Prayer : Father God, thank you for your love and kindness towards me, thank you for all that you have done in my life. As I seek to follow you, lead and guide me and lead in the path you want me to go and in your mercy and love forgive me for my sins in thought, word and deed. Hear my prayers in Jesus name.

Scripture Reading for Prayer and Praise: Philippians 2:10-11

that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Worship Song Sung or Said: Take My Life and Let It Be (Author: Frances R. Havergal)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLKY_KkuS-E

Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to thee.

Take my moments and my days; let them flow in endless praise, let them flow in endless praise.

Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of thy love.

Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for thee, 

Take my voice and let me sing always, only, for my King.

Take my lips and let them be filled with messages from thee, 

Take my silver and my gold; not a mite would I withhold. 

Take my intellect and use every power as thou shalt choose, every power as thou shalt choose.

Take my will and make it thine; it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart it is thine own; it shall be thy royal throne, it shall be thy royal throne. 

Take my love; my Lord, I pour at thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be ever, only, all for thee.

Gods Word For Today: Luke 9:23-25 Luke9:21-26

21 Jesus strictly warned them not to tell this to anyone. 22 And he said, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.” 23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. 25 What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? 26 Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. 

Devotional/Study:

Today we live in world where there are so many voices calling people to follow them. We live in a society where football teams, rock stars, various organisations and even religious leaders are calling people to follow them. When Jesus came into the world, he also called people to follow Him. He didn’t offer the pleasures of the world; he didn’t offer fame or success, He offered to fill the emptiness people feel and give peace, healing, hope, comfort, rest and experience His love and forgiveness.                                                          

However, following Jesus also came with a cost and that involves trials, suffering, persecution and even pain. In the beginning of His ministry Jesus picked ordinary men to follow Him and be part of a journey that would transform their lives forever.

In Jesus time to follow Jesus often quite literal meant to go with him, to stay with him and live as he lived as he journeyed throughout Israel, teaching and healing. Jesus didn't choose: the religious, the politically powerfully, the rich or the connected. Jesus could have chosen anyone, but he empowered and choose ordinary men to bring His Kingdom, His reign to the world.  He didn’t call them to follow a system or a religion or set of laws.  

He called them to follow Him and walk in his footsteps and share in the fellowship of his sufferings. He was calling them to live a radical lifestyle that was opposite to the lifestyle and values of the world. He was calling them to give up control of their lives and their future and put their trust in Him. In response to the call of Jesus they left their former life and followed him. However, I think these men didn’t fully grasp at that time to follow Jesus was going to be a journey of sorrow persecution, heartache, tears, confusion and death.

One day Jesus is preparing His disciples for His crucifixion, he has been telling them about how He is going to die. He was warning them that He was heading to the cross, to rejection and death. He then tells them in Luke 9:23 that whoever wants to be his disciple they need to be prepared to do two things that are very demanding and a call to surrender.

Jesus is saying if one is to follow Him and be His disciple, they must deny-self. The word deny means “to forget one's self, lose sight of one's self and one's own interests.” (The NAS New Testament Greek Lexicon aparneomai )

This calling wasn’t just for the disciples, Jesus is calling us to deny self, this is tough because it’s a calling to give up the desire that puts self-first and be willing to say, no to your self-centred life and “Yes” to a God centred life. It means you make a decision to no longer live for yourself but for Jesus and to fulfil His will for your life. When we choose to deny self, we do it out of love for God and because of what Jesus has done for us. 

Jesus himself gives us an example of self-denial when he said in the Garden of Gethsemane in Luke 22:42 "Not my will, but yours be done.” When we choose to deny self, we do it because we love God more than anything else in the world and desire for Jesus to rule and reign in our hearts and to live out those words of Jesus not my will, but yours be done. When we live according to Gods will we will discover the fullness of joy and a peace that brings rest and comfort even in the most difficult times in our lives.

Not only are we to deny self, Jesus also calls us to take up the cross. The cross in Jesus' day was an instrument of execution. It was a symbol of shame, suffering, and death. To the original hearers, seeing an individual carrying their cross meant death. 

I believe carrying your own cross means to be ready to follow Jesus even up to death. Dietrich Bonhoeffer a German pastor, theologian, wrote in one of his books, 

“When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die.” 

Brothers and sisters, to deny self and to take up the cross doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy ourselves and celebrate life and have fun, for Jesus came to give us life. Following Jesus should be our greatest delight and joy. However, we need to acknowledge and recognise that in the midst of the joy and delight there are trials and hardships and stresses of life. 

What gives us hope when life is hard, is knowing we are not alone, because God in Christ is with us in all our difficulties and comforts and gives us peace, in all our troubles. In light of that, we can say what the psalmist said in Psalm 62:1-2 Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. ”Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken." 

God has equipped and empowered us to handle any difficulties that come into our lives. As followers of Jesus and the best equipping God has giving us His living presence. When we go through difficult times, we are in that place where our hearts cry out: I need Thee, O I need Thee; every hour I need Thee; O bless me now, my Saviour, I come to Thee. (Annie S. Hawks)

Throughout Christian history, those who have chosen to follow Jesus and live for him and the principles and values set by the Holy Bible, have suffered. When we decide to follow Jesus and live for Him, life will become difficult, and we will experience hostility from anyone that is opposed to Christianity. One day, in this country there may come a time, when proclaiming Jesus as the saviour of the world will be a crime.

In the UK, there is a feeling that followers of Jesus are being marginalised and pressurized to conform to the philosophies, culture, and pattern of this world.   

As Christians, we must remain faithful to the teachings of the Holy Bible and not be influenced by the culture and values and clever arguments of this age. Sadly, I believe we have conformed to the way of the world. Today the church is weak and entangled in the ways of the world. The danger is when we don’t follow Jesus, we begin to conform to the world and therefore our mind-set, attitudes, values, and lifestyle become worldly. 

The challenge for us is how do we live out our faith in a society that has become more secular and humanistic and a society that challenges the biblical values and principles that we seek to live by. In a society that is growing hostile to Christianity, we must remain true to the teachings of the Holy Bible and be willing to stand up for Christ and must be careful not to be influenced by the culture and values of this world.

The early Christians were persecuted because of their faith in Jesus. They chose to follow Jesus instead of following the way of the world. I believe following Jesus is going to become harder, this should not surprise us because Jesus never said life would be easy, he said to His followers in John 15:18-21 "If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also.” 

I believe we need to prepare for the difficulties that are heading our way. But we don’t have to be fearful for we know that God is with us. As the second coming of Jesus draws near, persecution also draws near. There will be many difficulties and hardships ahead of us; however, whatever hardship comes our way we must not grow weary or lose heart and stay close to Jesus, spending time with him day by day. If we want to remain strong, we need to daily abide in Christ reading and praying, believing, and trusting in all that God is. Having a devotional time is something that will help us to grow spiritually and stay strong as we follow our saviour. I believe in these days Jesus is calling His people, you and me to live a radical lifestyle that is willing to deny self and take up the cross and follow Him. This calling is tough and sacrificial and is a call to live for Jesus and Him alone. The apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:15 "And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”

Following the path of Jesus is the path of sacrifice, trials and even suffering, but we must never forget it is also the path of peace, hope, healing, and unspeakable joy. The question for us today are we ready and willing to deny self and take up the cross and follow Jesus. 

Are we ready to put Jesus first in our lives and even be willing to die for Him?

In the meantime, while we live on this planet, let us in the power and strength of the Holy Spirit choose to deny self and take up the cross daily.  You may want to pray these words into your heart.

Take my life and let it be, consecrated unto thee

Take my will and make it thine, it shall be no longer mine

Take my heart, it is thine own; it shall be thy royal throne

Personal Prayers: