Desertion

John 19:13 When they said this, Pilate brought Jesus out to them again. Then Pilate sat down on the judgment seat on the platform that is called the Stone Pavement (in Hebrew, Gabbatha). 14 It was now about noon on the day of preparation for the Passover. And Pilate said to the people, “Look, here is your king!” 15 “Away with him,” they yelled. “Away with him! Crucify him!” “What? Crucify your king?” Pilate asked. “We have no king but Caesar,” the leading priests shouted back. 16 Then Pilate turned Jesus over to them to be crucified.

It is amazing how quickly people will deny Jesus and put Him on the cross, when Jesus calls us all to do the opposite. Matthew 16: 24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. 25 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. 26 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? 27 For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father and will judge all people according to their deeds. 28 And I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom.” Prior to Jesus saying the above words in Matthew, Peter had just proclaimed that Jesus was the Son of the Living God, and then at the time of Jesus' arrest, Peter denied Jesus three times. Jesus made a promise to all who take up their cross and follow Him, and that promise is the following. 27 For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father and will judge all people according to their deeds. 28 And I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom.”

Taking up our cross and following Jesus means we will have days when we can proclaim Jesus or deny Jesus. Jesus calls us to proclaim His message again and again and that call is much stronger than we might understand. Even though Peter denied Jesus three times, Jesus negated that denial through the vivid forgiveness and grace He bestowed on Peter. Taking up our cross means we will follow Him in a strong faith that holds us to the commitment and realizes that if we mess up and don't follow through, His grace is sufficient. Paul looked at this great truth in a very clear and concise way in 2 Corinthians 12: Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.

We can commit to taking up our cross and following Him, but we quickly realize we need the power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish it. It all comes back to being filled with the Holy Spirit of God, and that power is the only power that will make that happen. Note to self: Keep my walk current by intense prayer, Bible Study, and interaction with other committed believers. If we do this and realize that Jesus is the only one who can equip us to take up our cross, we will find a new and very current commitment to greatness. We will see that power up close and personal, and that promised power is seen in Acts 1:But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses. No desertion in the ranks, just continued and growing commitment.

Today's Message,

David Warren