It’s okay because, through the power and Grace of God, we can be made perfect. Come eat his body and drink his blood, remembering that he has died for you. It's very true that Jesus said to His disciples, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross, and follow me." Part of carrying that cross is also bearing the suffering that will go along with it. If you do it everyday, you have all of eternity to look forward to. We worry about all the wrong things! He calls on me to put aside my selfish desires and put forward my spouse, my family, my job, my neighbor, country, and congregation? The cross, for Jesus, represented his exposure to pain and suffering. Whatever we need to do we do not have a choice if we are going to be followers of Christ. Luke 21:12-17; James 1:2-3; Jesus will often build his church within sight of the gates of … 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. Take Up Your Cross Luke 9:23-26. He taught that following Him meant denying yourself and taking up your cross. See the Lamb, Jesus Christ, slaughtered on the cross as the sacrifice for all the sins, for every one of your sins -- the big and the small, those you know of and those you aren’t even aware of, those you’ve already committed and those that still lie in the future -- every last one of them. So take up your cross. 2: Ministry Concentration, church Administration, History, homiletics and Identifying your … $19.99 What cross is Jesus placing before you today? It doesn’t have the same ring as: “Be all that you can be.” “Aim high.” “The few, the proud, the Marines.” But Jesus makes it clear again and again that following him is not the easy life. And what about that ongoing realization that I am nothing but dust and ashes.  TAKE UP YOUR CROSS-accept ,approve, applaud GRASS IN THE ROSE BUSH-don’t let a thought come in and take up residence in your mind. For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. Then Jesus called the the crowd of people who had gathered around to come and join him and his disciples. That’s not what it means to take up your cross. He did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all. He’s talking about the day-to-day decisions we make. When thoughts that aren’t pleasing to God come to your mind during the day, you “put them to death” on an inner “cross.” He taught that following Him meant denying yourself and taking up your cross. Amen. We take up a cross instead of a sword because the world is heavily invested in inequality, in patriarchy, in the coercive use of force and in the fear of suffering and death. Do we try to fit in to the crowds of this world so that others don’t ridicule us and try to shame us for following Jesus? They are the opposite of fearing, loving, and trusting him above all things. When Jesus took up his cross, he was acknowledging vulnerability. Seven Months Bible School at your Convenience. September 8 – 9, 2018. Losing four hours of preparation time means that he is going to lose four hours of sleep time! Topics: The Cross. Instated by the Romans it was the cruelest form of capital punishment known to man. How will you “Take Up Your Cross” to follow Jesus? "Then Jesus called the crowd to Him along with His disciples & said: ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself & take up his cross & follow me. In fact if we look at the Icon for the Feast of the Elevation of the Cross we can see how large it was. In order for Jesus to carry that cross he had to use both hands, his shoulder, and all of His strength to do so and at one point, He needed help to carry it because he was physically exhausted. And when Jesus asks what can be given in exchange for your soul, he’s not talking about some occult contract or deal with the devil. In a few moments, I will carry the bread and the wine out before you. What does true discipleship look like? 1 Peter 1:13-25. “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?” (Mark 8:36), Jesus asks. This suffering is not a punishment for anything, but rather it is a way to overcome this fallen world that we live in. Witnessing to your friends? It is through that very same Spirit, the Spirit that sanctifies these gifts that sanctifies each one of us and makes us holy. TAKE UP YOUR CROSS-accept,approve, applaud GRASS IN THE ROSE BUSH-don’t let a thought come in and take up residence in your mind. Recent Sermons. Note with Pastor Fuller what the Lord requires of us. Some of us work to live, and we live to work. You heard me correctly. “In this world you will have trouble.” “In this world you will bear the cross.”. "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. Remember that dogs and wolves are closely related. To the people of Jesus’ day the cross was a very concrete and vivid reality. To take up your cross and follow Jesus means to take the thing you are giving your life to and giving that to God. Do you agree that this cross would be easy to carry around? Deny Yourself, Take up your Cross and Follow Me. And that same Jesus who sacrificed himself on the cross for you is now at the right hand of God interceding for you. Christ’s not asking you to give up your call from God for the sake of being able to say that you’ve given it all up for Jesus. May the Holy Spirit through his Word and Sacraments lead you to take up your cross by denying yourself and to take up your cross so that you are driven all the more to Christ’s cross. A Sermon for Lent 2 “If any want to become my disciples, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” (Mark 8.34) We stand – or in your case, sit – in a very ancient place. While the phrase is commonly understood to mean acceptance of some burdensome task, the command to take up the cross is much more than a symbol of the difficulties experienced by humanity. You only have one job and it’s this: take up your cross. Sermons. Halfway to its destination, the engines started sputtering and failing. He challenges them in a way that he has never done before. 26 "For what ...read more Run to Christ’s cross. Take Up Your Cross Rev. Take up your cross so that you are driven to Christ’s cross. Don’t put yourself first. They dropped what they were doing and followed Him. Bulletin When Christ says pick up your cross, he is not asking you to be a martyr for a cause. This is not necessarily a physical death as Jesus died for us (though such might be required), but a daily total sacrifice of self to do the will of Jesus. He was admitting weakness, submitting to power that would take away his life. Therefore, “Take up your cross and follow Me” means being willing to die in order to follow Jesus. Preached on March 4, 2012, for the Second Sunday in Lent, at St. John's Ev. That truth still stands as a cornerstone of our faith today, challenging us to live in selfless surrender to our Savior. So, what does it mean to us? 859 5th Street [ read more... ] The … What had been closed by the sin of one man had been opened by the love of another. What does it mean to deny yourself? You remember. Deny your inborn desires. Blessings in Christ, Pastor Snow. The cross that Jesus suffered and died on was a very big cross. December 01, 2013. And that’s why your crosses are such a blessing! Sermon Audio To take up one’s cross is simply to be willing to pay any price for Christ’s sake. We are not to back out, turn around, or lay down the cross. Topical Studies. We see churches that faithfully proclaim his word struggle to survive and those that let anything go prosper. For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of man also be ashamed, when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power.”. Or we see our loved one’s lingering suffering and ask why he doesn’t take them sooner. Second Sunday in Lent 1 March 2015 (Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16 Psalm 22 Romans 4:13-25 Mark 8:31-38) “Take Up Your Cross!” There was a small plane with 5 passengers on it. The pilot came out from behind the curtain wearing a parachute pack on his back.… Jesus tells us today that if we are going to follow Him we must take up the Cross. Can any hardship, disaster, suffering, loss, or heartache erase what God has already done at the cross? Take Up Your Cross - Sunday worship service for May 3, 2020. By denying yourself. If you are a person of traditional theological beliefs and thinks that sin still exists and that we are all sinners and need the Grace of God, you are looked upon as old fashioned and out of touch. He has asked us to follow Him. Check Out Our Latest Sermon Outlines and Their Related Backgrounds Below. I was recently asked a question about baking Holy Bread. (Luke 14:27) There are two general understandings about the nature of the cross among Christians today. Deny your own strength and power. And “take up your cross” has literally meant death for many Christians throughout the centuries. Christ is asking you to listen to God’s call in your own life and to follow down the road where it leads. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. By the Grace and love of the Holy Trinity we find the strength that we need to carry all of it, and by carrying it all we become perfect. Electronic Greetings. The cross that Jesus was crucified on was a very large chunk of wood. 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