“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.” Mark 8:34b

If we hope to leave a legacy that edifies Jesus, we must make a decision to be His disciple and follow Him. As we follow Jesus with all of our heart, our legacy in Christ will begin to take shape and become established.

Looking at Jesus’ call to discipleship in Mark 8, we see four things from Jesus’ call to become His disciple.

First, it starts with us. Jesus said, “If anyone…” meaning each and every person must make a personal decision to follow Jesus. No one can make the decision for us. It is ours and ours alone.

Second, we must change our primary loyalty. Jesus said, “wishes to come after Me”. Becoming a disciple means we shift our primary loyalty from whatever has a hold on us to Jesus. Being a disciple requires to “come after” Jesus, which means our primary loyalty must first and foremost be to Him.

Third, we must choose to live sacrificially. Denying oneself and taking up a cross means to live a life of willing sacrifice. As shared in an earlier blog, the most lasting legacies are built on sacrifice, not selfishness.

Finally, we will need to take a step in the right direction. Jesus concluded His call to discipleship by saying, “…and follow Me”. Following someone means taking a step in the same direction as the one we follow.

Leaving a lasting legacy in Christ means we start with ourselves, we change our primary loyalty, we choose to live sacrificially and we take a step in the right direction.

May we all desire to leave a lasting legacy in Jesus.

Something to think about…