Luke 14:33 “In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”

This verse clarifies verse 26, which at first glance seems to be in violation of much of the rest of the Bible. It is important to note that all of this was said to the “large crowds” that were following Jesus. He wasn’t interested in numbers, He was interested in commitment, and He made that abundantly clear. To those who had made that commitment, Jesus promised abundant compensation (Matthew 19:27-29), but He wasn’t interested in having followers who wanted to tack Him onto their lives. Anyone who is determined to follow Christ must hold all things loosely, even his own life. After all, an objective analysis would show that everything material put together couldn’t begin to equal the benefits that are in Christ. Those who are after the benefits without letting go of the material, will end up with neither. Most people today don’t want to hear that, because they love the material, and that will be their doom. (1 John 2:15-17)

I am constantly running into people who would like to tack Jesus onto their lives, and don’t understand why that won’t work. Actually, there are many things in my life – for the most part, people – that I would hate to let go of, but I do know that Christ is worth it all. I am not to be concerned with hanging onto anything, because Jesus made it abundantly clear that doing that means we lose everything. (Luke 9:23-24) I am to be a good steward of everything in my hands, but I am not to grasp any of it. If God chooses to take any of it from me for a while – even the rest of my earthly life – I am to trust Him and praise Him. That’s not to say that I’m not to resist the devil who desires to steal from me, but it is to say that I am to value and trust God above all. When that is hardly easy for me, nurturing that attitude in others is harder still, but that is part of my commission as a pastor. I am to make disciples for Christ, and He makes it abundantly clear that this is integral to that.

Father, once again I am out of my depth in terms of strength and wisdom to do the job. Thank You, because it forces me to depend on You. Help me not be anxious about any of this impossible task, but trust You to accomplish it in and through me, for Your glory. (Philippians 1:6, 2:13) Thank You. Praise God!