Daily!

Lu.9:²³ (KJV) “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” [with emphasis].

What then is this cross that Jesus is speaking to us about? A lot of the things we are calling our cross are the things that The Cross of Jesus came to sort out. Those things are not your cross. The best definition of The Cross I have come across is by Derrick Prince and he says that, “Your cross is where your will crosses with the will of the Father”. And it is scriptural; at the garden of Gethsemane when Jesus was about to face The Cross and He said, “If it is possible let this cup pass over Me” [His will]. Then immediately after, Jesus said, “Not my will but Your will be done” [God’s Will].

There are things I want to do that do not line up with God’s will for me. That is a cross situation. There are places I want to go and it does not line up with where God wants me to be. That is a cross situation. There are things I want to do or say to my spouse but it does not line up with what God wants me to do or say to him or her. That again, is a cross situation. So we see that just like Jesus says, we encounter The Cross everyday and we have to deal with it daily. And Jesus instructs us to carry our cross daily and follow Him. In other words, what Jesus is saying to us is, “If you want resurrection power to flow in your life, take up your cross on a daily basis and hang out with Me” –Jesus.

Over and over again, we encounter this truth in Scripture that Jesus went to The Cross, so that His resurrection power can flow in us through The Cross. In Christ, death to self at The Cross leads to resurrection life and power. Lu.9:²³ “Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me” [with emphasis]. In essence Jesus is saying, “Do you want resurrection power and do you want My life to flow through you?” He says, “You must give up your own way”.

That is The Cross –you must give up your own way. You must deny yourself. You must take up your cross; how often? Once? Only when you give your life to Jesus? Take it daily and follow Jesus. Death to self at The Cross leads to resurrection life and power that is beautiful!

Prayer: Lord Jesus, let it be Your will and not my will and let it be Your way and not mine. Today, I take up my cross and I follow You Jesus, in Jesus Name. Amen!