Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wants to come with Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me.  Matthew 16:24  HCSB

I have heard this scripture passage and read this scripture passage many times and while I understand the whole denying yourself thing, I was a little unsure about what was meant by taking up your cross.  I have often heard when we face problems in our lives that don’t go away that it is just our cross to bear.  I have dealt with situations in my life and have accepted that they are my cross to bear, but this is not the case with this passage of scripture.

So as we look at this scripture, let’s start with denying ourselves.  If you really want to get your life out of whack and into a big mess, just focus on yourself.  Think about what you want and what you want only.  That will do it in no time.  We were made in Christ’s image (Genesis 1:26-27), we were made to be imitators of Christ (Ephesians 5:1-2).  We know that Jesus’ focus was on God and His will.  Jesus went to the cross to save us from our sins.  He denied himself in obedience to Christ, even to the point of physical death which is where the cross comes in.

I have served myself and I have served God and I can tell you that my life goes much better when I serve God.  When I am obedient to God and focus on Him, He takes care of whatever comes my way.  He will walk me through the fire and the flood.

Now Jesus’ disciples understood that taking up your cross referred to carrying the cross to your own crucifixion.  In Matthew 27:30-32 it speaks of how they beat Jesus and then led him away to his crucifixion and ordered a man named Simon to carry Jesus’ cross to Golgotha.

The question today is can you deny yourself?  Can you put your own wants and desires aside to do God’s will?  Can you put God’s will first in your life?  Just imagine if Jesus had not denied Himself, what a mess we would all be in now.  Can you take up your cross?  Can you be obedient to the point of death?

In our country we are vey fortunate to be able to worship God publicly.  It may seem as though there are those that are trying to deny us that right.  But if we don’t use it, we may lose it.  There is an old saying that you never miss what you’ve got until it’s gone.  If we don’t study God’s word and attend worship services when we are free to do so, what makes us think we will do it when we risk our lives to do so?

If you have never trusted God as your savior then I encourage you to turn to Him. If you are a Christian, then I ask you today are you denying yourself?  Are you prepared to take up your cross and follow Him no matter where the road leads?  What we must understand is that no matter how treacherous the terrain that we may travel the road leads to everlasting life in glory with God the Father.  So deny yourself, take up your cross and follow Him to the promised land.  Know that He will walk you through the rough spots.

Have a great day!