Purify Your Mind Series (Part 3) by Joe KirbyNäide

Would You Die for Jesus?

"I affirm, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily." (1 Corinthians 15:31)

In Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, we read of Christians who sang hymns to Christ while being burned alive. The apostle Paul said, “We are killed all day long” (Rom. 8:36). And around the world today, more are dying for their faith in Christ than ever before.

Many Christians read stories like that and say, “Wouldn’t it be amazing to take a hit for Jesus? What an honor to be martyred for my Savior.” Christianity may seem dull and lifeless, and we seem to sacrifice so little here in the West.

If you’re nodding your head and saying “Amen” right now, did you know there is a way for you personally to also have the honor of sacrifice and self-denial for the Lord? It’s called obedience.

"I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." (Romans 12:1–2)

We say we’d die for Jesus tomorrow, but we aren’t willing to live for Him today. If you want to be crucified for Christ, first crucify your passions on the cross for Jesus. If you want to take a radical stand for your God, first stand up to your flesh and say, “No more will I bow the knee to my selfish desires.” A day may come, sooner than we think, when we will suffer real persecution and perhaps physically die for Jesus, but I believe the ones who will endure that day are the ones who are already dying to self and choosing Christ over their cravings.

"Then Jesus told his disciples, 'If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.'" (Matthew 16:24–27)