Last week at Youth Bible
Study we discussed the first chapter of the book Radical by David Platt. The
book is very challenging and seeks to challenge us with simple principals most
of which we already know. Platt in turn helps every day scripture come to live
for us and helps show us how we need to live radical lives for the Gospel of
Jesus Christ.
So here's what the word radical actually means: (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/radical)
rad?i?cal
? ?[rad-i-kuhl] Show IPA
adjective
1.of or going to the root or origin; fundamental: a radical difference.
If we're called to live radical lives for Jesus, then what in our lives do we need to abandon so that we may give our very best to Christ? Isn't that what we're called to do anyway?
Platt says in regard to his own church, "We were settling for a Christianity that revolves around catering to ourselves when the central message of Christianity is actually about abandoning ourselves (Radical, pg. 7).
What is he talking about? Is he talking about giving up our previous ideas of who Christ is and what Christ commands us to do? I'm confused... Was the Christianity we've followed in the past a Christianity focused more on ourselves then on Christ himself.
Jesus says in Luke 14: 33 "In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple."
If I give up everything I have, I would be broke, without a family, job, friends and everything else. So, what exactly is Jesus saying and David Platt referring to? Is he referring to giving up our old ways of living, the things that draw us into selfishness and sin? Yes, Christ calls us to live radical lives free from anything that leads us away from Him.
So here's what the word radical actually means: (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/radical)
rad?i?cal
? ?[rad-i-kuhl] Show IPA
adjective
1.of or going to the root or origin; fundamental: a radical difference.
If we're called to live radical lives for Jesus, then what in our lives do we need to abandon so that we may give our very best to Christ? Isn't that what we're called to do anyway?
Platt says in regard to his own church, "We were settling for a Christianity that revolves around catering to ourselves when the central message of Christianity is actually about abandoning ourselves (Radical, pg. 7).
What is he talking about? Is he talking about giving up our previous ideas of who Christ is and what Christ commands us to do? I'm confused... Was the Christianity we've followed in the past a Christianity focused more on ourselves then on Christ himself.
Jesus says in Luke 14: 33 "In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple."
If I give up everything I have, I would be broke, without a family, job, friends and everything else. So, what exactly is Jesus saying and David Platt referring to? Is he referring to giving up our old ways of living, the things that draw us into selfishness and sin? Yes, Christ calls us to live radical lives free from anything that leads us away from Him.
David Platt says in his notes the calling of Jesus does not necessarily involve the complete literal abandonment of one's possessions and relationships, but it may. That said, the life of a disciple is one that most certainly requires full surrender to Jesus as Lord. Full commitment to Christ must be without any reservation.
I guess what Jesus is referring to in Luke 14 in such a drastic way is that to follow Him is to give up anything that hinders us from following him. Jesus wants us to be His disciples, not just on Wednesdays and Sundays, but everyday. Jesus is showing us here that to be a committed follower of Christ, we need to "carry the cross" every day and fight that which hinders our relationship with Him at all cost, no matter if that cost is a family member, best friend, prized possession, or life-long goal. If it is hindering us from following Christ, we must rid it from our lives.
Read more about the Cost of Being a Disciple in Luke 14:25-35.
