Matthew 16:24-26
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to follow me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. In fact, whoever wants to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. After all, what will it benefit a person if he gains the whole world, but forfeits his soul? Or what can a person give in exchange for his soul?
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for sending your Son to lead us as a mighty King. He gave his criteria for all who desire to follow him: faith. He wanted an all-volunteer cross-bearing army of believers. As believers, we will have trials and challenges attacking the very heart of our faith; we will struggle against the world and our flesh. As believers, we always have the choice to set down our crosses and walk away—desiring to save this temporal life. Jesus told us about the crosses we will have to deal with as his believers. At times, we may not understand why.
However, we have Jesus’ promise, “whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” We step out with our crosses, doing what we need to do for our family or vocation, doing them out of love for what Jesus has done for us. He willingly carried his cross, which was the world’s sin; he suffered our punishment and forgave our every sin. So we live our lives as a witness to what Christ has done for us—he credited us with his perfection, suffered and died for our sins, and then rose Easter morning so that we know you accepted Jesus’ payment for sin’s debt.
Give us the courage and strength to carry our crosses today and every day to witness your love and mercy to others. If it is your will, give us opportunities to tell of Jesus’ love and forgiveness for them. Please let us realize there is nothing in this world and no task too great to give in exchange for our souls. Amen.
Written through Pastor Roger Emmons
God forces no one to be his follower. He provides everything one needs to have everlasting life: forgiveness, grace, and mercy, along with the faith to believe in what Jesus has done. All one must do is stop rejecting all he has given to them.