A Dangerous Trap?

After Jesus began telling His disciples about the suffering and death that He would endure, Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Jesus for His negative confessions. I can just hear Peter, "Come on Jesus, what's up with all of this negativity... All You ever talk about anymore is sacrifice!"

Jesus' response is pretty intriguing. After telling the devil to get behind Him, Jesus says:

"You are a dangerous trap to me. You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God's." (Matthew 16:23b, NLT)

What if God really isn't so interested in my comfort? What if His wonderful plan and purpose for my life involves loss? Would I still be willing to follow Him?! Of course, in light of what Jesus did for me on the cross, my answer must be a thousand yeses.

Here's the thing... Unfortunately, whenever you set out on God's path for your life (a course that is almost always fraught with danger and unpopular choices), you will have well-meaning Christians attempt to talk you out of your insanity. They will try to explain why God couldn't possibly want you to get THAT radical in your faith.

In that moment, may you have the wisdom to see things from God's point of view, not from man's! May you have the ability to hear the Holy Spirit's whisper, and may you have the COURAGE to obey!