Returning to the Cross

[MessageOfTheCross]

And he said to them all, If any man will come after Me (the criteria for Discipleship), let him deny himself (not asceticism as many think, but rather that one denies one's own willpower, self-will, strength, and ability, depending totally on Christ), and take up his cross (the benefits of the Cross, looking exclusively to what Jesus did there to meet our every need) daily (this is so important, our looking to the Cross; that we must renew our Faith in what Christ has done for us, even on a daily basis, for Satan will ever try to move us away from the Cross as the Object of our Faith, which always spells disaster), and follow Me (Christ can be followed only by the Believer looking to the Cross, understanding what it accomplished, and by that means alone [Rom. 6:3-5, 11, 14; 8:1-2, 11; 1 Cor. 1:17-18, 21, 23; 2:2; Gal. 6:14; Eph. 2:13-18; Col. 3:14-15]). Luke 9:23

For whosoever will save his life shall lose it (try to live one's life outside of Christ and the Cross): but whosoever will lose his life for My sake, the same shall save it (when we place our Faith entirely in Christ and the Cross, looking exclusively to Him, we have just found "more Abundant Life" [John 10:10]) Luke 9:24

The only way to God is through Jesus Christ (John 14:6)...the only way to Jesus Christ is by the Means of the Cross (Luke 14:27). The only way to the Cross is a denial of self (Luke 9:23). If any person tries to come any other way, Jesus says, "they are a thief and a robber" (John 10:1).

1. Jesus Christ is the source of all blessings.
2. The Cross is the means by which all blessings are given.
3. The object of our faith must be Christ and the Cross.
4. That being done, the Holy Spirit will greatly help us.

JSM

 

[Dino246]

And he said to them all, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me Luke 9:23

For whosoever will save his life shall lose it, but whosoever will lose his life for My sake, the same shall save it Luke 9:24

Many people read a Bible with the words of Jesus in red. MoTC reads a "bible" with the words of Jimmy (Swaggart) in red.

That demonstrates where his priority is.

 

[MessageOfTheCross]

As far as trying to do something as it concerns taking up the Cross daily, we are to do nothing. In fact, it was already done at Calvary some two thousand years ago. On a daily basis, we should reinforce our Faith in Christ and what He has done for us at the Cross (Rom. 6:3-5; 8:2, Gal. 2:20-21, Col. 2:10-15). This is the "Truth" which we must learn, act upon, and continue to act upon, which guarantees the help of the Holy Spirit.

What Jesus accomplished on the Cross has given the Holy Spirit the legal right to live in us, to help us. The Cross has given us access to the Most Holy Place by the Blood of Jesus (Hebrews 10:19 NIV). Every single blessing received by the Child of God comes through Calvary.

If the Cross of Christ is not strictly the Object of our Faith, God looks at everything else as "worldliness." No matter how religious our efforts may be otherwise, it is still looked at by the Lord as "friendship with the world." This means the Believer, in essence, becomes an "enemy of God."

Christians must start thinking Spiritually, which refers to the fact that everything is furnished to us through the Cross, and is obtained by Faith and not works. Many Christians say you put too much emphasis on the Cross. I remind you that the Apostle Paul said, "We preach Christ Crucified (1 Cor. 1:23). He also said, "For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him Crucified (1 Cor. 2:2). Notice two subjects: Christ and the Cross. Why would the Apostle Paul say such a thing? Because that is the only way we receive victory over sin, the world, the flesh, and the Devil!

JSM

 

[MessageOfTheCross]

How do we activate the power of the Cross to receive the blessings through the Cross of Calvary where the victory was won?

Without Faith, it is impossible to please God! And the only Faith God will accept is Faith in His Beloved Son Jesus Christ and His Atoning Sacrificial Work at Calvary Cross! This is called "The Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 8:2).

"The "Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus" demands the Child of God place and maintain their Faith and Trust exclusively in Jesus Christ Faith and His Finished Work at Calvary Cross (The Blood of Jesus) where the victory was won.

This is what it means to walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). Failure to understand this or willfully dismiss this stops Grace immediately! Gal. 2:20-21 - This is a form of Godliness / Lukewarm!!!!!!! Proclaiming Christ while forsaking the Cross (the Blood of Jesus).

God has chosen to operate His work from the basis of faith. "The Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:2) is God's prescribed order of victory for the Believer over sin, the world, the flesh, and the Devil.

The Holy Spirit doesn't require much of us, but He does require one thing, and without reservation. Our Faith and Trust must exclusively be in Jesus Christ Faith and His Finished Work at Calvary Cross where the victory was won (The Blood of Jesus). No other way pleases God the Father, and no other way do we receive Grace (blessings).

We live by what Jesus Christ did by Grace through Faith Who loved us and gave Himself for us at the Cross of Calvary where the victory was won (Rom. 6:3-5, Philippians 1:21);

We live by:
His Obedience (Philippians 2:8, John 10:18),
His Faith (Gal. 2:20-21), and
His Love (Faith works by Love -Gal. 5:6).

It is not our obedience, not our faith, and not our love, that we live by. Rom. 8:2, Gal. 2:18

In other words, place and maintain your Faith exclusively in Christ and His Finished Work at Calvary Cross (The Blood of Jesus) where the victory was won and receive all the benefits of this resurrection life (the help of the Holy Spirit). Romans 8:2

 

[MessageOfTheCross]

Works of the flesh
Paul tells us this in the 5th Chapter of Galatians. The entire Book of Galatians, but especially the 5th Chapter, is a warning from Paul to the Church at Galatia, which is also meant for us. The warning is that if they place their faith in anything except “Christ and Him Crucified,” that “Christ shall profit you nothing” (Gal. 5:2).

The Apostle goes on to say that if the Believer doesn’t adhere to the Way of the Spirit, which is the Way of the Cross, then works of the flesh will manifest themselves. He said:

“Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the Kingdom of God” (Gal. 5:19-21).

Now let me say it again because it is so very important:
If the Believer doesn’t understand the Cross of Christ, as it regards Sanctification, then, in some way, one or more of these “works of the flesh” are going to manifest themselves in his life. As stated, such is inevitable! The first four, “Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, and lasciviousness,” are obvious and easily understood. But the modern Christian quickly dismisses “idolatry, witchcraft, and heresies,” thinking they do not really apply today.

Let us address that:
First of all, any suggested way of victory other than the Cross of Christ, such as the “Purpose Driven Life,” the “Government of Twelve,” the “Word of Faith,” or “Denominationalism,” etc., constitutes idolatry. In effect, it is the same as Old Testament times, when Israel would begin to worship idols instead of Jehovah. To be sure, Israel actually referred to these idols as Jehovah; but the Lord definitely did not look at it in the same manner! And neither does He look any differently at modern idolatry!
Furthermore, all of this constitutes “heresies,” in which the modern Church abounds.

Let me say it more clearly:
Any doctrine, way, scheme, or direction made up by men, which means it is devised by men and not by God, is constituted by the Lord as “heresy,” which is a “work of the flesh.” Let me say it again, and because it is so very, very important! Anyway other than “Christ and Him Crucified” is, in the eyes of God, “heresy.” Once one begins to understand these “works of the flesh,” these things become more obvious.

JSM

 

[MessageOfTheCross]

The answer you seek is found in the Cross. Jesus Christ is the solution for mankind - there is no other! It takes the Power of God to set the captive free. Many bypass the Cross for their solutions and Grace is canceled. These problems we face are too severe to be talked out of anybody. Bondage (taskmasters are demon spirits that come to afflict - Exodus 1:11) can be broken only by the Power of God. This is why Jesus had to come from Heaven and die on the Cross in order that the power of sin may be broken. Sin has a power behind it and his name is Satan.

If a Christian will and their efforts to live for God is in anything except Christ and the Cross, i.e., Finished Work, The Blood of Jesus (Romans 8:2), Satan can override your will and force you to do things you don't want to do and trying not to do (Ephesians 6:12). Our willpower is routed in flesh. This is why Jesus said deny yourself and pick up your cross and follow me (Luke 9:23). In other words, receive my benefits daily I have provided for you.

The Christian is doomed to failure if he thinks he can face the sin business and simply say yes or no. That's not the way it works. Those who try that (and almost all have) will conclude by failing every time. You may win for a while, but after a while, you're going to fail.

Now, stop and think about this for a moment: If it were possible for us to defeat sin and the attacks of Satan by willpower, then Jesus would not have had to come down here and die on a Cross. He could have merely taught us how to function within our willpower, and that would have solved the problem.

However, He didn't do that, did He? The truth is, the problem of sin is so deadly that it took the Cross to defeat this monster, and even then, we have to have the help of the Holy Spirit to get this thing done. That's why Paul said, "But if the Spirit (Holy Spirit) of Him (God the Father) who raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He who raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit who dwells in you" (Rom. 8:11).

This tells us that sin is so powerful that it takes the same power to overcome this thing as it did to raise Jesus from the dead, which, of course, is the power of the Holy Spirit. Understanding that, we should come to the conclusion that our personal willpower is totally inadequate.

However, most Christians little understand the victory of the Cross and try to do this thing on their own, which always results in failure.

The majority of Christians know nothing about the Cross of Christ for sanctification. Justification delivers us from the penalty of sin, while sanctification delivers us from the power of sin. The Cross of Christ is as necessary for sanctification as it is for salvation (1 Cor. 1:18).

Because we are in this body of flesh, as Paul said, "We have not been perfected yet (Philippians 3:12-13)," and because we have an enemy within and an enemy without (the world, the flesh, and the Devil), you can still get tired of trusting. This is why the scripture says:

Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Galatians 5:1


JSM