We may have a cross we wear around our neck. This is a symbol that we are a Christian. Almost every Christian associates the cross with their faith in Christ. It has become so popular that even some unbelievers wear a cross, just to be popular.
We, as Christians, say that we come to the foot of the cross for salvation. We also say that we take up the cross daily in our lives. John Gregory Mantle has some profound words to say about our relationship to the cross: “There is a great difference between realizing, ‘On that cross He was crucified for me,’ and, ‘On that cross I am crucified with Him.’ The one aspect brings us deliverance from sin’s condemnation, the other from sin’s power.”
Jesus wanted us to know that He wants us to crucify ourselves with Him on a daily basis. He says this in Luke 9:23, “And He was saying to them all, ‘If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.” Jesus is commanding us to live totally for Him on a daily basis. This means that our every thought and deed, daily, must be to live in total obedience to the Word of God. This is made clear in the verse following, where Jesus says, “For whoever wishes to save His life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it” (v. 24). Here we are commanded to be obedient to the Scriptures and not to our own wants and desires.
Yes, the cross we bear is much more than a piece of jewelry around our necks. The cross we bear has to do with living our lives in accordance with the Scriptures. When the way we live our life on a daily basis aligns itself with the Word, yes, then we are living in such a way that we bear the cross of Christ. Let’s do that every day, starting right now!
