3 Feb 2015
Matthew 10:37-38
Matthew 10:37: “He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.”
Churches don’t like preaching this sort of thing. They are focused on attendance and numbers, and they know that if they teach the hard truths then people will be driven off. The truth – the real truth – simply is not very popular. People don’t want to hear it. So churches offer sugary truths instead, and leave the hard ones alone. This draws in crowds, all right, but they’re phony crowds. These churches don’t have real believers; they’re just running a show.
The truth is that Jesus must be our Lord. We have to love Him more than anything else, and we must sacrifice everything for Him. He must be the highest point in our lives – our greatest joy, our deepest longing, and our master. If we have to choose between our parents and Him, then we must choose Him. If we have to choose between our spouse and Jesus, or our children and Jesus, or our job, or possessions, or even our very life, then we must choose Jesus. He must be above all. He must be first.
This isn’t the modern idea of Christianity, of course. Today people see Jesus as an add-on to their lives; they fit Him in where they can, when they have time and when it’s convenient. Jesus isn’t #1 in their lives, or even #10. But He’s there somewhere, and they figure that as long as He’s on the list then He should be happy. But that’s not how it works. Jesus demands more – a great deal more. And eternity itself hangs in the balance.