January 11, self and the cross
"Then Jesus said to them all, 'If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me'.”
Luke 9:23
Within this powerful and challenging call of discipleship one discovers a very personal and life changing truth. Therefore, let’s not miss what our Savior meant by these words.
Roman execution was brutally displayed through crucifixion. Those who originally heard Jesus speak on taking up one’s cross had no doubt witnessed some form of crucifixion wherein convicted persons were forced to carry their cross to the place of death.
Jesus gave the ultimate demonstration of sacrifice. He carried His own cross for our sake. The truly righteous and perfect One died for our unrighteousness.
Why was this brutal picture of death given by our Lord as a sign of discipleship? The answer lies in the true meaning of “follow.” Jesus knows that innate within man is the temptation to look for an easy way. How often in our lives have we sought the way of least resistance? But with following Jesus, no priority of convenience works. And, Why? The call to follow is all about the glory of Jesus and the reality of our daily struggle to honor Him in the context of a lost and dark world.
The call of discipleship does not represent following a cause or a movement, but a person - a Savior who is the King of kings and Lord of lords. To follow Him, taking up your cross, indicates your willingness to die to all the things of this life for the sake of knowing Him and serving Him. And this picture of death does not represent a polite and general refusal of the world with some negotiation over the allurements one just simply cannot release. This death represents a relentless refusal of anything that would hinder one’s complete devotion of life to Jesus Christ our Lord.
Now, I know what you must be thinking: how can anyone follow Jesus with this intensity for the length of their life’s journey? This seems impossible. Well, take courage. Jesus has asked you to focus on taking up your cross "today."
So today, ask for God’s strength in denying everything that hinders you from following Jesus with your whole heart. And do that today. (Tomorrow morning pursue the same, for this moves you closer to the commitment of taking up your cross daily.).
Each time that Jesus taught on this level of stringent self-denial and self-surrender, He followed with the divine principle for such a command: “whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever wants to lose his life will find it.” Jesus also followed with, “what good is it for a man to gain the whole world and yet forfeit his very soul?”
There it is! This represents the answer to this challenging and often disregarded instruction from our Savior. “Dying to self” seems overwhelming because our value of the world seems to override our value of the very soul God has created inside of us. But in Jesus’ words, true life happens when we deny the sinful allurements of the world and any sinful pride of our own lives. For when we die to the things of this world we discover true life - a life of fulfillment in fellowship with God. Simply stated, this prioritizes our relationship with Jesus over our relationship with the world.
So today, take up your cross with joy. The results of doing this are “out of this world.”
Blessings.
READ
Take some time this morning to read through some of the Scriptures that focus on taking up your cross: Luke 9:23; Mark 8:34; Matthew 16:34; Matthew 10:38-39; Luke 14:27.