Taking up your Cross daily.

[caddisman]

Please correct me if i am reading more into this than need be.Many churches seem to be advocating a Zap from God upon accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior,then when the instant cleansing is not manifest,they claim something a miss,i think Scripture supports a constant struggle to overcoming the world,in other words Takeing up your Cross daily,to many new believers are expecting instant cleansing/healing/Holy Spirit outpouring ect and when it dosen't come lose heart,Churches/Pastors/Believers should teach Faithfull seeking of the Father through Faith in the work done at the Cross as opposed to making them feel unworthy if they didn't instantly feel saved/redeemed/set free.
Karl

 

[Johan]

I agree with you about taking up your cross daily. I sometimes feel like I have to get saved every day, but in fact, I got saved once and now I'm just taking up my cross every day.

That might not be exactly what you were talking about, I didn't fully understand what you were trying to say (my english is not very good).

 

[caddisman]

Re:

Johan,i think you get what i am saying,i understand that we are saved the instant we accept Jesus and repent are sins from are heart,but often times people don't have a mind bending experence,but that should not make you feel incomplete if you did not just know that you ARE saved and now its time to take up your Cross,turning from your sin nature to a spiritual nature[not easy but essential to truly know Christ]
Karl

 

[NY Believer]

Johan,i think you get what i am saying,i understand that we are saved the instant we accept Jesus and repent are sins from are heart,but often times people don't have a mind bending experence,but that should not make you feel incomplete if you did not just know that you ARE saved and now its time to take up your Cross,turning from your sin nature to a spiritual nature[not easy but essential to truly know Christ]
Karl

I think what you are describing is the difference between justification and sanctification. We are justified by the substitutionary death of Jesus as the propitiation for our sin. When we accept Jesus and put our faith in him we are transformed at that moment.

The continued life long process of sanctification is an ever growing experience in relation to Him and conforming our life to a Christ-like life here on earth.

We will never completely eliminate sin from our earthly life (as Paul points out quite effectively) but that doesn't mean we should just sit back and indulge our pet sins. If we do indeed commit a sin we should crucify it regularly and keep a short account with God (1 John 1:9). For just about everyone, there is something daily we should give over to Him.

 

[caddisman]

Re:

Yes,very well said NY Believer,thank you for that eloquent reply.
Karl

 

[HisFollower]

What many forget or overlook outside of endlessly referring to saying we are saved by grace, is that which Christ tells us, which is the first and always the last Word that we must give heed too. Christ tells us that only if we endure to the end shall we be saved, and this is what is overlooked or forgotten. Our carrying our own load or cargo, and the cargo of other´s daily is the cross and the law of Christ; and this must continue in us till the end. And it is faith by which we are justified, which is our acceptance to rely on God´s Word which is God´s will. It is not merely saying so, that we are sincere, but moreover, it is making the sincere effort to do His will.

 

[eddieb]

I agree with you about taking up your cross daily. I sometimes feel like I have to get saved every day, but in fact, I got saved once and now I'm just taking up my cross every day.

That might not be exactly what you were talking about, I didn't fully understand what you were trying to say (my english is not very good).

i know exactly what you are saying. the bible speaks about "putting on Christ" like we wear Him like clothes. robes of righteousness. definitly got to put on clothes before we go out and about for the day. be kinda wierd if we didnt put on clothes everyday.
i find it interesting that in luke 12 Jesus tells us to consider the lilies which God clothes the grass with(clothes) and then he says he will clothe us. and we are to "put on" Christ. and again in verus 29 seek not what ye shall eat or what ye shall drink. again Jesus is the bread of life come down from heaven.(eat/food/ do this in remeberance of me) and drink he told the woman at the well if you drink from the waters he has to offer we would never thirst again. all of these are daily things eating drinking and wearing of clothes.
definitly got to put on Jesus every day.

 

[Faith4Bride]

Please correct me if i am reading more into this than need be.Many churches seem to be advocating a Zap from God upon accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior,then when the instant cleansing is not manifest,they claim something a miss,i think Scripture supports a constant struggle to overcoming the world,in other words Takeing up your Cross daily,to many new believers are expecting instant cleansing/healing/Holy Spirit outpouring ect and when it dosen't come lose heart,Churches/Pastors/Believers should teach Faithfull seeking of the Father through Faith in the work done at the Cross as opposed to making them feel unworthy if they didn't instantly feel saved/redeemed/set free.
Karl

I partly agree here but also see a problem here. I agree that we should not expect to get saved and be instantly walking perfect. And far too little is taking up your cross daily and dying to self preached. Far too little is Christ living in us and us going from glory to glory preached. Far to little is anything productive towards maturing in Christ preached. In most circles and denoms it may never be preached but there are stuff some lights of truth.I get into this area because the truth is that many " saved" people are really not saved at all. A large portion of church goers heard a sermon, thought well I will " pray the prayer" to be safe from hell but never really got saved.

This is the thing, when we are saved something will happen, will be different. We will never walk away the exactly same person that was there a moment ago. We will truly be changed, differnt, our mind, our heart, or thoughts and intentions will be differnt than they were.We will have become a new creature in Christ.- That does not nesessarily mean that we will see literal tongues of fire land on our head or the building shake, but our flesh will be shaken and something will fall away immediatly while most others will take the daily dying to self.

If a person says they are "saved" and there is no change in them at all then they are not saved. That is not what we see salvation does when real all through the NT. This is important because many are just going through the motions. If we believe that we can be saved and see absolutly no differnce at all in us, and then begin to take up our crosses daily we will get stuck striving in the flesh because flesh cannot overcome and put to death itself, the Spirit of God and the new creature is needed for that.

So i agree we have to take up our crosses daily that may be the most important doctrine rarely taught but we also must have a change at salvation or we have no salvation at all.- That does not mean moutains visable moved but you should see that mountains in you have moved, that the hardness of your heart is changed, your ability to believe what is preached and what the bible says as totally true and living should be there,your mind should be beginning to have understanding it did not have before even if slowly, you should have a change in appetite for sins although this may not come all at once some of this should be immediatly present.

 

[Kit Carson]

I like to keep things simple. Explain things in a real world understandable way .

We all wonder about things sometimes, we all stumble at times, or do something we are not proud of, or say something out of place or harsh to someone.

But a very wise minister told me this one time and I have always held it dear as an answer to one of my prayers.

Simply picture a circle. God is in the circle and you are in the circle. You have accepted Christ with all your heart, with true faith and accepted his forgiveness and the gift of salvation.

You are now in the circle, God will not let go of you. You may get right out on the edge sometimes, but you will never leave the circle.

I found that so simple explanation to say more than any other thing anyone ever told me.

Kit

 

[RJ]

It is a daily, sometimes moment by moment, process "picking up the cross".

As a Christian our sin debt has been paid for all eternity, we are free.
That doesn't mean that we don't care about sin, the Holy Spirit is right there to remind us; we died to sin at the cross; that doesn't mean, in our imperfect state, that we are dead to sining.

It's not that we, believers don't look at our sin , the point is that God's says that he doesn't.
That, is what is called the "Finality of the cross"!

All are forgiven, even the unbeliver, but once saved,the struggle is to give up self and follow more of Jesus Christ daily.

We can't do that perfectly 24/7, no more that we could follow the Ten Comandments perfectly or it's subsitute, perfect love, as found in
1 COR 13.

That's why St. Paul thanked God when he said: "Therefore there is no condemnation for those in Christ".....that's where God drew the line with the unbeliever.

 

[Boanerges]

A few thoughts:
Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Man was created in the image of God (Gen 1:26). God is tripartite- Father, Son and Holt Spirit. Man is tripartite (1Th 5:23)- spirit, soul and body. When we are born again we experience a spiritual rebirth (Ezekiel Eze 11:19.36:26 ). When we are born again our spirit (inner man Eph 4:24, Col 3:10) is created after God in righteousness and true holiness.
Jesus was crucified at Golgotha or the place of the skull.
This signifies that it is our old way of thinking that we must die to. We are to be renewed in our mind (agree with the Word of God as revealed by the Spirit of God).
It is this fleshly thinking that must be denied and we must come to the point we think like Him. Our spirit or inner man communes with God, our thoughts follow the revelation in the Word of God and our bodies follow our thoughts.
So while we are completely holy (by the imputed righteousness of Christ (1Co 1:30 ,2Co 5:21) and the born again inner man) when we are saved the outer man must be put to death daily as we by faith walk according to His Word.

 

[Faith4Bride]

I like to keep things simple. Explain things in a real world understandable way .

We all wonder about things sometimes, we all stumble at times, or do something we are not proud of, or say something out of place or harsh to someone.

But a very wise minister told me this one time and I have always held it dear as an answer to one of my prayers.

Simply picture a circle. God is in the circle and you are in the circle. You have accepted Christ with all your heart, with true faith and accepted his forgiveness and the gift of salvation.

You are now in the circle, God will not let go of you. You may get right out on the edge sometimes, but you will never leave the circle.

I found that so simple explanation to say more than any other thing anyone ever told me.

Kit

the problem is kit that what that preacher told you is not biblical. The bible says that we can - fail the grace of God- and not be given repentance anymore. That we can return to perdition drawing back after we have been set free and that when that happens we become unfruitful and God will have no pleasure in us and will cut us off to be burned. Paul says that we only stand by faith we should be not highminded but fear lest God cut us off the way He did the unbelieving jews.
God did not give His son on the cross for us, so that we can live " our lives" and just enjoy this world and have a good time. We are told that we are no longer our own and we are to die to self, we are to take up our crosses daily. Everyday we should be becoming less like ourselves and more like Christ. Our minds are not for " enjoying" pretty girls but they are to be conformed to the mind of Christ. We are to live in spiritual battle constantly wearing our armour and fighting spiritual powers with the sword of the Spirit and the word of God.

The lives we now live are suppose to be lived in all things for Christ as HE is living in us.- If Christ would not do it, we should be daily coming closer to not doing it, saying it, thinking it, loving it etc..

We are here to be conformed into His image so that we can judge, rule, and reign with Him in our inheritance- not so we can say " im saved, i will live a good happy life for myself and go to heaven".