Not coming back

Not coming back

Bible:Luke 14:25-33

Whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple (V.27).

Reading

“One thing you knew about a man walking out of town with a cross on his back: he wasn’t coming back!” When I read that from a Christian writer, I thought he sounded a bit flippant about Jesus carrying His cross to His death. But the writer didn’t mean it that way. He wanted to hit home what our commitment to follow Jesus means— because we’re following the One who tells us to also carry our cross as well. It must have been confusing for Jesus’ listeners when he said, “Whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple” (LUKE 14:27). The crowds had enthusiastically followed Him and now He offered them what? A form of torture and execution? This wasn’t something they would have expected from Him. Why would He lead them to such an awful punishment? It’s possible the crowd thinned out a bit at that point! Jesus also talked about “hating” our own family (V.26). Now we can get around this one quite comfortably by saying that our love for Jesus should be so great that, in comparison, all other love is hatred. But let’s think about these things a little more. Jesus wants all of our attention, every scrap of our lives. By taking up the cross ourselves to follow Him, we’re saying that we have died, are dying and will die each day to all that we want, all our agendas, hopes, dreams and plans. Why? Because of our love for Him, our understanding of our need for Him and our certainty that we will spend forever with Him. What a huge challenge the crowd heard from Jesus that day—a huge challenge for us too. But Jesus’ loving example makes sense of it all. He “laid down his life for us” (1 JOHN 3:16). By His power, may we do the same for Him and others!

TAKING UP YOUR CROSS MEANS
YOU’RE NOT COMING BACK TO YOUR OLD LIFE.

YouTh Edition – Our Daily Bread Ministries