But there is always a deeper death to die and a greater Life to come forth from death, so I find the process must be constantly repeated.
A ministry (or more importantly, the minister) will pass through many seasons of death, burial, and resurrection. But even in this I see that He does not turn “taking up the Cross” into a work of the flesh, and does not reject our feeble attempts to do what we think is right, even when we are wholly or partially motivated by flesh.
God had to bear with Abraham when he laughed in unbelief; God had to bear with Abraham when he sought refuge in Egypt and lied about Sarah; God had to bear with Abraham when he took Hagar as his wife and sired Ishmael. All these, we would say, prove that Abraham was not a man of faith or a man of the Cross, that Self was alive, because look at all these examples of failure. Yet God is longsuffering, and drew Abraham out and further along and eventually brought him to the place he needed to be.
I almost wonder if we glorify ourselves even in our ability to deny ourselves… judging Self in ourselves and others and taking a little pride that we are not as Self-centered as the rest, when the whole time it is God Who must bear us and them along with great patience and love until He brings us under the Cross, progressively, daily, over many seasons.
There is only One Begotten Son Who lived in perfect obedience; the rest of us are in need of so much grace. And if Abraham really is the father of all who believe, it is an encouragement as well as an acknowledgement that we, like him, are fleshly creatures who are daily coming under the government of the Holy Spirit, and not without a lot of failures along the way.
Now, the Cross is extreme all on its own. It is the basis for everything else. I’m not going to stop proclaiming it just because some people misrepresent it. Some people are gluttons, but that won’t stop me from eating. Some people have died from fasting too long, but that won’t stop me from fasting. Paul said, “I know how to be full, and how to be empty; how to abound, and how to suffer need. I can do all things through my union with Christ.” THERE’S your balance. Now where people go astray is focusing more on “I can” than on “through Christ.”
Some people just don’t get it, and that’s why God is calling “us” (me at least) back to the Cross. You will be accused of being imbalanced if you teach it long enough. Jesus said the people of His (and our) generation were like children sitting in the marketplace, complaining, “We played the pipe for you, and you wouldn’t dance. So we sang a dirge, but you wouldn’t mourn.” When John came in rough clothing and with fasting, “He has a demon,” they said. Jesus came eating and drinking, and they said, “He is a winebibber and a glutton, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.” In other words, it doesn’t matter whether you play a happy tune on the flute or sing the blues, people are going to accuse you of being imbalanced. John was too hard on himself; Jesus was too “easy” on Himself.
You can’t satisfy people. They will tell you, “the Cross is not the way, Jesus is the Way.” As if you don’t know this. You know they say the same thing about the Bible now? “The Bible is not the answer, Jesus is the Answer.” As if you don’t know this. I believe some people think their whole calling from God is to be the devil’s advocate in every situation and be the “yeah, but…” of the Body of Christ. They seem to be on a perpetual mission to keep everything balanced and they’re always checking the scale to make sure it’s not tilting too far in either direction.
I figured out not long ago that no matter what I taught or did, someone would accuse me of being unbalanced. If I spoke, they would say I was a know-it-all. If I remained silent, they would accuse me of false humility. So I realized that if I was going to be criticized no matter what I did, I wanted to be criticized for something that was important so there would be some kind of blessing in it. I searched high and low to find something that was worth being misunderstood and persecuted for. The Cross is the only thing worth being attacked over.
Even the name “Jesus” has been so watered-down that His Name is no longer that offensive – the WWJD fad, for instance. Jesus: the most popular guy of the 20th century. That kind of Jesus is “cool.” But the Jesus that says, “If you don’t take up your Cross daily and follow Me, you cannot be My disciple” THAT Jesus is unpopular. So the Cross is the perfect thing to be “imbalanced” over. Wonderful, blessed imbalance. I’m going to take the Cross and make it THE MESSAGE because it’s the only thing worth getting persecuted for. It divides the multitudes of followers into the committed and the not-so-committed like nothing you’ve ever seen or ever will see. The Cross is an offense, a stumbling block, and foolishness. Properly understood and applied, it is radical, crazy, and imbalanced.
What is the worst thing that can happen to someone who takes the Cross and becomes “unbalanced” with it? He might damage his precious self-esteem, or become “too” humble and meek. Well, that kind of imbalance we need more of.
Some people would deny that a loving God would allow His Son to die on the cross for sins He didn’t commit. We know better, don’t we? That may be some people’s way of seeing love, but we who know the Cross see Love differently. The principle of the Cross shows us that God’s Love WILL allow us to suffer and even die in order to demonstrate a depth of Love that we cannot comprehend. This Love does not keep us from suffering, but uses the suffering to achieve a higher good that we certainly cannot fathom and don’t even appreciate when we are going through it. The point is that all suffering has a purpose, it is not merely punitive, but redemptive and part of an overall plan.
My crusading days are all but gone. There is only one thing worth talking about, one thing worth preaching, one thing worth living, one thing worth crusading for and that is the power of the Cross of Jesus Christ to change a man.
I am resolving to know nothing but Christ and Him crucified. To hell with the rest – it is all dung, manure, refuse, crap.
I heard truth spoken today: if we all preached the same thing (the Cross of Christ as the power of God to change men from sinner to saved, soulish to spiritual, self-centered to Christ-centered, etc.) we would not be divided, everyone trying to do their own thing, everyone promoting their own little agendas in competition for ministry support and followers. If we all preached Christ, no one could say that they are more important than the other, doing a “grand” work or a “foundational” work as if the others are superfluous. To live we must die; to be great we must be made low; to be strong we must be made weak; to enter in we must be straitened; to receive all things we must give up all things. This is the Cross. It is foolishness to man, but it is the power of God.
I heard a disciple of the Lord say today, “The Christian who lives for this very hour, to die to himself, is not open to false comfort and cannot be swayed no matter what you do. He cannot be moved.”
If I am going to be persecuted, I don’t want to suffer for defending my religious opinions and doctrines on prophetic ministry, renewal, true and false movements, and what’s wrong with the Church. What’s wrong with the Church is that Christ is not preached, the Cross is not taken up, and the Self has not died. So if I am to suffer, let me suffer for preaching the foolishness of the Cross, not my idiotic opinions and teachings – what are they worth? Paul said I knew NOTHING among you, but Christ and Him crucified. This cuts all the dead weight away from our spirit. To only know Christ! To be free to say, “I don’t know, and I don’t care to know. All I know is Christ.”
Less of me, and more of Him!
Great article and it needs to be preached more and more. i would like to add one concept the message of the cross. Recently i felt that the Holy Spirit directed my attention to this: “Blessings are a result of discipline”. Jesus went to the cross out of discipline to the will of the Father. Jesus didn’t gain anything personally by going to the cross. Fact of the matter, He has ALL and IS all things.When He walked on earth He could speak and miles away a servant was healed, a woman touched His clothing and was healed, He spoke and a dead man walked out of the tomb. So all the power of creation was residing in Him but He went to the cross to bless all mankind. And He did what He did out of discipline.
What we do here on earth we do out of discipline, not to be blessed. God will bless us as He sees fit. Our daily motivation should be as follows: Lord by the Holy Spirit show me how to be a blessing today, wherever I go.
Ignorance is bliss and many would rather stay ignorant instead of enduring till the end with sound doctrine. Thank you Chip for teaching the Truth no matter how hard it may be to hear.
2 Tim 4:3(AMP) For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine and accurate instruction [that challenges them with God’s truth]; but wanting to have their ears tickled [with something pleasing], they will accumulate for themselves [many] teachers [one after another, chosen] to satisfy their own desires and to support the errors they hold,
AMEN AMEN AND AMEN! The Way of the Cross is where the True and Faithful Church The Body of Christ becomes separated from the false church ( those who profess to know God but deny the power). The way of the cross is how we follow after Jesus to death of self (flesh) and overcome in the life of The Spirit. We must take up our cross daily and follow Him who is The Way The Truth and The Life!
Maranatha!
Christine
Amen. God bless you brother Chip for the simple but powerful message. I have been immensely blessed by the comments here too.
Simply amazing! Oh God please grant me your Grace to live such a living on the earth. Love you so much Jesus… love you so much Jesus …put your grace on all of us who hunger and thirsts YOU.
CHIP, no words but pray for His grace to be with you always.
AMEN, Brother! ALL GLORY TO GOD!
Thank you Chip….again! Yes, all but the Cross, and Christ crucified IS but dung, for nothing but the Cross has the power to save and to transform lives. We MUST die so Christ can live. My heart can not find the words to thank God for the Cross, and Jesus for laying EVERYTHING He has and was aside to take MY mess and make it His so I could be clothed in HIS righteousness……there is NOTHING righteous about me, except Jesus who lives in me.
Bless you, my brother, and thank you for so many years of your encouragement and guidance. Your teachings have been a part of my life for a long, long time.
May God continue to use you to guide His lambs in Truth, and may we ALL have the courage to take up our crosses, put on Jesus, and die to self every day until That Day comes.
AMEN, Clare! I listened to a sermon by S. M. Lockridge with my family this a.m…the thought of God’s mercy brought me to tears of thankfulness and joy… He is a just God. He will judge righteously!
HE KNEW WE NEEDED THE CROSS!
Know the feeling, dear Chip!……and He absolutely knew our need! If He hadn’t been a merciful God He wouldn’t have done what He did, He would simply have laughed and said, “Well, you got yourself into it, you deal with it!” That TRULY WAS Grace!…..I will look up Lockridge’s sermons on SermonIndex. Thank you. Have a blessed day.
The sermon is entitled “That’s My King”.
Thank you! May you have a blessed day, too!
Thanks Chip – I will listen this afternoon! Bless you! 🙂
Thanks Chip – I will listen this afternoon! Bless you! 🙂
Chip didn’t post this. Elizabeth did 🙂
Amen to this brother.. Thank you for sharing this profound truth.
Isn’t it interesting – we are all here, because we seek the “unpopular” Truth. I have experienced much in the past 12+ years of not “going to church.” An unimaginable peace and strength that only God can provide has welled up like a spring in me. I have been in the same unbalanced place when talking with others who do not really understand the totality of Christ and the Scriptures, because it all comes down to Him and Him crucified. His life boils down to the Cross. I have indeed been told I am unbalanced, yet, with those who I speak to, they know not the totality of Scripture, the totality of His life, nor the totality of His love for us all, nor sadly, do they really truly seek Him, but may they begin to seek Him with a pure heart. So, to all – seek the unpopular Truth. God’s many blessings upon you Chip!
Something thouched my heart and I will no longer be as what I am now. I believe my mind is renewed because of the words I read today. praise be to God again and again, be blessed Chip.
I am blessed and surely some thing happened while reading your writing…..Oh Jesus may your grace increase up on me and all those who seek you.
Isnt the cross the epitome of the He must increase and I must decrease message?. And how true if all in the body took up their crosses, denied themselves and followed the Saviour. Would’nt the Body of Christ be so much more in tune to the Head, who is Christ. Thanks for the mesaage Chip!1
Yeshua died to everything that He was on the cross apart from one thing, His love and obedience to God.
I am in a marriage which is not easy, I am safe, but not happy. This has been going on for a very long time. God asked me “Do you love me enough to stay?” I stayed. I continue to stay. Things are not easy, my teenagers need me, but they also need their dad too. So I die as I stay in a relationship that is not uplifting, not supportive emotionally, a relationship where the attention is not focused on me or what I can do. My talents are not appreciated, time is not given to me. His priorities are self centered and in this our children also suffer.
This is my given cross. In this I grow to rely on Yeshua in ways that I noticed that others around me do not seem to understand. I need Yeshua’ presence like I need food, water, shelter. In Him I am so loved.
The big purple dinosaur pretends all is well, all is happy, but Yeshua is more realistic. Life hurts but I am there in it with you He says. For me I can testify to this truth, each day.
To look to the cross of Jesus is good but one must be aware to follow Yeshua/Jesus means we also have to accept our given cross and allow God to work in our circumstances. I strongly believe as I am continuing to live in obedience to God that ultimately He will bless me and things will improve in ways that I can not imagine. But notice His words above, “Do you love me enough to stay?” It is not a command, we are given a free choice. Are you prepared to trust in me is what He is asking you.
Are you?
I am but I freely admit it hurts me to do so. Others can not understand your pain, so don’t expect them to understand your decisions either.
Preach the cross yes but preach that we must also have our personal cross too. The cross is ours also.
Eve uk x
10. Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. 11. For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. 12 So then death worketh in us, but life in you. -2 Corinthians 4:10-12
Yes, Eve, our cross is foolishness to the world but a savour of life to those for whom it’s intended (2 Cor. 2:15-16)
May you continue to let the Lord’s will be done in you/through you and may he grant you peace and continued revelation knowledge of the glory that is being worked through your obedience.
Please know that you ARE accepted in the beloved (Eph. 1:6) and loved by your (true) brothers and sisters in the Lord.
Dear Eve; I am in the same situation for over 30 years with a wife that has no part with God or Christ and never acknowledge anything good in me. I love the Lord more than anything else, His cross is my cross and in my suffering in this marriage, everyday I see His love for me! It is possible with Him always. I learned to denied myself for her so one day in her calling she will know and understand what Christ did for both of us in our marriage. I stay for Him.
Stay close to Him and you will always be in victory as our hearth is fill with His love and His joy!!
Rolly
I agree with the message, really to the point and full of truth, instead of pretending that Jesus is a big purple dinousaur
I appreciate you sharing in clarity what God is showing you about the Cross. My heart says “Amen” to your focus. Paul’s coment to the Corinthians “For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified” has continued to stay with me over the years. What does that mean in experience? Yesterday I had occasion to see a number of believers at a funeral whom I have known in the past. At one point we were together in this journey, but today we are separated. As I reconsider why that is, there is one common element that I see. Through some event that brought conflict in some way, they pulled back “hurt” and isolated themselves. I am not necessarily suggesting that the reasons for the “hurt” were not valid, but I am suggesting that the response of isolation was wrong. It has been said that you cannot hurt a dead man. They were not crucified with Christ in experience. Over the years I have come to this conclusion: In essence everybody faces the same trials and experiences, the same injustice, and that often at the hands of their own brethren. However the reaction to the “offense” depends on the condition of their relationship with God. Those with a good relationship either don’t notice the hurt, or, if they do, they quickly make it right and go on. However those with a wrong relationship with God take the hurt into themselves which results in a root of bitterness that eventually can’t be contained and spills out. I think the heart of this is what you are describing in terms of the Cross. Jesus said that a disciple must be as His master, and He faced the greatest injustice that any person has ever faced, and from the Cross He said “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” That is impossible to do apart from the divine power of the indwelling Spirit, and that is not just a “one time” event. It must have a begining, but it must be maintained as we “abide in Christ.” Thanks for the encouragement, and may each of us be found “crucified with Him” in our experience today.
Dave
Amen, the cross speaks mercy, grace and a breaking of our will due to this beautiful revelation of Christ Himself. We “step into ” and participate in His LIFE here on earth. Over time our senses get trained to continually and daily come to Him where ALL the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are. Yes the cross is death to self but then we get God’s presence; and here we go……….A pure and enduring Jesus movement revival where the last is REALLY the first and the “greatest” is REALLY the lowest…..
Thank you Chip for articulating this “unpopular” truth so well! It’s the separating of the sheep and goats, wise and foolish, wheat and tares… I too wish the crucifying of my flesh was a Once and for all event but it is not. This was a timely and encouraging word for me and all of us, the remnant!
Bless you!
Thank you Chip. “if” any man would be my disciple…. “many are called, few are chosen…” “flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom”. These are some of the verses that stirred within when reading your heart. Jesus came preaching the Kingdom and I believe we are living in the day when there will be the full expression of that Kingdom on earth, and those involved are the ones that have embraced the truth of the deeper work of the cross!
G’day Chip,
This is the most important message you’ve ever preached! This is the only message to preach!
More and more I’m seeing this in my own life, I’ve been off on a few tangents too but really, when it all boils down, what does it all matter if we aren’t centred wholly on Christ and in the Cross?
Wow what Susan says in her comment is so true and what you said chip is so good…what’s wrong with the church is that Christ is not preached,the cross is not taken up,the self has not died.
As I read the opening paragraph I saw an image of “crucifying our flesh.” With enough courage you can nail your feet and one of your hands, but how do you nail the other hand? You can’t.
You need someone else to do that for you and as you continue to forsake all lesser lovers to follow the Lamb of God … some will gladly do that for you – believing all the while they are doing God’s will.
Susan,
What you just said is very prophetic and very powerful!
Thanks for sharing!
Theres,
I’m grateful what I shared was a blessing ~ your words have encouraged me today.
Oh my goodness Chip, and oh my goodness Susan!
Like Kenneth said, this was so good and so TRUE!
‘Father, please help us not run from this’ beautiful suffering’ that will allow your to life to be revealed through our
clay vessels.’
Theres,I think we were posting at the same time, LOL – You are right’ that WAS prophetic and powerful! I think the Lord is really talking to his Body through what is being said here.