Jesus had begun to let His disciples in on the plan for His death. They were not taking it well. So much so, that He had to bring Peter aside and rebuke him for inadvertently trying to stop God’s plan. Then Jesus invited everyone to listen to what He had to say next.

“And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. ” - Mark 8:34, ESV.

Death was the plan, and it was being laid out well before Jesus would endure the cross. Jesus would die for our sins. We, in turn, would need to die to our sin, to our will, and be willing to give up our very lives if need be. This is the cost of following Jesus. Just as He yielded the authority of His life to the plan of His Father, we must yield the authority of our lives to the will of Jesus.

Peter was wrong to try to hold on to their lives. Jesus chapped him and warns us not to do the same. You see, discipleship is costly. Following Jesus is no simple, cheap decision. Salvation is never a set-and-forget-it mentality. Easy believism seeks to hide this truth when leading someone to Christ. But it is an essential understanding. Being a disciple of Jesus will cost you everything.

Answer this question, “What do you think you signed up for when you agreed to follow Jesus?” -Pastor Mike

BTW, some people think that North West was a horrible name Kim Kardashian gave her baby, but that child is going straight to the top… and slightly to the left.