Being Wise Being Instructed

“When He [Jesus] had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, ‘Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the Gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.’” [1]

Jesus is still calling people and disciples to Himself. His message remains the same. You must decide who you will serve. To serve Jesus requires denial of one’s own agenda! To serve Jesus requires cross bearing! The cross is metaphor for surrendering one’s self for the service of God and others. This seems like an unjust demand by Jesus until He speaks of losing one’s soul. You can behave as though you are the Lord of your life, and as though you do not need Jesus, but the price tag is to lose your soul. Jesus said that if we are ashamed of Him amidst an adulterous and sinful generation, He will be ashamed of us when He returns in glory with His angels.

To miss out on an eternity with God is too large of a cost for any of us to pay!

Who is the beneficiary of your time, treasure and talent?

Moses called people to make clear cut decision when he said to them, “Whoever is on the Lord’s side—come to me!” Joshua said to his listeners, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Elijah asked people, “How long will you falter between two opinions?” and then, urged them, saying, “If the Lord is God, follow Him...” [2]

Who do you boast about?

Paul wrote, “God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” [3]

A new day is coming! Isaiah the prophet wrote about it long ago, saying, “ Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it. Many people shall come and say, ‘Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths. For out of Zion shall go forth the Law, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations and rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.’” [4]

The present world culture is ending. Soon, people will be streaming to New Jerusalem to be taught by Jesus and to learn how to walk in His ways. The Word of the Lord will be streaming out from Jerusalem to the nations. Weapons of war will be converted into tools for food production. The world’s culture of loss and death will be replaced by the Lord’s culture of blessings and abundant life.

“Now therefore, be wise, O kings; be instructed, you judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.” [5]

Yes, the kings and judges of the earth would be wise to heed the Word of the Lord. Their days of exalting themselves against God and His anointed one Jesus Christ are coming to an end. They should fear, love and trust God so that they no longer send people to war to die to satisfy their egos. The blood of many is on their hands. Their days of contradicting God’s Word without paying for it are coming to an end. They would do well to serve the Lord with fear, rejoicing and trembling. When God’s wrath is kindled against the pride of humanity, people are brought very low. To kiss the Son is to worship the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, who took the wrath of God that each of us deserves for our evil deeds. Kings, judges and people who serve the Lord shall be blessed by God.

“Please Lord Jesus grant each of the grace to serve You with fear, rejoicing and trembling.”

[1] Mark 8:34-38
[2] Exodus 36:26 Joshua 24:15; 1 Kings 18:21
[3] Galatians 6:14
[4] Isaiah 2:2-4
[5] Psalm 2:10-12