Only a fool can die to himself

The cost of following Christ is often beyond the limits that my pride will accept. Let's face it...even if the world doesn't like me, I want them to respect me. I want them to think of me as articulate and intelligent even if they don't like what I have to say. The apostle Paul refutes that possibility when it comes to sincere Christian living. He says, in 1 Corinthians 1:18, ''The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing,'' which means that when we proclaim that message and live accordingly, we will not be thought wise and learned; we'll be thought of as morons.
It's not that the gospel message is truly foolish. Rather, there is a conflict between genuine, godly wisdom and that which those who are perishing are willing to acknowledge. ''For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight;'' but to live a genuine Christian life means to embrace a message that the world calls idiotic--and by default makes the one who does an idiot.
This is a disconcerting thought for those who want to be highly regarded. Yet, it is consistent with everything else the Lord has taught us. He told us that we should not be surprised if the world hates us, because it hated him first (John 15:18). He also told us that if anyone wants to follow him, ''he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow'' Jesus (Matthew 16:24). That means dying to oneself. It means sacrificing the status one holds dear and accepting a label that is not so becoming--fool--if so doing is the result of faithful believing, living, and conveying of the message of the cross. More often than not, it will be, because that message is foolishness to those who are perishing.
This is a high cost, but the cost of refusing is even greater. ''Whoever wants to save his life,'' Jesus warned after calling us to take up our crosses, ''will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.'' Are you willing to take up a mantle that means laying down the rags of worldly regard? Are you willing to lose your life to find it? My pride often recoils at the costs of following Jesus. But, as Paul urges in 1 Corinthians 3, ''If anyone of you thinks he is wise by the standards of this age, he should become a fool so that he may become wise.''