by Craig McAndrews | Jul 25, 2016 | Articles, Mentors Corner
In Luke 14:25-35 Jesus makes it clear that it costs to follow Him and in concise language He spells out the details on what the cost will be. The words He uses in this teaching really got my attention and challenged me to think about paying the price. His statements are direct and very absolute. Consider verse 26, where He says, “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple”, or when He says in verse 27, “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” Statements like “hate his own father and mother”, “carry your own cross”, and “cannot be my disciple” provide little room for interpretation. Studying these verses has challenged me to ask two very specific questions of myself and I wanted to share them with you as you seek to know our savior more deeply: Question 1: What has following Jesus cost you in your life? Question 2: When have you been uncomfortable or inconvenienced for the sake of Jesus? Are these questions tough to answer? I know when I first started thinking through these questions, I really wondered if following Jesus had cost me anything. In the Luke verses He tells us that being His disciple can cost us relationships, a lot of inconvenient living, our resources of time or money, and even all our possessions. Had I given up any of those things for the sake of Jesus? Fortunately, as I prayerfully thought...
by Walt Henrichsen | Jul 11, 2016 | Articles, People Not Listening
“Then Judas, which had betrayed Him, when he saw that He was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that.” Matthew 27:3-4 Matthew 27 is devoted to the trial and crucifixion of Christ. Judas expressed remorse and returned the money to the Chief Priest. The men who had plotted Jesus’ death were indifferent regarding whether or not He was innocent. However, they were “spiritual” enough that they did not want to place the returned money in the Temple treasury: “And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood” (v. 6). Evidently, they thought it proper to sacrifice an innocent Man to protect their nation, which they perceived was threatened by His existence. Pilate knew that Jesus was innocent, and was affirmed by his wife: “For he knew that for envy they had delivered him. When he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him” (vv. 18-19). For fear of the people rioting, Pilate executed an innocent Man. While Jesus hung on the cross, “… the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, He saved others; Himself he cannot save. If He be the King of Israel,...
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