March 18th | Kill Your Pride
- CoachJasonMays
- 4 minutes ago
- 2 min read
“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.” (Matthew 10:16 NIV)
Jesus doesn't sugarcoat the mission. He sends His followers into a hostile world—not as powerful lions, but as vulnerable sheep. The call is clear: be wise and discerning about what is good, shrewd in navigating challenges and recognizing threats. Yet remain innocent regarding evil— not naive or ignorant of danger, but pure in our experience of it. We must know what can harm us and what opposes the Lord, but we don't need to immerse ourselves intimately in darkness.
Our wisdom protects us; our innocence keeps us undefiled.
“Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 10:32 NIV)
This promise is both comforting and challenging. When we boldly confess Christ as Savior and Lord in our words and actions, He claims us before the Father. It's a divine reciprocity—our public loyalty to Him secures His eternal advocacy for us.
“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’” (Matthew 10:34-36 NIV)
At first glance, this seems to clash with Jesus as the Prince of Peace. But He speaks of the inevitable division that follows truth. His coming forces a choice—light or darkness, Christ or antichrist, following Him or opposing Him. That choice can split even the closest families when some embrace the gospel and others reject it.
Jesus is real here: following Him isn't always easy or harmonious. There are sinister forces at work opposing the truth of Jesus as God's Son. Being a Christian demands courage—it's not for the faint of heart.
“Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 10:38-39 NIV)
The ultimate call is surrender. If we chase self-fulfillment—achieving, accumulating, protecting our ego—we end up empty, missing what truly matters. But when we die to pride, kill our self-centered ambitions, and live for something far bigger—Christ and His kingdom—we discover real life, purpose, and eternal significance.