TAKE UP YOUR CROSS DAILY (LUKE 9:23) #Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23). #What does it mean to take up your cross daily? - I’m going to give you two interpretations and then you can choose. INTERPRETATION #1: JESUS IS PREACHING SELF-DENIAL #Following Christ is all about self-denial and going without. - If you are not in the daily habit of denying your appetites and desires, you are not a real Christian. - The more you deny your own needs and wants, the holier you’ll be. - So fast everyday and you’ll be just like Jesus. #But there’s a problem with this interpretation. - Abstaining from food, Facebook, or fun won’t make you righteous and holy. (It might make you religious!.) - This message of self-denial is nothing more than the ancient practice of asceticism dressed up in religious jargon. - It is a message that promotes Pharisaical self-righteousness and religiosity. #Another problem with this interpretation is, - It will leave you anxious and insecure. “Have I denied myself ENOUGH?” You can never know. - So you’d better deny yourself some more, just to be safe. “Don’t touch, don’t handle, don’t taste.” - Pretty soon you’ll be whipping yourself and asking your friends to crucify you. LOL! #Jesus did not suffer and die on the cross so you could join him in suffering and dying on a cross as well. That’s not good news. - Jesus died so that we might be free from this sort of dead and useless religion. INTERPRETATION #2: JESUS IS SHOWING US THE WAY TO SALVATION #And who is the way? - Jesus. #When Jesus says, “Follow me,” - He’s saying the way to salvation is through him and his cross. “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me…” (Gal 2:20a) #The reason most Christians struggle to live the Christian life is, - They do not know they have died with Christ. Yet Paul says so again and again. - To the Christians in Colossae; “You died with Christ” (Col 2:20). - To the believers in Rome: “We died with Christ” (Rom 6:8). - To the Corinthians: “We died” (2 Cor 5:14). #When you were baptized or placed into Christ, - You were baptized into his death (Rom 6:3). - This is just about the single most important thing that ever happened to you, yet many Christians are unaware of it. - Since they don’t know that they died, they are constantly trying to die. #But the gospel declares, - “You died.” - You have been crucified with Christ. - The person you used to be – dead in sins and alienated from the life of God – no longer lives, but Christ lives in you. “But if I died with Christ already, why does Jesus say we must take up our cross DAILY?” #First of all, note that the word daily is only found once in the three accounts of Jesus’ words. - Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and… … take up his cross and follow me. (Matt 16:24) … take up his cross and follow me. (Mark 8:34) … take up his cross daily and follow me. (Luke 9:23) #Why does Luke record the word “daily” when Matthew and Mark do not? - “Luke is wrong,” says one Adam Clarke (studylight.org/com/acc/view.cgi?bk=41&ch=9). - “Or at least our English translations of Luke are wrong, - For the word ‘daily’ is not in some of the original manuscripts.” #Adam Clarke may be right. I wouldn’t know. - I don’t have the original manuscripts. - But for the sake of argument, let’s assume Adam Clarke is wrong and our English Bibles have it right. What then? #WHY DOES LUKE SAY “DAILY”? - My view is that Luke is on the same page as Matthew and Mark but he is emphasizing something to make a point. - Luke isn’t contradicting Matthew and Mark; he’s saying the exact same thing – the way to salvation is through Christ and his cross – but he’s saying it with guts!. - He’s saying we ought to value the finished work of the cross every single day. #When I get out of bed in the morning and put my feet on the floor, - My left foot says, “Thank you, Jesus,” - And my right foot says, “For the cross.” - It’s because you have died with Christ that you now live, everyday, in union with him. - This is a great treasure and not something to take for granted. “Nico, are you saying that if I stop valuing the cross I’ll lose my salvation?” Not at all! - I’m saying if you have been born of the spirit, learn to walk by the spirit. - We don’t die daily – once will do the trick – and we don’t get born again every day. - But every day we make this choice: Will I walk after the flesh or after the spirit? #Let me give you an example. - Say you hear a message that says you need to fast and pray to become spiritually mature, so you decide to fast and pray. Boom!!!.. - You are no longer walking by the spirit. - You are no longer trusting in the grace of God. - Rather, you are trusting in your own fasting and praying performance to make you mature. #Where does the Lord fit in this picture? - He doesn’t, and that’s the problem. - Dead religion is a graceless and faithless way to live. “Walking after the flesh” - Doesn’t necessarily mean running around getting drunk and doing bad stuff. That’s a caricature that applies to only a few. - For the good Christian, the flesh takes on the subtler guise of good works, duty, and self-improvement. #WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO DIE TO SELF? - There is nothing wrong with the phrase “die to self.” - The problem is we read it through Buddhist lenses instead of gospel lenses. - We think, “I have to stop being who God made me to be. I have to pretend I’m somebody else – someone who doesn’t enjoy wine, one woman, and song.” - That’s a dehumanizing doctrine of demons. #God made you unique. - He gave you good dreams and good desires that no one else has. - When you suppress your God-given dreams and desires, the world is impoverished. “DIE TO SELF” MEANS - “Trust Jesus instead of the flesh.” - It means live each and every day out of the glorious relationship you have with the Lord. - It means, don’t fall back to the inferior ways of the flesh that you walked in when you were a sinner or religious, but stand firm in the freedom of Christ. #This, I believe, is the point Luke was trying to make. - The trusting life is an adventure. - It’s good to remind yourself daily that “God is for me. How can I fail?” - Conscious of your loving Father’s acceptance and approval, you will soar on eagles’ wings. - And when you apprehend, by faith, the inexhaustible riches of his grace, the whole world benefits. #Why would you want to waste one single day living any other way? #Why crawl when you can fly? #CHURCHBOY
Posted on: Sat, 19 Jul 2014 19:53:30 +0000
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