Tag: lose life
Jesus ashamed of me?
Scripture reading for March 15th: Luke 9
Key Scriptures: Luke 9:23-26 “And He said to all, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.”
Jesus was calling those to Himself who would be willing to lay down their lives to follow Him. In fact, those who would make the choice to follow Him, would necessarily take up a personal cross each day in doing so. The cross signifies a willingness to die to ourselves and to willingly give up our life. In doing this, His followers would actually receive their life back eternally. Those who were ashamed of Jesus and their cross signifying obedience to His Words would ultimately make Jesus ashamed of them when He comes in triumph and judgment of the wicked. How will Jesus react to me at His coming? Thankfully, today is a time to repent!
Luke 9:22 “. . . saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”
Faith confession and prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for calling Your followers to Your example. Unashamed You carried Your cross, beaten and bruised and suffered rejection and death for us. I will not be ashamed of You or Your Words as You empower me with Your amazing grace.
Isaiah 53:10 “Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush Him; He has put Him to grief; when His soul makes an offering for guilt, He shall see His offspring; He shall prolong His days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.”
The reward of following Jesus!
Scripture reading for January 22nd: Matthew 16
Key Scriptures: Matthew 16:24-27 “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul. For the Son of Man is going to come in His Father’s glory with His angels, and then He will reward each person according to what he has done.”
Following Jesus is not a part-time calling! We can’t keep one foot in the world and one on the path of Jesus. Jesus’ path led to the cross and Christ called His followers to take up their cross in order to follow Him. Jesus called for a complete sell-out and a denial of self-interest and pursuit of worldly wealth. Nothing we gain here in that respect can purchase our souls, and in fact, we can lose them in the process! Jesus, the Son of Man, will come with His angels to bring reward for those who overcome and successfully follow! This ought to motivate each believer and test our hearts concerning our commitment to follow Jesus.
Observation for over-comers: When we lay our life down for Jesus, we actually gain what money and fame cannot buy! Let’s embrace our cross and follow hard after our Lord! “Do not wear yourselves out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.” (Proverbs 23:4-5)