Day 194 “Is He Lord of my life or does my life lord over me?”

Day 194 Matthew 23:27-28 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” Many of us have often heard this statement: “If it sounds too good to be true, it is.” Well, in the case of the people Jesus is speaking to, that is true. You see, many of the religious leaders of Jesus’ time had become men of high moral judgment for everyone but themselves; they saw themselves somewhat above everyone else, particularly the gentiles. They would act as though they were pure and holy yet, on the inside, they were hypocrites who apparently sinned often, with no repentance. I am so thankful that we, today, have the privilege and honor of having Jesus as our mediator and savior. Even though we face a plethora of challenges, He has paid the price. What can we learn from these men of whom Jesus speaks you ask? While there are many lessons, I have chosen one I deem of utmost importance–making Jesus the Lord of your life. You see, many will call on His name yet, to some, He will say upon His return: “Depart from Me, I never knew you,” not exactly the words we will desire to hear from Christ at His return. But those who have made Him Lord of their life will have no fear of hearing such painful and condemning words. I suggest they will hear something more like: “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.” Right now you may be asking “How do I know that I have made Him Lord of my life?” Maybe this will help. When a farmer has an orchard with good mature trees, and for whatever reason decides to change the type of fruit he produces, he has one of two options. One, he can go through the expense of tearing out all of the old trees, preparing the ground, and re-planting new seedlings. This process is very expensive and, as you can imagine, is quite time consuming. After all, once you have re-planted, you must now wait for the roots to take hold, the tree to grow, and, yes, in most cases, it will eventually re-pay you for your investment. However, there is another option. A farmer can remove the top of the tree from below the lowest limb and graft or attach the seedling of the fruit he has chosen to grow. Now the seedling will benefit from all of the nutrients of the existing stump and deep root system. Hence, the cost, effort, and destruction are greatly diminished, while the end result is a healthier and more quickly producing crop. You see, if we choose to make Jesus the Lord of our life now, we are instantly grafted into the kingdom; we will produce much more fruit than those who choose the way of death and destruction, followed by re-planting and care. Those who are grafted still must endure pain and change, but they are directly connected to the source of all good things, Jesus! Those who are not may or may not survive, but either way, they have chosen a much more difficult way. I pray today that each one who reads this will purpose in their hearts to be grafted to their savior, connected directly to Him, the source of all good things; the one who preserves, provides, shelters, and redeems. Are you grafted in? Is Jesus Lord of your life? Daily Prayer: Father, I pray that I will always keep You as the Lord of my life, never choosing my own way, but rather submitting to Your will. I surrender to Your Lordship today. In Jesus’ name, Amen. “Is He Lord of my life or does my life lord over me?” Gene Burroughs, Servant/Pastor