How the Supremacy of Christ Creates Radical Christian Sacrifice

I really like to listen to sermons. Maybe I'm a sermon junkie. I opened up iTunes today and noticed that I have 513 sermons via podcast on my iPod... and that doesn't include a couple hundred others that are not counted as podcasts. Have I listened to all of them? No. Will I ever? Probably not. So why have all of them? My weary soul needs the Word of God preached to me all the time.

I do have my certain pastors/churches that I listen to consistent basis: John Piper, Matt Chandler, Mark Driscoll, Covenant Life Church, Paul Tripp, Mark Dever, Tim Keller, my old church from college (Clear River Church), and most importantly, my home church (Sovereign Grace Church). In addition, I'll even listen in on some seminary classes from Covenant Theological Seminary and Reformed Theological Seminary. All of them have been great resources to make my soul happy in God and to teach me doctrine.

However, once in a while, I will come across a sermon that I will listen to over and over and over again. For the past year, that sermon has been How the Supremacy of Christ Creates Radical Christian Sacrifice by John Piper. It is a fervent reminder to consider the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the fleeting pleasures of sin (Heb 11:24-26). It is a call to live with a radical, risk-taking, sacrificial, Christian flavor.

If you want to listen to it, you can either listen to the audio or video via the web, or you can download the audio to your PC. Here's a short excerpt. I hope it serves you as much as it has me this past year. I think I'll be listening to this on the way to work tomorrow.

"When he bids us leave the securities and comforts of life and take up a radical, risk-taking, sacrificial way of love in his service, it is not a path that we take alone. In fact, Jesus is there outside the camp in a way that he is nowhere else. He is not just telling us to go out there. He is inviting us come out here. Here is where I am. Come to me outside the camp.

The supremacy of Christ is not just his perfect fitness to bear our sins, and not just the supremely valuable future Reward that frees us from fear and greed and worldliness, but in his supremacy he is also now our present, personal Treasure.

And there he is outside the camp bidding us come. The sweetest fellowship with Jesus you will ever know is the fellowship of his sufferings.

So I say it one more time: My desire and prayer to God for you is that your life and ministry have a radical, risk-taking, sacrificial flavor.

Let us go to him outside the camp. For here we have no lasting city. But we seek a city which is to come, whose builder is God and whose light is the Lamb."