Following Jesus

In 1 Corinthians 11:1 the Apostle Paul tells Christians, “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.”  The Greek word “imitator” (mimetes) is where we get our English word “mimic.”  And with these words the Apostle instructs us, that mimicking/ imitating Jesus should be a primary goal of every Christian.  An implication here is that Christianity is not only something to be believed; it is something to be lived.  True Christianity encompasses a lifestyle of becoming more like Jesus.  

And though on this earth we may never fully become like Jesus in all His holy perfections, nonetheless, God desires us to strive to be more like Christ.  And one of the ways God wants us to be like Jesus is spelled out in Luke 9:23 where Jesus says, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.”

Deny Himself

“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself.”  The Greek word “deny” (arneomai) means to “disown” or “renounce.”  For example, in Mark 14:71 when Jesus had been arrested, the Apostle Peter was standing outside the courtroom warming himself by a fire.  Then Peter was confronted three times and accused of having known Jesus.  Immediately Peter began to curse and swear saying, “I do not know this man you are talking about.”  Peter denied (he disowned/ renounced) the Lord.  

Conversely, in Luke 9:23, Jesus tells us that the thing that ought to be denied/ disowned/ renounced, by us as His disciples is… ourselves.  In other words, as a Christian, you are no longer to live as the lord of your life.  You are no longer to exist as if you are the one who matters most.  The fulfilling of your desires, plans and will is no longer to be the focus of your dwelling here on earth.  The culture’s example of: Get!  Take!  Give me; do for me; serve me; submit to me—is to be replaced by a lifestyle of submitting to God and serving others. 

Matthew 22:37-40 would define this as “loving the Lord your God… and loving your neighbor as yourself,” which is called God’s Great Commandment.  Philippians 2:3-5 fleshes this out as, Christians, “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus.”  When Jesus tells us to deny ourselves, He is telling us to “act in a wholly selfless way.”[1]   
    

Take Your Cross and Follow

The next two phrases of Luke 9:23 are additional ways to picture the point that we just made.  Namely, Jesus says, “Take up your cross daily.”  Any Jew in first-century Palestine would know that one condemned to crucifixion would be forced to carry part of his or her own cross.  The victim was under a death sentence and was therefore compelled to leave his or her earthly hopes and temporal self-ambitions behind.  With this picture Jesus is saying, “Christian, die to your self—i.e. act in a wholly selfless way.” 

Next, Jesus says, “Follow me.”  And you might ask, “Well, where’s Jesus going?”  The answer: Jesus is going to act, as He always does, in a selfless way; by submitting to the will of God the Father and by laying down His life for us.  And this is the call of the Christian life.

Third-Class Passengers

Back in the days when people traveled long distances by stagecoach, you could choose to buy a first-class, second-class, or third-class ticket.  That may sound weird since there’s only one seating area in a stagecoach.  But the difference in class had nothing to do with where a person sat.  It had to do with what a person was expected to do if the stagecoach got bogged down in mud.

If you had a first-class ticket, you could stay seated when the stagecoach got stuck.  If you had a second-class ticket, you were expected to get out and walk alongside until the coach got thru the mud.  But if you were a third-class passenger, you were expected to get out and push the coach from the mud.

Jesus calls… all Christians… to be third-class passengers.  He calls you to live your life in a wholly selfless way for God and others.  Jesus calls us to mimic Him.