Following Rabbi Jesus - Part 2

In Matthew 16:24 Rabbi Jesus communicates what is necessary to possess Him as Savior. In so doing He also invites us to discover the key to securing its goal – eternity with Him in Paradise.1. If you want Jesus to be your Savior then you must live the rest of your life rejecting the belief that the most valuable things in this life are those that advance/promote self-image or pleasure (24a).1.1. When Jesus says “Come after Me” He is alluding to OT Messianic texts such as (Isa 55:1-4) which means He is referring to possessing Him as Savior (or coming to Him to receive salvation).1.2. What Jesus means by “deny himself and take up his cross” is the making the choice to permanently reject the pursuit of my image (self-image) and those things which advance it as the most valuable things in this life. Even people who live for – or are infatuated with – or find most valuable, the lives of others and therefore try to imitate them are still people living for the advancement of their own self-image. The reason they associate with that person is because of what they believe it does to advance how they feel or look to others (e.g., fans [fanatics] of celebrities [sports, music, movies, social media etc.; devotion to a particular brand [sunglasses, shoes, etc.]). This same example can be multiplied many times over when one considers the number of things people will devote themselves to because they believe it will promote their self-image (meaning the image of themselves they want to promote) (e.g., growing a beard; tattoos; clothing, cosmetic or shoe brands; physical fitness; the kind of car they drive; their hobbies). 1.3. What (then) Jesus is not talking about: becoming “the navy seal of ‘no’”. IOW: the key to getting to heaven is not growing in self-discipline (Col 2:23; 1Ti 4:8). It is instead about changing whose image we are attempting to advance from self to God – which means believing that the most valuable things in this life are those things that promote that – His image (not ours).2. Possessing Jesus as Savior will also mean adopting His belief that the most valuable things in this life are those that advance/promote God’s image and pleasure (24b).2.1. By “Follow Me” Rabbi Jesus means imitate Him. Not, “become a clone”, but “be the best Christ-version of yourself” – which ultimately means we live not for our own glory but the glory of the Father. That we – like Jesus, see as most valuable in this life those things that advance/promote God’s image (Joh 8:29). This then is what replaces our former life pursuit (the advancement/ promotion of my self-image or pleasure). We stop living for the glory of self and start living for the glory of God – which again means that the things we now see as the most-valuable are those that achieve that goal (i.e., those things in life which advance/promote God’s image or glory and not our own).2.2. The promotion of image is at the core of our design (Gen 1:26-28) = We were created as image-bearers (or image-promoters) which means this is our “modus operandi” – our hard-wired purpose in life (e.g., animals). As such every single person lives to promote either their image or the image of God- which means this is the test that determines where we spend eternity (Paradise or hell). On Judgment Day, our deeds will show whether we promoted our image or God’s image during our earthly life (Rev 20:11-15)2.3. Why will those who chose to live for self rather than promoting God’s image and glory go to hell instead of Paradise? 1) because you become what you do (i.e., you are permanently/eternally shaping the moral state of your spirit by your choices/who you choose to live for; 2Co 4:16-17 w/5:9-10; Eph 4:17-19; 2Pe 2:20). 2) those who chose to live for self are the destroyer of worlds (all this world’s problems and coming destruction is due to people living for self). 3) letting such people into Paradise would turn it into hell. 4) God is equitable and so will give to each person the world that best fits their spirit (the world they deserve/ordered based on their deeds) and not allow them to destroy the world that best fits the spirit of others. 2.4. By changing our focus/goal from promotion of self-image to the promotion God’s image and glory, our affections (love, loyalty and passion) will automatically change to align with our new-found focus/goal (Mat 6:21): this principle works both ways (self or God) – which is why you can always tell whose image a person is truly attempting to promote by simply looking at who/what they love, who/what they are loyal to and who/what they are passionate about. 2.5. That seeking to advance/improve/promote God’s image rather than our own is at the heart of Rabbi Jesus’ call to follow Him is confirmed in how He taught His disciples to pray (Mat 6:9-10) “Hallowed (i.e., glorified, advanced, promoted) be Your Name (i.e., Your Name/Image/Likeness [e.g. NIL])…[which means] ...