WHAT'S ALL THIS "TAKE UP YOUR CROSS" BUSINESS?

“If any of you wants to be my follower, you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross, and follow me. If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for me, you will find true life,” Matthew 16: 24-25.

“And a main road will go through that once deserted land. It will be named the Highway of Holiness. Evil hearted people will never travel on it. It will be only for those who walk in God’s ways…only the redeemed will follow it, those who have been ransomed by the Lord…sorrow and mourning will disappear, and they will be overcome with joy and gladness,” Isaiah 35: 8-10.

“The only victory that is worth anything is the conquest of self.” – Roy Hession

The Path to Life in God:

1. Ask God to convict you of sin.
   “If we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the truth. But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong,” 1st John 1: 8-9
   Be willing to allow God access into any area of your life He desires. Ask Him to show you where you have sinned, in large ways and in minor ways.
   Goodness is not of us. You already know that. It’s the hypocrites that think they are good. If they could for once take a good long look in the mirror they’d come away Goth, the color of mourning, the color of sorrow. Only God is good and we are good only to the extent that He is in us. So give Him access, don’t hold back. Let Jesus reproduce Himself in you.
2. Listen to what He says.
   In response to your prayer, God will almost immediately increase the sensitivity of your conscience. Listen to His still small inner voice.
3. Call it sin.
   When God does bring conviction, don’t try to explain or rationalize it away. Don’t quench the gentle prodding of God with excuses. Freely admit to your shortcomings. Confess it to God.
   “The Blood does not cleanse excuses, but it always cleanses sin.” – Norman Grubb
4. Ask to be forgiven.
   Hurt before God. Let your pain shine in His eyes like a mirror reflecting the sun. Scream.
5. Ask Him to take it away.
   “I don’t want it anymore. I don’t want to want it anymore. Take from me my desire that I may feel it no more. Kill me to it, nail me to your tree.” Oh the pain, the bliss, the sweet wonderful pain of freedom.

Kiss your old self goodbye.

- David Dellman