Matthew 10:38
(Come in carrying cross) Good morning. Open your Bibles with me, if you will, to Matthew 10:38. This is a popular verse, and I�m sure you�ve heard it before. This is Jesus talking, �and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.�
Wow, we Christians have a heavy load to bear; don�t we? It�s like what Charles Spurgeon said, �There are no crown-wearers in heaven who were not cross- bearers here below.�
The road to righteousness and holiness is an uphill climb with stumbling blocks everywhere...right?
(put cross down)No! Let�s reboot for a minute. Jesus didn�t come to remove the heavy burden of guilt and shame, just to replace it with a heavier load of a high maintenance spiritual relatiotionship. He says in Matthew 11:30 (The Message)I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly." Christ�s cross made us worthy.
Let�s look at our cross-bearing verse a little closer. In the verses prior to it He says, starting with verse, 35 For I have come to turn " 'a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law -
36a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.'[a]
37"Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; 38and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.�
He�s talking about doing what is right, even if the people around you and closest to you don�t agree with your religious conclusions.
What we, as independent thinking Americans, need to consider is that this is contrary to the most fundamental social values of the people Christ was talking to. They had passed on their religios heritage for gernerations -for centeries.
When you chose a different belief system your may consider you dead.
So when He follows that up with talk about taking up your cross, it takes on a different twist.
Criminals that were about to lose their life because of their choices were forced to suffer public humiliation and ridicule by carrying their cross through the city. He�s making a word picture of how your choice, of surrendering your life to Christ, will come between you and the things you love. And people will question your motives and criticize you. There will be hard times and tough choices.
But remember, Christ did not want his hearers to stress out about their so-called �crosses,� He wanted them to live a life of inner-peace and outward love. Because Christ�s cross made us worthy.
There are two lessons here I want you to post on the sticky side of your brain.
1) Your cross is not a burden.
Galatians 5:1 says, �It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
Verse 4You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.� And the last part of 6�The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
I was having dinner with a friend last week and he shared with me a comic strip he had come across. Since then at least two others got it in an email, so maybe you�ve seen this lately.
It showed these people struggling under the load of their crosses. Eventually one man stops and says, �Lord, why does my cross have to be so heavy.� and in the next sean he�s got his saw out cutting the end off his cross. After that he seems to be doing better, but he eventually stops again and asks, �Lord, why does my cross have to be so heavy?� And again he gets out his saw and cuts on his cross. Next he�s standing at a great divide, and everyone else�s crosses are big enough to lay across and bridge the gap, but he is left standing distraught with his little cross.
My friend seemed proud of what he saw as a great piece of truth, but I was a bit irritated. And I tried to explain to him that the cross that Christ carried paid the price for our salvation. Christ�s cross made us worthy.
Christ did not come to exchange your heavy guilt load of sin for your heavy guilt load of righteousness.
Again in Matthew 11, now verses 28&29
"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me�watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. That�s Matthew 11:29&29.
Samuel Rutherford was noted for saying, �Christ's cross is such a burden as sails are to a ship or wings to a bird.�
When your focus is others instead of your own righteousness, or lack there of, you find purpose and meaning in life. To deny yourself is a freeing experience. This takes us to our second lesson.
2) To follow Him means to put others first.
Let me tell you a story from a devotional book called, Our Daily Bread
Eli Black was a brilliant businessman best know for two events in his life: 1)He masterminded the multimillion dollar takeover of the United Fruit conglomerate, and 2) he jumped to his death from the 42nd floor of the Pan Am building in New York City.
In the book An American Company, an executive described a business lunch he had with Eli Black. When the waitress brought a plate of cheese and crackers as an appetizer, Black reached out and took them, placed them on the table, blocked them with his arms, and continued talking. The executive hadn't eaten for hours and hinted that he would like a cracker. But Black acted as though he hadn't heard him and went on with the business meeting. After a while, Black placed a cracker and cheese on the tips of his fingers and continued to talk. Several moments later, Black placed the cracker on the executive's plate and then blocked the rest as before. It was clear that Black was in charge, manipulating others as he pleased. So let�s compare these tow great men, Black and Christ. Eli Black, for all his power, ended up in suicide. Jesus Christ, in all His humility, ended up the Savior of the world.
Jesus says to follow me. In that day for a rabbi to say �follow me� meant to model his teaching, or �trust me and learn from me.� Christ said a lot about the need to repent and prepare for the day of judgment. But as we follow Christ, let�s see how He sums up the scriptures. Turn a few pages over to the familiar story in Matthew 22, starting with verse 37
This is where a young man is trying to simplify all the teachings in the scripture. He asks, �so what�s most important.�
�Jesus replied:� In verse 37, � 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'[a] 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.�� So to follow Christ is to deny yourself and put others, primarily God, first.
I love the next verse, 40, �All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Love God and Love others.
Because Christ�s cross made us worthy.
Conclusion: So what have we learned? Your cross is not a burden that earns your salvation. Christ�s cross did that, and he is the prence of Peace. And number 2, to follow Him simply means to put others first. Love God and Love others. �The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.�
Because Christ�s cross made us worthy.
So I�m going to leave my cross here at the alter and I encourage you to do the same.
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