Want to be Worthy of Jesus? You Must Deny Self

“…he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.” (Matthew 10:38 NKJV)

    We have learned that to be worthy of Christ we must love Him more than those with whom we share the closest earthly bonds: our parents and our children. We have learned that we must choose conviction over convenience, choose to focus on the eternal to keep ourselves from getting lost in the temporary “want du jour”.

    Christ desires that we neither settle for nor give in to what is not according to God’s will and truth. It can be hard to let go of our past (parental upbringing) and to maintain a constant regard for our future (bringing up our children) but Christ tells us to prove to Him that we are worthy of Him by doing just that! And not only that, we must also prove ourselves in the ultimate test – likely the MOST difficult of all – to love Christ more than our own selves.

“If anyone desires to come after Me, let Him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” (Matthew 16:24 NKJV)

    Are you willing to set aside your own notions/ideas of what you think is right and take the time and effort needed to truly know and understand what is right in God’s sight by reading and studying His word, and only His word? Are you willing to put your whole trust in God and His awesome ability rather than trusting only in your own abilities to gather wealth, health, wisdom, status, etc.? Are you willing to put aside your own wants and desires in order to be available to help others in need (Romans 12:10-13, Philippians 2:3)?

    Each moment of each day you are blessed with is an opportunity to prove that you are worthy of Jesus. Each time you can choose Him over the world (1 John 2:15-17), choose to obey His commands (John 15:9-14, 1 John 5:3), use your time wisely (Ephesians 5:15-17), see opportunities to do good and do it (Galatians 6:9-10), meditate on good and proper things instead of giving the reins over to worrisome, anxious thoughts (Philippians 4:6-8).  

    Denying self is a life-long, daily battle, but we can grow stronger and more able when we consistently choose conviction over convenience, the Word over the world, and the eternal over the temporary.

One day or Day One? – You decide!!

 Let today be the day!!