Why We'll Always Celebrate Christmas!
When It's All Been Said and Done
Monday, December 29, 2003
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, Thank You for this new day of life! From You comes every good and perfect gift, and I offer my thanks and praise for who You are, and for all that You do in my life. I thank You most of all for sending Jesus into the world to provide a way for salvation for us all. I thank You that He did not “sugarcoat” Your love for us, but made it clear that while You give us everything freely, You also call us to respond in grateful faith and obedience. I pray this day for a fresh anointing of Your Holy Spirit that I may live boldly and confidently for You in all that I think, say and do this day. Thank You in advance for using me to glorify Yourself, to empty my life of selfish ambition, to shoulder my cross effectively, and to follow Jesus wherever He leads. This I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Bible Verses
Mark 8:34-48
34Then he (Jesus) called his disciples and the crowds to come over and listen. “If any of you wants to be my follower,” he told them, “you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross, and follow me. 35If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will find true life. 36And how do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul in the process? 37Is anything worth more than your soul? 38If a person is ashamed of me and my message in these adulterous and sinful days, I, the Son of Man, will be ashamed of that person when I return in the glory of my Father with the holy angels.”
Questions for Reflection
Today, we’re focusing on worship as we turn again to Mark 8:34-38. Consider the commands of Jesus, and how they impact our pursuit of the purpose of worship in our lives.
As you reflect on worship, how do you see worship itself as a setting aside of selfish ambition, as shouldering your cross, and as following Jesus?
What would be different about your worship, if you took Jesus’ command to set aside selfish ambition, shouldering your cross and following Him seriously all the time?
Questions for Exploration
What, if anything, does today’s Scripture teach us specifically about worship? (8:34-38)
Questions for Understanding
What does “giving up our lives” for Jesus’ sake have to do with worship?
What part does being ashamed or unashamed of Jesus have to do with worship in our daily lives?
Questions for Application
What one aspect of your worship will change as a result of reading today’s Scripture?
Giving Up Our Lives...
One of the most basic “instincts” of human beings is that of self-preservation. From the time we are children, we understand the importance of “looking out for #1.” What Jesus tells us, though, is that when we make Him “#1” in our lives, and only then, will we truly live! When we freely give up our lives for Jesus, then, we can live this life with abandon, knowing that whatever comes our ultimate destination is heaven. That doesn’t mean that as followers of Jesus we ought to live recklessly—quite the contrary—it means rather that we stop living for comfort and acquisition as a means of gaining security. We recognize that the only ultimate security comes from a relationship with the living God through Jesus Christ.
Many years ago, missionary Jim Elliot made this statement, “The man is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose. That which we cannot keep is our physical lives. That which we cannot lose is our eternal lives through Jesus. Jim Elliot would pay the ultimate price in this life, for his dedication to taking the Good News of Jesus to the Auca tribe in Peru. A group of Aucas murdered Jim and several other missionaries as they attempted to share the Good News of Jesus with them. Some years later Jim’s widow, Elizabeth, was instrumental in leading the Auca’s to salvation through Jesus Christ! She could have hated the Aucas. She could have lived the rest of her life in bitterness. Instead, she forgave the Aucas and offered here life in service to Jesus Christ through them.
In our lives, we probably won’t be called to give up our lives literally. In fact, we can only do that once! The challenge is to give up our lives EVERY day, to set aside our selfish ambition EVERY day, to take up our crosses and follow Jesus EVERY day. The world teaches us to accumulate everything we can. Rick Warren puts it this way, “The world tells us to get all we can, can all we get, sit on the can and can all the rest!” Jesus tells us that only when we give ourselves away—to Him and in service to others in His name do we find our lives and save our souls! As we close out 2003, and prepare for a whole new year, may we take Jesus seriously. May we live our lives fully and whole-heartedly for Him. After all, if are successful only in worldly terms, then at the end of our lives, we will lose it all, but if we are successful in God’s terms, then we will one day have everything! May we choose to God’s success, and live it daily!
To view other studies from the Why We Celebrate Christmas series, click here.