Take Up Your Cross And Follow Me
What did Jesus mean when he told the disciples to “take up your cross and follow me”? And how does this apply to believers in this day and age? Furthermore, are you willing to take up your cross and follow him?
Take Up Your Cross and Follow Me
Today let’s look at Matthew 16:24-26, which says,
“Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would 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? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?’”
I can’t believe I’ve never noticed that before. Seriously! I’m sitting here shaking my head.
Jesus said we are to take up our cross. Did you catch that—not only what the Lord said but also when He said it.
He hadn’t yet gone to the cross. And not that long before Peter had rebuked Jesus for saying He would be put to death.
A Call To Live A Selfless Life
We see “take up your cross” almost as a figure of speech, a cliché. But it isn’t. It’s a call to live a selfless life, to follow the example of our Saviour. But His disciples didn’t yet have His literal example to follow.
Perhaps they saw it much like we do. They had given up certain components of their lives to follow the Master. They set aside their livelihoods. They left behind family and friends. They risked the wrath of the religious leaders. But this was only the beginning.
We know that many of them would suffer a great deal at the hands of those who would try to silence them and keep them from spreading the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. Things weren’t going to be easy for them—and Jesus knew that. He was preparing them—and us.
How Does “Take Up Your Cross” Apply To Us?
So how does the command to take up our cross apply to 21st century believers?
We, too, are to put others’ needs ahead of our own, especially their need to know the Saviour. Our life is not to be marked by the slogan, “I want that!”
Don’t get me wrong. We are to enjoy the good gifts God pours into our life and thank Him for them. But the accumulation of more and more stuff, more and more status are not what our life is supposed to be about. We are to discover God’s plans rather than pursuing our dreams and goals, giving no thought to what He desires.
Trust In God’s Plans
The road ahead may include one or more things we would rather avoid: poor health, financial uncertainty, severed relationships, and on and on. Just because someone doesn’t experience these hardships, doesn’t mean they’re walking more closely with the Lord—and neither does the fact that some people seem to experience no end of suffering.
It’s about our willingness to take up our cross in such a way that the Lord will be glorified and others blessed, but it is never easy to do so.
When we see pain and heartache ahead, we may have to will ourselves to keep walking forward, to trust God’s plans for us.
But What If Things Get Tough?
Just an aside before we go any further … I am not for one moment suggesting God wants us to rush headlong into hardship. Sometimes hardship is the result of foolish choices. That’s not what I’m talking about. We are to care for our bodies, work diligently and plan for our financial future, and fulfill our day-to-day responsibilities to the best of our ability. But we are not to obsess with the everyday and miss out on the plans God has for us—even if those plans come at a cost.
Jesus knows exactly what it means to face a daunting future. After all, before He was taken away to be crucified, He prayed this in the garden of Gethsemane, as recorded in Matthew 26:39: “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me.”
Was He eager to be crucified? Of course not. Would He have preferred another way? Absolutely! But He came to the same conclusion that must mark our lives if we are to honour the Lord. Matthew 26:39 concludes with these words: “Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”
Are You Willing To Take Up Your Cross?
How often are we to surrender to God’s will and do whatever it takes to bring Him honour and bless others? Ultimately, this should mark our life every moment of every day.
You may be thinking, “Not gonna happen.” I get it. Trust me, there are days I wish things were different—in my life, in the lives of family and friends, and in the world at large. It’s only by God’s grace that we can take up our cross. It’s only by His grace that we would even consider doing so.
Are you willing to do so today? Am I?
What do you think it means to take up your cross? We would love to hear from you. Comment below or contact us at HopeStreamRadio.
Steph Nickel
Steph Beth Nickel is eclectically interested and eclectically involved. In all she does, Steph seeks to nurture and inspire. She is currently working on the first book in a nonfiction series. Nurture and Inspire LOVE is a compilation of the first devotionals she wrote for HopeStreamRadio.
Steph is a freelance writer and editor. She is the coauthor of Paralympian Deb Willows’ award-winning memoir, Living Beyond My Circumstances, published by Castle Quay Books. Deb and Steph are working on a follow-up book.
You can visit her website, stephbethnickel.com, to learn more about her.
Visit Steph’s contributor’s page or at Steph Nickel’s Eclectic Interests.
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