In verse 24, Jesus said, “If people want to follow Me, they
must give up the things they want. They must be willing even to give up their lives to follow Me.”
My commentary used what He said here to show the two approaches
to life that Jesus presented to His disciples:
Deny yourself Live
for yourself
Take up your cross Ignore
the cross
Follow Christ Follow
the world
Lose your life for His sake Save
your life for your own sake
Forsake the world Gain
the world
Keep your soul Lose
your soul
Share His reward and glory Lose
His reward and glory
It’s not difficult to see that the world’s view is selfish and prideful and goes against everything
God as said in all of Scripture. Christ’s
view instead throws out selfishness and self-centeredness. “It is in what man denies himself that truly makes
him a man,” I tell my sons often. In this case, we see that it’s only in
giving up what the world says is living
that we truly begin to live as God
originally intended.
Father, when I’m tempted to live by the ways of this world,
shout loudly and remind me that I am
not OF this world. I am not
my own. I was bought at an unimaginable
price, and I am Yours. Help me to act like it.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford