What is self-denial life?

Jesus said, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself,

and take up his cross and follow Me” (Mt. 16:24).

What does it mean to deny myself?

Isn’t it not to set my mind on man’s interests but God’s? (v. 23)

Here, the ‘man’s interests’ means, at least to Apostle Peter,

Jesus’ sufferings and death would never happen to Him (vv. 21, 22).

But the “God’s interests” means to “go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders

and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day” (v. 21).

Many times we think about our own interests rather than God’s due to our human emotions and thoughts.

This isn’t a life of denying ourselves.