His Cross, Our Cross

   The cross of Christ was more than Calvary. The cross of Christ was a life of sacrificing the natural life for the spiritual life. The cross of Christ was in not doing his own will but the will of the one who sent him. The cross of Christ was having no where to lay his head, spending many long nights in prayer, fasting for forty days and forty nights, being tempted by the devil at every turn, denying self and living his life in service and ministry, being with people who did not understand him and continually made demands on him, and being constantly on demand by people who needed healing and deliverance. The cross of Christ was a life of sacrifice. He didn’t have employment nor did he write a book. He wasn’t a political figure nor did he invent anything. Yet for all of that he has exerted a greater influence on the world than any of those people.

   If we are to be disciples of Jesus Christ we, too, must bear our cross and come after Him. If Jesus cross was to yield to the will of his Father, then our cross is to yield to the will of Jesus and yield to the Holy Spirit who is the evidence of the ascended Christ. To bear his cross is to forsake all and follow Him. The cross of Christ ended in crucifixion. Then he rose from the dead and ascended into glory. Our cross ends in crucifixion as well. St. Paul says he is crucified with Christ, not on a cross, but in his natural life. He was shipwrecked, beaten, stoned, naked, hungry, and left for dead. Yet he was not disobedient to the heavenly vision. Our crucifixion will be in dying to self will, self interest, self promotion, and self glorification. To take up our cross and bear it means we live as Jesus lived both externally and internally. It means being born again and baptized with the Holy Spirit and living a life of utter poverty of spirit. Jesus clearly states that the things that are highly esteemed among men are an abomination in the sight of God (Lk16:15). Money, riches, success, praise, promotion, honor, and the like are an abomination in the sight of God. Blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are the poor.

   Discipleship is not mandatory or necessary for salvation. Discipleship comes when you hear the call of God and respond. Discipleship is necessary for ministry not for the body of Christ. It is necessary for apostles and prophets and evangelists, and pastors and teachers. Not all are called to the gifts of Christ. But if you are called, these are the conditions. They are stern and surgical. They come with pain and suffering. They are the call to unconditional love. So today, if you hear his voice and recognize his call, do not harden your heart, but be fully aware of the price of bearing the cross and following Jesus. It is a life like Christ’s. It is a life of love.

Amen