So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own.
-Jesus in Luke 14:33
I am challenged and disturbed by these words of Jesus. I also must confess that these are not the only words that He spoke that have that effect on me. I don’t know about you, but I prefer a little more “wiggle room” in my life than Jesus allows. Here is the DPV (David’s Paraphrased Version) of this verse:
So you can’t become my disciple without giving up a few things you didn’t really want anyway.
But…those aren’t Jesus’ words…no matter how much I want them to be. Jesus is just so black and white and it makes me uncomfortable. I think that was His intention too. Jesus wants all of us…He said it Himself: “EVERYTHING”. Doesn’t leave much room for interpretation or misunderstanding.
I must confess that most times I’d prefer to give Him about 99% (OK, probably more like 49.9% but who’s counting?). This kind of commitment to Christ takes supernatural power that can only come with a personal, intimate relationship with Him. And that’s the kind of relationship I want to have with my God…
How about you?
