Matthew 16:24-26 NLT
Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If any of you wants to be My follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow Me. [25] If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for My sake, you will save it. [26] And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?
At Sunday school we used to sing a little song:
"J-O-Y, J-O-Y surely this must mean
Jesus first, "yourself" last
and "others" in between ".......
... which leads back to Jesus' words in the passage above... these are challenging words that cut each of us to the heart.
What did Jesus mean by saying "take up your cross?"
Surely He doesn't expect us to literally pick up a wooden cross in order to follow Him!
No, it means laying aside what I want in order to do what Jesus wants.
Jesus gave up all the trappings of Divinity, in Heaven and came to do the Father's will, being an obedient servant, here on earth.
Philippians 2:7-8 AMPC
But stripped Himself [of all privileges and rightful dignity], so as to assume the guise of a servant (slave), in that He became like men and was born a human being. [8] And after He had appeared in human form, He abased and humbled Himself [still further] and carried His obedience to the extreme of death, even the death of the cross!
Each day He would start early, listening to His Father in prayer, to get His timetable, which He would carry out.
Jesus didn't come as a tourist to enjoy Himself.
No, He was on a specific mission - you could even call it "Mission Impossible".... to save us from ourselves, caught up in the web of sin.
Each of us, as Believers, have a mission too - we are to point others to Jesus - with our lives of obedience and the word of our testimony.
Our individual decisions - 'me' or Jesus - make up the fibres of every moment, woven into the daily fabric of life.
What was my day made up of yesterday?
Did I pick up my cross or did I follow my own agenda?
It's a good question to keep a check on our own motives and actions.
Of course we fail, but we're on a journey.
If we get derailed or distracted, we have the Holy Spirit, our "satnav" to guide us back to The Way.
Comments