Take Up Your Cross

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?" (Matthew 16:24-26)

So here we are in the middle of the holiest of weeks. Palm Sunday has passed, and 2000+ years ago at this time, Jesus was just about to be captured in the Garden of Gethsemane. He has sat down for one last meal with His closest of friends, and vowed He would not eat or drink again until he was seated at the right hand of the Father. Jesus is praying to God in the garden that this cup may pass Him, but has submitted His will to His Father. (Matt 26:39, Mark 14:36) We know the story- Jesus is captured, tried, beaten, and eventually crucified on the cross. This is where our modern day history begins.

We all fall short of God's glory- period. (Romans 3:23, Ecc. 7:20) But that's not the point- it's what we do with our lives that honors God. The day of Resurrection freed us from the seperation of God once and for all- it never needs to be repeated, ever. (Rom. 5:19) Jesus tells us that we must lay our lives down, often putting earthly pleasures to death. We are to "take up our cross" and follow Him. I once heard it said that the Christian life isn't a playground- it's a battleground. How true that is. Taking up our cross means laying our lives down and often doing things we don't want to do. But if we keep our eyes on Christ, God WILL glorify us! (1Peter 5:10) Ultimately, it's our salvation- the submission of our lives, bodies, and hearts to Christ that guarantees our eternal home in Heaven. By losing our lives, we will find a life in Christ that this world can never provide- just read my testimony for an example. I laid down a life of pride and immorality to receive one of true agape love and forgiveness.

Read the gospel(s) this weekend. Watch "The Passion of the Christ". Really focus on what this week is all about, and remember, no matter what you're going through right now- "It may be Friday, but Sunday's coming!" Have a blessed week.