Yesterday I stated that there are 2 things in a Christian's life that are very important. Of course I know there are more than 2 things, but these were the two things that I felt God pressing on me. And the purpose of talking about these 2 things were to stay healthy and go deeper as a Christian. To be at a place where you are speaking to God, hearing from God and obeying Him all the time. It is critical to stay at a place where those things are a part of your every day life.
The first thing (which I wrote about yesterday) was to cast your burdens on God. This will allow you to see He is trustworthy and allow you to walk in the freedom that He desires you to walk in. However, the 2nd thing that I wanted to write about today, is picking up your cross daily.
Growing up we hear this term "pick up your cross daily", but do we really understand what it means. And without it's meaning can we truly do it? In Matthew 16:24 Jesus says these words “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." And I can remember as a teen and even a young adult thinking what does that even mean. That is, until I fully understood what the "cross" meant to those Jesus would have been saying that to. The cross represented one thing to those people, and that was "death". There was no such things as "cross necklaces" back then. It was not yet a symbol of God's love and Jesus' sacrifice yet....it just meant death. And it meant death in one of the most painful and humiliating ways that a human could die. There was nothing good about it. Imagine having to drag the device upon which you were going to die to a place that you would be killed...all in public. This is what the cross meant to them. So for Jesus to say that "you must deny yourself, pick up your cross, and follow me" meant one thing. Something has to die. And they knew this. In fact, in the very next verse Jesus tells them (vs 25) "for whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it". This very phrase mean that the life they knew, the life they were used to living....had to die. The new life they were going to walk in would be a whole different life with a whole different way of thinking and would lead to so much more. Including an eternal life that would go far past the physical one that they were walking on this earth. (something they did not understand yet)
So now that the meaning of what Jesus was saying is clearer, how does that apply to us today. I mean to these men, they were following a physical man named Jesus around. To them it meant they have to die to their way of life and follow this man. They did not know how things were going to play out like we get to see when we read God's word. So here we are today...thousands of years later...reading those same words and saying "how do I die?" And the answer is this....you die to yourself. You die to your selfish ways. You die to your selfish desires. You die to the ways of this world. You die to any way of thinking that goes against God's word. You die to ANYTHING that does not draw you closer to Him. I'll be honest, people hate it when I use the word "anything" because they know I mean ANYTHING. I have seen in my own past what allowing things to come between you and God can do...will do! It is not a question of "will they cause a problem"....it is "how long will it take before they causes a problem". Anything that does not build up your relationship with Jesus would be exactly what He was saying to die to. And to be quite honest, why would you want to keep anything in your life that "could" cause you spiritual problems. Whether that be old habits, the things you entertain yourself with, the words that come out of your mouth, the negative thoughts you choose to entertain or even the people you allow into your life. If these things are not things that build up a strong, trusting, faithful relationship with Jesus, then in His own words I would say "die to them". And yes, He said "daily" on purpose. In fact, Jesus never said anything unless it was for a specific reason. So He knew there are things you will have to die to every single day that you wake up. Things that are going to try to enter your mind, your day or your life. And you have to draw strength from God and say no, not today! And when the words "but I want...." enter your mind, please take yourself to the very next sentence Jesus spoke to them that day (vs 26) "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?" He left them with a question...what good are the things you desire in this world, if they are going to have a negative impact on your soul? There really isn't room for both....and Jesus new that.
God, Thank You that give us such detailed instructions in Your word. Thank You that you desire such a strong, deep relationship with us so much, that You even tell us the things to do to have it....and the things that are going to harm it. Give us ears to hear You today...and eyes to see the truth as things pass through our day. Holy Spirit, give us discernment today to know what things we NEED to die to in order to go deeper in our relationship with You. Press your obedience into our hearts as we use that to change our minds. In Jesus name, Amen
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