Go With Me Devotional

April 5, 2010

Go With ME

Embracing our Sacred Responsibility with Christ

My Cross: 

One day when large groups of people were walking along with him, Jesus turned and told them, "Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of father, mother, spouse, children, brothers, sisters—yes, even one's own self!—can't be my disciple. Anyone who won't shoulder his own cross and follow behind me can't be my disciple.”  Luke 14:25-27 – The Message

  It is Thursday before Good Friday, as I begin to write this devotional.  It is an appropriate time for me to ask the question, “What does it mean for me to carry my cross?”   It was about 2,000 years ago, my Savior carried His cross up a hill called Golgotha, and was nailed to it.  Is my cross to also include a severe beating and painful crucifixion, as it was with Jesus, if I choose to shoulder it? Will it be that way for you, if you do the same?  Yes, our death could include crucifixion, for there is no telling what kind of death we may face one day.  But the cross was unique for Jesus, for it symbolized His life’s purpose and mission.  It was the choice of God the Father that Jesus be the “Lamb of God,” and be literally sacrificed on the cross for our redemption.   Sure, one could die in a similar manner, and many people were crucified years afterwards on a cross, under the heavy hand of the Romans.  However, there will never be another life purpose like the cross was for Jesus, for on that cross was nailed the sin of mankind and through it came the redemption of those souls who believe in His life, death and resurrection.  This was His cross to bear, and He completed His mission.  What about yours and my purpose?  What about our cross? Years ago I watched a “made for TV” movie called “Jesus of Nazareth.”  It was the best movie about Christ I personally have ever seen.  I still remember scenes from the movie.  In one of the opening scenes, Mary had just birthed Jesus in the manger, and Joseph had laid Him in a feed trough and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, as scripture mentions.  When Joseph did this, a strange shadow of a cross fell across the Baby.  Joseph saw it was simply a bug lying on the glass of a lamp, and this created the shadow.  However, it sent a message to those who watched.  The message said, “This Child is born for the cross.”  We know this now, and recognize Jesus was born with this purpose.  But, have you ever thought, as I often do, that you were also born with a life purpose, and this is what Jesus meant when He told us to “shoulder our own cross?” Like you and me, could Jesus have denied this claim on His life?  Could Jesus have turned away from His cross?  I think so, for obedience is a choice, and Jesus had to battle against the temptation to flee, as most men would do. He was resolved, and He stood the test.  However, He had to fight through the same temptation you and I would have had, if we knew we had thousands of angels at our command to take us from the hands of the Romans, sparing us the pain of the crucifixion. Just look at His great agony mentioned in scripture before He went to the cross, and you will get a feel for the battle He was going through in order to carry His cross.  Jesus had to face every temptation as a man, even though He was God.  Yet, Jesus knew His purpose, and He knew His Father’s love, and He knew it was the only way for you and me to find redemption.  He was battling for you and me in that garden and on His cross.  Have you ever really thought of it this way?  Have you ever thought your life was also meant for something more than yourself? As was with Jesus and His cross, the choice of what our cross becomes is with the Father.  It is He Who determines our life purpose – our cross.  At the core, however, is the question of whether we are willing to obey the Father.  Will I say yes to “it,” even though I do not know what “it” is?  Will I accept the cross God the Father will give to me, believing it to be my life purpose, even though I would not desire it?  Will I allow the shadow of the cross to fall across my life, and I say, “Yes Lord, whatever You desire for me; I will not resist.”  I tell you, my Brothers, if we will do this, we are not far from the heart of Christ, for this was His heart when He lived in this world and when His life intersected with His cross. It is now Good Friday, as I finish this devotional.  Several years ago, I was impacted by a sermon an old black preacher preached called, “It’s Friday, but Sunday’s a comin.”  Many of you have heard this sermon, and like me, you likely found yourself standing at the end, cheering and clapping.  Why did we do this?  We did it for we realized victory had been won.  Every force that tried to silence God’s voice had failed, and His message lived on because on resurrection Sunday, Jesus walked out of His burial chamber.  Jesus left that grave, overcame death, and set captives free.  We don’t know what happened in the days and hours between His death and the resurrection.  However, it was an essential part of His cross.  We know Jesus was aware of what would occur after His death.  When He went to the cross, He knew the cross was only part of His mission.  The completion of His purpose and mission would be finished on the Sunday we call Easter, as He conquered the grave.  Here’s a key point, as it relates to yours and my cross: Jesus knew what he would face on His cross.  He also knew it would not be His end, for He knew His resurrection day would surely follow, and a life better than the one before would be His to claim.  Too often, I feel we men look at our cross as a death without anything to follow.  We look at our cross as a complete denial of our self, and all that we enjoy, and hold dear, will end. Therefore, we are reluctant to shoulder our cross, for we see only death and no benefit beyond it. On the contrary, we, too, will experience a form of resurrection after we shoulder our cross, when we become transformed men, who are alive with new purpose, joy, and power.  This man will be courageous, for he has faced his cross, and the transformation that comes afterwards has made him ready for the battlefields he will enter.  When we shoulder our cross, we are saying “yes” to Christ, and it is He who will overwhelm us with a life that is able to share in His death and resurrection.  We will become men who experience the desires of our hearts.  So, don’t think it is all over for us because we shoulder our cross and follow Jesus.  On the contrary, just like Christ’s resurrection, it will only be the beginning for us. He is risen.  He has risen indeed!!! Rocky ***CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD A WORD FILE OF THIS DEVOTIONAL