Luke 18:15-43 ~ Be prepared to leave everything for Christ
v17:
- We are to come to Christ like children
- Children depend heavily on their parents in order to keep them safe - so we are also to trust that God will provide us with everything that we will need
- We must also believe and have faith that everything that God wills in our lives is for our benefit
- A parent will not make his child do something if they know it will hurt them or make them suffer - since they love them. Similarly God loves us the same way
v22:
- There is an inherit link between worldly riches (literally) and our faith
- When we are selfish with our finances, we are similarly selfish in our hearts
- Jesus tells the rich man to give all his money away to the poor and he will have riches in heaven, but he struggles greatly with this
v24:
- It is difficult to go to heaven being a rich man as often we believe that we already have everything and are satisfied with the things in this world
- Similarly, to be saved, we must first acknowledge that we are in need of a saviour
v29:
- Jesus calls us to leave everything that we hold dear to our hearts for Christ
- This doesn't mean literally leave them - but it means leave our devotion and our idolatry of them behind
- If we love anything more than Jesus, then we cannot follow Him
- However, Jesus promises that if we do leave behind all the treasures we could store up on this earth, we are to receive many times more when we are in heaven
Application:
- Am I ready to give up everything for Christ? Do I love my relationship, uni, money more than I love Christ?
- Do my actions reflect my response to the above questions?