|
 or many people, following God is something that is very hard to do, as if serving God is a burden to them. For many, serving God is tantamount to giving up most of their worldly concerns. But from the teachings of the Scriptures, we will realize that it is not very difficult to follow God. Perhaps, we will really find it difficult if we do not know Him and if we are ignorant of His ways. This is the reason why we need to clarify first the initial step that we need to take if we want to follow God.
Let us find out from the Bible the foremost thing that we need to do if we want to follow God ... if we want to be worthy in His sight ... and if we do not want to fall into sinfulness.
This is what our Lord Jesus Christ says in Luke 9:23—
“And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself …” This is a statement that concerns all. If we want to follow our Lord Jesus, we have to deny ourselves and ... “… and take up his cross daily, and follow me.”
Therefore, if the first step is self-denial, the second step is to carry one’s cross daily. These are two of the requisites that Christ set to those who want to follow Him. And we will use this verse (Luke 9:23) as our basis in this study.
The very first thing that a man has to do is to deny his self. For those who do not understand what our Lord Jesus said, they would think that He is being selfish. He says—
“And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.”
It is not that easy to deny oneself. Perhaps, the first question that we need to answer is, what are the things that are of oneself? There are things in this world which are not really ours, like our body and our life. And neither is our breath nor the properties we possess are truly ours. So, which is that of one’s self that we have to deny when there is really nothing that is truly ours? I Corinthians 4:7 says—
“For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?”
Is there any person who had stood out of the rest because of his doing only? For instance, if you became an outstanding model, or a beauty queen, did it happen due to your own doing only? Who made you stand out? Who gave you a pretty face and a beautiful body? Who made you intelligent? Who gave you that beautiful voice? Who made you outstanding? If you became a powerful person, if you became an excellent basketball player, is it because you made yourself one? Can all those things be done by man alone? No! In fact, there are people who want to grow tall but they couldn’t, even if they have tried all kinds of vitamins that would enhance growth. Of course, you could not blame your parents for making you short.
Therefore, if we will talk about traits like, a good voice, intelligence, creativity, etc., all of those are not products of your own doing. But who made you stand out over the rest? What have you that you did not receive? God said, "what hast thou that thou did not receive?” What is your answer? For example, you now have a diamond ring. But did you already have that diamond ring when you were born? If you are a lawyer now, were you already a lawyer when you were born? No! You have a prudent wife. Whose is she? You also just received her. Let us go over the verse again to be sure of what Christ is trying to tell us. I Corinthians 4:7 says—
“For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?”
Why are you boasting when you have really nothing to boast for? You only received everything that you possess. They are not originally yours. Is there such a man who, by nature, is already rich? Is there any man who, upon birth, is already decked with jewels from head to foot? Is there a man who is already equipped with wisdom the moment he was born? A person came out of his mother’s womb naked. Job 1:21 says—
“Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither:”
Just try to think of it. We do not really own anything when we were born. Perhaps, others would retort, “I own my body; I own my breath.” That is not true! If we are to consider what the Bible says, even those that we think we own are not really ours. They were just given to us. We are mere recipients. Acts 17:24-25 says—
“God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands. Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed anything, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;”
Now, which is really ours? None! God gave us everything, including our life and our breath. He gave us our whole being. (Acts 17:28)
“For in him we live, and move, and have our being.”
That is why we cannot brag of anything to God. Everything that we have came from Him. So, if you are short, or if you are tall, that is God’s doing. Your beauty came from God. You may be ugly in the sight of men, but you are beautiful in the sight of God. Actually, nobody is ugly in the sight of God. It is only man who ridicules and scorns those who have physical defects like a flat nose, or a pimpled-laden face. But we must always remember that as far as our Maker is concerned, everybody is beautiful. If you will just look around you, you will notice that God created more ugly or plain-looking people. That is why actors and actresses, who had been endowed with good looks and beautiful bodies, capitalize on their physical appearance to earn a big amount of money. And that is because they are fewer in number. God made only a few beautiful men and women – beautiful in the standards of men. God created more plain-looking people. Are you agreeable to that? But, is the God who created man intelligent, or not? Of course, He is intelligent. Is He a loving God? Yes, He is. Does it mean that He loves the ugly more because He made more of them? Bear in mind that, for God, nobody is ugly. He regards men equally. For Him, there is no darkness and there is no light. They are but the same. Psalms 139:12 says—
“… the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.”
|
|
|
Bible
The
Way to Salvation
