Did you "INVITE" or did you "GIVE"?

One day Tom and I were talking about God and bouncing thoughts and ideas off of each other and Tom made a distinction that really hit home with me (and I think it did him too!).  It is something that I still process and something the Lord continues to remind me of as I face my daily struggles in this world and with my flesh. The distinction Tom made, which I think is for all of us who call ourselves “Christians”, was: “Did you “invite” the Lord into your life or did you “give” your life to Christ?” Wow.  Those are two completely different things yet, I had not seen that before! I have often used the words “invite” or “give” interchangeable when talking about salvation and walking as a Christian but, really, they are two entirely different words!

Invitation

When I think of the word “invite” I see it as bringing someone into my life to participate in something that I designate.  So, to invite Jesus into my life would be like having the option of including Him in things or not.  I can invite him to join me for church, meals or to meetings or even hang a picture of Him on my mantle and talk fondly about Him with others or call on Him when I need help, comfort or support when things don’t seem to be going quite right in my life.  So basically, I can do all the things that I want to do and consider him as a convenience and a resource to call upon when needed.

To Give

Now when I “give” something to someone it is no longer MINE but it belongs to the person I gave it to.  I can no longer call the shots or control what happens to it.  To give your life to Christ would look completely different than inviting Him into it.  In effect we are saying, “Lord, I am your bondservant and I no longer live my life the way I want to (Galatians 2:20) but now YOU have control over my life. YOUR will be done… no matter what you ask of me, or how hard or illogical it is or what others may think, I am Your servant Lord and I surrender all my heart, mind, body and soul to You.”  Yeah, I think there is a little bit of a difference here between the two words...

When I look at scripture the disciples called themselves “servants” of Christ (or bondservants in the KJV).  The original word used is “doulos” which Thayer defines as:

1) a slave, bondman, man of servile condition 1a) a slave

1b) … one who gives himself up to another’s will…

1c) devoted to another to the disregard of one’s own interests

2) a servant, attendant

So, basically they considered themselves as slaves to Christ, giving their lives and themselves over to His will and disregarding their own interests being a servant and an attendant to their Lord!!  How many Christians do you see living like THAT in this day and age?!

What happened to the “Giving our lives to Christ” message in churches anymore?  When did that change?  How subtly different the new phrase is and how it just moved right in without any notice!?  Interesting, isn’t it?  I think I smell a deceiver in here somewhere, don’t you?  Now, you can just “invite” Christ into YOUR life and you don’t have to give up anything or GIVE your life to Him anymore…  It’s so easy, painless and convenient… anyone can do it!  

I love Oswald’s take on this:

The Conditions of Discipleship

Luke 14:26-27, 33 – “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters--yes, even his own life--he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple… In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”

If the closest relationships of a disciple's life conflict with the claims of Jesus Christ, then our Lord requires instant obedience to Himself. Discipleship means personal, passionate devotion to a Person --- our Lord Jesus Christ... To be a disciple is to be a devoted bondservant motivated by love for the Lord Jesus. Many of us who call ourselves Christians are not truly devoted to Jesus Christ... We may admire, respect, and revere Him, but we cannot love Him on our own…

So, the question that comes to my mind at this point is, are we truly saved when we just “invite” Jesus into our lives or does salvation come when we “give” our life to Jesus?

Lord I pray that as we learn to “Love you with all our heart, mind, soul and strength…” (and even with our life) that you would show us what it really means to be a disciple, a bondservant to You and Your Kingdom. To give up our lives and surrender everything in them for service to You.  Give us a revelation of what it truly looks like in our lives, to be a servant of the Most High God, surrendering, yielding and giving our lives to You.  In Jesus name, Amen!