LUKE 9:23 – And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

THEME OF THE DAY. YES, IT IS VERY HARD. I am going to make a bold statement, but I do so with confidence. I not only believe I am right in what I am about to write, but it will pass both the test of rightness scripturally and by personal experience. Here it is . . . the most difficult thing in all of the Christian life is obeying today’s scripture and particularly, what Jesus says about dealing with oneself; self-denial. Yes, developing a healthy prayer life is difficult. Yes, being faithful to the Word of God in study and reading is difficult. Yes, sharing the Gospel is difficult. But nothing God calls us to do is as difficult, challenging, and necessary as the daily putting to death of self-interests or practicing self-denial. It is the war of wars because we have lusts which want to be fulfilled; desires seeking to be satisfied; and our wanting our way in too many things. But, friends, the quality of our Christian life and closeness to the Lord Jesus hinges on one thing; our ability and commitment to daily put self to death and put the interests of others ahead of our own. This is the most serious of issues in all of the Christian life. Our holiness depends on self-denial. Our joy in service depends on self-denial. Our witness of the self-denying Lord Jesus depends on our self-denial. Our growth in the Fruit of the Spirit depends on self-denial. Everything in the Christian life rises and fall on self-denial. Remember this . . . when sin entered the world so did selfishness and selfishness is manifested in our bent toward self-fulfillment, not self-denial. And it is so very, very hard.

So, in the pursuit of a life of Christ-honoring self-denial for His sake and the interests of others, what help may we get from the Lord’s Words in today’s scripture? Two things . . .

First, self-denial requires personal suffering – “take up his cross”. We must understand the Christian life is going to be painful. It must be. God has said it would be so. And the cross? The cross is not a nice piece of jewelry worn around the neck. Nor is some ornament placed in a church. The cross is an instrument of death. It is the emblem of suffering and pain. We live in a day and age of what I might call “soft” Christianity. Oh, I am not looking around and judging Christians. I am looking in the mirror and see a Christian who doesn’t want pain, suffering, difficulty, or anything uncomfortable in my walk with the Lord. And that simply isn’t going to happen. Suffering or the way of the cross is the way of the Christian life. The Apostle Peter wrote, “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in His steps” (1 Peter 2:21). Self-denial means self-death and the instrument of this death in identifying with Christ on His cross.

Another truth about the work of self-denial by way of cross-bearing is this is a daily effort – “take up his cross daily”. Dying to self-interests or anything that focuses on oneself is not a one-time event. It actually would be easier to die once and enter the presence of the Lord than to daily wake up and resolve to die to oneself throughout the day. And the difficulty of this daily crucifixion is what drives us to the sufficiency of God’s grace. The Apostle Paul told the Corinthian church, “I die daily” (1 Corinthians 15:31) and then he would say, “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9). When God commands us, He also enables us to obey the command. That includes cross-bearing.

Yes, the Christian life is hard. Actually, impossible. And all the more so as we are called to identify with the cross of our Lord. Let’s learn not to rebel against cross-bearing and its suffering, but to rejoice in the privilege for it is the mark of being a disciple of our Lord; the One who bore a cross far more painful than any we will carry.

PRAYER: “Father, help me to believe Your grace is sufficient when I feel overwhelmed and incapable.”

QUOTE: “God’s grace will be sufficient in every tough trial, every trying circumstances, and every effort to obey His Word”