True Discipleship carries a High Price of Total Surrender and Obedience!

20 Jul 2025 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Romans 12:2a.        And be not conformed to this world: but he ye transformed by the renewing of your mind,

And as the world turns, we’ve come to Sunday, the day the Lord rested after creating the universe and all therein.  And He also expects us to rest, as well as gather in worship on that day, remembering all that He’s done for us, with voices of praise and thanksgiving, while renewing our faith, our strength and confidence in Him and His awesome promises.

So, here we are, gathered as required, and we’ll open today’s celebrations with a most appropriate hymn, titled, ‘All to Jesus I Surrender.’ Yes my fellow believers, that’s something we need to do, before we can truly appreciate and experience God’s goodness, grace and mercy. For above all else the Lord desires obedience in His followers, and you can’t be truly obedient until you let all of yourself go to Him.

The author of the hymn is an American Hymnwriter, one Judson W. Van DeVenter, (1855-1939) and it’s believed he wrote it around 1896. This commentary tells us that ‘The song is about consecration, which literally means ‘association,’  but for religious purposes, it signifies a transfer from a secular or profane state to a sacred one, for a special purpose or service. It involves a dedication that is intended to be permanent and can’t be easily revoked or repeated. It often involves rituals, prayers, and ceremonies specific to the religion or tradition.’

And today we’re going to reconsecrate ourselves to Christ as we sing and praise and worship and give thanks. So, let’s raise our sacrifices of praise in a soulful, heartfelt, sincere, mid-tempo version, leaving no doubt whatsoever about our intentions. Singing: ‘All to Jesus I surrender. All to Him I freely give; I will ever LOVE and trust Him, In His presence daily live. (Refrain: I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all.)

All to Jesus I surrender, Humbly at His feet I bow, Worldly pleasures all forsaken. Take me, Jesus, take me now. (Refrain:) All to Jesus I surrender, Make me, Saviour, wholly Thine; Let me feel the Holy Spirit, Truly know that Thou art mine. (Refrain:) All to Jesus I surrender, Lord, I give myself to Thee; Fill me with Thy LOVE and power, Let Thy blessing fall on me. (Refrain:)

All to Jesus I surrender, Now I feel the sacred flame; Oh, the joy of full salvation! Glory, glory, to His name! (Refrain: I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all…I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all… All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all…’  

That was wonderful friends! And as always, heaven was singing along with us, for they just LOVE any opportunity to sing of and celebrate Jesus.  And it’s ever so good to rededicate ourselves to Christ every week that we gather in His sanctuary, as it renews our spirits, reignites our faith, and uplifts our souls, for He’s all that we ever need in this world. And all God’s children said a loud and grateful, ‘Thank You Jesus!’

And when we wonder why we need to surrender all to Jesus, we must remember that it’s the cost of discipleship, you cannot be a disciple of Jesus unless you are willing to give it all up for His sake. And Jesus laid it out very clearly to the disciples, and to us. ‘If any man will (desires to) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’ (Luke 9:23) And my brethren, the most important word in that sentence is ‘daily.’

Yes, because being a sincere disciple of Jesus means being on the job every day, not just when the feeling takes us. And that’s why a lot of us don’t do such a good job at discipleship, we talk a good talk, but refuse to walk the walk DAILY. Furthermore, too many of us dislike the very idea of denying ourselves, but please remember what Jesus did for us. He selflessly denied His heavenly life to come to earth as a man and give His life so that we could be saved from our sins and receive eternal life instead of eternal death!

Now that most definitely means we owe Christ a debt we can never repay! And what could be more important than doing the little in our power eh? Nothing! But we so LOVE the bright lights, the corruptible material possessions and the good, comfortable life, that we cringe, both physically and mentally, at giving up any of it, even to save our own souls.  

And I believe this verse from Bruh Paul to the Romans gives us good enlightenment as to what our behaviour should be. He writes: ‘I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable (rational) service.’ (Rom. 12:1)

And what does all of that mean? The scholars tell us: ‘By the mercies of God summarizes all that God has accomplished for the believer in Romans chapters 1-11. In justifying the believer (chs. 1-5), enabling him to live a righteous life (chs. 6-8), and being faithful to Israel (chs. 9-11). That ye present refers to a definite act of presentation. The verb is used of offering a sacrifice that became “holy” under the Levitical system (cf. Ex. 29:37).

This shows that the Christian life begins with total commitment and irrevocable presentation. And as per Your bodies: The body has been an instrument of sin (chs. 6). Now it is to be presented to God as a channel through which the righteousness of God is manifested.’

So you see my fellow believers, our body is a temple of the Lord, as Bruh Paul writes to the Corinthians: ‘What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.’ (1 Cor. 6:19-20) It could not be said any plainer or more straightforward than that my people! We do not belong to ourselves, but to God, therefore we must behave as such, in body, mind and spirit.

And how do we do that? Hear this practical advice from Bruh Paul to the Romans. ‘And be not conformed to this world: but he ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.’ (Rom. 12:2) Yes friends, all changes begin in the mind. That’s why we talk about the battlefield of the mind, for there the battle between good and evil, God and Satan continually rages, and the winner is shown through our outward behaviour.

Therefore we need to keep very good and close control of our thoughts, and keep recycling, refreshing and renewing godly ones to keep the enemy out. It’s as Bruh Paul advices the Philippians: ‘Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest (noble), whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise (anything praiseworthy), think (meditate) on these things.’ (Phil. 4:8)

So my fellow saints, let’s do our best to renew our minds by thinking on the right things, and keeping ourselves busy with the right activities, that we can do our duty to our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! Much LOVE!

…it’s a crying shame…that so many supposed believers…knowingly shirk their duty to Christ…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit 11 April 2021 Luke 14:33.

11 Apr 2021 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Luke 14:33.     ​So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

It’s gathering time again friends! Time to gather, praise and worship our heavenly Father on this first Sunday after Easter, the greatest day in the Christian faith! Wow! Please, let’s always keep that awesome day of Christ’s triumphant resurrection at the forefront of our memories nuh, because without it, there would be no Christianity, forgiveness of sins or basic salvation and eternity in heaven with Christ our Lord and Saviour! Glory to God the Father, who gave His only Son as a living sacrifice to pay for our sins! 

So, as always, let’s open with a song of praise and worship. And the lyrics to today’s hymn is one of the many written by American hymn writer Judson Van De Venter (1855-1939), the tune composed by Winfield Weeden. The song was first published in 1896, and it’s still one of our favourites today. We know it as ‘All to Jesus I Surrender.’ Now, as we raise our voices in harmony, in sacrificial praise, let’s sincerely open our hearts, souls and minds and surrender our all to Jesus, our High Priest, Lord and Saviour, Advocate, Prince of Peace, Mighty Counsellor, and all the other titles He holds, because it is right proper for us to do so. 

In an up-tempo beat, because we’re celebrating, not mourning: ‘All to Jesus I surrender. All to Him I freely give; I will ever LOVE and trust Him, In His presence daily live. (Refrain: I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all.) All to Jesus I surrender, Humbly at His feet I bow, Worldly pleasures all forsaken. Take me, Jesus, take me now. (Refrain: I surrender all..) All to Jesus I surrender, Make me, Saviour, wholly Thine; Let me feel the Holy Spirit, Truly know that Thou art mine. 

(Refrain: I surrender all…) All to Jesus I surrender, Lord, I give myself to Thee; Fill me with Thy LOVE and power, Let Thy blessing fall on me. (Refrain: I surrender all…) All to Jesus I surrender, Now I feel the sacred flame; Oh, the joy of full salvation! Glory, glory, to His name! (Refrain: I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all…I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all…’  

Yes friends, that was most excellent! And doesn’t it make you feel good, make you feel free and unburdened? Surrendering yourself to Jesus certainly does that! It lightens your load and puts some pep in your hitherto haunting step. So why are we so reluctant to surrender our all to Christ eh? We might surrender some, to Him, but too many refuse to surrender all. But that’s what He desires: ALL of us! As the old saying goes: All or nothing at all! 

And this explanation from the hymnary.org website puts it in an interesting manner. ‘It is human nature to seek power and accomplishment through conflict, hence the popularity of athletic contests. Defeat in a championship game is humiliating, and giving up is even more so. Nevertheless, Christ calls His followers to totally surrender themselves to Him. 

He described it this way: “Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:31-33 ESV) 

There’s no mincing of words in that statement my brethren. Remember the rich young ruler, who wanted to be perfect and had been faithfully keeping the commandments all His life? ‘Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be (want to be) perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven, and come and follow me. But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.’ (Matt. 19:21-22) 

Then Jesus told the disciples about it being easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven, and they were all amazed, wondering then, just who could be saved. ‘But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this impossible, but with God, all things are possible. Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?’ (Matt. 19:23-27) 

Oh friends, Jesus is not a hard task master, He just wants to see how faithful we are. In any case, when we give up earthly treasures on His behalf, He will repay us with even greater heavenly ones. Hear His answer to Peter’s question. ‘And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands (property), for my name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.’ (Matt. 19: 28-29) 

Yuh see people, sacrificing for Jesus here on earth will be handsomely rewarded in heaven. We’ve got to note though, Jesus’ last word on the subject. ‘But many that are first shall be last: and many that are last shall be first.’ (Matt. 19:30) Yes my fellow saints, the value system in heaven is very different to that here on earth. Not all that are important down here will be important in heaven. And likewise, not all that are despised and rejected will be so in heaven. 

As one commentator realistically puts it: ‘Don’t get caught up in the world’s way of ranking things; it’s too prone to error. Those who are first in the opinion of others (or first in their own opinion!) may be surprised to learn, on Judgment Day, they are last in God’s opinion.’ 

And I think that’s a very good note for us to end on today. Let’s remember it, so we don’t get any false opinions about our importance, be it here on earth, or up in heaven. Much LOVE!

…to get ALL that Jesus offers…we have to give Him ALL of us… 

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8             

Today’s Scrip-Bit 16 February 2020 Luke 14:33.

16 Feb 2020 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Luke 14:33.    ​So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that the hath, he cannot be my disciple.
 
Yeah! It’s the first day… the first day of the week my brethren. It’s Sunday…all day! And you know what that means, the church doors are open ready to welcome whosoever wants to come, but hoping that everybody will come. Yeh friends, that’s the hope of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, that all will come to salvation and thus become a member of His earthly organization called the church, and, on a regular basis, show their faces at the physical structures created for those blessed members to come and celebrate, give thanks and praise and receive heavenly succour, so that we can go about His business the upcoming week with vim and vigour, zest and godly energy! 

And for those of us who have accepted that glorious invitation, let’s begin the proceedings as we always do, with a song, a song of worship and thanksgiving, praise and gratitude. And today’s song is a popular hymn with lyrics by Judson Van De Venter and music by Winfield Weeden, published in 1896, and appropriately titled: ‘All to Jesus I Surrender.’ And do we ever need to do that…totally and completely, if we want to enjoy the good and abundant life He has planned for us. So let’s tell Him so now nuh, with sincere hearts and voices raised in praiseful sacrifice. 

As one soulful and harmonious choir: ‘All to Jesus I surrender, All to Him I freely give; I will ever LOVE and trust Him, In His presence daily live. (Refrain: I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Savior, I surrender all.) All to Jesus I surrender, Humbly at His feet I bow Worldly pleasures all forsaken, Take me, Jesus, take me now. (Refrain: I surrender all…) All to Jesus I surrender, Make me, Savior, wholly Thine; Let me feel the Holy Spirit, Truly know that Thou art mine. 

(Refrain: I surrender all…) All to Jesus I surrender, Lord, I give myself to Thee; Fill me with Thy LOVE and power, Let Thy blessing fall on me. (Refrain: I surrender all…) All to Jesus I surrender, Now I feel the sacred flame; Oh, the joy of full salvation! Glory, glory, to His Name! (Refrain: I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Savior, I surrender all… I surrender all, I surrender all; All to Thee, my blessed Savior, I surrender all…’ 

Ah friends, I do hope we were all sincere in that sacrifice of praise because the Lord is going to look at our hearts and check our motives, and if we weren’t sincere then we’ll have to answer why and not be blessed as we desired. And the whole thing is simply about surrender my people, surrender to the one who gave His sinless life to atone for our sins and made us right with God, gave us the wonderful option of eternal salvation by His resurrection, and is still advocating for us with the Father. It’s a normal requirement my brethren, if we want to enjoy the fruits of His efforts. 

Look at how we give our allegiance to earthly organizations, many of whom don’t do a blooming thing for us! Why then should it be so difficult to give our all to Jesus, who gave His all for us eh? We’re just being selfish and greedy and carnal. But Jesus made it quite clear when He spoke about counting the cost of discipleship. The Good Book says: ‘And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned and said to them, If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren (brothers), and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.’ (Luke 14:25-27) 

Wow friends, it sure looks like being a disciple of Jesus is not for the sorrowful or fainthearted! (smile) And Jesus certainly doesn’t want us to hate out families, because He is all about LOVE. He’s just saying that Him and His business must come first. Hear the scholars with some explanations. ‘14:25. Jesus had gained a wide hearing. Here was the temptation to water down the demands that discipleship entail. Yet in the following verses Jesus clearly does just the opposite.’ 

‘14:26. In comparison to one’s devotion to Christ, one’s family ties must be secondary. This does not set aside Jesus’ other teachings to LOVE one’s enemies, to honour father and mother, and the like. It does highlight that absolute loyalty to Christ is paramount, even though in many societies, including the one in which Jesus taught, as well as many today, following Him involves precisely the either/or that this verse sets up.’ Then Jesus in His inimitable style goes on to talk about building a tower and contemplating war, where the costs of both have to be considered before any serious commitments are made. (Luke 14:28-32)  

And the scholars say those verses are only found in Luke. And Jesus pinpoints the major lesson of the two stories in verse 33, which states: ‘So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that the hath, he cannot be my disciple.’ Yeh friends, to truly follow Jesus, one ought to count the cost. It’s not an easy row to hoe, but with His awesome help we can all handle it if we seriously commit our lives to Him. We have to be ready to give up a lot of stuff on His behalf. 

Remember the rich young ruler that came and wanted to be His disciple? (Matt.19:16-22) Jesus told him to first go and sell all his possessions and give to the poor and thus store up treasure in heaven then come back and follow Him. The young man went away sorrowful, because he had a lot of possession. Jesus didn’t really mean for Him to literally sell everything, but was merely testing His resolve. 

According to the scholars, His outward righteousness seemed fine, but he hadn’t really kept the commandments because his wealth and self-righteousness had blinded him to his real weakness; he LOVED himself more than he LOVED his neighbour, the poor. And he LOVED his possessions more than he LOVED God. This passage teaches the seriousness of true discipleship, but it in no way teaches the average man that he must sell his possessions in order to be Christian. 

So don’t worry my rich and well off friends, you don’t have to go and sell your possessions to be a disciple of Christ. (smile) But you do have to pick up your cross daily and follow Him, as He says early on in Luke. ‘If any man will (desires to) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’ (Luke 9:23) 

Now that’s the crux of the message my people: everyday we have to be willing to stand strong in His name and do whatever it takes to further His kingdom. Are we doing that in a satisfactory manner? I don’t think so, otherwise Christianity would be much stronger and much further ahead. So please, let’s spend some time today pondering our individual situations nuh, and ask the Lord to help us do better, because we all have room for improvement. Much LOVE!

…discipleship…means to be willing to forsake one’s self…every day… for Christ…