Forsaking all for Christ!
Shortly after we read, in the Gospel of Matthew, about the wisemen visiting Jesus, we read about Joseph, Mary, and the baby Jesus fleeing to Egypt. And why did they leave their country and the comfort of their surroundings to go to a foreign land? They did it because they were told by an angel to leave where they were at and seek safety and refuge in another land. King Herod was worried about the birth of a new King and his desire was to find this royal child and kill him. In obedience to the angel’s directive Joseph and Mary gave up their own thoughts and plans and immediately left their homeland forsaking all for Jesus.
Time and time again I read stories about Christians from all over the world, who are giving up everything and forsaking all for the love of knowing Christ. These saints of the Lord are being driven from their homes, businesses, communities, and countries because they will not deny Jesus. In some cases, their lives and/or the lives of their family members are taken because they will not denounce their faith in Jesus as Lord and Master of their life. Thank God for the amazing faith His Holy Spirit has established in the hearts and minds of these beloved Christian men, women, and children.
Dear people of God, why should you and I forsake all for Christ? First of all, because He will never forsake us. The Apostle Paul tells us in Hebrews, 13:5b-6 “I will never leave you or forsake you.” So, we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”
Secondly, we can give up all for Christ because He gave up all for us. Did Jesus not leave the glories of heaven, where He was seated at the right hand of the Father, to come into this fallen world? Was He not born in the flesh for the purpose of living, suffering, dying on a cross, and rising from the dead, to save you, me, and all mankind from eternal condemnation? Jesus did nothing to deserve such hateful treatment, and you and I did nothing to deserve such an amazing show of love. Yet, He did it all willingly and perfectly, so we could enjoy everlasting life with Him. By His wounds we are healed, by His death our sins are paid for, and by His resurrection we are raised to new life.
Lastly, all we are and all we have in this life, and the life after, are blessed gifts given to us from Almighty God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Without Him we would not exist, and without His grace we would have no hope in this life or the life yet to come. The Lord is our All in all.
Dear friends in Christ, I pray you and I can stand strong for Jesus, and may we be able to faithfully proclaim these words from the hymn, “All for Christ I Have Forsaken”:
All for Christ I have forsaken And have taken up my cross; Worldly joy, its fame and fortune, Now I count as worthless dross.
Gone the past, unknown the future Grace supplies my daily breath; Strong in Christ through death’s dark valley, Firm and faithful unto death. Pastor McCarty