Your Cross

Text: Mark 8:34 “And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he
said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross,
and follow me.”

Intro: The meaning of the cross is often misunderstood. The cross is an emblem of suffering
and shame. It is a symbol of disgrace. It was the worst possible way to die. It caused the
most pain and suffering of any torture chamber devised by man.

I. Whosoever Will – John 3:16

A. Includes You
B. Includes Your Neighbor
C. Includes Your Friends
D. All Inclusive
E. Does Not Exclude Anyone

II. Deny self

Titus 1:6 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable,
and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.”
A. Put God First
1. In Your Marriage
2. In Your Home
3. In Your Relationships
B. Get Self Out Of The Way
C. Selfish Desires
D. We Live In The Me Generation
E. What’s In It For Me?

III. Bear Your Cross

A. Your Cross Comes In Many Different Weights and Styles
B. Luke 14:27 “And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my
disciple.”
C. The believer's cross is not any and every kind of suffering, sickness, or tension.
D. The believer's cross must be, like his Lord's, the price of his social nonconformity. It is
the end of a path freely chosen after counting the cost. . . . It is the social reality of
representing in an unwilling world the Truths of God’s Word.
E. The cross is the pain involved in doing the will of God.
F. To take up the cross means that you take your stand for the Lord Jesus no matter what it
costs. Ex. Popularity, Money, Embarrassment.
G. Are You Willing To Suffer Reproach for the Glory Of God?

IV. Follow Jesus

Mat. 4:19 “And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
A. The man with a cross no longer controls his destiny; he lost control when he picked up
his cross.
B. Follow me: I am the way, the truth, and the life.
C. Without the way there is no going;
D. Without the truth there is no knowing;
E. Without the life there is no living.
F. To Follow Means To Obey.
The title expression was used in a testimony meeting, following an evangelistic crusade in
Brockton, Massachusetts, by Dwight Lyman Moody. A young man stood to speak, and it
soon became clear he knew little Christian doctrine. But he finished by saying, “I’m not
quite sure—but I’m going to trust, and I’m going to obey.” Daniel Towner, who was in the
meeting, jotted down the words, and gave them to John Sammis, who developed the lyrics
from them.

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,

What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way

To be happy with Jesus, but to trust and obey.