Sermon Illustrations

The reason Jesus is so adamant about followers surrendering everything is because the reality is this: the one thing we are most reluctant to give up is the one thing that has the most potential to become a substitute for him. Really what we’re talking about here is idolatry. When we are to be following Jesus, who is ahead of us, but find ourselves looking behind us, we are revealing that we are substituting something or someone for him. When we finally surrender that one thing, we discover satisfaction that comes from following Jesus that was always missing when we were holding something back.

Kyle Idleman, "Not a Fan" (p. 205)

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