Pearls from the Bible 95

Jesus was in the center of the procession, and the people all around him were shouting, “Praise God for the Son of David! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the LORD! Praise God in the highest heaven!” says Matthew 21:9. What a glorious, joyful day for all on that day. The followers of Jesus would have been overjoyed. They must have thought Jesus is about to launch his kingship on earth. They will rule earth. But soon they found themselves scattering away from him. They saw Jesus carrying the cross. Hey friend, we are also facing joyful moments which make us think life is great when Jesus is blessing us with such moments. But Christian life is also about taking the cross. The cross is the symbol of death. The most painful memories of every one of us is about losing someone. But when we decide to follow Christ, we are deciding to lose ourselves. How does that sound? Terrible, right? But we will find Jesus when we lose ourselves. Our everyday Christian walk is not only about happy processions alone. Since Christ has bought us with a price, we must remember that we are in a battlefield every day. To guard our salvation. Resist every temptation. Train your whole body under the rule of Christ. When the enemy sees Jesus in us and not us anymore, the battle is won.

Dear God, as David says in Psalms 144:1, "Praise the LORD, who is my rock. He trains my hands for war and gives my fingers skill for battle." Train our hands, Father, for the war that is set before us. May you grow larger in us and we less. We commit our lives to your hands. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.