“Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” Matthew 16: 24

Brothers and sisters,

The time has come when true worshippers should worship God in spirit and truth. Not after the dictates of men but the dictates of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Lord Jesus Christ was clear in what he expected his followers to do. Sacrifice is a key to the Kingdom of God. God loves those who can go over and beyond for the Kingdom. But these days we have become _lovers of ourselves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God (2 Timothy 3:2-5)_

In John 12:24-26, Jesus said Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. God requires us to inconvenient ourselves for his KINGDOM.

The heart of sacrifice was shown in Genesis where Abraham obeyed God’s commandment and gave his only son. In the New Testament, Paul strove for the Kingdom of God. He was shipwrecked, beaten for the gospel, yet he stayed firmly rooted in Christ.

Dying to self produces much spiritual gifting. And we must realize this of our own accord. It requires praying at odd times for others whilst others are sleeping; it requires letting go of your pride for the good of the kingdom. It is only people who are dead and buried with Christ that can see God, that will understand the mind of God.

Remember that scripture says if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, behold old things have passed away and all things have become new. Are we dead to self? Have we turned from our wicked ways? Are we lusting after more souls to God? How often do we become selfless so that others will know Jesus?

Our sacrifice is what also activates God’s blessings in our lives. God should be proud of us and see our commitment to his vineyard. No wonder Jesus said that the vineyard is plenty, but the workers are few. Let us therefore sacrifice for God’s work to activate his presence with us.