Let us learn, in the first place, from these verses, that men must make iqj their minds to ttvichle and self-denial, if they folloiv Christ.
Our Lord dispels the fond dreams of His disciples, by telling them that His followers must " take up the cross." The glorious kingdom they were expecting, was not about to be set up^ immediately. They must make up their minds to persecution and affliction, if they intended to be His servants. They must be content to " lose their lives," if they would have their souls saved.
It is good for us all to see this point clearly. We must not conceal from ourselves that true Christianity brings with it a daily cross in this life, while it offers us a crown of glory in the life to come. The flesh must be daily crucified. The devil must be daily resisted. The world must be easily overcome. There is a warfare to be waged, and a battle to be fought. All this is the insepa- rable accompaniment of true religion. Heaven is not to be won without it. Never was there a truer word than the old saying, "No cross, no crown!" If we never found this out by experience, our souls are in a poor condition.
Let us learn, in the second place, from these verses, that there is nothing so precious as a man's soul.
Our Lord teaches this lesson by asking one of the most solemn questions that the New Testament contains. It is a question so well known, and so often repeated, that people often lose sight of its searching character. But it is a question that ought to sound in our ears like a trumpet, whenever we are tempted to neglect our eternal interests : " What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul .?"