OH LORD, WON’T YOU BUY ME A MERCEDES BENZ?
Kendra Intihar
Today's Scripture: “And he said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.’” Luke 9:23, ESV
Theme: At the Cove Church, we are called to learn to follow Jesus. We participate and serve regularly and sacrificially.
COUNTER-CULTURAL
Often, without even realizing it, culture holds up a mirror to Christians, revealing the ways we’ve been influenced by the very worldliness we claim to resist. Janis Joplin recorded Mercedes Benz just three days before her death. In the song, she satirically asks the Lord for luxury and comfort, suggesting that it would somehow be unfair for Him not to “bless” her when others around her seem to have more.
The song was—and still is—a blistering commentary on our tendency to treat God like a cosmic vending machine for material success and status.
Scripture never instructs us to pursue comfort, personal fulfillment, or material wealth above all else, yet those are often the very things many of us, myself included, are inclined to count when we “count our blessings.” In fact, Scripture repeatedly calls us toward a different way of living. Rather than storing up treasures on earth, we are called to live counter-culturally: serving sacrificially, loving generously, and storing up “treasures in heaven” (Matthew 6:19–21).
LEARNING TO FOLLOW JESUS
In Luke 9:23, Jesus teaches that following Him requires surrender. We lay down our right to place our own comfort and preferences above everything else. That means offering the Lord—and our neighbors—the very things we would often prefer to keep for ourselves: our time, energy, attention, resources, and commitment. Serving others and making sacrifices out of love for God and neighbor are essential parts of learning to follow Jesus.
Most of us are baptized in the submerging waters of consumerism and self-centeredness long before we’re baptized into the inheritance of our faith. So, when Janis Joplin sings what amounts to “Lord, give me more,” the message resonates more naturally with our culture than we may want to admit. Yet Jesus stands in direct contradiction to that mindset. Jesus does not say, “Seek greater comfort.” He says, “Deny yourself daily.”
At The Cove, one of the ways we live out our core value of learning to follow Jesus is through sacrificial participation in the life of the body of Christ. That can look like volunteering to serve, giving generously to ministry and outreach efforts, or intentionally making time for a Life Group so that we can encourage one another and grow together in Christ.
Make It Personal: Reflect on what you ask from God when you pray. Do your prayers focus primarily on improving your lifestyle, or on becoming more Christlike?
Pray: Lord, so often I want the blessing without sacrifice. Yet You have called me to daily surrender and to service. Help me learn to follow You more faithfully by taking up my cross and denying myself daily. Remind me today of the countless blessings You have already given me: family, friends, neighbors, and the intangibles that bring us joy and hope. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Read: Hebrews 13:16; Romans 12:1-2; Philippians 2:3-4
Weekly Memory Verse: “And he said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” Matthew 22:37-39, ESV