Finally Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified. So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). John 19:16-17
As presented on *The Lutheran Hour® by Dr. Oswald Hoffmann, February 24, 1980.
How do you take Jesus, who allows Himself to be taken and goes out bearing His cross to the place of the crucifixion?
With a shrug of the shoulders, a little bit of indignation soon forgotten? With the sad recognition that this is the way the world does things? Or seeing it as people began to see it after He rose from the dead, the dramatic declaration of the grace and the glory of the great God Himself?
How do you take Jesus? Take Him in faith with everything that goes along with being His disciple. As Jesus Himself said, “If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24).
It sounds hard and it is. You can’t bear Christ’s cross. He bore that once to pay for the sins of the world as only He could. That cross of His is the glory of God to you. You can take up your cross, which is whatever it takes for you to be a follower of Jesus. The glory of God is in the cross you bear.
Go and do in the power of Jesus. The same power of God that raised Him from the dead will give you the power to bear your cross. You can forgive when you know you have been forgiven by God Himself—all for the sake of Jesus. You can live, when you know that Jesus lives in you.
Lord God, You have redeemed the world in the life, death, and resurrection of Your Son, Jesus. Help us by the power of Your Spirit to be reconciled to You and to take Jesus, Your Son, into our own hearts. Amen.
Taken from A Message of Hope: Proclaiming the Cross (selections from messages broadcast on *The Lutheran Hour, celebrating 75 years of proclaiming the promise).
Copyright © 2006 by Lutheran Hour Ministries
*The Lutheran Hour is the longest-running Christian radio broadcast in the world. It is a production of Lutheran Hour Ministries. For more information, visit www.lutheranhour.org.
Today's Bible Readings: Deuteronomy 20-22 Luke 6:1-26
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