with me at Luke chapter 18.

Luke 18.

Here Jesus has a conversation with a man we call the rich young ruler.

Now this man he was a devout Jew.

He had lived his life following the commandments of Moses keeping to the old law.

And when Jesus sees him Mark Mark's account notices that he loved him.

He loved him for his attention to law of Moses but he noticed something about this man's
heart.

He noticed a problem that this man needed to correct.

something that was going to keep him out of eternal bliss, something that was going to
keep him out from having eternal life as he asks in verse 18 of Luke 18, good master, what

shall I do to inherit eternal life?

This is the man's question.

He's coming to Jesus knowing that he is a good teacher, knowing that he is different from
others.

And he says, what shall I do?

What must I do?

Jesus starts off by noticing the commandments of the old law.

Of course, the man says that he's done these things and notice verse 22.

Jesus heard these things, he said unto them, unto him, yet lackest thou one thing, sell
that thou hast and distribute unto the poor and thou shalt have treasure in heaven and

come and follow me.

Jesus calls this man who is rich, this man who by the world standards had everything.

Even by a Jew's standards, he would have seemed to have everything because not only did he
have riches, but he also was diligent in keeping the law.

But Christ saw the one thing that he truly needed.

The one thing that was keeping him from having that eternal life.

The one thing that was lacking in his life was that he needed to remove covetousness.

and that greed that had taken hold of his heart.

When we look at the man's response, it's less than favorable, unfortunately.

Verse 23 it tells us that he went away sorrowful for he had much riches.

The calling that Jesus offers is not one that is irrefutable.

It is not one rather that is unable to be denied.

Sadly, as we see with this rich man, he denied the Lord's call.

He denied it when he denied Christ when he told him the one thing he needed to do.

But so we notice that he's calling the lost.

He is calling the weak.

He is calling the rich, but he's also calling the strong.

Look with me at Philippians chapter three.

Philippians chapter three, starting in verse four.

The apostle Paul notes, though I might also have confidence in the flesh, if any other man
thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, more.

Paul is saying I have all that I need to trust in myself.

If anyone wants to have a self exaltation, it's him.

He had the right to do so by the world's standards.

But notice what he says as his pedigree.

Circumcise the eighth day of the stock of Israel.

of the tribe of Benjamin, notice this, and Hebrew of Hebrews as touching the law of
Pharisee concerning zeal persecuting the church, touching the righteousness which is in

the law blameless.

But that what things were gained to me, those I counted lost for Christ.

Notice this by the Jews standards.

Paul was strong.

by what we would consider to be strong and conviction and zeal.

Paul was strong.

But yet Christ called him to be weak, to humble himself, to realize that he was in the
wrong and to correct his life.

And Paul does this so much so that he, as verse seven says, he counted all for loss.

He said none of this matters.

He accepted the call of Christ to follow him.

As verse eight says, Ye doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of
the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things.

And do count them but dung that I might win Christ and be found in him, not having mine
own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the

righteousness which is of God by faith.

Paul gave up all when he heard the master's call.

when the Lord says, You're persecuting my church.

Paul repents.

He changes his life.

He starts following Christ.

But when we think of, so when we understand this idea of who is God calling.

He's calling the lost.

He's calling the weak.

He's calling the rich.

He's calling the strong.

But there's one more person he's calling.

You.

Christ is calling every single one here.

Every single person on this earth, Christ is calling.

In 2 Thessalonians 2 and verse 14, we read the following.

Whereunto He called you by our gospel to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus
Christ.

What we hold in our hands, this word of God.

is not just for those who have already named the name of Christ.

It is not just a set of guidelines for how we should live.

It is not just a analytical study of how God loves man or how sin entered the world.

This is a call from our Savior to come and follow.

This word is a call from our Father in heaven to serve him.

This word is a call to each and every one of you.

But what are we being called?

What is it that this call is saying?

What is it calling us to do?

Well, if we back up to verse 13, Paul writes, but we are bound to give thanks always to
God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you

to salvation through sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth.

Whereunto?

This idea of sanctification of the spirit, belief in the truth, the idea of salvation.

whereunto He called you by our gospel.

We are called to salvation.

The message that Christ has left in the gospel, the message that is left for us in the
word of God is come to be saved because you're in need of it.

And truly every single person here today is in need of salvation.

We can't do it on our own.

Praise be to God that he does offer that call whereby we can be saved.

But he doesn't just call us to salvation, he also calls us to faithfulness.

In Revelation 2 and verse 10, John by inspiration writes, Don't worry about these things.

Fear none of these things which thou shalt suffer.

Behold, the devil should cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried, and ye shall
have tribulation ten days.

But notice how the verse ends, but be thou faithful.

unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

the gospel calls us to be faithful.

Even in those moments when sin surrounds.

Even in those moments when it seems like we can't win.

When it seems like the only logical response is just to give up.

even in those moments when we feel discouraged and alone.

God calls us to be faithful.

And what does he say is the reward?

A crown of life.

But not just any life.

Eternal life with the Father.

Eternal life with our God.

We'll know more about this as we continue, but when we think about the calling of Christ,
it is a call to faithfulness.

It is a call to salvation, but it is also a call to share the Gospel.

How was it that the Thessalonian brethren had heard about the call of Christ?

How is it that any of us understand the call of Christ?

It's not because we have some miraculous uh conversation with God.

He doesn't part the clouds and say, you need to be saved.

But what he does is he calls us through the gospel, a gospel which we as Christians are
called to preach and to share.

Mark 16 verses 15 and 16 tell us this very plainly, that we are to go and to preach.

We are to go and teach the gospel which Christ has left for us to proclaim.

Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be
condemned, shall be damned.

In March 16, we are not only told the command to go and share the gospel, we are not only
called to go share the gospel, we are also told why it is so important.

because if they don't believe, if they aren't baptized, if the gospel isn't shared to the
lost world, then the lost world dies.

and not just for a moment.

We have a weighty task on our shoulders, brothers and sisters.

We have been called to share the gospel.

But as we see with this calling and as we know in the song, the question is, will we
answer the

Or will we simply ignore it?

Whenever your phone rings that someone is calling you, you have a couple options.

You can let it ring and do nothing.

You can answer it.

or you can hang up.

Imagine that God is calling you right now.

Your phone's ringing.

Will you set it down and say?

I'll get to that later.

Will you, will you, on an iPhone, hit the power button and silence it so you don't think
about it?

You ignore the call?

You deny the call?

Or will you answer?

Here's the call.

What will you do?

Another aspect of the footsteps of Jesus is not only seeing the call that they set forth,
not only seeing the calling of His steps, but also how He walked.

We see His walking.

How did Christ walk?

He walked in sacrifice number one.

When we think about Christ and we think about songs that discuss what Christ did for us,
one of my favorites is a song is, if that isn't love.

He left the splendor of heaven knowing his destiny was the lonely hill of Golgotha.

There he laid down his life for me.

If that isn't love, the ocean is dry.

There's no stars in the sky and the sparrow can't fly.

If that isn't love, then heaven's a myth.

There's no feeling like this if that isn't love.

When Christ came to this earth, gave up so much.

He lived in poverty.

Think about that.

The one who had an eternity with God, the one who is in the place of majesty, heaven, the
place that we are all trying to get to is the place that Christ left to as a newborn baby

be set in a manger.

Luke 2 and verse 7 tells

not because it was some special manger, no, it was a common feeding trough.

The King of Kings.

became a carpenter's

The Son of God became known as Mark 6 and verse 3 tells us as Joseph's son, the carpenter.

In Mark 6 verse 3 specifically it talks about this idea of how they were rejected and were
offended at Christ claiming to be the Messiah because they said, we know who your dad is.

We know Joseph.

We know your mother.

We know your brethren.

What are you talking about being Messiah, being the Christ?

He was also looked down on for being a Nazarene.

Being from the city of Nazareth.

When Philip goes to Nathaniel, he says, we found the Messiah.

We found the one we've been looking for.

Nathaniel says, wait a minute, hold on.

You mean he's from Nazareth?

Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?

The same Jesus who lived in eternal glory traded it for a place that even the Jews hated.

A place that was not seen as a great city where great men came from.

but a city of less than desirable means.

but he also lived in poverty in the fact that he had no home.

Matthew 8 and verse 20 tells us that this man comes to Jesus and he says, Master I'll
follow you anywhere you go I will follow you I'll be your disciple and he says birds have

nests, foxes have dens, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.

and searching for a place to live after I moved out of school, that thought of, I'm about
to have no place to lay my head has come into my mind a few times.

But I've also heard from several members of the church of, we got a room for you.

Don't worry.

If you need a place to stay, we'll take care of you for a while.

And I appreciate that greatly, but when we think about Christ, He didn't necessarily have
that.

there were some places where He had refugees, some places where an individual would say,
hey, Jesus, you're staying with me tonight.

We got plenty of room in the house, you're coming over to stay.

There were times of this, yes, but He had no home.

He had no brick and mortar to call his own.

He left a city built of eternal beauty.

a city that is indescribable in heaven to come to a place where he would have no place to
call home.

That's what he gave up.

That's how he walked in sacrifice.

But he also walked in service.

We think about his service to his servants, which inherently sounds completely insane.

Well, why would you serve your servants?

Isn't that backwards?

Aren't you as the master supposed to be served by the servants?

But in John 13, when the disciples keep in mind are arguing over who will be the greatest
in the kingdom.

Well now Peter, I know you think you'll be the greatest, but I just think it's going to be
me.

You have a disagreement going on between the disciples of who is going to be greatest and
while they're all bickering.

Jesus gets up from the table.

He guards a towel around him, and he starts to wash their feet.

A job for a lowly servant was being performed by the King of Kings.

The one who had, as Matthew 28 tells us, all authority had been given to him in heaven and
in earth.

And he was sitting there, washing the feet of his disciples, who were just arguing about
who would be the greatest.

Jesus shows us an example of service.

It doesn't matter who we're serving.

What matters is that we are to have the mindset as Christians that we will serve.

because we will glorify our Father.

We will love our fellow man.

He walked in service of his servants, but he also walked in service of his father, of the
father of the Lord Jehovah.

Philippians 2 verses 5 through 8.

Philippians 2, 5 through 8.

Paul in showing the greatest example of what it means to be humble, of what it means to
have a heart that submits to God, that does not seek for self-gratification, he offers

Christ as the example.

And notice what he says in verse 5,

but made himself of notice this no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant and
was made in the likeness of men and being found in fashion as a man he exalted himself and

he disagreed with God and he did what he wanted.

Is that what that says?

No, I should see more hands shaking their head.

That's not what it says.

He humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

I don't know about you, but if I were in Jesus's shoes, I wouldn't want to go on the
cross.

Jesus did not want to endure the agony.

He did not want to suffer the loss that He was going to have to face.

In Matthew 26, we find Him in the garden begging God.

Sorry.

Begging God, if there be any way, let this cup pass from me.

He is on the ground, the very ground that He spoke into existence, and He is begging the
Lord.

But notice how he concludes that prayer.

Nevertheless, not as I will.

Lord, it's not about what I want, but I will do what it is that is your will.

He walked in service to the Father and John 8.29 tells us that he did, he does always
those things that please the Father.

As Jesus lived on this earth, he did exactly what God wanted him to do.

And he shows us an example of how to walk in service to our Father.

but he also shows us an example of how to walk in diligence because he did just that.

He focused on what his work was.

His focus was not on pleasure.

His focus was not on entertaining himself, on gathering up riches.

His focus was on doing the Lord's work.

John four in verse thirty four tells us as he has had this conversation with this
Samaritan woman at the well as he has told her things that he should not have known as a

normal man and as she realizes that he is the Messiah and that was prophesied to come his
disciples returned from the city and they say Lord well here's some bread here's some food

and he says I've already eaten.

I've been satisfied.

And in verse 34, he tells his disciples that his bread, his essence, his life is not tied
to the things of this world, but to glorifying his Father.

Have you ever been so happy to do something or so invested in something that you forget to
eat?

Growing up, my dad, whenever he had a project to do in the yard or whenever there was
something going on, some kind of project that he had my brother and I out there helping

him, we would get to the point where it's about noon and we're getting hungry.

We want something to eat.

And we start saying, hey, dad, why don't we take a break from this and go get some food?

Why don't we go stop for lunch?

And he said,

Work ain't done yet.

The job ain't finished yet.

Why would we stop?

In essence, that's what Jesus is saying.

The work's not finished.

There's more important things than to stop and eat a sandwich.

What nourished Christ was not physical food.

That kept up his body, yes.

But what truly nourished him was doing the Lord's work.

That was his focus.

And we see a aspect of that in John 9, 4, as we've already read, and that he must work the
works of him that sent him while at his day.

the night cometh when no man can work, he understood the immediacy with which he needed to
work.

He understood that there was coming a day when he would not be able to any further.

And so he served.

He walked in diligence.

and he walked in diligence and undesired work.

There are things that we have to do that we don't want to do.

I can tell you right now there's some assignments at school that I don't want to do.

I still got to get them done.

There are some papers that I wish that deadline would get pushed out a little bit further.

But the work comes due.

And when we think about Christ, when we think about how he would have wished for the cross
to be a little bit further off, he would have wished that there was another way for him to

be the sacrifice for sins of man.

but we also read Romans 5, 8, and 9.

Look with me there, Romans 5, 8, and 9.

Don't miss this how that Christ did not want to suffer.

No one truly does.

He did not want to face that agony that he would on the cross.

But notice what happens.

Notice what Romans 5 tells us.

But God commendeth his love toward us and that while we were yet sinners Christ died for
us much more than being now justified by his blood.

We shall be saved from wrath through him.

Christ understood the job.

He understood the work that was to be done and ultimately his love for the Lord for the
father his love for each.

Each one of us that needed His blood overcame His fear of the cross, overcame His desire
to not be put in that agonizing pain.

He walked in diligence.

But finally today we notice where this walking leads.

Where do these footsteps lead?

Every trail, every time that tracks are followed, there is a destination that is reached.

Whenever we're walking, even if we're not intending to, we walk somewhere.

We reach a destination.

Well where is it that Christ leads?

When we follow His footsteps, having heard His call, having seen the way He walked, when
we follow in His steps, where do we end up?

John 6, Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life.

Notice this, no one comes to the Father except through me.

Jesus didn't say you can pick the way you want.

Just follow whatever way feels good to you.

Just obey when you want to.

Follow me as it's convenient.

No, he says there is only one way to the Father.

There is only one way that leads to God and that's through Christ.

Walking in His steps.

Jesus tells us that, or rather Paul tells us that Jesus will deliver up the kingdom to the
Father.

Those of us that are Christians, those of us that are part of the kingdom of Christ, we're
going to see the Father one day.

We are going to be reunited with the Lord.

We will be able to dwell with God for all of eternity.

And what a day that truly will be.

And so he leads us to the Father, but he also leads us to rest.

Matthew 11 and verse 29.

Jesus calls us to take my yoke upon you and learn of me for I am meek and lowly in heart
and ye shall find rest unto your soul.

He calls us, He asks us to walk in His footsteps because His footsteps lead to rest.

yes, it's hard on this earth.

There are times when we have to deny ourselves.

There are times when situations are less than optimal,

but his leading, when we follow his steps, they lead to rest.

Hebrews 4 and verses 8 through 11 give us a contrary comparison of how the children of
Israel were denied rest, denied the promised land because they allowed sin to separate

them from God.

And there is a warning contained within Hebrews of do not follow in their footsteps
because their footsteps lead away from God.

They lead away from Christ.

They lead away from rest.

But if we are diligent to God and serving Him, then we will have rest.

But his steps also lead to a reunion.

Following in Christ's steps leads to a reunion.

First Thessalonians 4 and verse 16 gives us a comfort knowing that those who are asleep in
Christ, those who are dead in Christ, will be raised at the last day.

They will be reunited with those of us who are still alive.

Paul in writing this to a people that were concerned about never seeing their loved ones
again never seeing faithful Christians again who were concerned about what would happen in

the resurrection.

He writes, then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the
clouds to meet the Lord in the air.

And so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

There is comfort to be had in the reunion with those who are faithful.

1 Corinthians 15, 51 through 58 also give us a similar depiction of what will happen in
that last day, of what will happen when the trumpet sounds.

And there is this idea, this beautiful concept of reunion with those faithful who have
gone on before.

There are many people that we talk about who do we want to see in heaven.

oh I would like to go meet Paul.

I would like to go ask him some of these questions.

What did he mean in some of these passages he wrote?

I would like to go see Peter and talk to him about his dedication to God even through
denial.

Even in turning away from that sin that he committed.

Is there a faithful Christian, maybe a family member, that you can't wait to see?

when my papal passed, having lived a life that was dedicated to God.

faithful Christian.

My mamma looked at those of us that were there and she said we got to work even harder to
get to heaven.

because not only are we going there to see our Father, not only are we going there to see
our Savior, not only are we going there to see others who have gone on.

But we in the Kennedy household, we're going there to see our papo.

What a reunion that will be.

footprints of Jesus.

that make the pathway glow.

We will follow the steps of Jesus where'er they go, but will we?

Are you?

Christ is calling.

He showed us the way.

He showed us how to live.

He's told us how to be saved, but the choice is ours.

And as many of us here today are Christians.

Having named the name of Christ, having been baptized into His death, being raised to walk
a newness of life, maybe it's the case that you haven't been walking.

Maybe it's the case that you saw these footsteps and you started off walking that same
way.

Oh, but there's a seashell.

Oh, but here's something else.

Before you know it, you're off the path.

If it is the case today that you have strayed from the path, have fallen away from Christ,
come back.

As long as there is breath, it is never too late.

Come home and we'll pray with you and for you.

If we can help you to be right with God, to be walking in the footsteps of Christ, then
come now as we