Christianity is hard work
“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?"(NIV) Luke 9:23-25
“Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed — not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence — continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.”(NIV) Philippians 2:12
In a world where everything Christian is regarded as weird and abnormal, being a Christian is hard indeed! Fortunately for us, we were forewarned that following Jesus will come with its own difficulties. In Matthew 16:24, when Jesus asked His followers to each take up their cross daily and follow Him, He meant they should be willing to die in order to follow Him (Jesus). This is a call to absolutely surrender to Jesus no matter what it will take.
Following Christ is easy when life treats us well. However, our true commitment to Him is revealed when we are faced with trials. Luke 9:57-62 tells us of three people who seem willing to follow Christ but they failed to count the cost involved. So, when Christ recounted the cost of following Him to them, all were not willing to put aside their individual interests and follow Christ. The modern-day Christian is not different from these three people. How many of us will be willing to be Christians if Christ had a face to face encounter with us and told us individually that following Him may come with the loss of great friendship, entire family, career, life or everything of much value to us in this world? I am sure many of us will have second thoughts just like the three persons in Luke 9:57-62.
If you are wondering if you are ready to take up your cross to follow Christ, provide sincere answers to these self-assessment questions. Personalize some of the questions by comparing following Christ to losing the most important things in your life.
- Are you willing to follow Christ if it means losing your worldly reputation?
- Are you willing to follow Christ if it means losing your friends because you insist the right things should be done always?
- Are you willing to follow Christ if it means losing your job or that career advancement you desperately need?
- Are you willing to follow Christ if it means alienating your family?
- Are you willing to follow Christ if it means losing your life?
If the answers are YES to all the above questions and much more, blessed are you! If the answers are a mixture of YES, NO and NOT SURE, it is time for self-introspection.
Following Christ does not necessarily mean you will face difficulties all the time. It means if there comes a time in your life where you are faced with a choice of following Christ or the comforts of this life, you will definitely choose Christ. Commitment to Christ means taking up your cross daily, giving up your dreams, hopes, possessions or even your life if need be for the cause of Christ. To be a Christian is hard work that pays. May God give us what it takes to take up our cross daily and follow Him. God bless you!
Time It Well || More