Take up your cross daily. You've heard this before, you've read it for yourself, you comprehend what it means and yet, can you even find that cross you're supposed to be taking up? What's it look like to you? Jesus knew the cross He would bear, bleed upon, and die hanging from. The people in Jesus' day knew what crosses were. The crosses were visible, literal and stained deeply by the blood of many a man. Were they all innocent, no, not by far. Were some innocent? Perhaps some were crucified unfairly, but we do know for a fact that One of those who hung upon a cross, was crucified horrifically and was completely innocent.
We are not innocent. If you say you are, then you're sadly mistaken, in fact you are deceiving yourself.
The cross we are to take up daily obviously isn't a literal cross- if it were we couldn't take it up more than once, right? And this cross Jesus speaks of is one we are to take up daily.
We are to deny ourselves and take up the cross.
Two thieves hung on crosses one on each side of our Savior. One thief mocked Jesus, the other confessed his own guilt and sought forgiveness. One thief was full of self, the other was denying self. One ridiculed the Savior, the other pleaded with Him.
The figurative cross we take up daily and deny ourselves must first and foremost be equal to the cross of the thief that denied himself and uplifted Jesus as His Savior. We have to recognize our INABILITY to save our guilty selves. That thief had no hope, he was going to die that day. That thief knew Jesus preached of a kingdom in heaven- the gospel that had spread far and wide. Jesus was the 'talk of the town' at that time, very few, if any, did not know who He was, who He claimed to be, and what He claimed He could do. Raising the dead, bringing them back to life was unheard of then and still today. Jesus - the Son of God, promised He'd come again, that He was going to prepare a place, that at the last trump He would return to raise the dead from their graves and change those still living to immortal beings. The promise of life eternal was what Jesus preached to the masses. The remorseful thief knew of Jesus, just as the unremorseful thief knew of Him.
Unable to save himself the remorseful thief turned to the only one who could give him hope. Unable to save himself the unremorseful thief decided to criticize his only hope, choosing not to believe any of Jesus' promises.
We all have a cross to bear, but we all do not deny ourselves. We choose to deny Christ, rather than self.
Daily let's pick up our cross, denying self, recognizing Jesus as our Savior- every single day, don't miss a day of self-denial- to do so is to miss a day of recognizing Jesus Christ our Lord, the giver of our lives now and for eternity if we choose. Think of the remorseful thief there next to our suffering, dying Savior, pleading to be remembered. We must plead to be remembered, not boast of our own goodness in any way, just our need, our complete need of Jesus. All by His amazing love! His mercy! His Grace! His Forgiveness! All through HIM now and forever! AMEN!!!!!!!
Luk_9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
1Jn_1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
Luk 23:39 And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.
Luk 23:40 But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?
Luk 23:41 And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.
Luk 23:42 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
Luk 23:43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee to day, shalt thou be with me in paradise.
Psa 51:1 …Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.
Psa 51:2 Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
Psa 51:3 For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.
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