And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’
“Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples. —Luke 14:27-33 (NIV)
When I married my wife, we had freedom and time to ourselves. Our lives were ours. But all that changed once our first child was born, she consumed our time and energy; she became our priority. Everything we did was for our baby girl. I worked full time to provide for our little family. My wife was a full time homemaker, taking care of our little one. When I came home from work, I did my share of baby duty before seeing to my needs.
Those who have or had a little one knows that babycare is a 24/7 job, which at times seems endless. These little bundles of joy consume our time and energy. They become our focus, our priority. As parents, we become changed people on a daily basis, because of the commitment and love we have for our loved ones. We are not living for ourselves, but for others. Self becomes secondary.
Similarly, Jesus should be our priority on a daily basis. He should be our focus every minute of the day. Just like taking care of an infant child.
I like this quote from Billy Graham: “But Jesus meant something far deeper than this when He told His disciples to carry their cross. He said to them, If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me (Luke 9:23). In Jesus’ day, a cross wasn’t just a symbol of pain and suffering; it was mainly a symbol of death. What Jesus was telling them is that they needed to put to death their own plans and desires, and then turn their lives over to Him and do His will every day.”
“The Notebook” is a modern day novel and movie of “Romeo and Juliet.” The movie starts when the couple is in their teens and crazy in love with each other. Noah is a construction worker, obviously lower class, and Aly, a high school student, comes from a rich class family. Despite their differences, they overcome all odds and eventually end up marrying each other. The man’s devotion to his wife is unparalleled. Even in their senior year when Aly had Alzheimer’s, Noah is still completely devoted to her. He stays in the convalescent facility where she resides and spends time with her everyday in the hopes that she will remember him, if only for a moment. When they pass, the staff finds them in bed holding hands—faithful to the end. Wow, I want to be like that husband, faithful and in love, holding my love until the day I die.
That’s exactly how Christ is with us—faithful until the end and completely devoted. When we truly love someone, no distance, no hardship, no amount of time can keep us away from the one we love. We need to have a changed heart and mind, the spirit of devotion and love in order that we can truly love God supremely and be His disciple. I need to be changed by Him. Don’t you?
Henes Guerpo serves La Sierra University campus in Security and Athletics. He and Nancy host the church cafe on the first Sabbath of every month.