Luke 9:23 - Turning From Your Selfish Ways.
Luke 9:23 (NLT) Then he said to the crowd,
If any of you wants to be my follower, you must
turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross
daily, and follow me.
COMMENTARY PEARL
God has given us the power of choice; it
is ours to exercise. We cannot change our
hearts, we cannot control our thoughts, our
impulses, our affections. We cannot make ourselves
pure, fit for Gods service. But we can choose
to serve God, we can give Him our will; then He
will work in us to will and to do according to
His good pleasure. Thus our whole nature will be
brought under the control of Christ.
Through the right exercise of the will,
an entire change may be made in the life. By
yielding up the will to Christ, we ally ourselves
with divine power. We receive strength from above
to hold us steadfast. A pure and noble life, a
life of victory over appetite and lust, is
possible to everyone who will unite his weak,
wavering human will to the omnipotent, unwavering
will of God. MH176, 177
You need to drink daily at the fountain of
truth, that you may understand the secret of
pleasure and joy in the Lord. But you must remember
that your will is the spring of all your actions.
This will, that forms so important a factor in
the character of man, was at the Fall given into
the control of Satan; and he has ever since been
working in man to will and to do of his own
pleasure, but to the utter ruin and misery of man. But
the infinite sacrifice of God in giving Jesus,
His beloved Son, to become a sacrifice for sin,
enables Him to say, without violating one principle
of His government: Yield yourself up to Me;
give Me that will; take it from the control of
Satan, and I will take possession of it; then I can
work in you to will and to do of My good
pleasure. When He gives you the mind of Christ, your
will becomes as His will, and your character is
transformed to be like Christs character. Is it your
purpose to do Gods will? Do you wish to obey the
Scriptures? If any man will come after Me, let him
deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow
Me. 5T515
COMMENTARY
Dont Settle for Cheap Substitutes
When was the last time you heard someone
actually talk about denying themselves? We hear so
much today about gratifying ourselves, fulfilling
ourselves, discovering ourselves, and esteeming
ourselves. Theres even a magazine called Self.
But heres what Jesus says: If
anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny
himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.
For whoever desires to save his life will lose
it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will
save it (Luke 9:23-24 NKJV).
Some people have a false concept of God
and think that if theyre really going to be
Christians and take up the cross, they will never have
fun again. They falsely believe theyll have a
dull, miserable life of bondage to rules and
regulations.
But that isnt true. When we understand
what it really means to follow Jesus, well
find the greatest joy there is in life. We never
will know greater passion or excitement than what
well know in a relationship with God.
Anything this world has to offer is
nothing but a cheap substitute. Theres no drug,
no experience, or any other thing in this world
that even comes close to what it means to be a
real follower of Jesus and to discover what we
were made for.
So if you want to find life, it means
that you come to God and say, Here are my
plans. I dedicate them to you, and I invite you to
overrule them if you dont like the choices Ive
made. I want your will more than my own because
Ive discovered that your plans are better than
my plans. Your purposes are better than my
purposes.
Do you believe that? If so, then dedicate
your life to God. Take up the cross and follow
Him. [By Greg Laurie from Harvest Ministries;
https://www.harvestdaily.com]
Lose Yourself
The things that impressed me as a younger
Christian still impress me, but now other things
impress me even more. When I was a brand-new
believer, I was very impressed by a powerful preacher
or someone with a great musical gift that they
used for Gods glory.
I was impressed by someone who
consistently shared their faith and led people to Christ.
I am still impressed by those things, of
course. But there are other things that impress me
today.
What impresses me now is a husband and
wife who stay faithful to each other for their
entire marriage. Im impressed by a Christian who
weathers the storms of life and doesnt become
angry at God but comes closer to Him instead. And
Im impressed by believers who simply live out
their faith each day.
Being a disciple and being a follower of
Jesus is, to borrow a phrase from Nietzsche,
long obedience in the same direction. It is
staying with it.
Jesus said, If any of you wants to be
my follower, you must give up your own way,
take up your cross daily, and follow me (Luke
9:23 NLT). Notice that Jesus said you must take
up your cross daily - not yearly, not annually,
and not even monthly or weekly.
Its as simple as reading your Bible
when you get up in the morning. That is giving up
your own way and taking up the cross daily. It
means praying. It means speaking up for Jesus
Christ, even when its uncomfortable or a bit
awkward. Essentially, it means putting God first and
yourself second.
Maybe youre thinking, Well, that
sounds kind of miserable to me.
Its actually the opposite of that.
Its living life as it was meant to be lived when
you put Jesus first. Thats because Jesus
said, If you try to hang on to your life, you
will lose it. But if you give up your life for my
sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if
you gain the whole world but are yourself lost
or destroyed? (Luke 9:24-25 NLT).
Take up the cross - that is what we are
called to do every day. And if we will do this,
then we will find ourselves. Do you want to find
yourself? Then lose yourself. Put God first.
If you try to be a happy person, you
never will be a happy person. Now, there is
nothing wrong with wanting to be happy. Everyone
wants to be happy. But if you live to be happy,
you never will be.
As philosopher Eric Hoffer pointed out,
The search for happiness is one of the chief
sources of unhappiness.
Heres what it comes down to: If you
want to be happy, then seek to be holy, and
happiness will come as a by-product. Seek to be holy.
Seek to be like Christ. But also live wholly for
Christ. So, seek to be like Christ and live for
Christ. You will be a happy person as a result. [By
Greg Laurie from Harvest Ministries;
https://www.harvestdaily.com]
Making a Commitment
Although it has been more than three
decades, I still remember clearly the day I was
joined in marriage to my wife, Cathe. She walked
down the aisle looking beautiful. I, on the other
hand, resembled Jeremiah Johnson with my
shoulder-length hair and big beard. I cringe when I look at
the photos. But that day, I committed myself to
Cathe, I said, "I take you to be my lawfully wedded
wife, to have and to hold from this day forward,
for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in
sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until
death do us part." I made a public commitment to
her.
And although I have already made that
commitment, I make a recommitment every day to love
Cathe and to be the husband that God wants me to
be. I don't always do this perfectly. But I
recognize that it is a continuing commitment.
I have also committed myself to Jesus
Christ, and every day I honor and affirm that
commitment. One practical way I do this is simply by
staying in fellowship with Him. Jesus said, "If
anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny
himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me"
(Luke 9:23). By obeying God, listening to and
heeding the "still, small voice" of His indwelling
Holy Spirit, I remain in unbroken fellowship with
Him.
If you want to grow in Jesus Christ, it
will take time - and lots of it. It will take a
daily commitment for the rest of your life. But do
you have anything better to do with the rest of
your life than to follow Jesus and learn more
about Him? That is the best thing you could
possibly do with your life and future. Nothing is
better than that.
You could say the same thing hour by hour
through your day. Nothing is better, no matter what
your activities or responsibilities, than walking
in the sweetness and radiance of His conscious
presence. [Every Day with Jesus by Greg Laurie]
CLOSING THOUGHT
If we are Christ's, our thoughts are with
Him, and our sweetest thoughts are of Him. All
we have and are is consecrated to Him. Let's
thank Jesus this month for all that He has done
for us. Let us seek to bear His image, breathe
His spirit, do His will, and please Him in all
things. Pastor Arthur Gibbs
LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY
Luke 9:23 - Taking Up Your Cross Daily.
https://www.abible.com/devotions/2023/20230908-0919.html
Luke 9:23 - Our Valentine to God.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2022/20220214-1126.html
Luke 9:23 - FOLLOWING JESUS.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2021/20210410-0922.html
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
https://abible.com/links/
