Taking Up The Cross Daily
I was looking for other items to consider in self evaluation when I remembered the verse about a daily cross being taken up. This is the passage from Luke 9:
Luke 9:23-26 (NASB) [23] And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.[24] “For whoever wishes to save his *life will lose it, but whoever loses his *life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.[25] “For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself?[26] “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.
I want to follow the Lord, so what is He saying here? The word for wishes here is erotao which means desires. It carries the idea that we personally want in this case to follow the Lord. That means that it is something coming from our heart. Our word for coming after stresses the act of coming, not the arrival, and after indicates the act of following behind, to go behind someone to go where they go. We are being told here that we must deny our own self-interests when we follow. To take up is aero which means to raise up, to lift, to take upon oneself (the cross). This in turn is something that we do.
Ok, now that we have established that this is something that we do in following the Lord, what does it mean? It means to completely identify with Christ's message even if it means death. People are willing to pay a high price for something they value and Christ is making this same demand of His disciples. We have to be willing to deny self, shoulder our cross, and follow Him [Life Application Bible notes]. You might risk death in following the Lord but you are willing, knowing that He will raise you up if you perish - so you can face what comes without fear. This is a call to follow in a complete sense. We are not complete without the Lord, and if we are truly honest with ourselves, we cannot be true followers of Christ without putting forth this effort. This is really a sobering thought.
Luke 9:23-26 (NASB) [23] And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.[24] “For whoever wishes to save his *life will lose it, but whoever loses his *life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.[25] “For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself?[26] “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.
I want to follow the Lord, so what is He saying here? The word for wishes here is erotao which means desires. It carries the idea that we personally want in this case to follow the Lord. That means that it is something coming from our heart. Our word for coming after stresses the act of coming, not the arrival, and after indicates the act of following behind, to go behind someone to go where they go. We are being told here that we must deny our own self-interests when we follow. To take up is aero which means to raise up, to lift, to take upon oneself (the cross). This in turn is something that we do.
Ok, now that we have established that this is something that we do in following the Lord, what does it mean? It means to completely identify with Christ's message even if it means death. People are willing to pay a high price for something they value and Christ is making this same demand of His disciples. We have to be willing to deny self, shoulder our cross, and follow Him [Life Application Bible notes]. You might risk death in following the Lord but you are willing, knowing that He will raise you up if you perish - so you can face what comes without fear. This is a call to follow in a complete sense. We are not complete without the Lord, and if we are truly honest with ourselves, we cannot be true followers of Christ without putting forth this effort. This is really a sobering thought.