Easter is Easy... and Hard



Read Matthew chapter 16, starting in verse 13 and going through the rest of the chapter. Go ahead and read it. I'll wait.

No really. Read it real quick. Take your time. I'll be here when you get done.

You back yet? You took a little while! But that's okay.

Jesus is trying to explain to his precious followers that he is going to have to march into Jerusalem and get murdered. Peter is not okay with this, and Jesus has some strong words to say to him. "There is a plan of God Himself at work here, and you had better not get in the way, Peter." And then he tells Peter, "You, too, will have to throw yourself away and pick up your electric chair and come on if you want to follow me."

Whoa. Those are such strong words. Christians quote this verse of denying self and picking up a cross frequently without thinking about what it means.

See, saying "deny yourself" is easy. But ignoring what you want is hard. Saying "pick up your cross" is easy. Suffering torture for Jesus is hard. Saying "follow Jesus" is easy. But doing everything in your life not for others nor for yourself but for Jesus is hard.

Going to church doesn't cost us much, although some complain about the sermon being too long or missing something on TV to be there or not enjoying it. That's not really suffering for Jesus, is it? Church attendance is not "picking up your cross."

During the Easter season, spend some time thinking about what Jesus sacrificed for us. And then consider sacrificing some of your things and money and vacation time and activities away from yourself. Give them instead to God and His big plan.

Deny yourself. Suffer torture. Follow Him. As crazy as that sounds, if you try it, I'm pretty certain you won't regret it! How could I know that? Because Jesus said "Whoever throws away their life for me finds a better one that I want to give them." If you don't believe me, re-read Matthew 16:25 for yourself. And think about doing it. It won't be easy, but it will be worth it.

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