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…
BE
BLESSED!!!
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