For Whoever Wants To Save Their Life Will Lose It, But Whoever Loses Their Life For Me And For The Gospel Will Save It

MARK 8:34-35
“When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.
”‭‭Mark‬ ‭8:34-35‬ ‭NKJV‬
‬https://bible.com/bible/114/mrk.8.34-35.NKJ

V

Mark’s original audience, the Romans, understood what it meant to take up the cross.
The cross was used to execute the most severe dangerous criminals; a prisoner would have to carry his own cross to the place of execution to signify submission to Rome’s power.
Jesus used the image of the cross to illustrate the ultimate submission required of His people. It’s not that He is against pleasure or comfort, or riches, or that we should seek pain needlessly; but rather, He was talking about the persistent effort needed to follow Him, to seek His will, and live obediently for Him, and to do His will, however difficult, regardless of cost or persecution that comes as a result, even when the work is difficult and the future looks bleak.
Furthermore, we believers should be willing to give up our life if it’s necessary to fulfil God’s purposes; not because our lives are useless, but because nothing, not even life itself can compare with our gain in Christ.
He wants us to follow Him rather than continue to a lead a life of sin and self-satisfaction, which actually, is self destruction.
He wants us to submit to His plans and direction, rather than following our own plans. This makes good sense because He is our creator, and knows better than we do what life is really about; He knows us better than we know ourselves, including our needs, likes, and what makes us happy.
God created us with purpose, and only when we live in alignment with God’s plans and purposes for us, can we be truly fulfilled.
Only through Christ do we have real hope, contentment, peace of mind, and everlasting joy. Only Christ can fill that void in our lives and make us feel whole.
Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one can come to the Father except through Me (JOHN 14:6).
Jesus way works; He makes ways where there was no ways; He brings victory, peace and contentment.
His is the only truth that can save us from the power of sin, for He is the life that sets us free, and because He lives, we also live.
Jesus is the only way to our Father in heaven. There is no other way. No other religion or person, or object, or god can deal with or even tries to deal with the wages of sin; but Jesus did just that when He took yours and my place on a cross.
God wants us to live blessed lives; He wants us to have nice things, even money if we can handle it; He wants us to be content. However, He won’t bless His children with wealth or any particular thing if it will damage them or steal one’s salvation; He will not give His children more than they can handle; though He will over time build us to handle more.
But our salvation is His number one goal, and if necessary, He will let us fall to the bottom of the pit if that’s what’s needed to humble us.
Sometimes we must fall hard to the very bottom so that we can bounce back up.
God must be your number one, far above anything or anyone else. At no time should we put ourselves, a person or possession before God. He is the Highest; He always was and will always be.
Furthermore, service to Him must always be our priority.
All believers are called to serve, not just those who regard themselves as leaders.
Jesus is the head, ”And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.“
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4‬:‭11‬-‭16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
Not one believer is exempt from service and every member of the whole congregation fall into one or more of the categories of the five fold ministry of Christ.
All members are of the same body and all are of equal importance, but Christ is the head. The truth is, we are all leaders of our individual calling, subject to the head.
None of us are called to control or manipulate, for we are all one in Christ.
“I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.“
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4‬:‭1‬-‭6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
Are you ready to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to Him, not being conformed to this world, but rather being transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God (ROMANS 12:1-2).
Are you ready to live for our Lord and Saviour, to make His plans and purposes priority above all else?
My beloved, Jesus said, ““Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6:19-21‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.