Jesus was with his disciples in Matthew, Chapter 16, and was teaching them about the seriousness of following him. He explained to them in Matthew 16:24 by telling them, “Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.’” Many have tried to reveal what this verse means, and we may not fully understand what denying ourselves and taking up our own cross really means.
If we’ll continue to read on in this text of scripture, we find Jesus explaining more of the meaning of this teaching by saying in Matthew 16:25, “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.”
There are two phrases in this verse that bring to light what it means to deny ourselves and take up our crosses. The first deals with saving one’s own life, and if we look into the meaning of the word “save,” it basically means that one will stay away from anything that brings suffering. This makes us ask the question, “is there suffering in denying oneself and taking up our own cross?”
The answer to that question is a definite “Yes!” Romans 8:17 says, “Now if we are children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.”
We will suffer when we become followers of our Lord Jesus Christ in two ways. First, we will suffer because we must deny our own sinful desires that tempt us to think of only ourselves. Secondly, we will suffer persecution from those who do not follow Christ when we live out the teachings of Jesus in a public format.
The second phrase teaches that if we lose our life for Christ, we will actually find the life that God promises us, and that is a life eternal with Him. The meaning of the word “loses” here is to put our lives out of the way or to put something or someone else first. This is a pattern of teaching of Jesus Christ himself in the gospels, as he says that we must love him more than any other person in this world, even fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters!
Let the reader be encouraged to stay strong in the days ahead as those of us who continually deny ourselves and take up our cross await the blessed return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! A scripture that can strengthen us in times of denying ourselves and taking up our cross is found in I Peter 5:6-7, which says, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”
If you have a question about God’s Word, God Himself, or of a Christian spiritual nature, please send it to me at [email protected] and I will do my best, using scripture, to get you an answer.
We invite you to join us at College Hill Church of Christ, 1102 College Blvd., every Sunday morning at 10:30am for worship or follow us on Facebook at College Hill Church of Christ Alva Oklahoma as we stream our worship service every Sunday. We are a fellowship of believers that follow God’s Word and love all who worship with us!
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