The Way of the Cross

The Way of the Cross—Part I

“There is a way that seems right to a person but in the end leads to death.” (Proverbs 14:12

“You can enter God’s kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14)

“I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6)
“For Christ didn’t send me to baptize, but to preach the Good News—and not with clever speech, for fear that the cross of Christ would lose its power.” (I. Cor. 1:17)

“The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But to we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.” (I. Cor. 1:18)

I am the father of three children. From the earliest days of infancy of each of those children, it didn’t take long to recognize something. Yes, they were cute and cuddly (except in the wee hours of the morning) but they also possess something that each and every man must conquer—a sin nature. That sin nature becomes evident in every little baby and child as they fight with everything within them, their self-will, to carry out that will. If this sin nature is never dealt with, never crucified, never “died too”, then my young children will never be able to serve the living God. For one to serve God, that self-will, that sin nature must be crucified to the cross of Christ and must be submitted to the Lordship of Jesus Christ each and every day of their lives. This can only be accomplished by them coming to and through the cross. They then must take up their cross and follow Jesus Christ daily.

There is something in each and every one of us that wants to do our own thing. There is something in each and every one of us that does not want to go the way of the cross—why? The cross is painful, grueling, hard, and is in complete opposition to our own self wills. When we come to the cross we must humble ourselves in obedience to God. Even Jesus before he went to the cross, knowing he must go to the cross, cried out, “Lord, if it is possible take this cup from me, nevertheless, not I will but your will!” He then speaks up and states that if anyone wants to be his followers, they must turn from thier selfish ways, take up thier cross, and follow me! If you try to hang on to your life you will lose it!

We live in a world that tells us, “If it feels good, just do it”. We live in a world that tells us to do whatever it takes to be “great” and “successful”. Don’t give things away but “he who has the most toys when he dies, wins.” It teaches nothing of humility, servant hood, or giving. The way of the cross isn’t easy—it’s hard. That’s why Paul said, “I must die daily.” This flesh will rise up each and everyday of your life so it must be put to death “daily.”

So many times we have indirectly told people to “come to Jesus and your life will be great!” You will be successful, happy, and “prosperous”. When the first wave of “hard times” or “trials” come they think, “What is this???”
Jesus says some rather straight forward things in John 15:18 when he said, “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.” Wow! Those are some pretty strong words! “The world will hate you!” You see the reason the world will hate you because when you go the way of the cross there is nothing in this world that appeals to you and nothing in you that appeals to this world!

Galatians 6:14 says, “Because of that cross, my interest in the world has been crucified, and the world’s interest in me has also died.”

I recently had a young teenage girl along with her mother who had given her life to Christ come into my office for counseling. She said since she had given her life to Christ the things she was once interested in was now fading away. More than that, those she use to be “friends” with were losing their interest in her and she in them. I told her, “That’s the way of the cross!”

Jesus goes on to say in John 16:1, “I have told you these things so that you won’t abandon your faith. For you will be expelled from the synagogues, and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God…Yes, I’m telling you these things now, so that when they happen, you will remember my warning. J

esus gives us a “heads up” when he says, “don’t be surprised when the world hates you. You will face rejection, persecution, etc. but I have warned you ahead of time “Don’t be surprised”. You won’t abandon your faith when you realize the way of the cross is one that isn’t accepted by the world. When these things come you have been expecting them, not surprised by them.

If we want to truly understand and embrace the way of the cross, then we must renew our minds to understand the attitude and values of the kingdom and renounce the attitudes and values of our worldly, fleshly, carnal system.
In Mark 8, Jesus began to explain to his disciples that the Son of Man must suffer many terrible things and he would be killed. Peter then took him aside to reprimand Jesus for saying such things.

Jesus then addressed the root of Peter’s messed up values as well as the root of our messed up values—Satan. “Get away from me Satan! You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from Gods!”
For us to understand the cross, we must embrace God’s view and not that of human, carnal nature.

The sinful nature says to “be angry and sin.” The cross says, “Be angry and sin not.” The sinful nature says, “don’t forgive”. The cross says, “You must forgive”. The sinful nature says, “I want to be served”. The cross says, “Give up your rights and serve others.” The sinful nature says, “I want to be popular and accepted by the world.” The cross says, “If you follow after Christ, you will be hated by the world.”

Philippians 3:10-11 says, “I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!”

Most of us have no problem stating that we want to “know Christ”. Most of us have no problem stating that we want to “experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead.” Where we all struggle is when Paul says, “I want to suffer with him…”
In order for us to truly be Disciples of Christ, we must be willing to carry our cross and endure whatever may come.