Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life? Or what shall a man give in return for his life? (Mat 16:24-26)

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately about the cross-defined life, what it looks like and what it requires. The Lord’s true disciples paid the price. Jesus had no motels to offer them, no salary. There was no McDonald’s along the way. He had no camels, horses or slaves to bear them along on litters. So the disciples had to walk through the blistering heat of the desert and the chilling cold of the mountains. At first they might have thought this to be a great adventure to follow Jesus. It must have been quite a break from bone-crushing labor and grinding dull routine of normal daily life in Biblical times, but following Christ demands the death of self, the death of our pride, the death of our self-centeredness, the death of our reputation, the death of selfishness. Continue Reading »