“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly beloved children.” (Ephesians 5:1) When we have been saved by Jesus Christ, we can, if we choose, become passive Christians who sit back and feel secure in our own salvation, and let other Christians spread the Gospel of Jesus. But to do so is wrong. Instead, we are commanded to become disciples of Jesus Christ who has saved us, and to do otherwise is a sin of omission with terrible consequences. When Jesus addressed His disciples, He warned them that each one must “take up his cross daily and follow Me” (Luke 9:23). Our Lord’s message was clear: in order to follow Him, His disciples must deny themselves and, instead, trust Him completely. Nothing has changed since then. If we are to be disciples of Jesus, we must trust Him and place Him at the very center of our beings. Jesus never comes “next”. He is always first. The wonderful paradox is that it is only by sacrificing ourselves to Him that we gain eternal salvation. Jesus walks with you. Are you walking with Him? Hopefully, you will choose to walk with Him today and every day of your life. Jesus loved you so much that He endured unspeakable humiliation and suffering for you. How will you respond to Christ’s sacrifice? Will you take up your cross and follow Him, or will you choose another path? When you place your hopes firmly at the foot of the cross, when you place Jesus firmly at the center of your life, you will be blessed. Do you seek to fulfill God’s purpose for your life? Do you seek spiritual abundance? Would you like to partake in “the peace that passes all understanding”? Then follow Jesus. Follow Him by picking up your cross today and every day that you live. Then, you will quickly discover that Christ’s love has the power to change everything, including you. “Christian discipleship is a process of paying more and more attention to God’s righteousness and less and less attention to our own; finding the meaning of our lives not by probing our moods and motives and morals, but by believing in God’s will and purposes; making a map of the faithfulness of God, not charting the rise and fall of our enthusiasm.”—Eugene Peterson Jesus in me loves you & so do I, Pe Comments are closed.
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