[34] “When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. [35] For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.” – Mark 8:34-35 (NKJV)
God is not evil. But to help you to benefit from what He has made available for you in His gift of salvation, there are some things you cannot carry along when you’re pursuing Him. One of them is self. I’m talking about everything selfishness including your ambitions and self-motivated goals which aren’t in alignment with God’s kingdom. You have to give all of them up.
Jesus said in Mark 8:34 that whoever desires to come after Him must deny himself, take up his cross and follow Him. That’s a heavy blow to your faith. Right? Probably, you thought that when you come to Jesus, you’re going to enjoy a life full of blessings without worries. Well, that is true. But that’s not all. There are sacrifices you must make if you want to reach the fullness of your destiny in God. Let me give you one example. Jesus said something to His disciples when they complained that they’d left all things to follow Him. He said,
[29] “… And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. Matthew 19:29 (NKJV)
See that! Your followership of Jesus may require you to give up some treasured relationships in your life. But the good news is that there are benefits to this sacrifice. Deny yourself and follow Jesus, friend. You’ll benefit from such in ways you’ll not imagine.
You’re a blessing.
Prayer:
Father, help me to make meaningful sacrifices to keep me on track as I follow Your pathway to my destiny. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
Devotional Code: KGD – 2024 – 247
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