Luke 14:11
The standards of this world are not the standard of Jesus Christ… The sooner that we grasp this concept, the sooner that we can start to reach higher levels than we ever thought possible within our own finite power… This is the lesson that Luke teaches us today in his gospel… There are so many people who have been confused and found themselves falling short because they have not align themselves with the will and desires of God… The people that fall into this category are the ones who have been in prayer; however, they have not totally turned the situation over to the Lord which means that they are lacking in humility… There is something missing in their lives and even though they call on the Lord they have not sought Him with their whole hearts for Him to be found… This is the same thing that plagued the rich young ruler in the gospel of Mark… Even though He knew who the Lord was, He measured his happiness by his wealth and not his faith… Today, make the decision to be humble so that God doesn’t have to humble you… This is a very scary truth and is also why Luke starts off by saying,“For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled…” Make no mistake about it, even though it may appear that people with pride and ego’s are flourishing, this passage tells us that it won’t last and that they will reach a point where there high horse comes crashing down… We see this all too often with image based celebrities who fall back to earth through the most precarious situations… Today, even though the majority may choose otherwise, you must make a decision… Are you climbing the ladder of success defined by the world or by God… The latter being the one which appears lease acceptable but is the most profitable… The way to ascend is to go down and the way to fall is to stand up…
Luke teaches us the way of the Christian life and how it is that we obtain exaltation… For many of us, this way of thinking can be a major stumbling block or hurdle; especially when we look at the world’s definition of success… Since we are born into this world we enter with a (n) approach to life that is drastically different than what God desires for us and from us… According to the world, we must make a certain amount of money, live in a certain neighborhood and drive a certain style of car to be considered successful; however, this success is not guaranteed to either be reached or even be kept once and if we do reach that level… In the blink of an eye a millionaire can find him/her self unemployed… Driving a fancy car doesn’t mean that you can’t be involved in a car accident that claims your life… When we begin to think on these things, we begin to understand why it is important to seek the success that is obtained in God as opposed to the world… The flashy clothes won’t be in eternity, the mansions and streets of gold are set aside for billionaires, but the accumulated wealth isn’t money… We must transform our way of thinking if we want to really reach heights that we never thought were even possible… Instead of reading how to become rich, study the word of God and trust Him wholeheartedly… The bible says, “He will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory…” God will take care of you, when you are His child you have the greatest wealth imaginable… You can call on your Father who never runs out of resources and has the power to change or overtake any situation… Money can’t buy happiness nor can it buy a plug for the voids you have in your life… A traumatizing experience can be changed by money, a rough upbringing can’t be made any easier by money; however, the love of God can comfort the comfortless, heal the brokenhearted and set the captives free… In this life you have two choices…
Luke tells us that a man/woman will do either of these things; they will either exalt themselves or humble themselves… Your life tells the story of which avenue you have chosen… Exalting yourself calls for everyone to take notice of what you are doing or trying to do; however, humbling yourself means that you are not worried about pleasing men and that you know that there is nothing of this earth that can out do the love of God… When you humble yourself you push away the temptations to seek your own way, when you humble yourself you open the door for Christ to lead you… When you humble yourself you recognize that I can’t do it on my own and without God I am nothing… In the 14 chapter of Luke we find Jesus sitting to have dinner with a Pharisee on the Sabbath Day. As they are sitting Jesus begins to teach about law verses grace and humility. In verse 11 the Lord is calling us to be humble, having FAITH that HE will exalt us. As a Christian we have to realize that worldly prestige means nothing to the eyes of The Great I Am. God is looking for those who are not out for popularity or rewards. The Lord is pleased with those who are serving him in spirit and in truth. Think about it, if Jesus would have been here with prestige and all this popularity, HELL would have already swallowed us up!!!! It’s a sobering feeling when you humble yourself; it’s not an easy task; just like we work for a living we have to work at being and remaining humble… It requires a lot of sacrifice, it requires a lot of prayer, it requires a lot of hard work and you will indeed feel the pains of struggle… Your hard work will pay off, your trials will be worth it and leaving the world behind you will plant your feet securely on the streets of gold; where everyone who obtained success on this earth at the expense of their relationship with the Lord would love to be and would gladly then exchange their Stacy Adams for your sandals…
ALL FOR HIS GLORY!
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