Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, all who place their faith and trust in Him alone for salvation are guaranteed eternal life (John 3:16). However, Jesus called His followers to take up their cross and follow Him (verse 24). Today, many people think that bearing the cross is ONLY linked to an inconvenient , unwanted or bothersome circumstance we have to go through such as a child who is giving parents troubles all the time. My brother, my sister, that’s why the Bible should not be read out of context. The full verse says: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (verse 24). Yes, my friends! We should not see things like the world does, but like the Word says. Therefore, the concept of death must not be removed from our cross-bearing. However, we must keep in mind that Jesus is calling us to engage in radical self-denial, dying for ourselves, when we want to follow Him. The Bible says “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it” (verse 25). Besides, the theme of the death of our sinful self and our rising to walk in a new life through Christ clarifies it: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). So this teaches us that we should live according to the principles of the Word of God, not according to any unrevealed human interpretation of the Word. Stay blessed in Jesus’ name.
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