FOLLOWING CHRIST WHEREVER HE LEADS
_________________________________________________________________
“Whoever wants to be My disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow Me.” – Luke 9:23
What does Jesus mean by taking up our cross?
At the time of our salvation, we made an eternal commitment to Christ. We became accountable to Him for our lives. As His disciples, we answer to Him alone. Taking up our cross means following our Master wherever He leads… whether the path be welcome or unwelcome… tapping into His almighty power. We accept the charge of making His thoughts our thoughts and His ways our ways.
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” – John 14:15
When you love someone, you seek to please them. Your focus, your loving attention is upon them. You value their reciprocal love. You do not consider fulfilling their requests to be an onerous duty or burden. It is an expression of your love.
So it is with our Christian walk. We love the One who ransomed His life for us. Our focus is turned from ourselves to our Savior. Enveloped by His perfect, unconditional love, we seek to please only Him. We express our love to Him by heeding His commands.
“I am going to send you what My Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” – Luke 24:49
How are we able to follow our Lord?
Jesus charged His disciples to wait until they received power from on high. He did not direct them to go out, live their lives, see how they fare. Nor did He instruct them to draw from the human power within them. Instead, He explained that they were to draw upon the power from on high, the power of His Spirit.
Our Lord did not choose disciples who were without flaws. His disciples exhibited fleshly attributes… attributes of their human nature. It was not until they received the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ, that they were transformed. Their negative attributes were overwritten by the Spirit with God’s attributes.
Jesus’ followers were not perfect… nor are we. Yet our old nature was overwritten at salvation with His new nature. We take up the cross that He asks of us, daily working out our salvation. We tap into His heavenly power to triumph over our old nature (2 Peter 1:3). For without it, no one can successfully live the Christian life, bringing Christ glory.
“Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” – Galatians 5:24
What does Jesus mean by denying ourselves?
Jesus is not asking us to deny who we are… to deny how God created us to be. He is asking us to deny those attributes within us that run counter to His ways… our fleshly nature that wants to rule over us. He calls us to crucify our old nature… to treat it as dead. We deny pride, control, selfishness, intolerance, unforgiveness. We are not to yield to the negative attributes of our old selves that attempt to manifest in our lives.
When Christians try to follow Jesus without adhering to His commands, they wonder why their lives are not lived out as a reflection of Him. Their saved selves look similar to their unsaved selves. They are denying the Master rather than denying themselves. They hold to a form of godliness but are rejecting His power (2 Timothy 3:5).
“Whoever does not take up their cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me.” – Matthew 10:38
Why must we take up our cross?
The Christian walk is both an honor and a commitment. Too many want to accept the privileges of being a Christian… without accepting the responsibility of living like Jesus. They are endeavoring to walk in His footsteps without carrying their cross. They view themselves as Christians… yet there is little resemblance in their daily walk to the Savior they claim to profess.
Jesus tells us that to be worthy of Him… to be called His disciples… we are to bear the cross we are given. Any trial, opposition, suffering we face is to be endured with the resolve and equanimity exhibited by the Master Himself. For all that comes our way… all that we encounter on our Christian walk… is sovereignly orchestrated by God. He will carry us, sustain us and rescue us (Isaiah 46:4).
“You, however, are controlled not by the flesh, but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.” – Romans 8:9
Are we to follow Jesus even along unwelcome paths?
In accepting the rewards of salvation, we assume the accompanying commitment to take up our cross and follow Jesus wherever He calls. Many seek the easy walk. Yet the path He asks of us will not be without trouble or hardship. Some may view it as easy. Yet their cross is nowhere to be seen in their lives. They have either left it by the side of the road because it was heavier than they chose to bear. Or placed it on another’s shoulders, passing the blame for the failures in their own walk.
The cross we take up in obedience to Jesus is ours to bear, not another’s. No one else is responsible for our walk with Christ. Nor are we responsible for another’s walk… their trip-ups, their strayings, their failures. Moreover, we are not to compare our cross with that of others. Perhaps ours appears heavier, more burdensome. Yet we look to our merciful Lord to give us strength (Philippians 4:13)… the One who will never forsake us.
Jesus asks that we take up our cross daily. Salvation is not a one-time event. It is a process… a walk of sanctification… a path to Christlikeness. We seek to conform our lives to His life. It is out of our deep love for Him that we follow His commands and His ways. It is proof that His Spirit is within us… and living through us. Our lives are lived for our Master… by His power and for His glory.
