Light and Momentary?

This morning I continue my reading from Mark, moving on a bit to the following verses - Mark 8:34-38 NIV:

[34] "Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. [35] For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. [36] What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? [37] Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? [38] If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels.”

These verses probably don't make anyone's list of top favorite verses of all time, and for that very reason it is important that we spend time with them.  I believe there is a brand of Christianity today that preaches only blessing and good things.  This stream has no aswers for difficulty or struggles other than to cast blame, or at least suspicion upon the person walking through difficulty.  The logic of this approach follows that if God only brings blessings and good things than people struggling must have some amount of secret sin, or that they are in rebellion and God is punishing them.  I would imagine that these statements by Jesus are never heard in those churches.  

Jesus is quite descriptive of the cost of following Him, and while He had not yet gone to the cross, one expects His listeners understood what He meant when He said "take up their cross".  Apparently it was a form of punishment used by the Greeks as well as the Romans that was used prior to their time by the Phoenicians.  Thus, it was likely a widely understood term.  Some commentators believe that in this instance it was understood to mean persecution.  Here is a note from the Discovery Bible: "The "cross" (Mk 8:34) is not a symbol for suffering in general. Rather it refers to withstanding persecution (difficult times), by the Lord's power, as He directs the circumstances of life. As Christ's disciples, believers are to hold true – even when attacked by the ungodly.]"  Regardless of exact meaning, it is clear that Jesus' description of following Him would not be a life of all blessings and good things!   

It is important how we process such statements in our lives of faith.  If we look at the lives of the Apostles, and many in the early church, their lives while filled with miraculous experiences, opportunities to witness healings and other signs and wonders, and yet they were far from perfectly comfortable.  They understood the reality that following Jesus would invite persecution and derision from the family, friends, neighbors and government, yet they gladly embraced faith in Jesus!  They understood that the eternal benefits of being part of the Kingdom of God, followers of Christ Jesus, far outweighed the difficulties.  

Paul writes 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NIV:  "Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. [17] For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. [18] So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

Paul obviously writes these words post resurrection, and when we read Jesus' words above, we also must understand them from the place of the completed revelation of Christ Jesus' passion, death, resurrection and ascension!  He wasn't a popular leader looking for followers, He was the Son of God, come to earth, preparing the way for restoration of relationship with our heavenly Father!   His call and invitation is for us to take up this ministry of reconciliation.  

Paul writes the following further on in his letter to the Church in Corinth - 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 NIV: "So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. [17] Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! [18] All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: [19] that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. [20] We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. [21] God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

Our call in following Jesus is to be like Him, to take up His ministry, as Paul points out in the verses above.  Our moment of salvation, while it does seal our eternal destiny, is not a one-way ticket to heaven, and a "get out of all difficulty and pain" card.  When we choose to follow Christ we join ourselves to His Body here on earth, and our ministry becomes His ministry, our life becomes His life!  We have become a new creation, and our old life is no longer ours!  

While this may not seem the most encouraging word this morning, let me say that is only because we don't fully comprehend the eternal glory that far outweighs every trouble we may experience here.  Our invitation is to bring Heaven to earth (Matt 6:10), to proclaim the Kingdom of God present, and then demonstrate that reality, that the world might see, understand and be reconciled to God!  

Oh Lord, help us!  Oh Lord, show Yourself mighty to this, our fallen world.  Help us to follow you daily!  Help us to bear witness to Your Gospel of Grace!  Help us to bear up under the trials and difficulties that we might reveal You in all Your Glory!

Amen and Amen!