Thursday Thought -- May 26, 2011

Good Morning Friends,

“Then he said to them all: ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God.’” (Luke 9:23-27)

Our natural instinct is to follow our own ideas and plans. We want to be in charge of ourselves and do what we want to do. Our instinct is to give in to our desires and to what we think will be best for us and make us happy. Our instinct is toward self-preservation. We are inclined to do whatever will protect ourselves and advance our lives and our will.

Jesus calls to that which is opposite from our natural instincts. He calls us to follow Him and His will, instead of our own. He calls us to seek His desires and what is best for Him and His Kingdom, denying our own desires and what is best for our personal interests. He calls us to put our lives on the line, to be willing to sacrifice ourselves for Him and for others, even to the extent of being willing to be executed for Him and His will.

Deny ourselves – take up our cross – follow Him. Those are the invitations of Jesus. They are the demands of Jesus for those who seek what He has to offer, who want to be His disciples and learn about life from Him.

Seems like the wrong path – a path away from what is best for us. But if we think that – we are wrong! The path Jesus sets before us is the path toward saving our lives and advancing our eternal advantage. In fact, if we chose to follow our natural instincts – although it seems like the path toward what is best for us – it turns out to be the path toward destruction.

Which path are you on?

His, by Grace,

Steve