Scripture

Our verse for today comes from Mark 8:35, “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me and for the gospel will save it.”

Background

Who doesn’t want to save their life? For the one who’s floundering in the water, about to go under, it’s the only thing on their mind. For the family in their burning home, none of their keepsakes would be valued over deliverance beyond the smoke and flames. It’s easy to understand the individuals who are in a life or death situation hoping for nothing but their life to be spared. Even those who are extremely sick, or terminal, or well-advanced in years, but know that they are on the threshold of eternity with God. Do they not yearn for more time to live and love and enjoy? We all want to save our life. We’re just saving it from different things. But Jesus said that we must lose our life for Him and His gospel if we wish to save it. For those of us who look at it this way, we consider following Jesus as our Lord and Savior as the losing part, and receiving a relationship with Him and life everlasting as the saving part. But then what?

Application

As I go about my days of following Jesus, I still seem to be concerned with saving. Not necessarily my life, but many things pertaining to it. And in doing so, I’ve realized that I lose a part of my life when I’m not focused on losing it all for Him and His gospel. When I’m following Jesus but am unwilling to apologize, then I’m losing my life. When I’m following Jesus but pursuing my agenda, then I’m losing my life. When I’m following Jesus but not trusting Him for my future, then I’m losing my life. This losing and saving for Him and His gospel turns out to be more than the way into His kingdom. It’s the way that His kingdom children live. And when we continually surrender everything to Him, then we have life in Him and of Him. Honestly, I’m not sure I’ve ever fully digested that. I think I’ve tasted it and sampled it, but so much more seems to be available. And I think I’m saving myself right out of experiencing it. I want to save my life His way. I hope you do, too. So let’s lose it all for Him and His gospel.

Charge

As we seek Him today, surrender and lose and sacrifice and submit. Do whatever you can’t do on your own, and live for Him.

Salvation – Eternal Life in Less Than 150 Words