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What If It's Necessary?


Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. (Luke 9:23-24)

          Picking up on my discussion from yesterday, in today’s passage, Jesus tells us again that if we want to be His disciples, we must deny ourselves and at least be willing to lose our lives. How would you describe living “the life”? For me, it usually involves not having to worry about resources, whether treasure, time, or talent. Another aspect that I would include is progress. You’re living the life if you’re headed in a good direction, getting things done. 
         Jesus preached that if our eyes or hands cause us to sin, we would do better to cut them out or off than to keep them and lose heaven. 
          Abram left home and most of his family in Ur to live in tents in a foreign land that had been promised to him. Joseph was the favored child, then he was sold as a slave. He became a favored slave, then ended up in prison. Moses was a prince, or the next best thing to a prince until he murdered a man. Paul was a Pharisee’s Pharisee and converted to a belief he’d tried to stamp out. Are we willing to be downwardly mobile? Are we willing to cut out of our lives something that feels essential or order to follow Christ? 
          It’s not an easy decision to make. It’s not an easy decision to live. But what if it’s necessary?

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