THE ROCKY WAY TO SUCCESS: Slow and steady effort leads to success
Matthew 16:21–27: From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and be raised the third day. Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!” But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are an offense to me, for you are not mindful of the things of God but the things of men.” Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.
In the region of Caesarea Philippi (Matt 16:16), on behalf of the disciples, Peter revealed the true identity of Jesus as the Christ, the “Son of the living God.”
The Greek word “Christos”, derived from the verb “chrio” (“to rub with oil” or “to anoint”), means “anointed” or “chosen one.” Christos is a translation of the Hebrew Mashiach (Messiah). In the ancient period, which includes the Old Testament times, kings, priests, and prophets were anointed with oil, signifying their sacred role and divine authority. Thus, early Christians attributed the title Christos to Jesus and saw in him the promised Saviour of the universe.
In Matthew 16:21, Jesus revealed to his disciples the implications of his identity as the Christos: From that time, Jesus began to show to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and be raised the third day. Yes! Jesus must go-suffer-killed-raised. This process is unavoidable. Nothing and no one can prevent Jesus from completing this process (cf. Matt 16:22–23).
The way to success: Unless Jesus enters the city of Jerusalem, unless he suffers and dies, he cannot resurrect. And not resurrecting implies not fulfilling the will of the Father who sent him—opening the door of salvation. The Gospel lyrics “It’s not an easy road” remind us that the road to success is not an easy one. As Jesus taught, narrow and difficult is the way that leads to life, but few find and follow it (cf. Matt 7:13–14).
Jesus invites whoever wants to follow him to deny himself, take up his cross, and follow him. This is not an easy undertaking. As we know, the cross of Jesus is sometimes heavy and painful. Beware of the many Peters who would want to make you change your mind. They are all obstacles (Satan) blocking your way to success, true freedom, and salvation. Like Jesus, you must be ready to identify them and command them to get behind you. Never compromise your identity.
At times, success frequently results from taking risks. Although it implies uncertainty, risk does not always mean danger. On the contrary, it only indicates the possibility of a negative or undesirable circumstance following an action or choice. An Igbo adage says “agaghi ekwo mgbamgbu ghara ogu” (literally, it means you cannot avoid war because someone will be injured or even killed; however, the actual meaning is you do not give up because of difficulty). However, those who succeed more are those willing to risk. Thus, the unwillingness to take risks deprives oneself of success. Nothing comes easy in life. There is always an iota of risk in everything we do in life. Can you name any life event, initiative, or action that is devoid of risk?
Do not be afraid of failing. At times, success comes through failure. There is a Chinese proverb that says, “Failure is not falling down but refusing to get up” when you fall. I concur with Nelson Mandela, who says, “Do not judge me by my successes; judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.” This is the secret of success. When you try and fail, do not give up. Do not stop trying. Instead, find out why you failed, take corrections, change strategy, and try again. Luck might smile at you, and you will embrace success.
It is true we should not be afraid to take risks; however, we should be careful not to get involved in foolish risks. When is a risk foolish? This is an invitation to continue the conversation. You can drop your contribution in the comment section below.
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