Our relationship with Jesus will put us in situations where we must decide where love for him ranks compared to love for other people and things. And Jesus is not content to be one of many important things in our life; he wants to be first.
Hard Truth – The Exalted Are Humbled
The exalted are humbled. I know it doesn’t always look that way, but it’s true! The word for exalt has the idea of something swelling in size. I suppose we picture the head of a movie star or some other celebrity that swells to twice its normal size.
Hard Truth – The First Will Be Last
The first will be last. That sounds like it could be a confusing truth. As we look at our text from the gospel of Luke we see the hard truth.
Hard Truth – Division
Hard truth doesn’t sound very fun, does it? But just like straight talk from the dentist who wants you to keep your teeth, hard truth from your God comes from a loving heart that wants to save souls. Yet we tend to think of God as… nice.
Focused on Heaven
Jesus wants focused followers. However, one of the things that can most easily get in the way of our focus is our earthly possessions. It is no surprise, therefore, that Jesus’ words so frequently focus his followers on wealth. Jesus’ followers don’t reject earthly wealth or despise it. They can be grateful for every good gift that comes from the hand of God. This Sunday we’ll cover worry, doubt, and our solution to those challenges – Jesús.
Focused on Living
Jesus wants focused followers. However, one of the things that can most easily get in the way of our focus is our earthly possessions. It is no surprise, therefore, that Jesus’ words so frequently focus his followers on wealth. Jesus’ followers don’t reject earthly wealth or despise it. They can be grateful for every good gift that comes from the hand of God.