Following Jesus is no walk in the park. He didn't sugar-coat it. In Luke 9:57-62, he was direct and upfront about the hardships in being a true Christian.
The Would-be Followers of Jesus.
As they were proceeding on their journey someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
Jesus answered him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.”And to another he said, “Follow me.” But he replied, “[Lord,] let me go first and bury my father."But he answered him, “Let the dead bury their dead. But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”And another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say farewell to my family at home.”[To him] Jesus said, “No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God.”
Christ requires us to sacrifice, surrender, and be single-minded for Him.
Sacrifice is born out of love. We are willing to be inconvenienced, disrupted, and disturbed for the sake of God's call. The test of service comes when it is tempting to make excuses just to do away with a service offer. When it becomes too far, too long, or too expensive, we start to think if there are other choices of how we can help. It is contrary when we say, "I will follow you wherever you go" then we say, "But Lord, this is where I want to go." We sacrifice as Jesus sacrificed.
Our surrender makes God number 1 in our lives. Surrendering does not mean neglecting our families or our livelihood. Surrender means not to make our families and livelihood as an excuse not to follow the will of the Lord. God gave us our families and our jobs to be good stewards, but for the purpose of God's will. We then ask, "How can my family and job help me do God's will?"
Being single-minded is to get rid of distractions. While technology is a useful tool, many are enslaved or addicted to it. I am not implying to get rid of technology in our lives, since it can also be a tool to evangelize and an aid to our work. But try to measure the number of hours we spend on our hobbies (like games, movies, social networking, etc.) as compared to praying, serving, and doing something productive for your family and country. In more serious cases, these hobbies can even be a source of our sinfulness. Single-mindedness is to be focused on the Lord. "What are the things that distract us from our service?" It may be an unmended relationship, hurts, frustration, anger, laziness, or even our pride. These things are usual causes of "back-sliding."
We follow Jesus not with fear and hesitation but with love. We are able to sacrifice, surrender, and be single-minded with the power of the Holy Spirit. He will not call us to follow Him without His help and if we were not capable to do so. "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you (John 14:26)."
The Would-be Followers of Jesus.
As they were proceeding on their journey someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
Jesus answered him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.”And to another he said, “Follow me.” But he replied, “[Lord,] let me go first and bury my father."But he answered him, “Let the dead bury their dead. But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”And another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say farewell to my family at home.”[To him] Jesus said, “No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God.”
Christ requires us to sacrifice, surrender, and be single-minded for Him.
Sacrifice is born out of love. We are willing to be inconvenienced, disrupted, and disturbed for the sake of God's call. The test of service comes when it is tempting to make excuses just to do away with a service offer. When it becomes too far, too long, or too expensive, we start to think if there are other choices of how we can help. It is contrary when we say, "I will follow you wherever you go" then we say, "But Lord, this is where I want to go." We sacrifice as Jesus sacrificed.
Our surrender makes God number 1 in our lives. Surrendering does not mean neglecting our families or our livelihood. Surrender means not to make our families and livelihood as an excuse not to follow the will of the Lord. God gave us our families and our jobs to be good stewards, but for the purpose of God's will. We then ask, "How can my family and job help me do God's will?"
Being single-minded is to get rid of distractions. While technology is a useful tool, many are enslaved or addicted to it. I am not implying to get rid of technology in our lives, since it can also be a tool to evangelize and an aid to our work. But try to measure the number of hours we spend on our hobbies (like games, movies, social networking, etc.) as compared to praying, serving, and doing something productive for your family and country. In more serious cases, these hobbies can even be a source of our sinfulness. Single-mindedness is to be focused on the Lord. "What are the things that distract us from our service?" It may be an unmended relationship, hurts, frustration, anger, laziness, or even our pride. These things are usual causes of "back-sliding."
We follow Jesus not with fear and hesitation but with love. We are able to sacrifice, surrender, and be single-minded with the power of the Holy Spirit. He will not call us to follow Him without His help and if we were not capable to do so. "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you (John 14:26)."
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