Matthew 16:24) Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
I've been giving a lot of thought to this Scripture, and it presents many questions, and possibly many problems for us if we are to obey His words.
First thought is: I have read some Historians who say that Jesus probably only carried the "cross beam" of His cross........because the Roman Soldiers left the "I" beam in the ground all the time, and lowered it to put someone on the cross, or take them off. So, do we take up "only" the "cross beam," or do we take up the entire cross?
[FYI: Just so we are all on one page here........the "cross beam" is the horizontal beam and the "I" beam is the vertical beam of the cross..........]
Second thought is: Some Historians believe the Cross was constructed from the Dogwood tree, and that the Dogwood was "cursed" after His crucifixion, and can no longer be used to construct a Cross. If true (or even if not), what kind of tree do we use to construct our Cross that we are to take up?
This all being done, are we to take up our Cross daily? Where ever we go, are we to take it with us? Seriously, think about all the problems that will cause. How do we get it into the car? Imagine all the comments at work, and where do we keep it when at work? Or imagine going to the Grocery Store or Wal-Mart with it........I would think the problems would be overwhelming would they not?
Third thought is: Do we affix ourselves to the Cross, or just carry it over our shoulder? I would think just carry it, because it would take some assistance to affix ourselves, and un-affix ourselves every time we had to during the day.......it would surely present some logistical problems in my opinion. Can you see how being obedient to this Commandment from Jesus would present many problems for us who strive to walk Christ-like?
Has anyone managed to figure out a way to accomplish this? If so, please share with me, so I will have some insight into how to "take up my cross, and follow Him."
I've been giving a lot of thought to this Scripture, and it presents many questions, and possibly many problems for us if we are to obey His words.
First thought is: I have read some Historians who say that Jesus probably only carried the "cross beam" of His cross........because the Roman Soldiers left the "I" beam in the ground all the time, and lowered it to put someone on the cross, or take them off. So, do we take up "only" the "cross beam," or do we take up the entire cross?
[FYI: Just so we are all on one page here........the "cross beam" is the horizontal beam and the "I" beam is the vertical beam of the cross..........]
Second thought is: Some Historians believe the Cross was constructed from the Dogwood tree, and that the Dogwood was "cursed" after His crucifixion, and can no longer be used to construct a Cross. If true (or even if not), what kind of tree do we use to construct our Cross that we are to take up?
This all being done, are we to take up our Cross daily? Where ever we go, are we to take it with us? Seriously, think about all the problems that will cause. How do we get it into the car? Imagine all the comments at work, and where do we keep it when at work? Or imagine going to the Grocery Store or Wal-Mart with it........I would think the problems would be overwhelming would they not?
Third thought is: Do we affix ourselves to the Cross, or just carry it over our shoulder? I would think just carry it, because it would take some assistance to affix ourselves, and un-affix ourselves every time we had to during the day.......it would surely present some logistical problems in my opinion. Can you see how being obedient to this Commandment from Jesus would present many problems for us who strive to walk Christ-like?
Has anyone managed to figure out a way to accomplish this? If so, please share with me, so I will have some insight into how to "take up my cross, and follow Him."
"know people who have done this........"