Implications of taking your cross daily
To all steemchurch parishioners and all steemians, I bring greetings to you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Today, I will be talking about the implications of taking your cross daily as I promised in my previous post.
This is the second part of the second condition for following Jesus which is Take up your cross.
Remember, the three conditions for following Jesus Christ as outlined in Luke 9:23 are
- Deny yourself
- Take up your cross
- Follow Him
As I explained in the previous post, during the time of Jesus Christ, the cross was a symbol of death, rejection, suffering and shame.
Here are some implications of taking your cross daily:
You must be dead to self and sin
Colossians 3:5-10 (NIV)
5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.
7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.
8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.
9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices
10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.
You must turn your back to the world and its pleasures
1 John 2:15-17 (NIV)
15 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.
16 For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.
17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.
You must set your heart on the heavenly things
Colossians 3:1-3 (NIV)
1 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
You should live like a pilgrim on this earth
Philippians 3:17-21 (NIV)
17 Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do.
18 For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.
19 Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things.
20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,
21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
You should let Jesus live through you
2 Corinthians 5:14-15 (NIV)
14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.
15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
Galatians 2:20 (NIV)
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
You should be prepared to suffer rejection and hatred for the sake of Jesus
John 15:18-19 (NIV)
18 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.
19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.
Mark 13:13 (NIV)
Everyone will hate you because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
Be prepared to suffer as Jesus did
1 Peter 2:18-23 (NIV)
18 Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh.
19 For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God.
20 But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God.
21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
22 “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”
23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.
You must not be ashamed to identify with Jesus and testify for him
Luke 9:26 (NIV)
Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.
Romans 1:16 (NIV)
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.
On a final note, another implication of taking your cross daily is that you should be ready to die for your faith in Christ if need be.
You can check the previous posts here:
https://steemit.com/steemchurch/@fatherfaith/deny-yourself-2c4aa0d20819b
https://steemit.com/steemchurch/@fatherfaith/take-up-your-cross-daily-f898ed627db06
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To follow Jesus calls for great responsibilities and we must be ready for the implications.
Thank you for this great post.
FF
Thanks
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