Asides

March 14
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Uncategorized Aside

“Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:25-27, NIV)

A disciple is a follower. A disciple aspires to be exactly like his or her teacher.  As Jesus is Truth, we must be scrupulously truthful — and everything else He is, including a cross-bearer. Anything less is not true discipleship.  Anything else is not obedience.

A disciple is holy.  The disciple’s holiness is measured in the points of similarity to his or her teacher; and in the degree of difference from the “common way” in his or her way of thinking (e. g. love for enemies, blessings for curses, concern for the poor, readiness to reconcile, etc. . .). 

Today’s scripture takes us to the bedrock of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus: Holiness, obedience, and cross-bearing.  – Luther

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March 13
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“Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:9, NASB)

We frequently here the word “passion,” or its derivative, “passionate,” to describe the drive, energy, and the focus that someone brings to an activity. It is meant to be a compliment, but when we are driven for the wrong reasons; or focused on the wrong things, it is anything but complimentary. 

As disciples of Jesus, our passion is to be pleasing to God. All other interests are subordinate; and all other invitations for our time, talent, and treasure are subject to — and informed by — this singular, supreme, objective.

To “have as our ambition. . . to be pleasing to Him,” is to succeed at all else, because all else is affected by this one thing! – Luther

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March 12
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Uncategorized Aside

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23, NKJV)

Perhaps the only state worse than wrong doing is wrong being. 

We need to guard against becoming comfortable with a lifestyle that is contrary to God’s will and way.  This is what the Bible calls “sin.” 

Oswald Chambers eloquently describes the peril of a conscience that is no longer troubled by wrong-doing: “One of the penalties of sin is our acceptance of it. It is not only God who punishes for sin, but sin establishes itself in the sinner and takes its toll. No struggling or praying will enable you to stop doing certain things, and the penalty of sin is that you gradually get used to it, until you finally come to the place where you no longer even realize that it is sin.”

Stay close to God through obedience to His scriptures, and through the spiritual disciplines of prayer, meditation, and gathering with other members of the family of God for worship and fellowship.  If you persist in these things, you will develop a heart that is sensitive to what pleases God — and what does not. This is the sure path to life, peace, and joy.  – Luther

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