Matthew 16:24-28

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.

Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”

Personal Challenge

Following Christ is not just a once a week thing. Jesus expects His followers to give their entire lives to Him by denying ourselves, taking up our cross, and following Him. Yes, He loves us all, and He will still redeem those who choose to follow Him in a cavalier manner. If, however, we desire to not only see His Kingdom here on earth, but to the be in the midst of it every day of our lives, then we need to follow Him on His terms. Glory be to God!

Matthew 15:7-9

Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:

‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth,
And honor Me with their lips,
But their heart is far from Me.
And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’

Personal Challenge

Jesus had no problem challenging the religious elite of His day who had added all sorts of restrictions and expectations on top of the teachings of the fathers of the church. They could not leave it alone and added all kinds of rules, traditions, and rubrics to make it hard for the common person to practice their faith. Jesus called them hypocrites. Have we started doing the same thing in our lives and churches? Do we do the same things with our practices of worship God? We need to stay true to the teachings of our fathers and practice the simple truths of our Lord. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Matthew 14:27

But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”

Encouraging Words

In many of the Old Testament teachings we are told to be fearful of God for what He could do to us because of our sinfulness. This often developed into a cowering in the corner form of fear. If we study how David and many of the other saints in the Old Testament lived their lives in relationship to God, they had developed a fear that was more about a respect for who God was and what He could do to them, but with a hope that God’s mercy would always prevail. Jesus ushered in a new covenant with us where all of us can have this latter form of fear of our God and not be afraid at the same time. He is our intercessor and our source of hope for the mercy of God. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Matthew 13:44

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

Encouraging Words

It is hard to conceive of finding something so valuable that one would be willing to sell everything that they own in order to purchase the place where it was found. This is how we should view the kingdom of heaven that was ushered in by Jesus. It is more valuable than any thing or every thing that we could ever possess. It is the ultimate treasure. And yet so many of us leave it behind because the shiny bobbles of this temporal realm appear to out shine it. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Matthew 11:28-30

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

Personal Challenge

Which yoke are we taking up and putting on our backs? Is it the yoke of the world or the yoke of Christ? He calls out to us and asks us to come to Him first. He asks us to take up His yoke. He offers us rest in response to our coming to Him and a yoke that is easy and light because He shares the weight. We need to examine the joke that we are carrying to make sure it is truly His. Glory be to God!

Matthew 11:25

At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.”

Encouraging Words

As part of our fallenness we have made it good to always be in the pursuit of knowledge. The world believes there is power in knowledge. There has been, and still are, heresies that believe the path to God is through knowledge. The problem with the pursuit of knowledge is that it puts us in control. Jesus often reminded us that God reveals Himself to those who are babes, who put all their trust in their creator. He will hide His truths, His knowledge, from those who have puffed themselves up with the pursuit and acquisition of knowledge. If we want a fruitful and righteous life we need to know God not know about Him. Glory be to God!

Matthew 10:38-39

And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

Personal Challenge

Jesus quickly follows the challenge to us to proclaim Him as our Lord with the challenge to be willing to give up our lives for Him. He was willing to carry His cross and be sacrificed for us. Are we willing to do the same for Him? He was willing to give up His place in heaven in order to be incarnate and save us. Are we willing to lose our life for Him. He does not present this as an option, but as an expectation. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Matthew 10:32-33

Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.

Personal Challenge

Are we really ready to confess Christ fully before our fellow man and woman? Are we willing to stand firm on His teachings and precepts even though they may cause conflicts with the systems and people around us? Jesus is not asking us to just say that we are His followers and then do what everyone around us is doing. This is the ultimate form of hypocrisy. He is asking us to proclaim Him as our Lord with our lips and our actions. To demonstrate to the world around us that we desire to follow in His footsteps by walking in His footsteps. Living a life that confesses Jesus as our Lord will create a life that sets us apart from the world and therefore create conflict with the world. Are we ready to live this way? Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!