“If any man will come after Me, leet him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” Luke 9:23
Communion, from a time standpoint, can be broken down into seconds, minutes, hours, and days. The issue of the “day” is very important, because there can be much that transpires in the day either to thrust the believer onward, or hinder, entangle, and weigh him down in the present. The Lord, after speaking of “daily” bread to be prayed for, goes on to say that we are not to be anxious for tomorrow, adding, “…sufficient unto “the day” is the evil thereof.” (Matt. 6:34) So, the Lord deals with communion within a certain time period simply because of our capacity, either to use well, or redeem, the time afforded to us in a day, or to fail in doing so. One thing is clear, He desires to meet us in the morning, and because of His finished work on Calvary, and Him being our present burden bearer, in the evening, to come to Him for cleansing, renewal, laying aside of every weight, then to rest again in Him. There is enough to deal with in the period of a day, so that, by His grace and the enabling of the Spirit, we should come afresh to him, to be restored, renewed, and revived in the quietness of communion with Him, and thus be able to lay our heads on our pillow and sleep in peace. But, let us go back to the matter of the “day,” before the evening, and that walk with, by, and for Him, during the day. How important is it to understand the basics of fellowship with Christ during the day?
First of all, we discover by the Lord’s word communicated to us by Luke the Physician, that there are certain things we are to do “daily.” It is apparent that these things are specific, and never lose their importance, as they are essential to true fellowship with God. Secondly, they are imperative, if one is to truly and practically “follow” Christ. What are they, and what is the prelude to their application in the life?
The Lord Jesus is always previous. We see this in his introductory words, “If any man will come after Me.” That which is previous in God’s working in the heart is the desire and will created there by God to follow Christ. God has revealed Himself to the heart and mind of the individual to the point where he becomes convinced that the Lord Jesus is the Savior of the world, the Son of God, who alone can forgive sin, and give eternal life. It is to this one, in whose heart God is working, that Jesus’ conditions to follow Him are laid before him. The one who will seek the grace and mercy of God to accept Christ’s conditions, and learn to abide by them on a daily basis, will know God, and this increasingly. What are these conditions?
The first one is the denial of self. When Scripture tells us to repent, then to believe, it speaks of a change of mind, heart, perspective, and objective. Where once, as a lost person, the world revolved around the matter of one’s self, the call of Christ is to turn away, even to forget, oneself. The “self” of which Scripture speaks is that person for which one lives, cares for, ever seeking to preserve or save, for self-centered reasons. Christ says that we are to “lose” this life, for it does not belong to one that will follow Him.
The second condition is that of taking up of one’s cross “daily.” The cross is an instrument of death. There is finality in the concept of a cross. It means that there is no going back to the former life, with its goals, and means of existence. It is not a shift to a new life, but a break with the old, to embrace all that is in Christ.
To follow Christ is to take Christ as one’s life, one’s all.
Dear Father, Strengthen us to follow. In Jesus’ name, Amen.