At what cost does true faith and obedience, and all the other marks of a holy, God-ordained new life in Christ come?

Dietrich Bonhoeffer stated. “When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die.”

Die to what? Jesus is very clear in His answer: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.”

This is a statement we have repeated on at least five occasions in the Gospels.  Jesus is adamant that to follow Him, to be His true disciple, means we give up our own living to that we can find His life in us.

Paul the Apostle described this death in these terms:  “So then, brothers and sisters, we are obligated, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— for if you live according to the flesh, you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.”

Paul is very clear: we must no longer live according to one’s life by one’s own will and own purposes.  All the life one would make on their own in this world comes under Christ’s crucifixion.  Only then can Christ live His life in us.

John C. Stam stated the following in his graduation speech at Moody Bible Institute April 22, 1932:

“Shall we retreat and turn back from our high calling in Christ Jesus; or dare advance at God’s command in the face of the impossible?  Let us remind ourselves that the great commission was never qualified by clauses calling for advance only if funds were plentiful and not hardship or self-denial involved.  On the contrary, we are told to expect tribulation and even persecution, but with victory in Christ.  The faithfulness of God is the only certain thing in the world.  We need not fear the result of trusting Him.”

When Christ calls us to Himself, He bids us come and die. For some that will include dying as a martyr.  For all, there is no other call regardless of the manner of our physical death.

To be truly Christian involves dying to our own wills, efforts, relationships, expectations, and everything else that living in the flesh. Not giving a portion of our time and resources. Not giving up a few things at various times of the year.

Philippians 1:20-21  “I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”

Here in the western world, the institutional church has ignored and forsaken the words and examples of Christ and the apostles, of the faithful and the martyrs throughout history. These examples have been relegated to the province of the unusual few and are not required of a normal Christian.

Like Jesus clearly stated, only those people who have surrendered their all to our God every day are the true examples of “normal Christians” acceptable in the Kingdom of our God.

For an example of this life to which we are called, read the post, “At What Cost? John and Betty Stam.”

Banner image via author, Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, Minnesota.