A Dash of Salt

The Blessings of Saying "Bye-Bye"

One more small but important thought about counting the cost of following Jesus...

Just as the weaker king had to surrender to the stronger king, Jesus calls us to surrender to Him in Luke 14:31-33.  Notice what He says in v. 33.  What do you and I have to give up to Jesus?  The words “give up” in the original convey the idea of “saying good-bye to” or "renounce an interest in."  The Jewish historian Josephus used the word to describe Queen Esther when she fasted and "renounced her interest in food" so she could pray.  Who or what do you need to say good-bye to in your life to follow Jesus wholeheartedly?  What hinders you from full commitment to Him?  How can you renounce your interest in it?

Jesus says we must renounce our interest in everything that belongs to us so that nothing will distract us from following Him.

Hard Sayings of Jesus (2)

The second hard saying of Jesus we are examining is found in Luke 16:1-13, the parable of the dishonest steward.  What makes this story a difficult saying is the fact that Jesus appears to condone cheating and fraud for the kingdom of God.  It's also a very hard saying because Jesus confronts us with how we are using our money. 

Jesus (through the "master" in the story) commends the steward, not because of his apparent dishonesty, but because he was "shrewd" (phronimos).  This is the characteristic of being wise, intelligent, and understanding of what needs to be done given the situation.  The steward may have used the wrong methods, but he was correct to prepare for the future.  The moral of the story is that Christians should use their wealth in this life to build eternal friendships so that that will be welcomed into heaven by those who have been blessed by their generosity.

Here's the link to the audio file of yesterday's message, "Heavenly Money Advice from Someone Going to Hell," Download HardSayings3.11.07.mp3.2007 (about 42 min.), and a set of the message notes, Download HardSayings2money.doc.