“Those who do not take up their cross and follow in my steps are not fit to be my disciples.” Matthew 10:38
“My little children, for whom I labour in birth again until Christ is formed in you,” Galatians 4:19
Until Christ is formed in you! The church in Galatia was founded by the Apostle Paul on one of his early missionary journeys. The Apostle Paul wrote this message to the church in Galatia because he was concerned about those brothers and sisters, as they were turning away from the Lord and following false teachings. Paul, the founder of that church, the shepherd of that flock, writes to them, calling them “little children”!
He said, “My dear children, I am suffering labour pains until Christ is formed in you!”
Church is a family and not a religious institution. That’s why we always teach that Shalom is a family. “Biblically”, we are not a religion, we are a family, we have “spiritual parents” and we are brothers and sisters. Like a family, no one can walk alone, no one can live without being connected and actively participating in the Sunday services, the small groups (meetings in homes), prayer meetings, and so on.
As a family, everyone needs to be under the leadership of one of the church leaders, because they will care for you, and this is “spiritual protection”. Sheep that wander astray, alone and disconnected from the Body of Christ, are easy prey for the enemy, and they will be deceived by false doctrines. Remember, church isn’t a building; the Church is the Body of Christ, and if you are not actively participating in the church, you are distancing yourself from the Body of Christ.
In John 3:1-10, we see a man (Nicodemus) full of religious knowledge, yet he was unsure whether he was saved or not.
“Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.””
John 3:3 NKJV
Jesus said that to be saved, you need a fresh start in life! You have to be born again. Jesus said to Nicodemus: With the lifestyle you are living, with your way of speaking, thinking, and treating people, with your arrogant manner up until now, you will not enter the Kingdom of God!
In other words, Jesus was saying: Your old self has to die; you have to be born again. Christ has to be formed within you!
That’s what the Church is for: to help you form Christ in you! You go to the meetings to be taught, edified, challenged, and strengthened so that Christ can be formed in you!
For Christ to be formed in you, you need to take up your Cross!
What does the Cross mean in your life? What did the work of Christ do for you?
The church has lost the meaning of the cross and has put many different things in its place.
The cross of Jesus Christ is central and is the foundation for the Christian faith. The cross reveals God’s character: His love for lost sinners and His perfect justice meet at the cross. If we want to grow in our love for God (which is the first and greatest commandment), we must grow in our understanding and revelation of the cross, which shows us His great love.
If we want to grow in holiness, we must grow in our understanding of the meaning of the cross, which confronts the way we live.
The cross confronts our pride, our carnality, and our sins.
Why does the Church exist? Why do you have a pastor? Why do you need to participate in each of the meetings?
The Church is the place where you will receive the foundation and teaching for your new life; it is the place that the Apostle Paul spoke of: Until Christ is formed in you!
Someone who is born again is like a child, a baby; a baby doesn’t know about spiritual things but needs care. After conversion, after the new birth (which happens instantly), every person needs guidance and teaching from other more mature people so that Christ may be formed in them!
Salvation, the New Birth, is the beginning, it’s the Door of your spiritual life.
Jesus said: I am the Door (Beginning) in John 10:9.
Jesus also said: I am the Way! (John 14:6)
The Church is not only here for you to be born again or to obtain Salvation! But to support you as you walk along the path and develop your salvation!
There’s the problem: some enter through the Door and are baptised by the church but not all continue on the path of growing in the Christian faith.
“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;”
Philippians 2:12 NKJV
You have got to continue to develop your salvation!
Now I want you to think for a few seconds about someone who has recently become a new Christian.
They are joyful with Jesus, happy with their Baptism, they are reading the Bible, attending Church, (They have only just entered through the door).
The new birth makes you a spiritual baby, but you need to be taught until Christ is formed in you!
You were born again, were baptised, and became part of God’s family, which is the church, but you brought many traditions from the world, (or from your old church that you have been before), you learned many wrong habits, wrong concepts, wrong ideas, bad thoughts.
When you were of the world, you were of bad character, you lied, stole, didn’t keep your word, put others down, didn’t pay your bills, you liked to fight, argue, didn’t obey authorities, didn’t obey your parents, didn’t obey your boss, your leader, you drank, swore, judged people, gossiped, were sensual, didn’t like to make friends, had enemies, were selfish, etc, etc.
But I see many Christians today inside the churches, still with these same habits! That’s why all of us need the church, and we need to be submitted to someone who will help us in this process, until Christ is formed in us!
For you to become a True Christian, all this muck has to be removed from your Life! Here comes the Action of the Cross in our lives, if we allow yourselves to be treated. Paul said: I suffer the pains until Christ is formed in you!
After being born again, there is a path to follow and the Path is the Cross!
God’s plan is for you to die and let Christ live in you!
Paul, the apostle, said:
I die daily! 1 Corinthians 15:31 This is not a one-time event, but a daily process.
This does not happen in the New Birth or in baptism! It is a DAILY process. The Cross is a decision; you decide whether you will go to the Cross or not!
Many still continue to live as their old selves because they have not decided to die to their own wills! Your Old Nature has to die, and Christ has to be formed in you!
If you do not take up your cross, your spiritual life will be in danger. You will be a defeated Christian who will not grow within the Kingdom of God!
“You must put to death, then, the earthly desires at work in you, such as sexual immorality, indecency, lust, evil passions, and greed (for greed is a form of idolatry).” Colossians 3:5 GNT
You must Put to death your earthly nature! You have got to do it! God won’t change you if you don’t want to.
Going to the Cross is your decision! This is a Daily decision! Put to death your earthly nature!
Giving up the Cross is giving up Christianity! If you don’t want a Life of the Cross, you don’t want Jesus. This is God’s process, this is the reason we are the Church, to have Pastors, leaders, and teachings. It’s to form Christ in You!
Unfortunately, many come to church when they fancy it, (they don’t value the kingdom of God), and in truth, they are inside the church but disconnected from the Body of Christ. Friends, there’s no such thing in the Bible as online church or online pastor!
All those who are born again need to be involved in the Church, and they need to have leaders over their lives, someone who will challenge you, who will say no to you. We need to have “spiritual parents” and leaders over our lives.
“Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.””
Luke 9:23-24 NKJV
Jesus said: If anyone desires! You have got to want it! It is not God who will change your character; it is you who needs to decide to go to the Cross. Every day, deny yourself!!
Who wants to save their life and one day arrive in the Kingdom of Heaven?
Jesus said: Whoever desires to save his own life must lose it; and whoever loses their life for My sake will save it.
This is a path of humility and surrender! The Cross destroys our pride, our sin, and transforms us into a new creation.
“Take away the dross from silver, And it will go to the silversmith for jewellery.”
Proverbs 25:4 NKJV
The Bible speaks of the work of the silversmith, comparing it with our lives! The silversmith puts the silver in the furnace and waits for it to be melted in the crucible (a type of vessel for melting metal). After the silver is melted, the silversmith removes the dross that rises to the surface. To see if the metal is good and pure, he lifts the crucible to see if the metal can reflect his image! If it does not reflect it, the silversmith takes the silver back to the fire to start the process again!
There are many believers inside the church who have not been purified and still have a lot of muck mixed in their silver.
All those who surrender to the Action of the Cross will go through the fire! There are many who have surrendered to Christ, who are going through struggles, through the fire, and in the end, they will be more alike Jesus and reflecting his nature!
That’s why true believers are always going through struggles and difficulties! For the fire (which is the Cross) is working within us, putting to death our old human nature.
The Christian life requires sacrifices. Going to the Cross is you deciding to pay the price to walk straight, you decide to obey the authorities, you use your time for God, you decide to serve people, you humble yourself asking forgiveness of those you have sinned against, sometimes sacrificing our time to go to meetings, getting up in the morning to go to prayer meetings, all this is sacrifice and renunciation!
All this hurts, but this is the action of the Cross in your life; it’s the character of Christ being formed in your life. The old self of bad character dying, and Jesus living through you!
The Grain of Wheat: Dying to Live
Our title today, “Dying to Live,” may seem like a paradox, but it is the key to understanding the Christian life. Jesus Himself taught us about this, using the image of the grain of wheat:
“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.”
John 12:24 NKJV
Think about a grain of wheat. On its own, it is just a grain. But if it is planted in the ground and dies, it will produce an abundant harvest. In the same way, when we die to ourselves, when we renounce our own desires and ambitions, we allow Christ to live in us and produce fruits of righteousness, love, and service.
The death of the grain of wheat is what allows it to live in abundance. Likewise, death to our self is what allows us to experience the full life in Christ.
Conclusion: The Choice is Yours
What is your decision today? Are you willing to die to yourself, to take up your cross, and to follow Jesus? If you make that choice, you will not only experience the full life in Christ, but you will also produce much fruit for the glory of God.
Remember, if the grain of wheat does not die, it remains alone. But if it dies, it produces many more grains. If we die to ourselves, we will produce disciples, save the lost, and impact the world for the glory of God.
May God bless you, and may you decide today to take up your cross and follow Jesus.