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Luke 14:33 - Who Is Lord Of Your Life? (addendum)

Luke 14:33 - Who Is Lord Of Your Life? (addendum)

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.  

CONTEXT: The Cost of Following Jesus (Luke 14:25-35).

APPLICATION COMMENTARY - With Emphasis On Verse 33 (addendum).

It is easy to be part of the crowd and follow a popular Jesus, 
but that is not true discipleship. He calls you away from the crowd 
to take up your cross and follow Him. When it comes to winning the 
lost, God wants His house filled; but when it comes to discipleship, 
Christ thins out the ranks and wants only those who will die to self 
and live for Him. [Chapter by Chapter Bible Commentary by Warren 
Wiersbe re Luke 14:25-35] 

  Jesus was up front with his followers. He set the bar high. He 
told potential followers that being a Christian would have a cost. 
What does that mean? 
  Perhaps you're experiencing that already. Perhaps your new 
faith has been ridiculed at home, at school, or at work. Maybe your 
old friends are wondering what happened to you-and they're backing 
off a bit, afraid that you've become a fanatic. It could be that 
your faith is wreaking havoc with some of your old habits. Perhaps 
you're being convicted to make a greater sacrifice of time or money for 
God's Kingdom. That's all part of the cost of becoming a believer, so 
don't. think it's unusual. 
  But it's not all one-sided. The cost you pay is nothing 
compared to what you have gained. You have been given a new life with the 
promise of joy and fulfillment. You have been given a worldwide family 
of believers. You have a true purpose and can experience the joy 
and fulfillment of living it out. 
  So what do you do when you face those costly times? Keep the 
right perspective, pray, and persevere. Greater joy awaits! [The One 
Year Bible for New Believers re Luk.14:33] 

The cost to be counted is a willingness to give up everything 
for Jesus. For some, this may be literal, such as the rich young man 
in 18:18-23 and many of Jesus' early followers; for others it may 
be a willingness to hold loosely to material possessions. To be 
preoccupied with money or possessions is to miss the demands and joys of 
true discipleship, as with the people who refused the host's 
invitation to the kingdom (14:18-20). Again Jesus painted no rosy picture 
of a high-paying job with all the benefits. He said that the way 
would be rough and would be a way of self-sacrifice. Oddly enough, 
however, this is the only way to true fulfillment and satisfaction. 
Unfortunately, too many refuse to count the cost or, having counted, decide it 
is too high. They do not count the cost to God -- the life of his 
Son -- or the immense treasures awaiting all disciples in the 
kingdom. Jesus does not ask anyone to give anything up without having 
given it up himself. Jesus' promise is: "And everyone who has left 
houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields 
for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit 
eternal life" (Matt 19:29 NIV). (Life Application Commentary Luke 
14:33) 

A man must pay the ultimate price. He must forsake all, renounce 
and give up all that he is and has; or else "he cannot be my 
disciple." When a man counts the cost of following Christ, he needs to 
think about two things. 
1. It will cost him all he is. The man must be willing to center 
his life around Christ and His mission to reach a world lost and 
full of desperate needs. It will cost the man... 
*	his heart: total devotion and commitment.
*	his mind: being permeated and controlled by Christ.
*	his eyes: watching what he looks at.
*	his ears: watching what he listens to.
*	his hands: watching what he touches and picks up.
*	his feet: watching where he goes.
*	his mouth: watching what he eats and drinks and says.
*	his desires: watching, controlling, and changing his urges and 
desires. 
*	his energy: committing his strength, initiative, and will to 
Christ. 
*	his effort and work: dedicating and centering all in Christ, 
using his efforts and work in the cause of Christ. 
2. It will cost him all he has. The man must be willing to give 
everything he has to Christ, without watering down the cost. It is this 
point that will cause so many to be lost and doomed (see 
outline--Luke 18:18-30 and notes--Luke 18:18-30; 
outline--Matthew 10:16-23 and notes--Matthew 10:16-23). To really follow 
Christ will cost... 
*	family: being put after Christ.
*	friends: being put after Christ and centered around Christ.
*	home: all the comforts and extravagances.
*	job: being centered around Christ and being used to earn 
enough to give to those who do not have (Ephes. 4:28). 
*	cars: not being extravagant, so as to have more to give to a 
needful world. 
*	investments: using for God's cause.
*	money: taking care of personal necessities and then using the 
rest for God's cause. 
  Whatever a person has, it will cost him. He must surrender it 
to Christ, which is to say, he must be willing to use it in the 
Lord's mission, the mission of helping a world lost and reeling under 
the weight of enormous needs. 
  When a man counts the cost of following Christ, he must think 
about the consequences of both fighting against Christ and 
surrendering to Christ. If the man chooses to reject Christ, to struggle 
against Him, the man will... 
*	never experience abundant life, deep satisfaction (John 10:10).
*	never know God, His love and care, on a daily basis.
*	never have an eternal sense of purpose, meaning, and 
significance. 
*	never know nor have the assurance of eternal life.
*	never be free from the uncertainty of life.
*	never be free from the dread and fear of death.
*	never be free of some sense of judgment and of what lies ahead.
*	never be freed from a sense of false security.
  The consequences of surrendering to Christ are, of course, the 
very opposite of the above. [Preacher's  Outline & Sermon Bible re 
Luke 14:28-33] 

EXCELLENT SERMON ON A RELATED PASSAGE OF SCRIPTURE:

Mat19:21 Laying Up Treasure In Heaven by Pastor Derek Morris:

http://media.forestlakechurch.org/media/20060617/2006-06-17.mp3