Matthew 16:24-27 (NKJV) Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.
Not many people want to live a selfless life. Yet Jesus has asked us to pick up the cross, deny ourselves, and follow Him daily. As Christians, we must be careful not to succumb to the world’s lure, with its lust of the eyes and the flesh, lest we risk selling our souls to the world.
In the opening passage, Jesus tells us what it takes to be a disciple. A believer believes in Jesus and waits to go to heaven, whereas a disciple works and lives for Jesus while waiting to be united with God in heaven. We need to count the cost of discipleship.
We are eternal beings, and therefore pilgrims and sojourners in this world, because heaven is our eternal home while earth is our temporary abode. All of us will leave this earth. We should look forward to the day when we will meet our Creator and Saviour face to face and spend eternity with Him.
The opening Scriptures make it clear that our actions and work on earth for the Lord matter, even though they do not affect our salvation. It is a matter of choice whether we yield to the flesh or the Holy Spirit. While salvation is a gift of grace, there will be a final judgement for all believers, when He will evaluate how we have lived.
The Day of Judgement is for believers only. We are saved by grace through faith. God has imputed His righteousness to us, and our salvation rests entirely on the atonement and redemptive work of Jesus Christ! Therefore, the Day of Judgement is not to judge whether we have been saved, but to reward us according to the responsibilities we have carried out for the Lord, based on our faithfulness and willingness to serve Him with the gifts, talents, and financial and material blessings He has given us. We are saved to do good works because He is the master craftsman.
Jesus will come back one day, and we must each give an account of what we have done for Him with all that He has given us, and we will receive our rewards accordingly.
Reflection: Are you excited or fearful when you contemplate the Day of Judgement? How does the truth that we will one day have to give an account to God affect the way you live today?
Sermon Series: Pick up the cross to follow Jesus
评估与赏赐的日子
马太福音 16:24-27 于是耶稣对门徒说：“若有人要跟从我，就当舍己，背起他的十字架来跟从我。因为，凡要救自己生命的，必丧掉生命；凡为我丧掉生命的，必得着生命。人若赚得全世界，赔上自己的生命，有什么益处呢？人还能拿什么换生命呢？人子要在他父的荣耀里，同着众使者降临；那时候，他要照各人的行为报应各人。”
没有多少人愿意过无私的生活。然而，耶稣却要求我们每天背起十字架、舍己并跟随祂。作为基督徒，我们必须小心，不要屈服于世界的诱惑—眼目的情欲和肉体的情欲，以免冒险把自己的灵魂卖给世界。
在开篇的经文中，耶稣告诉了我们成为一名门徒需要付出什么代价。信徒相信耶稣并等待进入天堂，而门徒则是在等待与天父在天堂联合的同时，为耶稣工作和生活。我们需要计算作门徒的代价。
我们是永恒的生命，因此在这世界上是客旅，是寄居的，因为天堂才是我们永恒的家，而地球只是我们暂时的居所。我们所有人都会离开这个地球。我们应当向往那一天，届时我们将与我们的创造主和救主面对面相见，并与祂共度永恒。
开篇的圣经经文清楚地表明，我们在地上为主人所作的工和行为至关重要，尽管这并不影响我们的救恩。顺从肉体还是顺从圣灵，是一个选择的问题。虽然救恩是恩典的礼物，但所有信徒都将面临最终的审判，届时祂将评估我们是如何生活的。
审判日是唯独针对信徒的。我们得救是本乎恩，也因着信。神已将祂的义归给我们，我们的救恩完全取决于耶稣基督的赎罪和救赎之功！因此，审判日不是为了审判我们是否得救，而是根据我们为主人承担的责任，基于我们的忠心以及是否愿意用祂赐给我们的恩赐、才干、财务和物质祝福来服侍祂，从而给予我们赏赐。我们得救是为了行善，因为祂是精湛的匠人。
总有一天耶稣会再来，我们每个人都必须为祂所赐予我们的一切向祂交账，并以此获得相应的赏赐。
默想： 当你想到审判日时，你是感到兴奋还是恐惧？“总有一天我们要向神交账”这一真理，如何影响你今天的生活方式？
讲章系列：背起十字架跟随耶稣