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Matthew 16:24 - Transformation and Really Living!

Matthew 16:24 - Transformation and Really Living!

Matthew 16:24 (NKJV) Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If 
anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his 
cross, and follow Me.  

Matthew 16:24 (NIV)  Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If 
anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross 
and follow me. 

Matthew 16:24 (EAV)  Then Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone 
desires to be My disciple, let him deny himself [disregard, lose sight 
of, and forget himself and his own interests] and take up his cross 
and follow Me [cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My 
example in living and, if need be, in dying, also]. 

Matthew 16:24 (TLB)  Then Jesus said to the disciples, "If 
anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him deny himself and take up 
his cross and follow me. 

About Discipleship (21-28). In his misguided attempt to keep 
Jesus from suffering and dying, Peter the stone became Peter the 
stumbling block. Confessing Christ must lead to following Christ. The 
world encourages you to pamper yourself, but the Lord calls you to 
deny yourself. The only way to live is to die to self and follow 
Christ by faith. [Chapter by Chapter Bible Commentary by Warren 
Wiersbe] 

   George MacDonald sounds as tough as a medieval monk when he 
writes about denying ourselves: "We must refuse, abandon, and deny self 
altogether as a ruling, determining, or originating element in us. We are 
no more to think, 'What should I like to do?' but 'What would the 
Living One have me do?'" 
   He adds, "The self will be cunning and deceitful until it is 
thoroughly and utterly denied." 
   Although severe about denying ourselves and emptying our 
wills, MacDonald communicates grand enthusiasm at the results. He 
describes our drawing fresh life from God by our "uplooking will" and says 
that when we deny ourselves, we're receiving God's will and can shove 
aside our anxieties and fears: "The life of the Father will be the joy 
of the child." 
   When we deny ourselves so we can see through God's eyes and 
think his thoughts--when we feel his deep concerns and his 
compassions--we find purpose and guidance even in grim times. We follow the 
Father's guidance in the same way that Jesus followed his Father all the 
way to his heavenly home. The will of God becomes the driving force 
and zest of our lives--and ultimately the source of our joy. 
   When we take on the yoke that Jesus invites us to bear, we 
carry the same yoke as he bore in fulfilling the will of the Father. 
   "With the Garden of Gethsemane before him," MacDonald says of 
Jesus, "with the hour and the power of darkness waiting for him, he 
declares his yoke easy, his burden light [see Matthew 11:30]. He first 
denies himself, and takes up his cross--then tells us to do the same." 
   His burden is only light as we shoulder it in his 
strength--and with his determination to follow his Father without 
reservation. 
   Father in heaven, help me to bring my will and my self to you 
and to trade them in for your dynamic will and purpose. Help me to 
follow you now more fully than ever before and to be an instrument of 
your peace. [The One Year Book of Encouragement by Harold Myra] 

Principle Never Changes. So it will be with all who will live 
godly in Christ Jesus. Persecution and reproach await all who are 
imbued with the Spirit of Christ. The character of the persecution 
changes with the times, but the principle--the spirit that underlies 
it--is the same that has slain the chosen of the Lord ever since the 
days of Abel.  {AA 576.2}  [Remnant SOP SB re 2 Tim. 3:12] 

LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT:

A Better Way to Live: http://www.itiswritten.com/betterway/

Lifting Up Jesus Bible Studies: http://www.liftingupjesus.net/

Grace Notes: http://www.e-gracenotes.org/index.php

Excellent Spiritual Resource Site: 
http://www.christianlifemediacenter.com/ 

More Spiritual Resources: http://www.aBible.com