Today, our focus is on the command of our Lord that is found in Matthew 16:23-25: "Then Jesus said to his disciples, 'If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.' " The disciplines of fasting and prayer in Lent are designed to move us closer to the ultimate drama of the life of faith. By fasting, we actively deny ourselves something we could have. This is an outward expression of the spiritual reality that we must continually and vigorously deny the sinful desires of our flesh. By prayer, we seek to enter into a following relationship with Jesus. We see the two ends of the spectrum in this passage. To follow Jesus is to walk away from self-serving. To find life in Jesus means to lose our own life that we cling to so desperately. The cross is the great divider, the "stumbling block," the critical moment. There is a reason we talk about a central, crucial point in a story or argument as being the "crux" of the matter. Crux - and crucial, for that matter - comes from the Latin word meaning cross. It is an all-or-nothing proposition. Either you take Jesus at His word, or you decide that your own importance and well-being take precedent. Either you leave everything you know and own at the altar, or you, like the rich young ruler, walk away from Christ trusting in your possessions to save you. The cross is the place of decision.
SONGS:
Today we will begin by singing "Jesus, I My Cross Have Taken." It is an old hymn text set to new music by Billy Foote of Indelible Grace Music. This song emphasizes the sufficiency of Christ and his cross, and the baffling logic of Christian life: "With Thy favor, loss is gain..."
We will sing another old hymn with a new chorus by Chris Tomlin, "The Wonderful Cross." Again, we proclaim the strange paradox of the cross: "The wonderful cross bids me come and die, and find that I may truly live."
A modern hymn by Stuart Townend, "How Deep the Father's Love for Us" is a reflection on Christ's suffering, and serves to prepare our hearts for taking of the Lord's Supper. As we confessed earlier in the service, we remind ourselves of what drove Jesus to bear the cross: "It was my sin that nailed him there, until it was accomplished."
Our closing hymn, "In the Cross of Christ I Glory," reminds us to find our strength and hope in the finished work of Jesus on the cross.
I encourage you to take a moment to reflect on 1 Corinthians 1:18-25 (CLICK HERE)
May God by His Spirit reveal to us the true wonder and power of the cross of Christ, and may this knowledge move us to take up our cross and follow.
In Him,
Patrick Bourckel