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Luke 14:33 - Who's Lord of Your Life?

Luke 14:33; Who's Lord of Your Life?

Luke 14:33 (KJV)  So likewise, whosoever he be of you that 
forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple. 

Luke 14:33 (EAV) So then, any of you who does not forsake 
(renounce, surrender claim to, give up, say good-bye to) all that he has 
cannot be My disciple.  

Without the absolute surrender of self, the contest is hopeless. 
[Jamieson, Fausset, And Brown Commentary] 

Complete renunciation of all claims to one's own life. [Wycliffe 
Bible Commentary] 

Sit down and count the cost; consider it will cost the 
mortifying of sin, even the most beloved lusts. [Matthew Henry Commentary] 

The only men and women He will use in His building enterprises 
are those who love Him personally, passionately and devotedly beyond 
any of the closest ties on earth. Oswald Chambers [My Utmost for His 
Highest] 

He desired to make it clear that only those willing to give up 
everything to enter the kingdom would find a place at God's table.     
Following Jesus had to have priority over all other relationships [New 
Bible Companion] 

The Greek word here is apotassetai. It means "say farewell" when 
used of a person or "renounce" when applied to things. Note that 
Jesus does not say "sell" or "give away" but renounce. His point is 
that as disciples of Jesus, we surrender to Him the title deed to all 
we possess. From now on we live as those conscious that we are 
stewards of our Lord, and that all we have belongs ultimately to Him. 
[Victor Bible Background Commentary] 

Be ready for a loyalty which would sacrifice the dearest things 
in life and for a suffering which would be like the agony of a man 
upon a cross. [Barclay Commentary] 

Submission to Christ's lordship is central in Christianity. 
Jesus' audience was well aware of what it meant to carry one's own 
cross. When the Romans led a criminal to his execution site, he was 
forced to carry the cross on which he would die. This showed his 
submission to Rome and warned observers that they had better submit too. 
Jesus spoke this teaching to get the crowds to think through their 
enthusiasm for him. He encouraged those who were superficial either to go 
deeper or to turn back. Following Christ means total submission to 
him--perhaps even to the point of death. [Life Application SB] 

It is easy to be in the crowd but not so easy to carry the 
cross. [Wiersbe Expository Outlines] 

The cost, Jesus warned, is complete surrender to him. [NIV SB]

Consider carefully the cost of full commitment to Christ in a 
life of service.    the believer should be willing to sacrifice all. 
[Ryrie SB] 

Discipleship is a full-time job placed before all other 
priorities and responsibilities. Christian disciples are devoted, obedient 
followers of Christ. Nothing comes before Christ in the life of a 
disciple. Disciples voluntarily accept Christ as Master and His teachings 
as commands. Only one question determines if you are a disciple: 
Have you in faith given up everything for Christ?     Being a 
disciple is a call to total involvement in the work of Christ. To decide 
to follow Christ with no intention to be involved in His work is as 
foolish as to decide to build a building without getting a cost 
estimate. [Disciple SB] 

Discipleship involves the complete placing on the altar of all 
that a man has in this life--plans, ambitions, friends, relatives, 
possessions, riches--anything and everything that might interfere with service 
for the kingdom of heaven. [SDA Commentary] 

Putting Christ first in all things takes practice and 
persistence. Day after day we learn to follow him. [Inspirational SB] 

Jesus told a story to those who were too busy with their games 
and personal concerns to respond to the feast of life God has 
prepared. In Jesus' story the invitation had been extended (v. 16). Many 
had been invited, even the game players, whose emptiness Jesus has 
exposed. Jesus came to save us all, even the most sinful. Yet in Jesus' 
story the invited guests began to make excuses. Each was simply too 
busy with profit and pleasures. 
Whatever the excuse, saying no to the divine invitation remains 
rejection. A person who fails to respond to Jesus' invitation to life has 
rejected Him. Salvation is a yes or no issue, with no room for maybe. 
Tragically, people of every age judge themselves too busy or too 
involved in their games to respond. But this will not keep God's house 
from being filled. The Gospel invitation goes out to the whole world, 
and all who will receive it will be welcomed. For those who will 
not, the doors will remain closed and they will be excluded from 
Christ's great welcoming feast.    We must reject every little game 
people play for personal advantage. [Victor Teacher's Commentary] 

It is possible to be a follower of Jesus without being a 
disciple; to be a camp-follower without being a soldier of the king; to be 
a hanger-on in some great work without pulling one's weight. Once 
someone was talking to a great scholar about a younger man. He said, "So 
and so tells me that he was one of your students." The teacher 
answered devastatingly, "He may have attended my lectures, but he was not 
one of my students." It is one of the supreme handicaps of the 
church that in it there are so many distant followers of Jesus and so 
few real disciples. [Barclay Commentary] 

When Christ said time after time that one must "deny himself and 
take up his cross and follow me" He was indicating that it is not 
easy to be His true follower. The apostle Paul warned, "Everyone who 
wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted" (2 
Timothy 3:12). He offers no cheap grace, no easy life. As someone has 
said, "Salvation is free but not cheap...." 
The Christian faith brings its own "blood, sweat and tears" to 
those who would follow Jesus Christ. Christ calls us to discipleship. 
When we come to Him, He takes away one set of burdens - the burden of 
sin, the burden of guilt, the burden of separation from God, the 
burden of hopelessness. But He also calls upon us to "Take my yoke upon 
you and learn from me" (Matthew 11:29). It is not a yoke that is too 
heavy for us to bear, for Christ bears it with us: "For my yoke is 
easy and my burden is light" (Matthew 11:30). Nevertheless, Christ 
calls us to follow Him, regardless of the cost, and He has never 
promised that our path will always be smooth.... 
But in the midst of the suffering, trials and temptations, He 
will provide His peace, joy and fellowship    In the midst of every 
situation of life He can give an inner calm and strength that you could 
never imagine apart from Him. Billy Graham [Time With God SB] 

In giving ourselves to God, we must necessarily give up all that 
would separate us from Him. Hence the Saviour says, "Whosoever he be 
of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be My 
disciple." Luke 14:33. Whatever shall draw away the heart from God must be 
given up. Mammon is the idol of many. The love of money, the desire 
for wealth, is the golden chain that binds them to Satan. Reputation 
and worldly honor are worshiped by another class. The life of 
selfish ease and freedom from responsibility is the idol of others. But 
these slavish bands must be broken. We cannot be half the Lord's and 
half the world's. We are not God's children unless we are such 
entirely.  
There are those who profess to serve God, while they rely upon 
their own efforts to obey His law, to form a right character, and 
secure salvation. Their hearts are not moved by any deep sense of the 
love of Christ, but they seek to perform the duties of the Christian 
life as that which God requires of them in order to gain heaven. Such 
religion is worth nothing. When Christ dwells in the heart, the soul will 
be so filled with His love, with the joy of communion with Him, 
that it will cleave to Him; and in the contemplation of Him, self 
will be forgotten. Love to Christ will be the spring of action. Those 
who feel the constraining love of God, do not ask how little may be 
given to meet the requirements of God; they do not ask for the lowest 
standard, but aim at perfect conformity to the will of their Redeemer. 
With earnest desire they yield all and manifest an interest 
proportionate to the value of the object which they seek. A profession of 
Christ without this deep love is mere talk, dry formality, and heavy 
drudgery. SC44,5 

Discipleship means personal, passionate devotion to a Person, 
Our Lord Jesus Christ. There is a difference between devotion to a 
Person and devotion to principles or to a cause. Our Lord never 
proclaimed a cause; He proclaimed personal devotion to Himself. To be a 
disciple is to be a devoted love-slave of the Lord Jesus. Many of us who 
call ourselves Christians are not devoted to Jesus Christ. No man on 
earth has this passionate love to the Lord Jesus unless the Holy Ghost 
has imparted it to him. We may admire Him, we may respect Him and 
reverence Him, but we cannot love Him. The only Lover of the Lord Jesus is 
the Holy Ghost, and He sheds abroad the very love of God in our 
hearts. Whenever the Holy Ghost sees a chance of glorifying Jesus, He 
will take your heart, your nerves, your whole personality, and simply 
make you blaze and glow with devotion to Jesus Christ. Oswald 
Chambers [My Utmost for His Highest] 

If a man is daunted by the high demands of Christ let him 
remember that he is not left to fulfil them alone. He who called him to 
the steep road will walk with him every step of the way and be there 
at the end to meet him. [Barclay Commentary]