He that loveth father or mother more than Me
is not worthy of Me:
and he that loveth son or daughter more than Me
is not worthy of Me. Matthew 10:37
Can you imagine finding out on Judgment Day
that you were not worthy of Christ?
Let’s try to figure that out so it doesn’t happen
We can find out what the Lord is looking for in His followers so we are aware
You most likely will not hear this from the pulpit
And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after Me,
is not worthy of Me. Matthew 10:38
Not being worthy of Christ goes along
with the warning of loving the world more than God:
Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.
If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 1 John 2:15
That reminds us how if we love the world, we are not putting God first
And what happens if we don’t put God first?
Revelation 2 tells us:
Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee,
because thou hast left thy first love. v 4
Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent,
and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly,
and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. v 5
While it is true that the goodness of God leads to repentance,
Nobody really wants to be told they are not living up to God’s standards,
however, we must at least know what He is looking for
so that we can adjust our lives and our priorities as needed
Sometimes His goodness is not sweetness, but rather, harsh truth
And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after Me,
cannot be My disciple. Luke 14:27
Carrying our crosses, that means, following Jesus through thick and thin,
no matter what comes our way,
no matter how heavy that cross may seem to be,
that means even when you don’t agree,
when you would like to change His words
instead of stand up for Him and His words,
that you still humble yourself and carry that cross for all to see
Confirming the souls of the disciples,
and exhorting them to continue in the faith,
and that we must through much tribulation
enter into the kingdom of God. Acts 14:22
In other words, it is not easy to find that narrow road,
to make sure you are following Christ
and not just teachings that are similar
or even based off of Christ’s teaching but are not completely in the truth
We must each work out our own salvation with fear and trembling,
meaning in the fear of God and realizing what can happen to us if we miss it
We must hear from the Lord about our lives
Just like every single person who wanted to follow Him
when He walked on the Earth
Otherwise, we risk hearing, ‘I never knew you, depart from Me’
This is something to take very seriously
We need to know Him, not just know about Him
Just because someone tells you you are right with God doesn’t mean it is so,
Nobody but God has the right to tell you you are on the right track,
that you are pleasing Him and that you belong to Him
Others can encourage you and help you and that is good
We need the gospel to be preached to us and to preach it to others
Find out first-hand from Jesus
He is able to make anything clear to you
and encourage others to do the same
The answers are in His word
and His Holy Spirit is able to lead us and guide us into all truth
Scriptural References:
Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed,
not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence,
work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Philippians 2:12
Many will say to Me in that day,
Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name?
and in Thy name have cast out devils?
and in Thy name done many wonderful works?
And then will I profess unto them,
I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity.
Matthew 7:22-23
Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come,
He will guide you into all truth:
for He shall not speak of Himself;
but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak:
and He will shew you things to come.
John 16:13