"Someone asked me if I was willing to live for Jesus, and I replied that if I am willing to do so, I must also be willing to die. I'm sure some of you might be wondering what I mean by that. It's simple: if you truly want to live for Him, you have to first let go of your own desires and then you might even face physical death because of the world's hatred towards Jesus.”
Jesus' presence was apparent during His time on earth. He emphasized the importance of carefully considering the implications of every decision, especially the decision to follow Him. This is a significant decision that will greatly impact our lives. The path of righteousness is not an easy one, as God tells us. Although it may seem simple in theory, the actual execution of it is quite challenging.
Jesus tells us these things in the following verses.
“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’
And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?
“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
For you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?
Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
Ok, I don't usually do this, but I cannot assume that we all have a right understanding of scripture, so I will break down each of these verses.
In Luke Jesus speaks of counting the cost of following Him. At first look, it may seem that God is telling us that we must first hate our family and our own life. However, when I researched this, I found it to mean something lesser, it means you will love them less. I am sharing what my finding was because I know you will seek out the truth and see the same results.
God has already shared with me what He meant by that statement. He was informing me of my decision and how it will take form in my life because I have chosen to follow Him. This does not mean we will hate them; it is stating that they will start to hate us because they have not made the same decision we have. If your family or friends have not come to know Jesus as the only way to the Father, then you will have discord in your relationship with them. I know that this is a hard thing to accept; the truth usually is. The truth is that light casts out darkness and the truth reveals lies, and this will always be the truth.
That was what Luke explained now we will do Mark.
This passage conveys a similar message but with a unique perspective. It encourages self-reflection, as Luke emphasizes counting while Mark demonstrates what actions are required. During Jesus' time, the cross symbolized death, and the people understood the significance of Jesus' words. For a better understanding, here is a clip that provides further insight.
When a person carried a cross in Jesus’ day, no one thought of it as a persistent annoyance or symbolic burden. To a person in the first century, the cross meant one thing and one thing only: death by crucifixion. To carry a cross was to face the most painful and humiliating means of death human beings could develop.
This video explains all of the verses I provide here. Please watch the above video it gives details of our walk for Christ.
So, I ask again: are you willing to live for Jesus? If so, know that you may have to die for that decision. In the past few years, I've been telling people this statement: I know something with 100% accuracy, meaning I know it for sure and it can be proven. We all die. All will die. We all. Who are you willing to die for? See, if you don't know who you are willing to die for, then you will die for anything. However, anything does not save; salvation only comes through Jesus Christ.
When you start putting things into the right perspective, they become easier to manage and understand. When you come to God, you must first decide in your heart whether or not you would die for Him. The reason for this is that the things God will call you to do go against what the world will call you to.
Living for Jesus means wholeheartedly committing to sacrifice your life for Him, just as He gave His life for you. God says in His words that this is your true and acceptable sacrifice.
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world,[c] but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Please go and read this whole chapter it is a very good chapter, and one of my favorite ones. See by this God will know you and you will know Him. By rightly dividing the words of truth.
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
To clarify, living for Jesus means being willing to die for Him as He did for all of us. If you believe in living for Christ, you must also be prepared to face persecution, as it is inevitable. Following God and Jesus means understanding that persecution in His name is part of the journey. God tells us to count it all joy for our reward is great.
Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.
Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Hope that this message blesses you and provides a better perspective on our journey with God. As always, I hope that everyone who visits this website will be richly blessed by God's words.
Amen.
Amen