Matthew 16

“Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me’” (24). Jesus assured the disciples that his church would be unshakeable, built on a rock, and “the gates of Hades” would not overcome it. At the same time, he warned them that the real threat would come from within (23). Those who embraced only “human concerns” and resisted his way of the cross, those who rejected his path of suffering and sacrifice, would “forfeit their souls” (26).

“You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (16). When we receive Jesus and embrace his Way, including the way of sacrificial love, we become part of his unshakeable kingdom.