Luke 14:26 - "If any man come to me and hate not...he cannot be My disciple."
There is a difference between devotion to a Person and devotion to principles or to a cause. Our Lord never proclaimed a cause; He proclaimed personal devotion to Himself.
Men pour themselves into creeds, and God has to blast them out of their prejudices before they can become devoted to Jesus Christ. To be a disciple is to be a devoted love-slave of the Lord Jesus. Many who call themselves Christian are not devoted to Jesus Christ.
No man on earth has this passionate love to the Lord Jesus unless the Holy Spirit has imparted it to him. We may admire Him, we may respect Him and reverence Him, but we cannot love Him. The only Lover of the Lord Jesus is the Holy Spirit, and He shed abroad the very love of God in our hearts.
There is a difference between devotion to a Person and devotion to principles or to a cause. Our Lord never proclaimed a cause; He proclaimed personal devotion to Himself.
Men pour themselves into creeds, and God has to blast them out of their prejudices before they can become devoted to Jesus Christ. To be a disciple is to be a devoted love-slave of the Lord Jesus. Many who call themselves Christian are not devoted to Jesus Christ.
No man on earth has this passionate love to the Lord Jesus unless the Holy Spirit has imparted it to him. We may admire Him, we may respect Him and reverence Him, but we cannot love Him. The only Lover of the Lord Jesus is the Holy Spirit, and He shed abroad the very love of God in our hearts.
