Untitled Sermon (3)
Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 6 viewsNotes
Transcript
Carrying Your Own Cross
04-19-2020
Welcome to Maranatha Baptist Fellowship
This morning we will look again at the cross
Only this morning it will be our cross
See now that Easter is over what do we do with it
See if Easter is only a once a year thing then I believe we have missed the point of Easter
Like we said last week
Jesus did not die on the cross and raise from the grave and give you freedom from sin and life so that you could squander it away
So that you would not do anything with your life
Understand though that there is nothing to pay Jesus back for
This is not a Hey Jesus died for you sin you owe Him this much
Jesus is not saying that and I am not saying that
This is a Jesus died for your sins and set you free
Because you have a personal relationship
This is how it should look according to scripture
Not according to Jeremy
This is how your walk and what you should be looking for you in your walk with Christ
Now that you have been set free
So now that we have that figured out lets see what the Bible has to say about it
36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And He said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 “This is the great and foremost commandment. 39 “The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 “On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”
Do you see the question that starts off
This is a Jew asking Jesus of the entire law what is the most important thing
Understand the Law started with 10 and then through the years it made it to over 600 different laws
Then Jesus comes along and explains that the 600 and even the 10 are summed up in these 2 and in this particular order
Jesus shares with this Jew that the most important part of a relationship with God is to Love Him with your entire being
This is not a payback kind of love this is a want kind of love
I choose to love Jesus
I choose to follow Jesus
Thats why the relationship with Jesus is completely on you
Jesus desire to have a relationship with you so much that He paid your sin tab so that you and Him could hang out
But sadly some of us have had our sin tabs paid for by Jesus and we refuse to hangout with Him
Jesus is saying if you want to grow in your personal relationship with Him then this is how you do that
You love Jesus with your entire being
We have talked about that before and that looks like
All of your energy, all of your time, all of your everything
Some of you might sit there and say then were does the time go for my family and my work and so on
Let me explain to you that if First things are first then everything is right
But when first things aren't first then nothing else is right
Church if your relationship with Jesus is right, you have time for your family and work and so on
But if it ain't right then you struggle with your family and work and so on
Now the real question comes how to I make Jesus number one in my life
I am so glad you asked
By dying church
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.
If you wish to go run after Jesus
If you wish to begin a relationship with Him
If you wish to love Him with your entire being
Jesus is saying that you must deny yourself pick up your cross daily
It is a you must deny yourself what you want
Deny your flesh
Choose to kill the flesh that is where the cross comes in
For you and I to grow in our walk with Christ
We have to wake up and each and every day die to ourselves
It was through the cross that we find freedom
It is through our cross that we pick up daily and die to our own desires and our own flesh that we find freedom
It would seem backward in vs 24 but Jesus is really saying that if you do not choose to pick up your own cross and die to your own flesh daily then you cannot come after Him
Do you start to see that Loving Jesus is more than just church membership
It is more than just showing up to church
It is more than I walked down the aisle and prayed a prayer
Loving Jesus means that you have to die to yourself daily
Why you ask
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. 17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.
Church we are to walk by the Spirit
It is the Spirit of God that lives inside of us
We are not to obey the flesh
The flesh’s default setting is to sin
That was the problem with the garden
Sin entered the world
You were born with a sin nature you were not born a sinner
Your and mys default nature is to sin and lets be honest if we are left to ourselves that is what happens
That is what Paul is saying that our flesh and the Spirit of God are at odds with each other
let me put it to you very clearly this morning
the one you feed is the one that grows
If you feed your flesh then your flesh with grow
But if you take the times to work at growing your relationship with Christ then that will grow
you will exercise your walk with Christ
you will begin to live our Loving Jesus with your everything because you are practicing and growing your walk with Jesus
Then Paul goes on to explain to you what the things of the flesh are incase you still don't understand
19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21 envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
These are things of the flesh
This is our default setting
This is what we are to flee
Run away from
But some of us have decided that we will feed our flesh and dabble in the things of the flesh
This only leads to death and destruction
Then Paul ends on a high note
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
The things of the Spirit
This is what it looks like to walk with the Spirit
These are the things we should be running to and practicing
This morning it might seem like we have covered a lot and been all over the Bible this morning
But let me clear
Because you have a relationship with Jesus you should want to Love Jesus and Love others
if that is not what you want to do then I am not so certain you have a relationship with Jesus
But for those of you who have a relationship with Jesus this morning to Love Jesus with your entire self and to love others means that you have to die to yourself daily on the cross
You have to choose to pick up your cross and carry it
Not pick it up and set it down
Not pick someone else's us
Not pick Jesus’s up but your own cross and die to your own personal wants and desires
church that is what it looks like to Love Jesus and Love others
And that is what we are called to do
Or maybe you do not have a personal relationship with Jesus this morning
And you understand after reading in Galatians that sin only leads to death and destruction and you want to begin a personal relationship with Jesus
Would you pray this prayer
Dear Jesus,
I know I am a sinner
I know that you died for my sin
Please forgive me from my sin
I am turning from my sin and running to you Jesus
Please come into my heart and be Lord of my life today
In Jesus Name
Amen
If you just prayed that prayer
Praise the Lord you are a new creation
Would you email me so we can connect with you and encourage you in your new relationship with Jesus
Or maybe there was another decision of rededication
or of church membership
or another decision would email me as well
pray and dismiss