Our Lord was not referring here to a cost which we have to count, but to a cost which He has already counted. The cost was those thirty years in Nazareth, those three years of popularity, scandal, and hatred, the unfathomable agony He experienced in Gethsemane, and the assault upon Him at Calvary— the central point upon which all of time and eternity turn. Jesus Christ has counted the cost. In the final analysis, people are not going to laugh at Him and say, “This man began to build and was not able to finish” (Luke 14:30).The conditions of discipleship given to us by our Lord in verses 26, 27, and 33 mean that the men and women He is going to use in His mighty building enterprises are those in whom He has done everything. “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple ” (Luke 14:26). This verse teaches us that the only men and women our Lord will use in His building enterprises are those who love Him personally, passionately, and with great devotion— those who have a love for Him that goes far beyond any of the closest relationships on earth. The conditions are strict, but they are glorious.All that we build is going to be inspected by God. When God inspects us with His searching and refining fire, will He detect that we have built enterprises of our own on the foundation of Jesus? (see 1 Corinthians 3:10-15). We are living in a time of tremendous enterprises, a time when we are trying to work for God, and that is where the trap is. Profoundly speaking, we can never work for God. Jesus, as the Master Builder, takes us over so that He may direct and control us completely for His enterprises and His building plans; and no one has any right to demand where he will be put to work.

 

_____________________________________________________________

May 7, 2014

Journal Entry for Today-JDV

Lord, thank you for the reminder that I cannot build any lasting thing from my own ideas and effort.  Thank you for reminding me that I am to simply surrender and allow You to live in me and through me.

And God says…”This is not a partnership. God is not your co-pilot. Let Jesus be your pilot, co-pilot, even airplane itself.  I am not your helper in this life; I must be your life. Simply surrender yourself to Jesus trust in Him and He will make your paths straight. Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. I cannot let you down. It is not in My nature. However, I cannot reach out and lift you up as long as you are “grounded and mired” in your own effort.  You must let go and let Me be your God. Simply surrender to Jesus, and let my love lift you up and into whatever you require. Trust in Me and do not rely on your own devices and I will make your paths straight. Trust Me to make your life complete and provide all you need in this life; including the ways and means of the work you do in My name.”