Matthew 16:24-27 (NKJV) Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.
In the opening passage, Jesus made it clear what it takes to be a disciple. A disciple works and lives for Jesus while waiting to be united with God in heaven. We are to count the cost of discipleship.
In this “selfie” generation, it is almost unthinkable to ask people to deny themselves. Most of us can be very self-centred because of pride. Self-centredness can lead to sin because people have no regard for God or what the Bible teaches, even if they are believers.
To “deny himself” does not mean to give up your favourite snack or TV. Instead, it means to stop making your own desires, ego, and reputation the centre of your universe. Jesus is asking us to die to ourselves.
To “take up his cross” means a complete, daily surrender of your autonomy. It all boils down to whether we allow Jesus to be our Lord and Saviour or treat Jesus merely as a Saviour. There is a high chance that we will live our lives like unbelievers if we treat Him only as our Saviour, who provides us with a ticket to heaven.
Denying ourselves dethrones us from running our own lives and enthrones God in our hearts, granting Him the power to decide for our lives. Some of us may struggle to give up different aspects of our lives to God, but God has spelt out very clearly in the Bible what He requires of us.
What does denying ourselves and carrying the cross look like?
- Dying to our fleshly desires by dealing with carnality in our lives.
- Laying down the right to be offended and walking in love. We are to walk in the Spirit.
- Releasing our plans to God. We are to carry out His will for our lives.
- Looking at work as worship and using our work as a platform to share the gospel.
- Releasing our time to worship and serve God.
- Releasing and managing God’s finances for Him.
In essence, it is saying, “I am no longer in charge; I am following Jesus even if it leads to social rejection, loss of status, or physical danger.” It also means that what people in the world think of us does not matter, because all that matters is how God sees us. We want to listen to our Lord and Saviour because we belong wholly to Him.
Reflection: Do you see Jesus as your Lord or your Saviour? What does denying yourself and carrying your cross look like in your life right now?
Sermon: Pick up the cross to follow Jesus
祂是你的主还是救主？
马太福音 16:24-27 于是耶稣对门徒说：“若有人要跟从我，就当舍己，背起他的十字架来跟从我。因为，凡要救自己生命的，必丧掉生命；凡为我丧掉生命的，必得着生命。人若赚得全世界，赔上自己的生命，有什么益处呢？人还能拿什么换生命呢？人子要在他父的荣耀里，同着众使者降临；那时候，他要照各人的行为报应各人。”
在开篇的经文中，耶稣清楚地表明了成为门徒需要什么条件。门徒在等待与天父在天堂联合的同时，为耶稣工作和生活。我们要计算作门徒的代价。
在这个“自拍”的世代，要求人们舍己几乎是不可思议的。由于骄傲，我们大多数人都可能非常以自我为中心。以自我为中心会导致罪，因为人们无视神或圣经的教导，哪怕他们是信徒。
“舍己”并不意味着放弃你最喜欢的零食或电视。相反，它意味着不再把自己的欲望、自我和名誉当作你宇宙的中心。耶稣要求我们向着自己死。
“背起他的十字架”意味着每天完全降服自己的自主权。这一切的核心在于：我们是允许耶稣成为我们的“主和救主”，还是仅仅把耶稣当作“救主”。如果我们只把祂当作救主—一个为我们提供去往天堂门票的人，那么我们很有可能会过着像非信徒一样的生活。
舍己把我们从管理自己生命的宝座上拉下来，并让神登上了我们心灵的宝座，赋予祂决定我们生命的权力。我们中有些人可能会挣扎于将生活中的不同方面交托给神，但神已经在圣经中非常明确地阐明了祂对我们的要求。
舍己和背负十字架在实际生活中看起来是什么样的？
- 靠着对付我们生命中的属肉体生命，向着肉体的私欲死。
- 放下被冒犯的权利，在爱中行事。我们要顺从圣灵而行。
- 将我们的计划交托给神。我们要行祂在我们生命中的旨意。
- 将工作视为敬拜，并将我们的工作作为分享福音的平台。
- 腾出我们的时间来敬拜和服侍神。
- 为神放手并管理祂的财务。
从本质上说，这就是在说：“我不再掌权了；即使这会带来社会的排斥、地位的丧失或肉体的危险，我也要跟随耶稣。” 这也意味着世人如何看待我们并不重要，因为唯一重要的是神如何看待我们。我们想听从我们的主和救主，因为我们完全属于祂。
默想： 你把耶稣看作是你的主还是你的救主？在你看来的此时此刻，舍己和背起十字架在你的生命中是怎样的体现？
讲章系列：背起十字架跟随耶稣