A Hint or Two of Radical Discipleship
In either His teaching or His giving Jesus did not hold back...
Jesus was not kidding...
Jesus requires nothing more than He has given...
... he who does not give up everything he has CANNOT be My disciple. (Luke 14:33)
- Entry to heaven is free, but my 'donation' is all I have.
- Lordship settles selfishness
- A radical disciple holds fast the Lord's priorities. He lives with no double-mindedness.
- A radical disciple counts no cost. They do not pray Lord, please use me, but only in an advisory capacity.
- When the heart is right it loves Godly rule, and finds freedom in obedience. ~ Hudson Taylor
- He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. ~ Jim Elliot
At conversion a man gives his all to Jesus, so thankful for death defeating forgiveness. Than he spends oodles of time clawing back the life he gave away.
This radical disciple's prayer, penned by A.W. Tozer when he was 23 (1920) upon the occasion of his ordination:
And now, O Lord of heaven and earth, I consecrate my remaining days to Thee; let me stand and minister to the poor and lowly for that too is who I am. I am Thy servant to do Thy will, and that will is sweeter to me than position or riches or fame and I choose it above all things on earth or in heaven. Let me never forget that I am but a man of dust and ashes. I pray thee Father to save me from myself. AMEN
There is no death to self without falling in the garden (Gethsemane) to my knees in the soul’s travail, wishing to be devoted to my Father first and foremost for the few and fleeting breaths that remain as my mortal coil.
Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. (John 12:24-25)
Today's Soul Snippet:
'There is no estate to which satan is so opposed as to marriage.' ~ Martin Luther