"For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth." ~ Deuteronomy14:2

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Pleasant Stone Devotional Meditation: February 21

"And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me" ~ Matthew 10:38
I [Eugenia Price, the author]have known many new Christians who immediately get set up to "do battle" with their friends and family who may not approve of their new walk with Christ. I was guilty of some of this myself in the early days of my Christian life. It is quite natural. That's just what it is in fact. It is "natural". It is in part, at least, our flaming egos wanting to be proven right. I do not say it is all this. Much of it is because we are so dazzled by the new light we have, we can't wait for our loved ones to see it too. We haven't found out yet that only the Holy Spirit can convince people that Christ died for their sins. We sincerely want them to see what we see, but it is still our flaming "natural" egos which cause us to obey Christ's instructions often in the wrong spirit. "... I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother ..." But He didn't say we were to throw scenes and be sarcastic and use harsh words. We are merely to be willing to be misunderstood by them, if need be, and refuse to compromise. But we are to do it in the same spirit in which Christ carried His Cross. "... he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me." If we follow after Him, we follow in His footsteps. And the Lord Jesus treads softly when He is near the hearts of those who do not yet know Him.
"... he that taketh not his OWN cross, and followeth after ME, is not worthy of me."

No comments: