How to Find Inner Fulfilment in Christ

[24] “For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.” — Luke 9:24 NKJV

I always wondered what Jesus meant when He echoed this Word in Luke 9:24. It looks contradictory to me. But I know Jesus never makes mistakes because there was no sin in Him.

According to Jesus, anyone who desires to save his life will lose it, but anyone who loses his life for His sake will save it. My emphasis in the Bible verse is on three words, namely, ‘save’, ‘will,’ and ‘lose’. “Save” in that scripture means to keep safe and sound or to rescue from danger or destruction. “Will” means “definite,” and “lose” means “to put out of the way.” So here’s my paraphrased translation of the first part of the scripture:

“Anybody who desires to play it all safe in life will definitely lose it. But the one who risks His life for God’s sake will find safety and fulfilment.”

Read that again, this time more carefully. Jesus has clearly shown us how to find inner fulfilment in Christ. That is, to risk it for His name’s sake. In other words, place your personal life out of the way to do His will completely. And I want to let you know that that is the cost of following Jesus. You must have the faith to leave your old lifestyle when God calls you to serve Him. I’m not just talking about full-time ministry, but things like accepting to do the work of the ministry while putting normal life routines aside. That is what will help you.

You can merely answer the call of Jesus, but as you continue following Him and doing His will, there are some things – attitudes, routine work, and thinking patterns, that you can’t carry with you. Leave them aside to do the work of the Lord. This is how to secure your life. Submit every part of it to the Lordship of Jesus. He will never fail you.

Prayer:

Father, thank You for teaching me in Your Word that it pays to follow You wholeheartedly. In all sincerity, empower me to leave my old ways of living and doing things whenever You call on me to follow a new path by divine providence. In Jesus’ name. Amen!

Devotional Code: KGD – 2024 – 085