By Annaika Dastine | Founder, Who Is This Jesus? Ministry

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me."

Have you ever thought about Jesus as a disciple?

Yes, He is Lord, Savior, Messiah, and Son of God, but during His earthly ministry, Jesus also modeled complete submission to the Father.  His life until death was a testament to what he told his disciples in Matthew 16:24.

John 5:19 says:

"The Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing…"

Jesus did not move independently from the Father’s will.

John 5:30 says:

"I seek not to please myself but him who sent me."

My friend, Jesus, never asks us to do something He Himself refused to do.

He humbled Himself.
He obeyed.
He surrendered.

Philippians 2:5–8 tells us that Jesus humbled Himself even unto death.

True discipleship requires humility and surrender.

We cannot say we believe in Jesus while rejecting His authority.

Jesus made it clear in John 14:6:

"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

There are not many roads to God. There is one path. His name is Jesus Christ. For example, why does baptism matter in our Christian journey?

Have you ever thought to yourself, what was one of the first things Jesus did before beginning His ministry?

He was baptized. Matthew 3:15 says: "It is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." My friend, if Jesus submitted to baptism in obedience to the Father, how much more should we obey His command? 1 Peter 3:20–21 gives us a powerful picture:

"…this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also…"

During my Bible study, God revealed something powerful to me through Noah’s ark. He allowed me to visualize that every plank, hammer, and nail used to build the ark was evidence of Noah’s obedience and faith in God’s instructions. The ark became the place of protection during judgment.

Now, through Jesus Christ, God is inviting humanity into another Ark, not a physical one, but a spiritual and eternal one. Every time we choose to surrender to Jesus through obedience, repentance, baptism, and faith, we are entering the Ark of Salvation found in Christ.

Jesus is not only the Judge at the end of the age, but He is also the Ark that saves those who belong to Him. Acts 2:38 says: "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Romans 6:3–4 teaches that baptism identifies us with Jesus’ death and resurrection.

My friend, baptism is not about getting physically wet. It is the outward declaration that we are dying to the old life and surrendering fully to Jesus Christ. That is why confession and baptism work together.  When we confess that "Jesus is Lord" and surrender in baptism, we are publicly declaring that Jesus is now the cornerstone of our lives.

My friends, that declaration terrifies the enemy. Because Satan knows that a surrendered soul empowered by the Holy Spirit becomes dangerous to the kingdom of darkness.

Don’t let the enemy deceive you from receiving the weapon you need to fight against his schemes.

Weekly Scripture Matthew 16:24