EXPLORE THE TEXT
We cannot follow Jesus fully until we sacrifice our personal agendas to Him.
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples,
“If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me.
25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life because of me will find it.
26 For what will it benefit someone if he gains the whole world yet loses his life?
Or what will anyone give in exchange for his life?”
Discuss responses.
Identify the three qualifications for a true disciple of Jesus (v. 24).
Reflect on each qualification by responding to these questions:
Note that Jesus shared more about why discipleship is important.
Read this to help adults better understand Jesus’s teaching:
Jesus pictured a person gaining all that the world has to offer
in riches, fame, security, and pleasure.
Tragically none of this will rescue them at the end of life.
Death and judgment will not be delayed by the accumulations of life.
The ultimate question in life is simply this:
what are we willing to exchange to experience life to the fullest, now and for eternity? (PSG, p. 34)
Reflect on what they may be holding that distracts them
from complete devotion to God.
Ask adults to consider how their life plan at age 16 is different from the path they’ve actually traveled.
Allow volunteers to share responses.
Affirm that Jesus had a plan, even if it was different from their plan.
Assure them that He still has a plan that will lead to their good and His glory.
Challenge them to surrender their own plans to God so that they can follow Jesus as He leads them.
Review these points from Apply the Text on page 35 of the Personal Study Guide:
Invite adults to look back through the direct quotes of Jesus in today’s passage. Encourage them to share how they see the summary points from this lesson revealed in these statements from the Lord. Highlight the value of living out each one.
Invite a volunteer to read aloud the first set of questions on page 35 of the PSG. Review the various ways people in the world view Jesus and how that differs from what we find in the Bible. Emphasize that Matthew wanted his readers to acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah, the One sent by God to save the world. Note that this is the view genuine disciples of Jesus understand and embrace.
Direct adults to respond to the second set of questions on page 35 of the PSG. Invite them to meditate on their lists and to talk to God about what each one means to their relationship with Him. Close in prayer, asking God to help each person know Him for who He is and to follow Him without reservation.
Send the group a text or email during the week. Encourage them to continue reflecting on their lists from the second set of questions on page 35 of the PSG. As appropriate, share ways God has been speaking to you through this exercise. Challenge adults to consider how their personal worship time can move them toward knowing Jesus better and following Him sacrificially.
In His substitutionary death on the cross Christ made provision for the redemption of men from sin. (See
Isaiah 53:5-6; 2 Corinthians 5:21.)
Read, reflect on, and apply a Bible passage.
Focus on Matthew 16:24. Identify the three qualifications for becoming a true disciple of Jesus. Reflect on the meaning of each qualification by responding to these questions: What does it mean to deny oneself? What are some things that hinder me from denying myself? What does it mean to take up your cross? What does it mean to follow Jesus? For you, what is the next step in following Jesus?