Focus
Prepare yourself to discern what is and what is not of God today. Still yourself so you can hear how God is calling you.
Read
31 Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”
34 He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. 36 For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37 Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 38 Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
Reflect
Jesus is talking about his certain future. The coming of the cross. Peter just could not handle this. He tried to rebuke him. We all can look back and say we wouldn’t have done that. We can see it. In truth, we would, more than likely, had Peter’s reaction.
Jesus calls for his disciples to pick up their cross and follow him. If we truly want to follow God we must deny ourselves, lose our old life. This is hard for us humans to do. Deny ourselves! I’m number one, why would I deny myself?
Here is the why. When we decide to follow Jesus we are saying we want to be part of something bigger than ourselves. If we are to follow Jesus we will find ourselves amongst “sinners”, As Jesus did. We may find ourselves clothing the naked, feeding the hungry, or working with the homeless. We may find ourselves giving a $20 bill to someone and not knowing what came of it. Heaven forbid!
Pray
Heavenly Father, we pray that we pick up our cross and go and do the things you have called all Christians to do.
Go with God!
