“Then Jesus said to his disciples: ‘If anyone wants to come after me, let him disown himself and pick up his torture stake and continually follow me.’”​—Matt. 16:24.

⁵ Jesus was here describing a course of self-sacrifice. And he took the lead in demonstrating what this meant. He said: “I seek, not my own will, but the will of him that sent me.” (John 5:30) Thus, the reason Jesus undertook a course of self-sacrifice was so that he could fully accomplish the will of his heavenly Father, Jehovah. That course is the one Jesus recommended to his followers. He said that they should be willing to “disown” themselves, meaning that they should subdue their own personal desires and make the doing of God’s will the main thing in their lives.

 6. (a) What cost can be involved in a course of self-sacrifice? (b) By doing God’s will, how can one ‘save his soul’?

⁶ True, such a life of self-sacrifice is not easy. It involves a cost, which includes time and effort. In some cases it may even mean the loss of one’s life at the hands of those who persecute God’s servants.

 7. Why is the future that Jehovah promises worth any cost to us?

⁷ Yes, life is at stake in this matter of self-sacrifice as opposed to self-indulgence! And what a marvelous life​—living forever amid paradise conditions that will make every day an “exquisite delight”! Truly, that will be the real life. No course of life you could now choose in this world, no amount of hard work at any trade or profession, no acts of loyalty to any human or organization of this world could ever produce a future such as Jehovah promises those who serve him. Surely, then, it is well worth whatever sacrifices may be involved.