TAKE UP YOUR CROSS

 TAKE UP YOUR CROSS-accept ,approve, applaud GRASS IN THE ROSE BUSH-don’t let a thought come in and take up residence in your mind. Matthew 16:24-27 NASB[24] Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. [25] For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. [26] For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? [27] For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and will THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS. Mark 8:34-38 NASB[34] And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. [35] For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it. [36] For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul? [37] For what will a man give in exchange for his soul? [38] For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels." Luke 9:23-26 NASB[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. [24] 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. [25] For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself? [26] For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. John 16:33 NASB[33] These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." Luke 14:27 NASB[27] Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. ITS NOT HOW YOU START ITS HOW YOU FINISH Matthew 26:58,69-75 NASB[58] But Peter was following Him at a distance as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and entered in, and sat down with the officers to see the outcome. 69] Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard, and a servant-girl came to him and said, "You too were with Jesus the Galilean." [70] But he denied it before them all, saying, "I do not know what you are talking about." [71] When he had gone out to the gateway, another servant-girl saw him and said to those who were there, "This man was with Jesus of Nazareth." [72] And again he denied it with an oath, "I do not know the man." [73] A little later the bystanders came up and said to Peter, "Surely you too are one of them; for even the way you talk gives you away." [74] Then he began to curse and swear, "I do not know the man!" And immediately a rooster crowed. [75] And Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said, "Before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times." And he went out and wept bitterly. Look at the change-in the way PETER spoke-curse and swear LETS LOOK AT LUKE 22:61-62 Luke 22:61-62 NASB[61] The Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had told him, "Before a rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times." [62] And he went out and wept bitterly. TAKE UP YOUR CROSS DAILY-MAYBE AS A REMINDER, EVERY MORNING FOR THE REST OF PETERS LIFE BEFORE HE STARTED HIS DAY IN THE QUIET OF THE MORNING, MAYBE DOUBT HAD TRIED TO SLIP IN, MAYBE TIRED HAD SLIPPED IN, DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, LONELY,--IN THAT QUIET TIME IM BETTING A ROOSTER SOMEWHERE IN THE DISTANCE WOULD CROW—LIKE A STILL SMALL VOICE, SAYING IM HERE PETER.-TAKE UP YOUR CROSS DAILY , AND FOLLOW ME Denying sinful thoughts ,Your renewed mind sets up ,A door that all thoughts must past, Jesus is the door of your heart in a renewed mind -(the mind of Christ) ,A thought stopped at the door is just a temptation ,A suggestion from satan But Jesus the door is guarding entry into your heart-bring every thought into the obedience of CHRIST Suffer in the flesh – cease from sin! It hurts to go against what you are naturally drawn to – to deny the thoughts that you naturally tend to think. Just like a physical cross causes suffering for the body, this metaphorical cross also causes suffering – for your flesh, that part of you that is drawn to sin, and which is denied its demands. But you have a good reason to choose to do this, and that is what is written in 1 Peter 4:1: 1 Peter 4:1-2 NASB[1] Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, [2] so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God. ANT MOUND AND FLOWERS- IF YOU CUT THE BIBLE ANYWHERE IT WILL BLEED- JESUS KNOWS HOW MUCH YOU CAN BARE, JESUS CARRIED THE CROSS AS FAR AS HE COULD , THEN SIMON-HELPED I KNOW WHERE YOUR BREAKING POINT IS, I WILL MAKE A WAY OF ESCAPE- THE CROSS IS AN ADDITTION NOT A SUBTRACTION I CAME TO GIVE YOU LIFE, AND TO HAVE IT MORE ABUNDANTLY YOU CAN BE CHANGED ! BY THE POWER OF THE CROSS-THE BLOOD John 3:14-21 NASB[14] As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; [15] so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. [16] "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. [17] For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. [18] He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. [19] This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. [20] For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. [21] But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God."