Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wants to come with Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me will find it. What will it benefit a man if he gains the whole world yet loses his life? Or what will a man give in exchange for his life?
Matthew 16:24-26 HCSB
There is an old business fable that speaks of a dish made with eggs and ham or bacon. It is said that the chicken is involved, but the pig is committed. The chicken provides eggs which require little effort and the pig gives his life.
What level of commitment do you require of others? Let’s say that you need open heart surgery or brain surgery, do you want the doctor to be fully committed to the job? Or, would it be okay if he stopped to check his stocks or to run and get something to eat in the middle of the surgery? Would it be okay if he took a little break because it was so tedious and the whole process was just taking too long? Would it be okay if he was checking his social media and forgot some important parts or left equipment in there while he sewed you up? You probably wouldn’t want anything to do with a surgeon if you knew that he lacked commitment.
But, yet we think it’s okay to be half-heartedly committed to Christ. Interesting how that works isn’t it? We live by double standards. We want Christ to be committed to us. We want Him to hear our prayers and answer our prayers and get us out of these tough jams we often get ourselves into. But it’s perfectly okay for us to not have time for him. It’s perfectly okay for us to have better things to do than to praise and worship Him.
We think because He’s a loving God, He will understand and just give us a pass when we ignore Him for things we consider more important. I encourage you to think again. He is not only a loving and merciful God, but a just God that is prone to great wrath. Does the flood in Genesis, chapter 6 ring a bell?
In our Scripture passage today Jesus begins his statement with one little word, “if”. Jesus tells them if they want to follow Him, they must deny themselves. What does this mean? Well, quite simply, it means that what we want is less important than Christ. We put God first. We put the needs of others before our own. Then it says, we must take up our cross and follow Him. In Matthew 10:38 Jesus says that anyone not willing to take their cross and follow after Him is not worthy of Him. The Jews knew what He meant. They had seen thousands crucified on the cross. Jesus is speaking of allegiance even to death. This means full commitment, just like the pig in the fable, all in. It means we give our life to Him.
Being a Christian is often inconvenient. It requires time and devotion. It brings persecution. Jesus said, in Matthew 22:37 that the greatest commandment is that we love Him with all our heart, all our soul, and all our mind. This means He is first in our lives. This means that all other things take a back seat to Him.
Our Scripture passage asks how we could benefit if we gain the world, but lose our soul? Or, what would we give in exchange for our soul? I want you to think about this. Are you exchanging anything for your soul? Does anything come before God in your life? Are you just too busy in your life to give God your time and the glory, honor and praise He so richly deserves?
I want you to think about John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son so that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” God sent His Son, Jesus, to die for our sins. God did this so you and I could have eternal life. Eternity is a long time, my friend. How will you spend it? What if it started today? What if you died right this second? Do you know where and how you would spend eternity?
How you live here and now will determine how you live in eternity. If you choose to put God first and praise and honor Him now, you will spend eternity with Him in heaven. If you choose to deny Him now, He will deny you before His Father and allow you to spend eternity in the fiery flames of hell (Matthew 10:33).
God doesn’t want just your involvement, He requires your commitment. What will it be? Are you willing to give your life over to Him?
Have a great day!