Jesus was demanding self denial v. 2

JESUS WAS DEMANDINGSELF DENIAL V. 2
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Luke 9:23 Then Jesus said to all of them, "If anyone
would come after Me, he must deny himself and take
up his cross daily and followMe.
PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
The Extent and Reasonableness ofSelf-Denial
by
George Whitefield
(1714-1770)
Luke 9:23- "Andhe saidunto them all, if any man will come afterme, lethim
deny himself."
Whoeverreads the gospel witha single eye, andsincere intentions, willfind,
that our blessedLord took allopportunities ofreminding his disciples that his
kingdom was notofthis world; that his doctrine was a doctrine ofthe cross;
and that their professing themselves to be his followers, wouldcallthem to a
constantstate ofvoluntary suffering and self-denial.

The words of the text affordus one instance, among many, ofoursavior's
behavior in this matter: for having in the preceding verses revealedhimselfto
Peter, andthe other apostles, to be "The ChristofGod;" lesttheyshould be too
much elatedwith sucha peculiar discoveryofhis deity, or think that their
relationto so greata personagewouldbe attendedwith nothing but pomp and
grandeur, he tells then, in the 22nd verse, that"the sonofman was to suffer
many things," inthis world, though he was to be crownedwith eternalglory
and honor in the next: and that if any of them ortheir posteritywould share in
the same honor, theymust beara part with him in his self-denialand
sufferings. For"He saidunto them all, if any man will come afterme, lethim
deny himself."
From whichwords I shallconsiderthese three things:
I. FIRST, The nature ofthe self-denialrecommendedinthe text; and in how
many respects we mustdeny ourselves, inorderto come afterJesus Christ.
II. SECONDLY, Ishallendeavorto prove the universality and reasonableness
of this duty of self-denial.
III. THIRDLY, I shalloffer some considerations, whichmayserve as so man
motives to reconcile us to, andquickenus in, the practice ofthis self-denial.
I. FIRST, Iamto show youthe nature of the self-denialrecommendedinthe
text; or in how many respects we mustdeny ourselves in orderto follow Jesus
Christ.

Now as the faculties ofthe soulare distinguished by the understanding, will
and affections; soinall these must eachofus deny himself. We must not leanto
our ownunderstanding, being wise in our owneyes, andprudent in our own
sight; but we must submit our short-sightedreasonto the light of divine
revelation. There are mysteries inreligion, whichare above, thoughnot
contrary to our natural reason: andtherefore we shallneverbecome
Christians unless we calldownimaginations, "andeveryhigh thing that
exaltethitself againstthe knowledge ofGod, andbring into captivity every
thought to the obedience ofChrist." Itis in this respect, as wellas others, that
we must become fools forChrist's sake, andacknowledgewe knownothing
without revelation, as we oughtto know. We must, withallhumility and
reverence, embracethe truths revealedto us in the holy scriptures; forthus
only canwe become truly wise, even"Wiseunto salvation."Itwas matterof
our blessedLord's thanksgiving to his heavenly father, that he had "hidden
these things from the wise andprudent, and had revealedthem unto babes."
And in this respectalso we must"be convertedand become as little children,"
teachable, andwilling to follow the Lamb into whatsoevermysteries he shallbe
pleasedto leadus; and believe and practice alldivine truths, not because we
candemonstrate them, but because God, "who cannotlie," has revealedthem
to us.
Hence then we may trace infidelity to its fountain head; forit is nothing else,
but a pride of the understanding, anunwillingness to submit to the truths of
God, thatmakes so many, professing themselveswise, to become suchfools as
to deny the Lord, who has so dearlybought them; and dispute the divinity of
that eternalWord, "in whom they live, and move, andhave their being:"
Whereby it is justly to be feared, theywill bring upon themselves sure, ifnot
swiftdestruction.
But, as we must deny ourselves in our understandings, so mustwe deny, or, as it
might be more properly rendered, renounce ourwills; thatis, we must make
our ownwills no principle of action, but"whetherwe eatordrink , or

whatsoeverwe do, wemustdo all, (notmerelyto please ourselves, but) to the
glory ofGod." Notthatwe are therefore to imagine we are to have no pleasure
in any thing we do: "Wisdom's ways are ways ofpleasantness;"butpleasing
ourselves mustnot be the principal, but only the subordinate end of our
actions.
And I cannotbut particularly press this doctrine upon you, because itis the
grand secretofourholy religion. It is this, my brethren, that distinguishes the
true Christian from the mere moralistand formal professor; andwithout
which none of our actions are acceptable inGod's sight: For"ifthine eye be
single," says ourblessedLord, Matthew 6:22, thatis, ifthou aimestsimply to
please God, withoutanyregardto thy ownwill, "thy whole body, (orallthy
actions) willbe full oflight;" agreeableto the gospel, whichis calledlight: "But
if thine eye be evil, (ifthine intention be diverted any otherway) thy whole
body, (allthy actions) willbe full of darkness,"sinfuland unprofitable, we
must not only do the will ofGod, but do it because itis his will; since we pray
that "God's willmay be done on earthas it is in heaven." And no doubt, the
blessedangels notonlydo every thing that God willeth, but do it cheerfully, out
of this principle, because Godwillethit: And if we wouldlive as we pray, we
must go and do likewise.
But farther, as we must renounce our wills in doing, so likewisemustwe
renounce them in suffering the will of God. Whatsoeverbefalls us, we mustsay
with goodold Eli, "Itis the Lord, let him do whatseemethhim good;": orwith
one that was infinitely greaterthanEli, "Father, notmy will, but thine be
done." O Jesus, thine was aninnocentwill, and yet thou renouncedst it. Teach
us, evenus also, O ourSavior! To submit our wills to thine, in all the evils which
shallbe brought upon us; and in every thing enable us to give thanks, since itis
thy blessedwillconcerning us!

THIRDLY, we must deny ourselves, as inourunderstandings and wills, so
likewise inour affections. Moreparticularly, we mustdeny ourselves the
pleasurable indulgence and self-enjoymentofriches: "Ifanyman will come
afterme, he must forsake allandfollow me." And again(to show the utter
inconsistencyofthe love ofthe things of this worldwith the love ofthe Father)
he tells us, "unless a manforsake allthathe hath, he cannotbe my disciple."
Farbe it from me to think that these texts are to be takenin a literal sense; as
though they obliged rich persons to go sellallthat they have and give to the
poor, (forthatwould put it out of their powerto be serviceable to the poorfor
the future) but however, theycertainlyimply thus much, that we are to sit loose
to, sellandforsake allin affection, andbe willing to part with every thing, when
Godshall require it at our hands: that is, as the apostle observes, we must"use
the world as thoughwe used it not;" andthough we are in the world, we must
not be ofit. We must look upon ourselves as stewards, andnot proprietors, of
the manifold gifts ofGod; provide first what is necessaryforourselves andfor
our households, andexpendthe rest, notin indulgencies and superfluous
ornaments, forbidden by the apostle, butin clothing, feeding, andrelieving the
naked, hungry, distresseddisciples ofJesus Christ. This is whatourblessed
Lord wouldhave us understand by forsaking all, andin this sense musteachof
us deny himself.
I am sensible that this will seemanhard saying to may, who will be offended
because theyare covetous, and"lovers ofpleasure more thanlovers ofGod;"
but if I yet pleasedsuchmen, I should not be the servantof Christ. No, we must
not, like Ahab's false prophets, have a lying spirit in our mouths, but declare
faithfully the whole willof God; andlike honestMicajahout ofpity and
compassion, tellmenthe truth, though they may falselythink we prophecynot
goodbut evil concerning them.

But to proceed: As we mustrenounce our affectionforriches, so likewise our
affections forrelations, whentheystandin oppositionto our love of, and duty
to God: Forthus saith the Saviorof the world: "Ifany man will come afterme,
and hateth not his father and mother, his children, and brethren, and sisters,
yea and his ownlife also, he cannotbe my disciple." Strangedoctrine this!
What, hate our ownflesh! What, hate the father that begatus, the mother that
bare us! How canthese things be? CanGodcontradict himself? Has he not bid
us to honor our father and mother? And yet we are here commanded to hate
them. How canthese truths be reconciled? Byinterpreting the wordhate, notin
a rigorous and absolute sense, butcomparatively: notas implying a total
alienation, but a less degree ofaffection. Forthus ourblessedSaviorhimself
(the bestand purest expositorofhis ownmeaning) explains it in a paralleltext,
Matthew 10:37, "He thatlovethfather ormother more than me, is not worthy
of me; He that loveth sonor daughter more than me, is not worthy ofme." So
that when the persuasions ofourfriends (as forourtrial they may be
permitted to be) are contraryto the will ofGod, we must saywith Levi, "we
have not know them;" or, agreeablyto our blessedLord's rebuke to Peter,
"Getyou behind me, my adversaries; foryoufavor not the things that be of
God, but the things that be ofman."
Farther, we mustdeny ourselves inthings indifferent; for it might easilybe
shown, thatas many, if not more, perish by an immoderate use ofthings in
themselves indifferent, as by any gross sinwhatever. Aprudent Christian
therefore, willconsidernotonly what is lawful, but whatis expedient also: not
so much what degrees ofself-denialbestsuithis inclinations here, as whatwill
mosteffectuallybreak his will, and fit him for greaterdegreesofglory
hereafter.
LASTLY, To conclude this head, we must renounce ourown righteousness:
For, thoughwe should give all our goods to feedthe poor, and our bodies to be
burned, yet, if we in the leastdepend on that, and do not wholly rely onthe
perfectall sufficientrighteousness ofJesus Christ, itwill profit us nothing.

"Christis the end ofthe law for righteousness to everyone that believeth." We
are complete in him, and him only. Our ownrighteousnesses are butas filthy
rags. We mustcountall things but dung and dross, so thatwe may be found in
him, not having our ownrighteousness, butthe righteousness whichis ofGod,
through Jesus Christour Lord.
And is this the doctrine of Christianity? Is not the Christianworld then asleep?
If not, whence so muchself-righteousness, whence the self- indulgence, whence
the reigning love ofriches which we everywhere meetwith? Above all, whence
that predominant greediness aftersensualpleasure, thathas so over-runthis
sinful nation, that was a pious strangerto come amongstus, he wouldbe
tempted to think some heathenVenus was worshippedhere, andthat temples
were dedicatedto her service. Butwe have the authority ofan inspired apostle
to affirm, that they who live in a round ofpleasure, "are deadwhile theylive."
Wherefore, asthe Holy Ghostsaith, "Awakethouthat sleepeth, andarise from
the dead, andChrist shall give thee light." But the powerofraising the
spiritually deadbelongethonly unto God. Do thoutherefore, O Holy Jesus, who
by thy almighty word commandestLazarus to come forth, thoughhe had lain
in the grave some days, speakalso aseffectuallyto these spirituallydead souls,
whom Satanformany years hath so fastbound by sensual pleasures, thatthey
are not so much as able to lift up their eyes orhearts to heaven.
II. But I pass onto the secondgeneral thing proposed, to considerthe universal
obligationand reasonableness ofthis doctrine ofself- denial.
When our blessedmasterhadbeendiscoursing publicly concerning the
watchfulness ofthe faithful and wise steward, his disciples askedhim,
"Speakest thouthis parable to all, oronly to us?" The same questionI am
aware has been, andwillbe put concerning the foregoing doctrine: fortoo
many, unwilling to take Christ's easyyoke uponthem, in order to evade the
force ofthe gospel precepts, wouldpretendthat all those commands

concerning self-denial, andrenouncing ourselves andthe world, belongedto
our Lord's first and immediate followers, andnotto us or to our children. But
suchpersons greatlyerr, notknowing the scriptures, northe powerof
godliness intheir hearts. Forthe doctrine ofJesus Christ, like his blesses self, is
"the same yesterday, today, andforever." Whathe saidunto one, he saidunto
all, evenunto the ends ofthe world; "If any man will come afterme, lethim
deny himself:" and in the text it is particularly mentioned that he saidit unto
them ALL. And lestwe should still absurdly imagine that this word ALL was
to be confined to his apostles, withwhom he was then discoursing, itis saidin
anotherplace, thatJesus turnedunto the multitude and said, "Ifany man will
come afterme, and hateth not his father and mother, yea and his own life also,
he cannotbe my disciple." Whenour blessedLordhad spokena certain
parable, itis said, "the scribes andPhariseeswere offended, fortheyknew the
parable was spokenagainstthem:" andif Christians cannow read these plain
and positive texts ofscripture, and at the same time not think they are spoken
of them, they are more hardenedthan Jews, andmore insincere than Pharisees.
In the former part of this discourse Iobserved, thatthe precepts concerning
forsaking andselling all, did not oblige us in a literal sense, becausethe state of
the church does notdemand it of us, as itdid of the primitive Christians; but
still the same deadness to the world, the same abstemious use of, andreadiness
to part with or goods forChrist's sake, is as absolutelynecessaryfor, andas
obligatoryon us, as itwas onthem. For though the church may differ as to the
outwardstate ofit, in different ages, yetas to the purity ofits inward state, it
was, is, andalways willbe invariably the same. And allthe commands which we
meetwith in the epistles about"mortifying our members which are upon the
earth, ofsetting our affections onthings above, andof not being conformedto
this world;" are but so many incontestable proofs thatthe same holiness,
heavenly-mindedness, anddeadness to the world, is as necessaryforus, as for
our Lord's immediate followers.

But farther, as suchan objectionargues anignorance ofthe scriptures, so itis a
manifest proof, thatsuchas make it are strangers to the powerof godliness in
their hearts. Forsince the form and substance ofreligionconsists inrecovery
from our fallen estate inAdam, by a new birth in Christ Jesus, there is an
absolute necessityforus to embrace and practice the self-denialbefore spoken
of. If we are alive unto God, we shallbe dead to ourselves andthe world. If all
things belonging to the spirit live and grow in us, allthings belonging to the old
man must die in us. We must mourn before we are comforted, andreceive the
spirit ofbondage before we are blessedwiththe unspeakable privilege ofthe
spirit ofadoption, and with a full assurance offaithcansay, "Abba, Father."
Were we indeedin a state ofinnocence, andhadwe, like Adam before his fall,
the divine image fully stampedupon our souls, we thenshouldhave no need of
self-denial; butsince we are fallen, sickly, disordered, self-righteous creatures,
we must necessarilydeny ourselves (andcountitour privilege to do so) ere we
canfollow Jesus Christto glory. To rejectsucha salutarypractice onaccount
of the difficulty attending it at first, is but too like the obstinacyofa perverse
sick child, who nauseatesandrefuses the portion reachedoutto it by a skillful
physician ora tender parent, because itis a little ungrateful to the taste.
Had any of us seenLazarus whenhe lay full ofsores atthe rich man's gate; or
Jobwhen he was smitten with ulcers, fromthe crownofhis head to the sole of
his foot: And had we at the same time prescribed to them some healing
medicines, which, becausetheymight put them to pain, they would not apply to
their wounds, shouldwe not most justly think, that they were eitherfond ofa
distempered body, or were notsensible oftheir distempers? Butour souls, by
nature, are in an infinitely more deplorable condition than the bodies of Jobor
Lazarus, whenfull ofulcers and boils: for, alas! "ourwhole headis sick, and
our whole heartfaint, from the crownofthe head to the soldof the foot, we are
full of wounds and bruises and putrifying sores, andthere is no health in us."
And if we are unwilling to deny ourselves, andcome afterJesusChristin order

to be cured, it is a signwe are not sensible ofthe wretchedness ofourstate, and
that we are not truly made whole.
Even Naaman's servants couldsay, whenhe refused(pursuantto Elisha's
orders) to washinthe river Jordan, thathe might cure his leprosy, "Father, if
the prophet had bid thee do some greatthing, wouldstthou not have done it?
How much rather then, when he saith to thee, washandbe clean?"And may
not I very properly address myselfto you in the same manner, my brethren? If
Jesus Christ, ourgreatprophet, hadbid you to do some farmore difficult
thing, would you not have done it? Much more then should you do it, whenhe
only bids you deny yourselves whatwouldcertainly hurt you if indulged in, and
he will give you a crownof life.
But to illustrate this by anothercomparison: Inthe 12th chapterof the Acts, we
read, that"St. Peterwas keptin prison, and was sleeping betweentwo soldiers,
bound with two chains. And behold an angelofthe Lord came upon him, and
smote Peteronthe side, saying, ariseupquickly. And his chains fell off from his
hands." Buthad this greatapostle, insteadofrising up quickly, and doing as
the blessedangelcommandedhim, huggedhis chains and beggedthat they
might not be let fall from his hands, would not any one think that he was inlove
with slavery, anddeservedto be executednext morning? And does notthe
personwho refuses to deny himself, actas inconsistently, as this apostle would
have done if he had neglectedthe means ofhis deliverance? Foroursouls, by
nature, are in a spiritual dungeon, sleeping andfastbound betweenthe world,
the flesh, andthe devil, not with two but ten thousandchains of lusts and
corruptions. Now Jesus Christ, like St. Peter's goodangel, bythe powerofhis
gospel comes andopens the prisondoor, and bids us "denyourselves and
follow him." But if we do not arise, girdup the loins ofour mind and follow
him, are we not in love with bondage, andto we not deserve neverto be
delivered from it?

Indeed, I will not affirm that this doctrine ofself-denialappears inthis just
light to every one. No, Iamsensible that to the natural man it is foolishness, and
to the young convert anhard saying. Butwhatsays ourSavior? "Ifany man
will do my will, he shall know the doctrine, whetherit be of God, orwhetherI
speak ofmyself." This, mydear friends, is the best, the only wayof conviction.
Let us up and be doing; let us arise quickly, and deny ourselves, andthe Lord
Jesus willremove those scalesfromthe eyes ofour minds, which now, like so
many veils, hinder us from seeing clearlythe reasonableness, necessity, and
inexpressible advantage ofthe doctrine that has beendelivered. Let us but once
thus show ourselves men, andthen the spirit ofGodwill move on the face of
our souls, as he did once upon the face ofthe greatdeep; andcause themto
emerge outof that confusedchaos, inwhichthey are mostcertainly now
involved, if we are strangers andenemies to self-denialandthe cross ofChrist.
III. Proceedwe thereforenow to the third and lastgeneral thing proposed, to
offersome considerations, whichmayserve as so manymotives to reconcile us
to, and quickenus in, the practice ofthis duty of self- denial.
1. And the first means I shallrecommend to you, in orderto reconcile youto
this doctrine, is, to meditate frequently onthe life of our blessedLord and
MasterJesus Christ. Followhimfrom his cradle to the cross, andsee whata
self-denying life he led! And shall not we drink of the cup that he drank of, and
be baptized with the baptism that he was baptizedwith? Orthink we, that
Jesus Christdid and sufferedeverything in orderto have us excusedand
exempted from sufferings? No, farbe it from any sincere Christianto judge
afterthis manner: for St. Petertells us, "He sufferedforus, leaving us an
example that we shouldfollow his steps." HadChrist, indeed, like those thatsat
in Moses'chair, laidheavyburdens of self- denialupon us, (supposing they
were heavy, whichthey are not) and refusedto touch them himself with one of
his fingers; we mighthave had some pretense to complain: Butsince he has
enjoined us nothing, but what he first put in practice himself, thou art
inexcusable, O disciple, whoeverthouart, who wouldstbe above thy persecuted

self-denying master: And thou art no goodandfaithful servant, who art
unwilling to suffer and sympathize with thy mortified, heavenly-minded Lord.
2. Nextto the pattern of our blessedmaster, think oftenon the lives ofthe
glorious companyof the apostles, the goodlyfellowshipofthe prophets, and the
noble army of martyrs; who by a constant looking to the author and finisher of
our faith, have fought the goodfight, and are gone before us to inherit the
promises. View againandagain, how holily, how self-denyingly, how
unblameably they lived: And if self-denialwas necessaryforthem, why not for
us also? Are we notmen oflie passions withthem? Do we not live in the same
wickedworldas they did? Have we not the same goodspiritto assist, support,
and purify us, as theyhad? And is not the same eternal inheritance reachedout
to us, as was to them? And if we have the same nature to change, the same
wickedworldto withstand, the same goodspirit to help, and the same eternal
crownatthe end; why should not we leadthe same lives as theydid? Do we
think they did works ofsupererogation? Ifnot, why do not we do as they did?
Or why does your ownchurch setapart festivals to commemorate the deaths
and sufferings of the saints, butin orderto excite you to follow them as theydid
Christ.
3. Thirdly, Think often onthe pains ofhell; consider, whetheritis not better to
cut off a right hand or foot, andpull our a right eye, ifthey offend us (ourcause
us to sin) "ratherthan to be castinto hell, where the wormdieth not, and the
fire is not quenched." Think how many thousands there are now reservedwith
damned spirits in chains ofdarkness unto the judgment of the greatday. And
think withal, thatthis, this must be our case shortly, unlesswe are wise intime,
deny ourselves, andfollow JesusChrist. Think you, theynow imagine Jesus
Christ to be an hard master; orrather think you not, they would give ten
thousand times ten thousand worlds, couldthey but return to life again, and
take Christ's easyyoke uponthem? And canwe dwell with everlasting
burnings more than they? No, ifwe cannotbearthis precept, denyyourselves,
take up your crosses; how shallwe bearthe irrevocable sentence, "Departfrom

me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, preparedfor the devil and his angels?"But
I hope those, amongstwhomI am now preaching the kingdomof God, are not
so disingenuous as to needto be driven to their duty by the terrors of the Lord,
but rather desire to be drawn by the cords oflove.
Lastly, Therefore, oftenmeditate onthe joys of heaven: think, think with what
unspeakable glorythose happy souls are now encircled, who whenonearth
were calledto deny themselves as wellas we, andwere notdisobedient to that
call: Lift up your hearts frequently towards the mansions of eternalbliss, and
with an eye of faith, like Stephen, see the heavens opened, andthe Sonof man
with his glorious retinue ofdeparted saints, sitting andsolacing themselves in
eternaljoys. Hark! Methinks Ihearthem chanting forth their everlasting
Hallelujahs, andechoing triumphant songs ofjoy. And do you not long, my
brethren, to join this heavenly choir? Do notyour hearts burn within you? As
the hart panteth after the waterbrooks, do notyour souls so long afterthe
blessedcompanyofthese sons ofGod? Beholdthena heavenlyladder reached
down to you, by which you may climb to this holy hill. Let us believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ, anddenyourselves! Bythis alone, everysaintthat everlived
ascendedinto the joy oftheir Lord. And then, we, evenwe also shallere long be
lifted up into the same mostblissful regions, there to enjoyan eternal restwith
the people ofGod, and join with them in singing doxologies andsongs ofpraise,
to the everlasting, blessed, all-glorious, mostadorable Trinity, foreverand
ever.
Which Godof his infinite mercy grant, &c.
Added to Bible Bulletin Board's "WhitefieldCollection" by:
Tony Capoccia

Bible Bulletin Board
What did Jesus meanwhen He said, “Takeup your cross andfollow Me”?
videotake up your crossaudio
Question:"What did Jesus meanwhen He said, ‘Take up your cross and
follow Me’ (Matthew 16:24;Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23)?"
Answer: Let’s begin with what Jesus didn’t mean. Many people interpret
“cross”as some burden they must carry in their lives: a strained relationship,
a thankless job, a physical illness. With self-pitying pride, they say, “That’s
my cross I have to carry.” Such an interpretation is not what Jesus meant
when He said, “Take up your cross and follow Me.”
When Jesus carriedHis cross up Golgotha to be crucified, no one was
thinking of the cross as symbolic of a burden to carry. To a person in the first-
century, the cross meant one thing and one thing only: death by the most
painful and humiliating means human beings could develop.
Two thousand years later, Christians view the cross as a cherishedsymbol of
atonement, forgiveness, grace, and love. But in Jesus’day, the cross
representednothing but torturous death. Becausethe Romans forced
convictedcriminals to carry their own crossesto the place of crucifixion,

bearing a cross meantcarrying their own executiondevice while facing
ridicule along the way to death.
Therefore, “Takeup your cross and follow Me” means being willing to die in
order to follow Jesus. This is called“dying to self.” It’s a call to absolute
surrender. After eachtime Jesus commanded cross bearing, He said, “For
whoeverwants to save his life will lose it, but whoeverloses his life for me will
save it. What goodis it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or
forfeit his very self?” (Luke 9:24-25). Although the call is tough, the rewardis
matchless.
Wherever Jesus went, He drew crowds. Although these multitudes often
followedHim as Messiah, their view of who the Messiahreallywas—andwhat
He would do—wasdistorted. They thought the Christ would usher in the
restoredkingdom. They believed He would free them from the oppressive rule
of their Roman occupiers. EvenChrist’s own inner circle of disciples thought
the kingdom was coming soon(Luke 19:11). When Jesus beganteaching that
He was going to die at the hands of the Jewishleaders and their Gentile
overlords (Luke 9:22), His popularity sank. Many of the shockedfollowers
rejectedHim. Truly, they were not able to put to death their own ideas, plans,
and desires, and exchange them for His.
Following Jesus is easywhen life runs smoothly; our true commitment to Him
is revealedduring trials. Jesus assuredus that trials will come to His followers
(John 16:33). Discipleship demands sacrifice, andJesus never hid that cost.
In Luke 9:57-62, three people seemedwilling to follow Jesus. WhenJesus
questioned them further, their commitment was half-hearted at best. They
failed to count the costof following Him. None was willing to take up his cross
and crucify upon it his own interests.

Therefore, Jesus appearedto dissuade them. How different from the typical
Gospelpresentation!How many people would respond to an altar call that
went, “Come follow Jesus, andyou may face the loss of friends, family,
reputation, career, and possibly even your life”? The number of false converts
would likely decrease!Such a call is what Jesus meant when He said, “Takeup
your cross and follow Me.”
If you wonder if you are ready to take up your cross, considerthese questions:
• Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means losing some of your closest
friends?
• Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means alienation from your family?
• Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means the loss of your reputation?
• Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means losing your job?
• Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means losing your life?
In some places of the world, these consequences are reality. But notice the
questions are phrased, “Are you willing?” Following Jesus doesn’tnecessarily
mean all these things will happen to you, but are you willing to take up your
cross? If there comes a point in your life where you are facedwith a choice—
Jesus or the comforts of this life—whichwill you choose?
Commitment to Christ means taking up your cross daily, giving up your
hopes, dreams, possessions,evenyour very life if need be for the cause of
Christ. Only if you willingly take up your cross may you be calledHis disciple
(Luke 14:27). The reward is worth the price. Jesus followedHis call of death
to self (“Takeup your cross andfollow Me”)with the gift of life in Christ: “For

whoeverwants to save his life will lose it, but whoeverloses his life for me will
find it” (Matthew 16:25-26).
https://www.gotquestions.org/take-up-your-cross.html
A True Disciple
By Jerry N. Watts
Bible Book:Luke 9 : 23
Subject: Disciple;Discipleship
Introduction
Were I to ask this group of people, “Who wants to be a disciple of Christ?”
Mosteveryone would raise their hands and honestly would do so without
giving any thought to what being a disciple really means. One of the classic
books on discipleship was written by Dietrich Bonhoefferand is entitled, “The
Costof Discipleship.” Bonhoefferknew firsthand what was required to be a
true disciple of Christ and in the book stressedthe costand content of
intentional obedience to Jesus. Ultimately he died an unusually brutal hanging
and death at the hands of the Nazis because ofhis discipleship.
Today in America, where we enjoy freedom, opportunity, and liberty, a new
conceptseems to exist. This conceptcan be defined in two words, “simple and
easy.” In cooking, we canmicrowave. In communication, we enjoy multiple
options of instant communication. In automobiles, a keyis no longerneeded,
just press a button. In our minds, all things are “S and E.”

Yet, when we take an honest look, we know better. In our vocations we know
that to rise to the top takes hard work. We go to schoolto get prepared, apply
ourselves to become the best in our field, and we let little getin the way. Any
successfulpersonwill tell you that nothing of worth comes by a “simple and
easy” method. This is true in all areas of life.
Yet, absent any persecutions orserious challenges to our faith, the consensus
in America has become that it’s easyto be a disciple of Christ.
It is also in this pattern of thinking that “church members” expect
“Christianity” and “Church” to be both simple and easy? And it is neither.
Jesus neversaid it would be simple or easy. The call of Christ is not a callto
“ease andcomfort”, but rather, a callto mission, maturity, ministry and to
make disciples. It is a call to commitment, consistency, and character. It is a
call to “make disciples of all nations.” Don’t miss this; “Forus to “make
disciples” we must “be disciples.” A disciple is one who “learns and follows”
as well as “one who adheres to the disciplines of another.”
Are we “true disciples of Christ?” Do really want to be disciples? If so, what
does that really mean? The Bible passage(Luke 9:23) of today speaks to the
issue of what being a true disciple really means. (READ)
Recently, I read about a graduation ceremonyspeechwhich was rather
disturbing. The speakerwas the valedictorian of his high schoolclass. He
stoodup to the podium and he thanked his father, which sounded good, at
leastat first? “My father taught me an important lesson,” the young man said.
“He told me throughout my entire life that I am the most important person in
the world.” Over and over through his speech, he talkedabout how true it was
that he was the most important person in the world. He lookedout at his
fellow students and told them, “Don’tever think that there is anyone more

important than you. Do what you want to do, not what other people want.
Your happiness is all that matters.” When I read this, I was saddenedas I
thought about how this mindset has not only changedthe dynamic of our
culture, but the mindset of our churches.
It is this kind of mindset which allowedTimothy McVeighto think of himself
first, and on his own decided that he had the right to plant a bomb at a
government building in Oklahoma City. Through that effort he took the lives
of so many people, including a number of children whom McVeighcallously
describedas “collateraldamage.” He died self-centeredand selfabsorbed and
never showedany remorse at all. His laststatement was a hand written note
that included words from the 1875 poem’’Invictus,’’ which concludes with
the lines: ’’I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul.’’ The
attitude of a disciple resembles that of an apprentice, who learns by doing.
I submit that anything less than complete, total, and unswerving allegiance,
does not constitute a “disciple.” From our text, let me offer 4 words or better
said, 4 concepts whichare required to be a true disciple of Christ.”
I. FOCUS
Jesus begins His words with the conditional phrase, “IF”. The word “if’
denotes that we actually have a choice in the matter. This is still amazing to
me. God allowedHis sonto die for me and then give me a choice. What an
amazing God! Seems to me we are given the ability to become what we desire.
If we desire to become a disciple, we can. If we desire to become a reprobate,
although we do it over His dead body, He allows us to do it. If we chose to
become self-centered, selfish, self-absorbed, He allows it. Certainly, He desires
something better in mind for us, but just like He allowedAdam and Eve the
free choice ofthe fruit over immortality, He still allows is to choose.Here’s the
payoff, “Generally, we become what we are focusedon.” I say “generally”

because this does not always hold true. If it was always true that we become
what we focus on, then teenage boys would become teenage girls.
Think about what it is that you are focused? Forsome their focus is their
vocation, for others their avocationor hobby, for others it canbe anything
from sports to woodworking.In talking with people it is amazing what
consumes people’s lives.
The words of Jesus which says, “IF we WANT (i.e. desire, wish, etc) to be HIS
disciple (I.E follower, ambassador, orperson) speaks clearly ofa focusedlife.
That is a life FOCUSED onHIM.
A quarterback in football and catcherin baseballalways look to the bench,
focus on His coachand make the call for the next play or pitch. The disciple is
focusedon Jesus and does what He says.
An eye-opening truth is this; a guestcan see the true focus of a church body
just by visiting and a friend or an acquaintance quickly recognizes the focus of
our life by our actions, attitudes, and words.
SO –“IF” I desire to be a true disciple, then what must follow?
II. FORSAKE
Jesus gives us these instructions, “If you want to be my disciple, deny
yourself.” The principle is that we have to forsake ourselves.Honestly, I don’t
want to forsake myself. I like me. And I don’t want to be told that the one I
like the most, I have to forsake. Whatis that? Yet Jesus says that I have to
deny or forsake the one person I like best.

So what exactly does it mean to forsake ordeny self? The Greek wordliterally
means to “disregardone’sinterestor act entirely unlike you.” While most
“translations” use the word “deny”, paraphrases may offer us an easierto
understand picture. Consider these; “ignore self”, “sayno to the things they
want”, “must put aside his own desires and conveniences,” and“Has to let me
lead! You’re not in the driver’s seat.” Basedon all these words, we could spend
all day developing all these lines of thought, but they all lead to Christ’s call
for “self-denial”.
Have you ever consideredwhy that is? I don’t know it all, but I do have a
thought. If we don’t forsake ourselves,we tend to raise our own status to the
level of God. The worship, honor, trust, and more that we should offer God,
we will offer to self.
North American MissionBoardTeam leaderThomas Hammond came to our
area to lead the First Impressions seminar. In this seminar, he offeredthe
different thinking of a dog and cat. The dog, treated well, thinks his masteris
god. The cat, treated well, thinks HE must be god.
Jesus is clear, “If you want to be my disciple, you must have a focus on me and
additionally, you must forsake ordeny yourself. You must put my interests
above yours and know I am in the driver’s seat, not you.”
There are dozens of ways to apply this personally and collectively.
III. FORGET

We must not simply forsake self, we must also forgetself. Jesus says, “Takeup
your cross daily.” Who among us, will take up a cross evenyearly, if we are in
the self-protectionmode. By the way, Jesus knew we would be in the self
protection mode as He respondedto that tendency in verse 24. Jesus says, “If
you try to save your life, you’ll lose it. However, if you’ll simply trust me with
your life, take your hands off and turn it loose, I’lltake care of you.” What a
hard concept.
Only as I was studying for this messagedid a different thought pierce my
spirit. For most of my life I have consideredmy cross to be burdens, hurts,
trials, and the like. The words “take up” indicate that we must make a decision
to engage. Knowing the object is ‘forgetself,’ and the outcome will be a cross,
many times we decide to not “to decide”. We all can admit this happens when
confronted with a moral, ethical, or spiritual issue which runs againstpopular
opinion. We are facedwith a decisionand we decide NOT to decide. Jesus
says, “Notgoodenough, you must ‘take it up’.” Next, He calls us to understand
what “OUR CROSS” is. The cross we are calledto bear is a distinctive cross;it
is not someone else’s. It is ours. Finally, Jesus says, “take itup DAILY.” This
reminds us that we are “strangers andaliens” here. Taking up my cross will
likely strain every spiritual muscle which I possess.
The only way, in our human strength, we can deny ourselves and ‘take up our
crossesdaily’ is to forsake self, forgetabout self, and focus on Jesus. If we
don’t focus on Jesus and being His disciple, we will NEVER be able to forsake
and forget. The results will be the localchurch in turmoil. She’lllose her way,
her sense ofmission, and her sense ofpurpose because the Bride of Christ is
energizedby disciples and not by casualmembers or believers. Neverforget,
the church is people.
Would you think about this with me for just a moment? Jesus nevergave the
option of “half-heartedChristianity.” He spoke concepts like, “Letthe dead

bury the dead”, and “Whoeverputs His hand to the plow and looks back is not
worthy.” Totalcommitment is His call.
This leads us to the last and obvious thought.
IV. FOLLOW
Jesus ends this call with the seemingly simply, “Follow Me.” However, it is not
so simple, nor is it easy. He gave this call to the fisherman and they didn’t add
Him to their list of scheduled events, they left it all. He calledthe tax-collector
and Matthew didn’t wait for tax-seasonto end, he left it all. Everywhere He
went and to every person He met, He gave the same call. And to everyone He
expectedthe same and never loweredHis standards. When the Rich Young
ruler heard the call of Jesus, he felt Jesus wantedtoo much and so he walked
away. Please rememberthat Jesus was nota Baptist preacher. Can you
imagine a Baptist preacherletting a rich man get away? It would be easyto
make the case thatJesus, while never lowering the standards of His call for
anyone, had a tear in His eyes, when the rich man walkedaway.
Jesus’ callis the same today. He says, “If your focus is to become a disciple,
forsake and forgetyourself and then come follow ME.”
Conclusion
Somewhere I heard or read about a dog movie that was being filmed.
Everything was setup for the scene that was to be shot. It was costing
thousands of dollars to create this most important scene in the movie. At the
wrong moment the dog barked and the entire scene was ruined. It costthe
filming company a lot of money because ofthe mistake. The dog was famous,
well trained and as a rule did not make this kind of mistake. What causedthe
problem? It was simple. A cameramanhad walkedbetweenthe dog and the

dog trainer. When the dog lost contactwith his trainer, he barked. In essence,
the cameramanhad gotten betweenthe dog and his master.
Jesus calls us to ForsakeandForgetourselves and Focus on and Follow Him.
The Challenge ofChristianDiscipleship
By PaulE. Brown
Bible Book: Luke 9 : 23-25
Subject: Discipleship; ChristianLiving
Introduction
Luke 9:23: “Andhe saidto them all, If any man will come afterme, lethim
deny himself, and take up his cross daily, andfollow me.” Whenconsideredin
the contextof otherstatements Jesus made, itis unquestionably clearthat
when Jesus invitedpeople to “come after” him, he was inviting them to become
his disciples. Infact, the Williams translationbegins that verse like this: “Then
He saidto them all, ‘If anyone chooses to be my disciple....’” The word
“disciple” means “learner,”or“pupil,” andis mostoften usedto referto a
Christian, a personwho has placedhis faith in Jesus andis saved--andthat
clearlyis the way it is usedhere.
This is a day when, generallyspeaking, we areconstantlylooking foraneasier,
less demanding way to do things. That’s notall bad, but the problem is that
we’ve carriedthat quest overinto areas where itwon’t work--andsaddestof
all, many have tried to apply that approachto the spiritual realm. They’re
looking foran easy, convenient type of Christianity which doesn’tinvolve any

hardship orcost. Theythink they cansimply add Jesus into the mix oftheir
lives, but continue to follow their own agenda. Butthatis not Christianity; that
is but a pathetic caricature ofthe realthing. Jesus speaks here inLuke 9:23
about self-denial, cross-bearing, andfollowing him--andthe path he trod was a
ruggedone. As we closelyexamine ourLord’s statement, let’s firstconsider...
I. THE PEOPLE
To whom was Jesusspeaking whenhe voicedthose words overtwo thousand
years ago, andto whom are they addressedtoday?
Three ofthe gospels recordthis statement, and--asis oftenthe case--sometimes
one gospel writerwill give a detail not mentioned by the others, so thatby
reading all of the accounts we getthe full picture. Here is the way it reads in
Mark 8:34: “Andwhen he had calledthe people [the NIV says, “the crowd”]
unto him with his disciples also, he saidunto them, Whosoeverwillcome after
me, lethim deny himself, and take up his cross, andfollow me.”
It seems obvious fromMark’s accountthat Jesus wasaddressingboth
believers and unbelievers, andthus those words are also addressedto both
groups today.
Someone mightask, “Buthow couldthat statementapply to both lostpeople
and Christians?” Thatis a very goodquestion--andthe answerto it will
become clearas we lookverycloselyat...
II. THE PURPOSE
Exactlywhat was ourLord’s purpose in that statement? Whatwas he telling
us?

A. What Jesus was NOTsaying
First, let’s be very clearas to what he was notsaying: He was notsaying, “If
you will do these things, youwill thereby earn your passport to heaven.”
To imagine that you can evento the slightestdegree earnyourway to heavenis
utterly to miss the point of Jesus’message, andthatof the entire Bible. The
Scriptures make it abundantly clearthat salvationis wholly, completelythe gift
of God. Forexample, Ephesians 2:8-9says, “Forbygrace are ye savedthrough
faith; and that not ofyourselves: itis the gift of God. Notofworks, lestanyman
should boast.”
B. An Explanation ofSaving Faith
But the problem is that many people have a “watereddown” idea offaith--of
whatit means to believe; andJesus, inLuke 9:23, was addressing those
misconceptions. Althoughhe was doing it in anindirect way, he was actually
explaining what it really means to believe unto salvation--inotherwords, he
was explaining the kind offaith that is required for becoming his disciple.
Someone mightsay, “How do you getthat out ofthat verse, preacher? Neither
the word‘faith’ nor the word ‘believe’is mentioned.” Well, letme explain:
Notice thatJesus beganhis statementby saying, “Ifany man will come after
me....”The Greekwordfor“will” is thelei, a form of the verb thelo, whichhas
to do with our God-givenprivilege ofchoosing; itrefers to resolving, to
exercising the will.

So, whatJesus was saying, ineffect, is this: “Inorderto become my disciple,
you must be willing to deny yourself, take up your cross, andfollow me.” No
one cando those three things in his own strength, but he must be willing to do
them. A willingness to do all of that amounts to a total commitment to Jesus--
and that’s whattrue, saving faith is: anall-outcommitment of one’s life to
Jesus. The Greekwordmostoftenusedfor “believe” inthe New Testamentis
pisteuo, andin atleastfive verses inthe KJV, that word or some variantof it is
translated“commit.” Inone very realsense, beliefandcommitment are one
and the same.
C. Jesus’TwofoldPurpose Summarized
So, itboils down to this: our Lord’s purpose in his statementin Luke 9:23 is
twofold:
1. A Commentary onSaving Faith
First, he is giving us a commentary on saving faith, without actuallyusing the
word; he is explaining the type ofcommitment that adds up to saving faith--
and that’s a commitment, a willingness, to denyself, to take upone’s cross, and
follow him.
But I canalmosthear someone saying, “Butwaita minute, preacher; isn’t
saving faith always accompaniedbyrepentance? Doesn’tthe Bible teach
that?”--andindeedit does. TerryTrivette observes, “Thatphrase, ‘come after
me,’points us to the factthat Jesus calls us to change directions whenwe turn
to Him as our Savior.”1Trivette wasrighton target. Letme take it a step
further, then, and point out the factthat “changing directions” is essentiallya
definition ofrepentance; so ourLord’s explanation ofsaving faith was, after
all, a faith accompaniedby repentance.

2. DailyGuidelines for Christians
But that’s not all he was doing; he was, inthe secondplace, alsosetting forth
those three requirements as guidelines fordaily living once we are saved.
As alreadynoted, the word “disciple” means “learner,”andGodintends that,
following conversion, wecontinue to learnfor the restof our lives; the Bible
makes thatunquestionably clear. Forexample, 2 Peter3:18 says, “Butgrow in
grace, andin the knowledge ofourLord and SaviorJesus Christ....”The Greek
word for“grow” inthat verse, auxanete, is a presenttense verb, whichdenotes
continuous action--thus, the verb couldbe translated, “Go ongrowing in
grace....”The moodofthe verb is imperative, which means that it is
commanded ofall believers.
So, notonly did Jesus’challengeinLuke 9:23show us thatsaving faith is a total
commitment, a willingness to to deny self, to take upour cross, andfollow him,
but clearlyhe also intendedthe three parts of that challenge to be our roadmap
for daily living--andas we, one dayata time, callon Godfor help and pour
ourselves wholeheartedlyinto the effort, we’llgainan ever-increasing degreeof
victory in the following ofthose guidelines. We have this encouraging promise
in James 4:7: “Submityourselves therefore to God. Resistthe devil, and he will
flee from you.”
Now, having lookedatourLord’s purpose, let’s look more closelyat...
III. THE PARTICULARS

Thatis, let’s examine in more detail eachofthe three requirements listed in
Luke 9:23. Whenmaking ourinitial faith commitment and being saved, we
realizedthat those three requirements amounted to a total surrender of
ourselves to Jesus. Butnow thatwe are saved, as we growspirituallyand seek
to live by those three standards, we shouldgainan ever-clearerunderstanding
of them. So let’s carefullyexamine eachofthose three components ofour
Lord’s challenge, witha prayer that as Godhelps us to understand them more
clearly, he will also give us the strengthto incorporate themmore fully and
effectivelyinto our daily living.
A. DENYING SELF
1. The ProblemofSelf
Edwin L. Sabin wrote a narrative poementitled, “My Enemy.”2 He seems to be
describing a dream that a man had--a verydisturbing dream that kept
recurring. In this dream the man wouldbe in pursuit ofsome lofty goal, when
suddenly a maskedenemywould appearand would thwart his efforts, leaving
him frustrated and defeated. Thatsame dreamwouldrepeatitselftime after
time--until one night it took a different turn. Justas he was almostin reachof
his goal, thatmaskedenemyagaininterferedand stoppedhim--but this time
the man was able to snatchthe mask from his enemy’s face--and, lo, the face
that he saw was his own!
That’s a fanciful story, but it reminds us of a sobering truth--and that is, that
overcoming “self” is everyChristian’s biggestchallenge.
Years ago Ireadabout an illness in France, the name ofwhich, translatedinto
English, was “me sickness.” Itoccurs to me that there’s a sense in whichour
modern societyis plaguedby that same disease. Advertisers sella worldof

products by appealing to our selfishnature. Manymarriage problems result
from one spouse orthe other, orboth, wanting their ownway. Mostcrime and
violence stems fromthat same rootcause: self-centeredness; wanting whatwe
want, whetherit is rightfully ours ornot, or feeling that we have been
personallyslightedor insulted, and lashing out in response.
In Luke 9:24 Jesus said, “Forwhosoeverwillsave his life shall lose it....” Inthat
verse, “whosoeverwillsave his life” refers to the personwhose approachto
every situation, whetherhe voices italoud or not, is “What’s in it for me?”
Jesus says thatsucha self-centeredpersonwill“lose”his life--inotherwords,
he will lose outon life’s highestand best--andsucha personhurts others, as
well.
2. The ConquestofSelf
But as Christians, we are to denyourselves. Keeping the focus offofourselves
is a constantbattle. PaulPowellsaid, “One ofthe hardestthings to do is to die
to self. Everytime I try, Satanrushes in his emergencysquadand give me
artificialrespiration.”3
But that battle canbe won--andJesus toldus how. InLuke 9:24 he wentonto
saythis: “but whosoeverwilllose his life for my sake, the same shallsave it.”
Mark 8:35 says, “formy sake andthe gospel’s,” indicating thatour
commitment is to be both to Jesus personallyandalso to the truth which he
proclaimed.
Greatold Thomas Chalmers, a preacherwho livedin the 19thcentury,
preacheda famous sermonentitled “The Expulsive Powerofa New Affection.”

His point was thatas we learnincreasinglyto love Jesus Christ, his work, and
his people, sinand selfishness willincreasinglybe expelledfrom our hearts.
B. CROSS BEARING
1. Cross Bearing Misunderstood
There is a greatdealofmisunderstanding as to whatit means to take up one’s
cross. Sometimesa personwillspeak ofa difficult marriage situation, orofa
nagging, painfulphysical infirmity, or anunfair boss atwork, orsome other
burden that they wishthey could be free of, andwill say, “Well, that’s justthe
cross Ibear.”
Our hearts go out, ofcourse, to folks withproblems like those, andour Lord
certainly cares aboutthose situations andstands readyto help--butsuch
burdens as those are not whathe was referring to when he said that a disciple
must take up his cross.
2. Cross Bearing Clarifiedby looking atJesus’cross
His saying that we must “take up” our cross means thatwe must choose to bear
it; it is not something thrust upon us againstourwill. Concerning the upcoming
sacrificing ofhis life on the cross, Jesus said, inJohn10:18, “Nomantakethit
from me, but I lay it downof myself....”
Further, realize that Jesus’crosswas takenupand borne for a specific
purpose--namely, thatofproviding for man’s redemption. Now, obviouslyyou
and I can’t redeemanyone, but we canpoint people to the One who can.

Thus, whenyou add all ofthat up, it amounts to this: whenJesus toldus that we
must take up our cross, he was saying thateachofus who is a Christianmust
voluntarily take onsome burden of responsibilityfor the ultimate purpose of
pointing people to him--evento the point ofsuffering and dying for him, if such
should prove necessary. Regarding the commitment to suffer and die for Jesus
if necessary, JamesA. Brookssaid, “Sucha conceptofdiscipleshipis so radical
that many contemporaryChristians in the Westhave difficulty relating to it.”4
So far as the exactnature orshape of that burden of responsibility, that will
vary from one personto the next, depending on a number of factors, suchas the
abilities with whichGod has endowedus, andthe needs that existaround us.
Whether your role is “frontstage andcenter” or“behind the scenes”is
immaterial--ifyou are serving where Godhas placedyou, and are conducting
yourselfso as to let your light shine, youare an important part of the total
ongoing work ofpointing people to the Savior. RobertBrowning wrote, “All
service ranks the same withGod.”
But none ofus are to be spectatorChristians. In1 Corinthians 12 Paullikens
the church to a physicalbody. If any one part ofthe body is not functioning
properly, then that body can’t be up to maximum performance. Eachofus who
is a Christian, as a part ofthe body ofChrist, is commanded by our Lord to
find our cross ofresponsibility, andby God’s grace to bearit.
“MustJesus bearthe cross alone, Andall the worldgo free?
No; there’s a cross foreveryone, Andthere’s a cross forme.

The consecratedcrossI’llbear, Tildeath shallsetme free,
And then go home my crownto wear; forthere’s a crownfor me”
Jesus said, “lethim...takeuphis cross daily....”Ireadyears ago abouta
charactercalled“onagain, offagainHannegan.” I’mafraidthat same
descriptioncould be accuratelyappliedto many of us, so faras ourspiritual
life is concerned. We tendto waxhot a while, andthen cold; to start various
undertakings in a blaze of glory, but then to fade. Godexpects--yea, demands--
better ofus; and to whateverextentwe are guilty ofinconsistency, to that
extent we are backslidden, andwe needto repent, ask God’s forgiveness, and
ask him to help us getback ontrack.
C. FOLLOW ME
The Greek verbfor “follow” whichJesus usedhere, akoloutheitho (which
literally translates as, “lethim follow”), is a presentimperative, denoting
continuous action--inotherwords, Jesusrequires a lifelong commitment to
follow him.
1. Following Jesus Then
When Jesus washere onthis earthin the flesh, people hadthe opportunity to
follow him physically. WhenJesus wentto Galilee, theyfollowedhim there;
when he went to Jerusalem, so didthey.
2. Following Jesus Now

But he is no longerhere in the flesh, so how do modern day disciples follow
him? The answerto that questionis found in 1 Peter2:21: “Forevenhereunto
were ye called: becauseChristalso sufferedforus, leaving us anexample, that
ye should follow his steps.”
In 1897 CharlesM. Sheltonpublisheda book entitled, In His Steps. Sincethat
time it has soldover30 million copies, andranks as one ofthe best-selling
books ofalltime. It’s a fictional story--butit ought to be a true one--abouta
pastorand congregationwho hada traumatic experience that shook themto
their very depths, and causedthemto realize how shallow theirspiritual lives
were. Afterintense agonizing, the pastorgave a radical challenge to his
congregation; he said, “Iwantvolunteers...who willpledge themselves,
earnestlyand honestlyfor an entire year, notto do anything without first
asking the question, ‘Whatwould Jesus do?’Andafter asking thatquestion,
eachone willfollow Jesus as exactlyas he knows how, no matterwhatthe
result may be.” About 50 members of his congregationtook himup onthat
challenge andbeganthat very day putting that pledge into action. Overthe
next several months their understanding of Christian discipleshipwas
dramatically changed, andtheirlives were remarkablyand wonderfully
transformed--andthe community around them was deeplyimpacted.
What wouldhappen in your life, and in my life, and in our churches, ifyou and
I and others would dare to make sucha pledge, andthen one day ata time
follow through?
One man who appears to have done that very thing was a Germantheologian
and pastornamed DietrichBonhoeffer, who was bornin 1906 andministered
during the height ofAdolph Hitler’s reignover Germany. Although many
Germanchurch leaders were afraidto speak outagainstHitler’s atrocities,
Bonhoefferrefusedto “cave in” and publicly opposedHitler’s cruelprogram
to exterminate the Jews andhis other oppressive policies. He joineda

movement to getrid of Hitler, and atage 37 was arrestedbythe Gestapo; he
was executedbyhanging in April 1945 while imprisonedat a Nazi
concentrationcamp, just23 days before the German surrender. One ofhis
mostfamous writings, whichhas become something ofa classic, is a book
entitled The CostofDiscipleship. Inthat book, he said, “WhenChristcalls a
man, he bids him come and die.” Thatprovedto be literally true in his own
case. His commitment to Christ costhim his life. He is regardedas one ofthe
outstanding Christian martyrs ofthe 20thcentury.
The greatest challengeanyone canevertake onis the challenge ofChristian
discipleship--Jesus’challengeto denyself, take upour cross, andfollow him
daily.
It’s a lifelong challenge--but, as the ancientproverbreminds us, a journey ofa
thousand miles begins with the first step. Stepnumber one is to tell Jesus that
you’re willing, by his grace andhelp, to live by those guidelines--whichis
anotherwayof telling him that you are repenting of your sins and trusting him
as your Lord and Savior. Once youmake thatinitial faith commitment, you are
foreverGod’s child. Then, as youread his Word, pray, worship, serve, and
share your faith with others, you’llgainan ever-increasing degreeofvictoryin
living by those three guidelines to which you initially committed yourself.
If you’ve never beensaved, Iencourage you, withallof my heart, to acceptour
Lord’s challenge to become his disciple; andto those ofus who are already
Christians, Iencourage us everyone to take stock asto how wellwe’re doing in
implementing those three guidelines into our daily lives. Let’s confessthe
failures that the Holy Spirit points out, ask God’s forgiveness, anddetermine
that, with his help, we’ll make a new startright now, this very hour, in
following his example. Thesesimple lines sum it all up:

If washedinJesus’blood, thenbearhis likeness, too;
In everysituation ask, “WhatwouldJesus do?”
______________________________________________________________________________________
1 ”Christian Life 101,” a sermonbyTerry Trivette, onwww.SermonCity.com
2 Edwin L. Sabin, 1,000Quotable Poems, Vol. 2, p. 50
3 Paul Powell, The SaintPeterPrinciple, p. 42
4 James A. Brooks, The New AmericanCommentary, Vol. 23: Mark, p. 137
Title: WHAT IS CHRISTIANITY?
Text: Luke 9:23-27
Subject: Four CharacteristicsofTrue Faith

Date: Sunday Evening – August 12, 2001
Tape # W-56b
Readings: David Coleman& Merle Hart
Introduction:
What is Christianity? Should you go out tomorrow and ask a dozen people
that question, you are likely to get a dozen answers. The fact is, in this the
most religious of all societiesand most religious of all ages, very few people
have any idea what Christianity is. Let’s turn to Luke 9:23-27, and learn from
the lips of Christ himself what Christianity is.
[Luke 9:23-27] And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him
deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. [24] For whosoever
will save his life shall lose it: but whosoeverwill lose his life for my sake, the
same shall save it. [25] Forwhat is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole
world, and lose himself, or be castaway? [26]Forwhosoevershallbe ashamed
of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he
shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, and of the holy angels. [27]
But I tell you of a truth, there be some standing here, which shall not taste of
death, till they see the kingdom of God.

The words of our Lord Jesus Christ in these five verses of Scripture are
solemn, weighty words indeed. They separate the precious from the vile. They
are a winnowing fan in the Master’shand, by which he distinguishes wheat
from the chaff. These are words which ought to be read often, prayed over
much, and mediated upon continually.
Proposition: These few words define true Christianity more distinctly than
all the volumes of theologyand apologeticswritten by me.
Divisions: As we look at our Lord’s words in this passage,I want to draw
your attention to four things. Here are four aspects oftrue faith, four things
vital to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Christianity is…
1. Coming To Christ (v. 34)
2. Carrying The Cross Of Christ (v. 34).

3. ConsecrationTo Christ (vv. 35-37).
4. Confessing Christ(v. 38).
I. CHRISTIANITY IS COMING TO CHRIST (v. 23).
Throughout the Scriptures faith is portrayed as a matter of coming to Christ.
To believe on the Son of God is to come to him. To come to him is to believe on
him. We come to him by following after him, as disciples follow after their
Master. Our all glorious Christ says, “If any man will come after me, let him
deny himself.”
A. Coming to Christ is the result of a deliberate, purposeful choice.

It is an actof the will. Our Mastersays, “ifany man will”. Let us never alter
his Word. I know that faith is a gift of God. I know that you will not come to
Christ unless God the Holy Spirit graciously, effectuallycauses youto come.
Yet, I know that if you come to him, you will come to him because youwant
him and you choose him. God does not save sinners by knocking them in the
head and dragging them to Christ. He saves sinners by causing them to want
Christ more than life itself.
Faith in Christ is not a matter of conscription, but a voluntary act. The
soldiers in Christ’s army are not drafted, forcedsoldiers, but volunteers.
Psalms 65:4 "Blessedis the man whom thou choosest, andcausestto
approachunto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfiedwith
the goodnessofthy house, even of thy holy temple."
Psalms 110:3 "Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the
beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy
youth."

B. Coming to Christ is an actof the heart, a spiritual, not a carnal thing.
No one has ever come to Christ by walking a church aisle, kneeling at an altar,
saying a prayer, or signing a decisioncard. If you would come to Christ you
must do so without moving a muscle. You must come to him in your heart.
Faith is a heart work.
Romans 10:1-11 "Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is,
that they might be saved. (2) For I bear them recordthat they have a zeal of
God, but not according to knowledge.(3)For they being ignorant of God's
righteousness, andgoing about to establishtheir own righteousness, have not
submitted themselves unto the righteousness ofGod. (4) ForChrist is the end
of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. (5) For Moses
describeth the righteousness whichis of the law, That the man which doeth
those things shall live by them. (6) But the righteousness whichis of faith
speakethon this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascendinto heaven?
(that is, to bring Christ down from above:) (7) Or, Who shall descendinto the
deep? (that is, to bring up Christ againfrom the dead.)(8) But what saith it?
The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of
faith, which we preach;(9) That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord
Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raisedhim from the
dead, thou shalt be saved. (10) For with the heart man believeth unto
righteousness;and with the mouth confessionis made unto salvation. (11)For
the scripture saith, Whosoeverbelieveth on him shall not be ashamed."

C. Coming to Christ is a continual thing.
Our Saviordoes not speak of coming o him as a one time thing, as a single act,
but as a constant, continual, lifelong thing. Faith in Christ is not an event in
life, but a way of life.
1 Peter2:3-4 "If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. (4) To whom
coming, as unto a living stone, disallowedindeed of men, but chosenofGod,
and precious,"
D. Any sinner in all the world who will come to Christ may come to Christ.

Our Masteruses that blessedword of universal application and uses it
frequently -- “Whosoever”.I am so thankful he said “Whosoeverwill” – “Ifany
man will” rather than if Don Fortner will. Had he saidthat, I would have
concluded he must have meant some other Don Fortner. But I cannot doubt
that “whosoever” and“any man” includes me!
Matthew 11:28-30 "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest. (29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I
am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. (30) For
my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
John 3:16 "ForGod so loved the world, that he gave his only begottenSon,
that whosoeverbelievethin him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
Revelation22:17 "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that
heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoeverwill, let
him take the water of life freely."

Not only are sinners bidden to come to Christ, we are commanded to come.
The warrant of faith is not my feeling, my emotion, my meeting certain
prescribed conditions, but God’s Word. If the Sonof God says for me to come
to him, then I may come to him!
The first aspectof faith, the first characteristic oftrue Christianity is
coming to Christ. The secondis…
II. CARRYING THE CROSS OF CHRIST (v. 23).
Readverse 23 again. This is not an optional thing. In this verse of Scripture,
as throughout the Word of God, our Mastertells us plainly that if we would
follow him, if we would be his disciples, if we would be saved, self-denialis an
absolute necessity.
[Luke 9:23] And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him
deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

Again, this is a matter of personal, deliberate choice. Carrying your cross
for Christ is not enduring providential hardships with patience, but
deliberately choosing a course that is sure to bring trouble upon you, because
trouble lies in the path of following Christ.
A. Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.
We are not savedby what we do, or by what we suffer, but by what Christ has
done and suffered for us. We are savedby grace alone.
· The ElectionOf Grace.
· The Atonement Of Grace.
· The Imputation Of Grace.

· The Call Of Grace.
· The PreservationOf Grace.
Ephesians 2:8-10 "Forby grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves:it is the gift of God: (9) Not of works, lestany man should boast.
(10) Forwe are his workmanship, createdin Christ Jesus unto goodworks,
which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them."
B. Yet, if we are savedby the grace of God, we must through much
tribulation enter into the kingdom of of God.
1. We must deny self, if we follow Christ.
· Sinful Self.

· Righteous Self.
· CarnalSelf.
“A religion which costs nothing is worth nothing. It will do us no goodin the
life that now is. It will lead to no salvation in the life to come.”
J. C. Ryle
2. If I am savedby the grace ofGod, I take up my cross and follow my
Master.
· The Cross Of His Doctrine.
· The Cross Of His Will.
· The Cross Of His Honor.

Our Savior’s words here are as plain as the noonday sun. If I choose notto
bear his cross on this earth, I shall never wearhis crown in heaven.
Christianity is coming to Christ, carrying the cross of Christ, and…
III. CONSECRATION TO CHRIST (vv. 24-25).
[Luke 9:24-25] For whosoeverwillsave his life shall lose it: but whosoever
will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. [25]For what is a man
advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be castaway?
A. If would save my life, I must loose it to Christ.

Salvationis neither more nor less than surrender to the rule and reign of
Jesus Christ as my Lord and King.
Luke 14:25-33 "And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned,
and said unto them, (26) If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and
mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own
life also, he cannot be my disciple. (27) And whosoeverdoth not bear his cross,
and come after me, cannot be my disciple. (28) For which of you, intending to
build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whetherhe have
sufficient to finish it? (29) Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is
not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, (30) Saying, This
man beganto build, and was not able to finish. (31)Or what king, going to
make war againstanother king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether
he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh againsthim with twenty
thousand? (32)Or else, while the other is yet a greatway off, he sendeth an
ambassage, anddesireth conditions of peace. (33)So likewise, whosoeverhe be
of you that forsakethnot all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple."
Faith in Christ, Christianity, is giving over the rule of your life to Christ;
but that is no greatsacrifice atall.

B. “Forwhat is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose
himself, or be castaway?”
Mark expressedthe Lord’s doctrine in similar words. -- "Forwhat shall it
profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what
shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”
1. Eachof us has an immortal soul, a soulthat will live forever, either in the
bliss of eternal life or in the torment of eternaldeath.
2. It is a very easything for you to lose your soul.
· You can murder it, by loving and clinging to the world.
· You can poison it with the deadly wine of false religion.

· You can starve it, by neglecting God’s ordained means of grace, the
preaching of the gospel, by keeping from it the bread of life.
There are many ways to hell. Whichever way you choose is a matter for
which you alone are responsible. But there is only one way to life eternal.
Christ is that Way.
True Christianity, faith in Christ involves coming to Christ, carrying the
cross ofChrist, consecrationto Christ, and…
IV. CONFESSING CHRIST (v. 26-27).
[Luke 9:26-27] For whosoevershallbe ashamedof me and of my words, of
him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory,
and in his Father's, and of the holy angels. [27]But I tell you of a truth, there
be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the kingdom
of God.

We do not have to guess what it is to be ashamed of Christ. It is to refuse to
confess him, to refuse to identify ourselves with him. It is to tacitly deny him.
That is exactly what he tells us in Matthew 10.
A. If I am ashamedof Christ’s doctrine, I am ashamedof him.
Romans 1:16-17 "ForI am not ashamedof the gospelofChrist: for it is the
powerof God unto salvationto every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and
also to the Greek. (17)Fortherein is the righteousness ofGodrevealedfrom
faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith."
B. If I am ashamedof Christ’s ordinances, I am ashamedof him.

· Confessing Him In Believers Baptism
· Confessing Him At The Lord’s Table.
· Worshipping In His House.
C. If I am ashamed of Christ’s people, I am ashamedof him.
Read Matthew 10 and 25.
D. If I am ashamed of Christ and his words, his gospel, in this world, he will
be ashamed of me when he comes in the glory of his Father with his holy
angels to judge the world.
Application:

I call upon you now in the name of the Lord to…
1. Come to Christ.
2. Take up your cross and follow Christ.
3. Consecrateyour life to Christ.
4. Confess Christ.
Illustration: “What does it take to be a Christian?” – “Nothing from you, but
all of you.”
DON FORTNER

Luke: The First Lessonin Christ’s Schoolof Discipleship
Sermon by J. Ligon Duncan on February 7, 2010
Luke 9:23-27
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The Lord’s Day Morning
February 7, 2010
Luke 9:23-27
“The First Lessonin Christ’s
School
of Discipleship”

Dr. J. Ligon Duncan III
If you have your Bibles I’d invite you to turn with me to Luke chapter 9.
We’ll be looking at the twenty third through the twenty seventh verses in
this greatchapter together. The
subject of this passageis selfdenial.
Connie said to me before the morning service that she would be praying
for me because she knew this would be a hard sermon to preach.
Now, I don’t know whether she was implying that selfdenial would be
particularly difficult for me to address because ofmy own besetting sins,
which
probably would be true. Connie’s too
polite to suggestsomething like that though.
I think she was probably suggesting thatself denial isn’t something that
any of us like to think about. We
live in a self indulgent age. I

think most of us feelthat when we look at our parents and our grandparents
and
our great-grandparents and we sense that they knew a lot more about self
denial
than we do and they practicedselfdenial in ways that we don’t in this
comfortable era and time that we find ourselves living in.
But of course I’m not just talking about selfdenial in general, because
the kind of selfdenial that Jesus is calling His disciples to in this passageI
believe is not a self denial that any unbeliever canactually practice.
I’m not saying that we can’t actually look in our own time and in history
and see marvelous examples of unbelievers demonstrating extraordinary self
denial. I believe that we could
catalogue many, many such instances ofthose who do not believe in Christ,
who
do not believe the Bible, who do not embrace the Gospel, doing amazing feats
of
self denial for their families, for their communities, for their countries.
Yes, I believe that we can find those but none of those acts of self denial are
the same as the selfdenial that Jesus is calling His disciples to here.
This kind of self denial is based upon the Gospel.
It’s only enabledby grace and it has as its goalsomething only a
believer can strive for or hope for.

And so I want to think with you for a few moments this morning about this
call
to self denial from the lips of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
And before we read His words here in Luke 9, let’s look to Him in prayer
and ask for help and blessing.
Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your Word.
We ask that You would open our eyes to behold wonderful things in it and
especiallybecause this Word cuts againstthe grain and it asks us to set aside
our selfpreoccupationand die to selfand live to Christ, we pray the help of
Your Holy Spirit, not only that we would understand what Jesus is asking us
to
do, but that we would want to do it and that we would be enabled to do it by
Your grace, for the right reasons and to the right goal.
This we ask in Jesus’name.
Amen.
This is God’s Word. Hear it:
“And He said to all, ‘If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and

take up his cross daily and follow Me.
For whoeverwould save his life will lose it, but whoeverloses his life
for my sake will save it. For what
does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses orforfeits himself?
For whoeveris ashamedof Me and of My words, of him will the Son of Man
be ashamed when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and of the
holy angels. But I tell you truly,
there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the
kingdom
of God.’”
Amen, and thus ends this reading of God’s holy, inspired, and inerrant Word.
May He write its eternal truth upon all our hearts.
Self denial is at the very heart of Christian discipleship.
You cannot be a followerof the Lord Jesus Christ and also choose notto
deny yourself because selfdenial is at the very heart of Biblical Christianity.
Self denial is part and parcelof the practice of being a Christian
disciple, a followerof the Lord Jesus Christ.
Matthew Henry once said that “selfdenial is the first lessonin Christ’s
school.” Thatis, when the Lord
Jesus saves youfrom your sins by His grace and by His blood, when you by
faith

are united to Him, the very first lessonHe begins to teachyou is self denial
and He never ceasesteaching you that lesson.
That’s why Calvin said it a little bit more strongly than Henry.
Henry said that “selfdenial is the first lessonin Christ’s school.”
Calvin said“it’s the sum of the Christian life.”
Can you imagine that? That
you cansum up the Christian life in these two words — deny yourself.
Deny yourself — the sum of the Christian life.
Now my friends, that’s counter cultural.
I think that’s the closestthing possible to psychologicalheresyin this
self indulgent age to say, “Deny yourself,” to call upon people to embrace self
denial. And for that very reasonI
think we need to pause and give earto what Jesus is saying.
And there are two or three things that I want you to see this morning.
The first thing that I want you to see is that being a disciple of Jesus means
embracing selfdenial. Following
Jesus means embracing self denial.
Look at what Jesus says in verse 23 – “And He said to all” — now let me just
stop right there. He’s speaking to
all His disciples, not just to Peter.
Peter’s just said as a representative on the part of the other disciples,

“You are the Christ.” Matthew amplifies what Jesus says — what Petersays
— “You
are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
But Jesus is not directing these words just to Peter.
It’s to all of His disciples that He is speaking whenHe says, “If anyone
would come after Me” — and there He gives the clue againthat He’s not just
speaking to Peter. This is for
anyone who would be one of My disciples, anyone who would come after Me,
what
does He say? “Let him deny himself
and take up his cross daily and follow Me.”
Now notice the three things in that callto self denial that Jesus
announces.
I. Deny self.
The first of the three distinct parts of Jesus’charge is that we are to deny
ourselves. “Ifanyone is going to
follow Me, if anyone is going to be a Christian, if anyone is going to be a
followerof Christ, if anyone is going to be a disciple of Mine,” Jesus says,
“let him deny himself.” We are to deny self.
What does that mean? It means

to renounce anything that challenges ortrumps our allegiance to the kingdom
of God.
It means to renounce anything that challenges ortrumps our allegiance to
the kingdom
of God.
We are to renounce our yearning to possessthings if they trump our
allegiance to the kingdom of God.
We are to renounce our desire for power if it challenges ortrumps our
allegiance to the kingdom of God.
We’re to renounce the favor of men if it costs us loyalty to the Lord
Jesus Christ. We are to renounce
human glory if it vies with or diminishes the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ
and
we are to seek first the kingdom. We
are to deny ourselves.
You know I think it’s one of the interesting contrasts in our day and age that
we read about popular figures. How
often in biographies and in news articles about popular figures — whether
they’re political leaders or whether they’re celebrities — do you hear anyone
in
those articles or in those news clips or videos about those popular figures do
you hear anyone draw attention to their characterof selfdenial?
When’s the last time you read a newspaperarticle about a current

political figure or a celebrity which trumpeted the self denial of that
individual. It’s just unheard of in
our day and age.
And yet I find it fascinating that when Douglas SouthallFreeman, newspaper
editor in Richmond Virginia, was writing his four volume Pulitzer Prize
winning
biography of Robert E. Lee, at the end of that biography he’s asking himself
the
question, “Whatmade this man the man that he was?”
He actually riffles through a catalogue ofqualities.
He says, “Well, Lee loved duty.”
Do you remember Lee’s quote about duty?
He says — it’s emblazoned on the walls of the Citadel, the military
university
of South Carolina, it
says, “Duty is the sublimest word in the English language.”
And he muses about that for a while and he muses about Lee’s kindness.
He was a kind man and he was a humble man and he submitted himself to
God’s will and he goes through all these things.
Lee was an extraordinary figure.
You remember that two years before the Emancipation Proclamationof

Abraham Lincoln Lee freed his slaves.
Why? Because he wanted people
to know that he was fighting for Virginia, not for
slavery. After the war, because so
much of the South was coveredin economic misery and desolation, evenwhen
Lee
took the presidencyof WashingtonCollegeand had a very
comfortable income, he refused to live on his full income because ofthe people
around him who were living in poverty.
And so Freeman— by the way, Freeman’s father fought in the Army of
Northern
Virginia. And because Freemanwas a
newspaperman he could only write his biography on Saturdays and he would
read
drafts of it to his dad and his dad would either say – “No, no.
That’s not right. No, no.
You’ve gotto change this.” – because his dad was there.
And wheneverhe would say anything negative about the northern army that
Lee opposed, the Army of the Potomac, his father would say, “Son, don’t you
ever
say anything bad about the Army of the Potomac. The
Army of the Potomac was the finest army on the
face of this earth exceptfor one, the Army of Northern Virginia.”

And he refused to allow Freemanto say anything bad about his opponents.
That was very typical, by the way, of Lee.
But he’s musing on Lee and he says really the quality that made Robert E.
Lee
the leaderhe was, was selfdenial.
And this is what he says — “Had his life been epitomized in one sentence of
the
book that he read so often, it would have been in the words, ‘If any man will
come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow
me.’”
And then Freemansays this — “If one, only one, of all of the myriad
incidents in Lee’s stirring life had to be selectedto typify his message as a
man to the young Americans of today and the Americans who stood with
hushed awe
that rainy Octobermorning as their parents wept at the passing of the
Southern
Arthur, who would hesitate in selecting that incident?
It occurredin northern Virginia, possibly on
Lee’s last visit there. A young
mother brought her baby to him to be blessed.
Lee took the infant in his arm and lookedat him and then at her and
slowlysaid, ‘Teachhim to deny himself.
That is all.’”

Now I want to suggestto you that that quality was born of a profound belief in
the Scriptures because RobertE. Lee was a God fearing Episcopalianand he
meditated on that verse over and over and he was ready to live out that kind
of
self denial.
II. Take your cross
daily.
And then look at the secondthing that Jesus says — “Takeup your cross daily
and follow Me.” If you’re going to
be a followerof the Lord Jesus Christ, you’re going to deny self.
You’re doing to take up your cross.
What does that mean?
To be ready to bear afflictions in this
life knowing that Godprepared them beforehand.
Are you bitter about your afflictions in this life?
Are you bitter about your afflictions, especiallythe afflictions that
besetyou daily from which you cannot escape?
Some of you are in the midst of afflictions that you will not be
delivered from until the hour in which you close your eyes in death.

Those afflictions are going to be with you until the day the Lord carries
you home. How do you respond to
those afflictions? Jesus says,
“Take them up. Take them up
daily.” What does He mean?
He means to respond to those afflictions the way that Josephresponded
to his afflictions.
Remember what Josephsaidabout his brothers?
“You meant it for evil but God meant it for good.”
In other words, the affliction that you may be experiencing may be the
result of someone’sevil againstyou, but even so, you say, “I take this up
because this is God’s will in my life.
He has a purpose for me even in this.
The sin is not his. The sin
is the one who has done it againstme, but the purpose is God’s.
He has a purpose for me. I believe that He is working all things for good
for me according to His own purposes.”
Take up that affliction. Bear
up that affliction. Say, “Lord, this
affliction You have put in my life.”
It may not be something that someone has done againstyou, it may be a loss
that

you’ve borne. You may have
lost someone who is nearestand dearestto your heart and there is never ever
going to be a day when that personwalks in the door again.
And Jesus is saying, “Take up that affliction.
Take it up. Bearit, knowing
that God has prepared it for you, not only to bear, but to take up and to trust
Him that He has a goodpurpose in it.”
So you deny yourself and you take up that affliction and then what?
You follow Christ. What does
that mean? It means you look to
Christ, you imitate Him, you follow Him in obedience and examples, whatever
trials may lie in your way.
One of the greatareas in which we must do this is forgiveness.
From the cross you remember the Lord Jesus said, “Father, forgive them.
They have no idea what they’re doing.”
I’ve often wondered, and I want to ask the Lord Jesus whenI getthere,
if that prayer forestalledthe immediately destruction in judgment of the
entire
world by God because it certainly would have been the deserving of the whole
world to be destroyedand decimated in judgment, in just judgment, by the
Heavenly Father for the sin that was being perpetrated againstHis Son.
But whateverthat prayer means and whateverthat prayer accomplishedI’m

struck by the fact that there is Jesus, being wronged, and He’s praying,
“Father, forgive them.” And I want
to suggestto you that it may well be that your work in self-denial will involve
forgiveness.
You know it’s interesting to me, there’s no part of the Christian life that
doesn’t entail self-denial. You
think about it. Self-denial is a
part of every aspectto the Christian life, forgiveness especiallybecause to
forgive requires self-denial. When
someone has wrongedyou, what is your tendency?
What is your temptation? You
want to taste their punishment upon your lips. You want them to be set
straight.
You want them to get what they deserve.
You want them to get their comeuppance.
You want them to feel the pain that they’ve made you to feel.
And if there’s ever going to be any forgiveness in a relationship what
does it require? It requires you
setting that aside. And what is
that? Self-denial – and taking a
step toward someone who has wrongedyou.
And then it entails believing that the Father is working in your

affliction.
No, the Father’s not responsible for that sin that that person has done against
you that you’re having to wrestle with by God’s grace forgiving, but the
Father
does appoint everything in your life.
The perpetrator is responsible for that sin but God is sovereignover it
and everything else and He has a purpose in your life even in that affliction of
sin so that with Josephyou can sayto his brothers, “You did mean it for evil
againstme, but God meant it for good.”
And then you follow Jesus and say, “I forgive.”
There is a true story of an African-American man who was a slave in Virginia
before the War Betweenthe States.
He escapedas a young man, maybe in his late teens or early twenties,
from an abusive master and he went to live, I think, in
Pennsylvania
where he became a minister. After
the warwas over and after freedom had come to all of the slaves, this slave
ownereventually became a Christian and he greatly regrettedhis treatment of
his slaves. And in his latter days
he desired in particular to be reconciledto this slave who had run awaybut he
was infirm by this time and so he wrote a letter to the man.

He discoveredwhere he lived and he wrote a letter to him saying that he
would like to come to him but he was physically unable, and so he wondered
whether this man would consent, as his expense, to come and visit him so that
he, the slave owner — former slave owner — could ask forgiveness ofthis
former
slave who is now a minister. Now,
here’s where the story gets interesting.
The former slave who is now a minister had heard of his former master’s
conversionand had frankly struggled with bitterness because this man had
done
him much hurt, and his heart was not softenedto that man when he heard of
his
conversionto Christ because ofhis understandable anger towards his
treatment.
And so it was something to receive that correspondence from a man who
wanted to ask his forgiveness. And
he thought about it long and hard and he agreedto go.
And the meeting betweenthese men is recordedfor us for posterity.
The slave ownerwas in the bed. The
former slave stoodat his bedside.
The man who was his former masterbegan to confess his sins to his former
slave.
His former slave interrupted him and said to him, “But I must ask you

forgiveness forI have harbored bitterness and hate to you in my heart for the
way you treatedme.” And the two men
actually argued with eachother for a bit about who needed to be forgiven
more
and they were reconciled. But do you
understand that that reconciliationrequired self-denial on the parts of both of
those men? That former slave had to
humble his pride to even grant forgiveness to one who had done him wrong.
And that slave ownerhad to see in his pride what he had done wrong in
order to seek forgiveness fromthis man.
Forgivenessrequires self-denial.
I wonder if there’s someone that you need to forgive — maybe it’s your
husband
or your wife, maybe it’s your parents, maybe it’s your children, maybe it’s
someone who was a dear, dear friend but from whom you have now been
estranged—
you’ve been wounded; you’ve been done wrong.
Maybe it’s someone in this congregation.
It will require self-denialfor you to take the first step of forgiveness
and reconciliation, but hear what Jesus is saying to you — “If anyone will
follow Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and come after
Me.”

The secondthing I want you to see is this — those who refuse to deny
themselves
and instead seek theirown satisfactionwill never find it.
Those who refuse to deny themselves and insteadseek their own
satisfactionwill never ever find it. Those who seek fortheir own
self-preservationand their own self-interestin this life, those who seek
primarily for their own satisfactionwill be utterly thwarted.
Jesus promises it. Look at
what He says — verse 24 — “Whoeverwould save his life will lose it, but
whoever
loses his life for My sake will save it.”
Jesus is saying that the only way to experience, to gain, true life is
giving yourself away, is giving your life away, is losing your life, is denying
yourself. Those that live for
themselves never ever getthe satisfactionthat they seek.
In fact, what happens is their souls get smaller and smaller. They shrivel up.
They become turned in on themselves.
Have you ever met someone like that who’s lived that way for many, many
years and is now on the brink of eternity?
It is not a pretty sight. But
those who deny themselves, their souls are enlarged.
Their souls grow. They become

filled with love. They care about
things that are eternal. They’re
able to forgive. They’re able to
experience a joy that no one else could imagine.
You see, allJesus’disciples learn to say, “Notmy will but Thy will be
done,” because Jesus’prayer, “NotMy will but Thy will be done,” which is a
prayer of selfdenial — “Lord, Your waynot my way.
Lord, Your way not my way.” — that prayer was necessaryfor Him to
experience what Paul says He experiencedin Philippians 2 — That “to Him,
the
name which is above every name was given, that at His name, the name of
Jesus
the Lord, every knee should bow and every tongue should confess that Jesus
Christ is Lord.” That prayer, “Not
My will but Thy will be done,” was necessaryfor that achievementto occur.
And so it is in the Christian life. If
you pursue your satisfaction, you will not get it.
If you pursue His kingdom, you will, except it will be greaterthan any
satisfactionyou canimagine. Do you
remember what Jesus says to the disciples in the gospels?
“No one will give up mother, father, family, farm, or lands for Me who
will not receive in this life and in the age to come a hundred fold of what he’s

given up.”
Do you see what Jesus is saying?
He’s saying that when you deny yourself for Him you do not lose the
satisfaction
that you would have had, you gain a satisfaction that you couldn’t have had
exceptin Him. And I want to say
that that’s a very important part of the self-denial that Jesus is calling us to
because He’s not simply calling us to have a stiff upper lip and deny ourselves
and recognize that we’re never ever going to have the satisfactionthat we’ve
given away.
And He emphasizes this — look especiallyat verses 26 and 27 — He speaks of
when
He comes in glory and the glory of the Fatherand of the holy angels and He
speaks ofour seeing the kingdom of God.
Now those passages are ofcourse part of a warning, but I want you to see
this positive side. Jesus is saying
that everyone, everyone who gives up their own satisfactionfor His sake and
for
the kingdom’s sake now will receive a satisfactionthat transcends anything
that
this world can give. Jesus is
saying, “Do the math! Deny yourself

now, temporally, and I will satisfy you fully, forever.
This life is a vapor and it’s passing away, and if you’ll deny yourself
now I will give you pleasures forevermore.”
That’s one part of Christian self-denial.
You know I find, I do find Christians, especiallyolder Christians who have
learned the Christian virtue of self-denial, and I find that they do know what
it is that they need to deny themselves, but I often find, even in those who do
practice self-denial and who deny themselves, I find in them sometimes a lack
of
a full appreciationof just how much satisfactionis being stored up for them
and how everything that they’ve lost will be repaid to them in a currency that
they cannot evenconceive. It’s part
of the Christian hope.
III. If we fail to deny
our selves in this life, we will lose our souls.
But here’s the lastthing I want you to see my friends.
If we do not go the wayof self-denial, we will lose our souls, for there
is no temporal gain that cancompare to the loss of the soul.
“What does it profit” — look at verse 25 — “Whatdoes it profit a man if

he gains the whole world and yet loses orforfeits himself?”
What does it matter to have ease and comfort and popularity and beauty
and prestige and success andpowerand money and influence without true
life?
What does it matter? And what
are we investing ourselves in?
It’s not just about forgiveness, is it?
It’s about our stewardship. I
must say that I look at our houses and then I look at the houses of our parents
and I often ask myself that question, “Whatdo our houses tell us about
ourselves in comparisonto them?
What do we really care about? What’s
most important to us? Is the kingdom
most important to us, or is our ease mostimportant to us?”
The Lord Jesus Christ tells us that selfishness causesthe soul to
contractbut love makes it expand and enriches it and fills it to overflowing
with assurance andpeace and joy.
That’s why Jim Elliot could quote the old Puritan1
saying, “He is no foolwho gives up what he cannot keepto gain that which he
cannot lose.” Thatis the Christian
algebra of self-denial. You see in
the end, it’s not denial of selfequals loss of satisfactionand so we grin and

bear it for Jesus. It’s denial of
self does bring real and often lifelong lasting depravation, which then becomes
an eternity filled with satisfactionthat we could not imagine.
And sometimes even that satisfactionbleeds back into this age so that we
enjoy foretaste of that glory which fill up every void which has been left in
our life by the self denial.
Jesus says, “Ifyou’re My follower, you will deny yourself.”
He’s not saying, “Denyyourself and you’ll be saved,” else we’re allin
trouble. He’s saying — and you know
this, by the way, because He’s just preachedabout the cross and then He
speaks
about self-denial — He’s saying, “If you have become a Christian by My cross
and
by God’s grace, the life that God is calling you to is a life of self-denial, a
life that you can only live because of the Gospel, a self-denial that you can
only practice because ofMy grace.”
And He’s saying, “Come, die with Me daily.
Live for Me daily. Deny
yourself daily and I will satisfyyou in ways that you could not possibly
imagine, now and forevermore.” It is
an adventure worth beginning.

Let’s pray.
Lord God, this
is a hard word — who is sufficient to it?
We ask that by Your grace You would enable us to take the first stepdown
this road and to keepon walking until travelling days are done.
This we ask in Jesus’name.
Amen.
Let’s sing Jesus’words back to Him and mediate on what they mean for us
using
number six hundred ten — “TakeUp Your Cross, the Savior Said”
Our Lord Jesus Christ never ever calls us to give up more than He gives to us,
so receive His rich and full blessing upon you.
Grace, mercy, and peace to you, from God our Fatherand the Lord Jesus
Christ. Amen.
—————————————————————————————————
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Jesus was demanding self denial v. 2

Jesus was demanding self denial v. 2

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