Lent is arriving. Here is a thoughtful question to ask yourself! Jesus says in Matthew 16:24 that if anyone wants to be his disciple he needs to deny himself, picking up the cross and follow Jesus.
How can you understand and apply this verse in your daily life?
I don’t happen to celebrate “Lent”. However Matthew 16:24 is a good scripture to apply to oneself.
For me, taking up my cross to follow Him starts when I open my eyes. I need to push aside my own “desires” and delve into God’s Word every morning to crucify the flesh in me that wants to be in “charge” of my day and remember Who is Ultimately In Charge of Everything: Our Lord Jesus Christ. And if He commands that I do this, then I must be willing, I must act on it, and when I am weak I must ask God to help me to lay aside all my clamoring for what I want in favor of what My Lord and Savior wants. The ONLY way I know what He wants is to keep reading His Word and taking heed of His commands.
i think that means deny myself and carry the cross. Then Jesus life will be set up in my body.
Your question reminds me of two verses in the Bible:
Romans8:5-9Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace;the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.
Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.
Galatians5:16-18So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.
For me, “denying yourself, picking up your cross and following Jesus?” means This is about obeying the leader of the spirit and keeping my body free from sinful nature desires.
