Ponder anew these words from Mark's gospel, (8:34b-37) . . .
"If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will loose it and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? For what can a man give in return for his life?"
Deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me. Those are pretty specific requests Jesus makes to those of us who seek to follow him. They are so demanding-and much harder to fulfill than it might seem. But if we are to understand the meaning of the cross for our day, we need to come to an understanding of the demands it makes upon us and of the response that is required.
The season of Lent begins with Ash Wednesday, February 17. Lent is a six week period of time that allows us to renew our understandings of what the passion of Jesus was all about then and what meaning it still has for us today.
Few world leaders have ever been so demanding upon their people as this passage implies that Jesus was upon those who sought to follow him. Jesus makes it clear from the very beginning that to be his disciple one must commit himself totally to the cause of Christ. How different Jesus was and is from the average salesman. Secular leaders talk only about the fringe benefits and the golden opportunities; they never mention the hazards, the frustrations, the difficulties inherent in the job. The approach of Jesus is forthright and challenging to the point of seeming severe and repulsive rather that appealing.
It might seem from this text that Jesus was trying to discourage one from joining his movement with all of the talk of self-denial and cross-bearing. But what I think Jesus was trying to do was to demonstrate that his kingdom was not an unreal escape from the world of reality but rather that one must commit himself totally to discipleship and to the Kingdom of God. He was not trying to make discipleship an easy option, a pie in the sky reward for one to escape heartache and suffering in life; but rather to say that discipleship is not always easy for us and that it is a very costly endeavor. He is trying to say that discipleship is a response by us to what God has done in Christ. We need first to realize that God has taken the first steps in redeeming his children and his whole creation and that he wants to establish a relationship with us through Jesus Christ. He has made us an offer and he waits for our response.
Discipleship is our response to the grace of God. But discipleship is not cheap, it is not a free ride. If we are to be faithful to God, it requires that we commit ourselves totally to Jesus, his son; and that we will be his ambassador. Our lives will reflect his teachings, his love; and we will become examples of peace and reconciliation.
That is a big task; one not easy to perform. But that is precisely what Jesus meant. He wanted us to know that discipleship was not easy and that it requires commitment and dedication of our complete selves.
The cross of Christ is more than a symbol of celebration or remembrance or beauty. It is a mission. We may bow down in worship-but we must go in service if we are to be true to the meaning implied by Jesus' death on that cross. We may come to be served but if our discipleship role is meaningful we will go to be servants. We may seek to worship the cross and to be filled by the presence of Christ, but then we are compelled to go and to be ministers of His word and a presence to those in need around us.
The call of Christ comes to all of us and it comes to YOU in this season of Lent. But remember, your total response to Jesus Christ must be made if you are truly to be his disciple. Your whole self must be committed to God and His kingdom; for Jesus said, "If any man would come after me, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me."
A prayer for today . . .
Lord help us to understand more fully the implications of your call to discipleship. Help us to be able to surrender ourselves totally to you that we might be obedient to the task of ministry and that we might truly serve one another in the name of Christ. Grant us the ability to hear and the willingness to respond, in Jesus' name. Amen.
Pastor Ed