44 Bible Verses about Self Sacrifice

"For whoever wills to save his life shall lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake shall save it.

For you did sympathize with the prisoners, and you did take joyfully the confiscation of your goods; conscious that you had for yourselves greater, even lasting possessions.

By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to share ill-treatment with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. He accounted the obloquy of Christ to be greater than the treasures of Egypt; for he fixed his eyes on the reward.read more.
By faith he left Egypt, not because he feared the wrath of the king, but he endured as seeing Him who is invisible.

"If you want to be perfect," said Jesus, "go, sell your property, give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."

Jesus loved him as he looked at him, and said: "One thing you lack. Go, sell all you have and give to the poor; and you shall have wealth in heaven; and come, follow me."

And receiving this reply, Jesus said to him. "One thing you are still lacking. Sell all that you have and give it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me."

"Sell what you have and give alms. Provide yourselves with purses which do not grow old, a treasure inexhaustible in the heavens, where no thief draws near, nor does moth destroy.

Then Peter said, "Look! we have left our homes and followed you." And he said to them, "In Solemn truth I tell you that there is no one who, for the sake of the kingdom of God, has left houses, or wife, or brother, or parents, or children, "who shall not certainly receive many times as much in this time, and in the age to come eternal."

Whereupon Peter said to Jesus. "Look, Master, we have forsaken everything and followed you. Now what shall be our reward?" "In solemn truth I tell you," Jesus answered, "that in the New Creation, when the Son of man shall sit on the throne of his glory, you also who have followed me shall sit on twelve thrones, to govern the twelve tribes of Israel. "And every one who has left houses, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or children, or lands, for my sake, shall many times as much, and fall heir to eternal life.

"But we," Peter began to say, "we have left our all and have followed you." "I tell you solemnly," said Jesus, "that there is no man who has left house, or brothers, or sisters, or mother, or father, or children, or lands, for my sake and the gospel's, but shall receive a hundred times as much, now in this present world, houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, lands??nd persecutions with them??nd in the world to come eternal life.

And all the believers were together, and had all things in common. They would sell their lands and other property, and distribute the proceeds among all, just as any one from time had need.

Now the multitude of the believers was of one heart and one soul, nor did any one of them say that any of his possessions was his own; but they had all things common. And the apostles continued with great power to give their witness concerning the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. Nor was there any one of them in want, for all who owned houses or lands would sell them and bring the price of the things that were sold, and lay it at the apostles' feet;read more.
and distribution would be made to each according to his need. In this way Joseph, whom the apostles called Barnabas ("Son of Encouragement" is what it means), who was a native Cyprus, sold a farm which he had, and brought the price, and laid it at the apostles' feet.

Now, brothers, I wish to tell you about the grace of God which has been manifest in the churches of Macedonia. For although in heavy trial of affliction, their overbrimming happiness, even in spite of their deep poverty, abounded to the opulence of their unselfishness. For I can testify that according to their ability, and even beyond their ability, of their own free will, too, they have given help.read more.
With earnest entreaty they craved of me the privilege of a share in ministering to the saints in Jerusalem. And this not as I had expected, but in accordance with the will of God, they first gave themselves to God and to me.

"Just so any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

"He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;

"If any one comes to me and does not hate father and his mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters, yes, and his own very life also, he cannot be a disciple of mine.

After this he went forth and noticed a tax-gatherer, named Levi, sitting at the tax-office, and said to him, "Follow me." He rose, left everything, and followed him.

In very truth I count all things but loss compared to the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and esteem them but refuse that I may gain Christ,

In solemn truth I tell you that except a kernel of wheat fall into the ground and die, it remains a single kernel; but if it die it bears a great crop. He who loves his life loses it; and he who regards not his life in this world shall keep it for eternal life.

"and he who does not take his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me.

"Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me, cannot be a disciple of mine.

Then Jesus said to his disciples. "If any man wishes to come after me, let him renounce self, take up his cross, and follow me. For he who wants to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

Then summoning the crowd to him, with his disciples. he said: "If any man wishes to follow me, let him renounce self, take up his cross, and so follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever, for my sake and the gospel's, loses his life will save it.

And he said to all. "If any man wills to follow me, Let him renounce self and take up his cross daily and follow me. "For whoever wills to save his life shall lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake shall save it.

"Whoever seeks to keep his life shall lose it; but whoever loses it shall preserve it.

By this we learn to know love, because he laid down his life for us; so we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. But whoever has this world's goods, and beholds his brother in need, and shuts up his heart against him, how can the love of God continue to abide in him? My children, let us not love in word nor in talk, but in deed and in truth.

Wherever I go, I am always carrying about in my body the dying of Jesus, in order that the life also of Jesus may be made manifest in this body of mine. For, alive though I am, I am always given over to death for the sake of Jesus, that the life also of Jesus may shine forth in my dying flesh.

Though free from all men, I make myself the slave of all, that I may win the more. To the Jews I am become like a Jew, that I may win Jews; to those under the Law, like one under the Law, though I am not under the Law, myself; to those outside the Law, as one outside the Law, to win those outside the Law (though I am not outside the law of God, but inside the law of Christ).read more.
I am become weak to the weak, to win the weak. I am become all these things to all men that, by any and by all means, I may save some. And I am doing it all for the gospel's sake, that I may become a copartner in it.

Yes, and why am I myself exposed to danger every hour? Every day I am facing death, my brothers, I affirm it by that pride in you which I have through Christ Jesus our Lord.

Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as though I were beside myself), such, far, more, am I; in labors more abundant, in imprisonments also more abundant, in floggings beyond measure, in deaths often. Five times at the hands of the Jews, I have received one short of forty lashes. Three times I have been scourged by the Romans; once I have been stoned; three times have I been shipwrecked; a night and a day have I been adrift in the open sea.read more.
My journeys have been many; in perils of rivers, in perils of bandits; in perils from my countrymen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness; in perils on the sea, in perils among false brothers; in toil and weariness, often in sleepless watching, in hunger and thirst, often without anything to eat; in cold and in nakedness. Not to mention other things, there is the crowding pressure of each day upon me, the care of all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is caused to stumble, but I burn with indignation?

For my part, I will most gladly spend, yea, and will myself be spent, for your souls. If I love you more abundantly, am I to be loved the less?

"And brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against their parents and put them to death. "You will be hated by all men because of my name; and he who endures to the end shall be saved.

"And brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child, and children will rise up against their parents, and have them put to death. You will be hated by all men for my name's sake, but he that endures to the end shall be saved.

"You will be betrayed even by parents or brothers and kinsfolk, and friends. "Some of you they will put to death. And you shall be hated by all men for the sake of my name.

And though I sell all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it avails me nothing.

except that in city after city the Holy Spirit is warning me that bonds and afflictions are awaiting me. But I hold not my life of any account, as dear unto myself, if only I may run my race, and accomplish the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to attest the gospel of the grace of God.

Then he went forward a short distance, and fell on his face and prayed. "O, my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt."

So he went a little farther, and throwing himself upon the ground, he prayed repeatedly that, if it were possible, the hour might pass away from him. "Abba, Father," he said, "all things are possible with thee. Take this cup away from me. Yet not what I will, but what thou wilt."

"Father, if thou art willing, take away this cup from me; but thy will, not mine, be done!"

Nay, even if my life is to be poured out as a libation upon the sacrifice and service of you faith,

So they stoned Stephen while he prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Then he knelt down and cried aloud, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge."

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, though from the beginning he had the nature of God, did not reckon equality with God something to be forcibly retained, but emptied himself of his glory by taking the form of a slave, when he was born in the likeness of men.read more.
More than this, after he had shone himself in human form, he humbled himself in his obedience even to death; yes, and to death on a cross.

Others again bore trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, even of chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, they were tempted, they were slain with the sword, they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, persecuted, tormented??38 of whom the world was not worthy??andering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.

And I saw thrones, and those who sat on them, and they were permitted to judge; and I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the Word of God, those who did not worship the beast nor his image, and who did not receive his brand upon their brow, or hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.