14:11 - "For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted." Pride is a funny thing. It reaches for higher places only to be brought lower. I have struggled with pride for years. Not the pride of "I am better than people" but the pride of independence and self-determination. The best parts of my life have been lived in a realistic sense that I am nothing without God, but that doesn't make me nothing, but everything.
14:13 - "...invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind..." - Who are these people today?
14:18 - "But they all alike began to make excuses." when God calls you do you run to Him or to a list of excuses to buy yourself time?
14:27 - To be a disciple you must carry your cross every day.
14:33 - "In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciple." Is Jesus being mean or self-centered? NO! Jesus knows that you can't get to the safe place in life and carry stuff. The journey is too hard. You have to let go of everything you are carrying (bad and good) so you can have the strength to make it to the place God wants for you.
15:1 - Tax collectors and sinners will gather around to hear what Jesus has to say and when they do we need to give our attention to telling them that God wants them to come home.
15:7 - God rejoices over lost people turning back to Him.
15:8 - How do you search for the lost - purposefully or accidentally? Do you search carefully and thoughtfully or do you just hope to stumble upon someone? Jesus explains that people who feel a deep sense of compassion and value for people carefully, purposefully go looking for others.
There is a process to be learned from the prodigal son. you can see a basic outline for how a person comes back to god:
1) verse 17 - You come to your senses
2) verse 19 - You realize you are not owed anything or not worthy
3) verses 20 - You get up and head towards God no matter the consequences
4) verse 20 - The Father is waiting for you
5) verse 21 - You speak words of repentance to the Father
6) verse 22-24 - God rejoices and celebrates over and because of you
Love, Michael
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