Whoever Saves His Life Shall Lose It

Discipleship Devotional, March 12th, 2025

For whoever is bent on saving his [temporal] life [his comfort and security here] shall lose it [eternal life]; and whoever loses his life [his comfort and security here] for My sake shall find it [life everlasting].
– Matthew 16:25 (AMPC)

To be a true disciple of Christ, we must value Him above all else. We must reach a point where nothing is more important to us than His glory. The Lord Jesus Christ often emphasized that we should not prioritize our comfort over Him. He said that anyone who follows Him must deny himself, take up the cross, and follow. In other words, we cannot be half-hearted; we shouldn’t love our own pleasure and comfort more than we love God. Christ must be all in all in our lives.

Many people, however, have hesitated to obey God’s commands because they love their comfort. When the Lord asks them to share the gospel, they worry too much about their reputation to act. Their image is too precious to risk by evangelizing. Some people are even prevented from receiving more serious ministry assignments because the Lord sees that they cherish their comfort more than Him.

And they have overcome (conquered) him by means of the blood of the Lamb and by the utterance of their testimony, for they did not love and cling to life even when faced with death [holding their lives cheap till they had to die for their witnessing].
– Revelation 12:11 (AMPC)

Some believers grow so deeply devoted to Christ that they no longer value their lives if it means they can share the gospel. The Bible says these people “loved not their lives even unto death.” They were filled with a consuming passion to preach the gospel, finding testifying about Christ more important than their very lives. These are the heroes of our faith, the ones who will be most honored by the Lord Jesus on the Last Day. Their willingness to lose their lives for His sake guarantees them an eternal reward.

Prayer:
Holy Spirit, help me to prioritize Jesus above all else. Help me not to love my pleasure, comfort, or even my life more than I love Him. Amen!