On his way to Jerusalem, Paul is warned that he will be imprisoned. His friends urge him not to go, but he responds, “I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 21:13). He was ready to suffer imprisonment and even death for Jesus.

Are you ready to suffer?

Perhaps God would call you to be a missionary in a village with no gospel witness or to a tribe that has never heard the name of Jesus. Are you ready to suffer?

God calls all of us to share the gospel. Are you ready to suffer?

We must hold to the truth of God’s Word in a world that increasingly is embracing the lies of the devil. Are you ready to suffer?

We may not suffer imprisonment or death like many of our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world. But are you ready to suffer ridicule? You may be hated for the name of Jesus. You may be avoided, shunned. You may even lose your job. Are you ready to suffer?

Jesus told us that if we would be his disciples, we must take up our cross daily and follow him (Luke 9:23). A cross is an object of suffering. We should expect suffering.

Are you ready to suffer for the name of the Lord Jesus?