OPEN: The year was 1889 on the continent of Africa.
Menelik II became emperor of Ethiopia and reigned for 20 years. He was a powerful ruler who transformed his country from a collection of semi-independent states into a united nation.
As part of his efforts to modernize his country he ordered 3 electric chairs shipped in from New York, but when they arrived there was a problem. Back then Ethiopia didn’t have electricity. Now he had a problem - he had 3 electric chairs that he couldn’t use.
How would he solve his problem?
Apparently he had a stage built and had one of the electric secured to it… then he used it as his throne.
(C. Barry McCarty The Lookout 4/16/2000 p. 7)
APPLY: That’s odd isn’t it?
The symbol of the power of his kingdom was an instrument of death.
When Jesus established His kingdom, He did the same thing.
He deliberately used an instrument of death as the symbol of His kingdom and His power.
One of the most peculiar lessons Jesus ever taught His followers is found right here in Luke 9. “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” Luke 9:23
In Jesus’ day people didn’t wear crosses on their bracelets and necklaces.
They didn’t use them to decorate their homes and their car bumpers.
The cross was a tool of death.
ILLUS: Caesar Augustus bragged about capturing 20,000 runaway slaves, and those who were not claimed - were crucified.
The movie Spartacus tells the true story of an army of rebellious slaves who revolted against Rome. Six thousand (6000) of them were crucified on the Apian Way – the major road leading into Rome.
At another time 2000 people in Palestine were crucified for their rebellion against the authority of Rome.
Though crucifixion was a horrid way to die, for a Jew the cross represented an even worse kind of pain. To be crucified, in the eyes of a Jew, meant that you had been cursed by God. If you lived in the early first century, the cross would be a symbol of shame and terror for you.
ILLUS: In his book The Jesus I Never Knew, Philip Yancey observed that other world religions are known for their brightly painted images and gold covered statues. But at the center of Christianity rests a cross - simple, stark and solitary.
“What” he asks “possessed Christians to seize upon this execution device as a symbol for faith?”
It makes no sense!
It’s an upside down way to run a kingdom.
And yet - as we examine Jesus’ ministry, we find that that’s exactly what makes Jesus’ teachings so intriguing.
Over the next few wks we’ll be examining the “upside down” doctrines of Jesus such as:
· He taught that the first would be Last.
· That slavery leads to freedom.
· That weakness can make us strong.
· That if you lose your life for His sake, you will save it.
· That life can be found in death.
· And – of course – that the symbol of His power is an instrument of death.
Jesus’ teachings were upside down to the way people ordinarily look at life.
But that’s always been true of God. God tells us in Isaiah 55:8-9
"… my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
At the very heart of the upside down nature of God’s plan for us is the Cross.
And this teaching about the Cross is so difficult for people to wrap their minds around that Paul tells us “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing” I Corinthians 1:18
I. But let’s back up a minute and examine the setting of our text this morning.
Jesus has taken His disciples aside for a private time of prayer. When He’d finished with His prayer time, He seems to almost casually turn to His men and asks a question:
“Who do men say that I am?”
They respond: John the Baptist, Elijah or one of the prophets.
All these men were dead, and you can imagine why the crowds visualized Jesus as being one of these great men risen from the dead. He did things no mortal man could do –
· feeding thousands with only a small amount of food
· He heals the sick, the lame and the leper.
· He even raises people from the dead.
No mortal man could do such things (they reasoned), so He must be one of the great men of the past come back from the dead.
Jesus allows them to exhaust the speculations they’d heard from the crowds, and then He asks them
“Who do YOU say that I am?”
And Peter (who never seems to be at a loss for words) pipes right up and says “You are the Christ of God.”
Now, in Matthew 16 we’re told a little more about Peter’s response:
“Peter answered ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.’
Jesus replied, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.’” Matthew 16:16-17
As I read this text, I got to wondering:
Why would Jesus ask His disciples this question?
I mean Jesus had obviously given serious thought NOT ONLY to their answer but also to why this answer should be important to them.
Jesus knows what the people around have been saying about Him.
AND He knows what Peter and the other disciples believe about Him.
So why ask the question?
Then it occurred to me that He needed for them to come right out and say it. He needed for them to COMMIT to what they believed because everything Jesus came to do hinges on this statement:
“Jesus is the Christ the Son of the Living God!”
This is the foundation of our faith… and of the church.
In fact, that’s what Jesus says to Peter in Matthew 16:18 “…on this rock (the confession that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God) I will build my church…”
The Apostle Paul later wrote: “… no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 3:11
This is so significant, that when someone is baptized into Christ or when they decide to join this congregation, we ask them to repeat that good confession. Repeat it with me:
“I believe (I believe) that Jesus is the Christ (that Jesus is the Christ) the Son of the Living God (the Son of the Living God).”
That’s more than just a creedal statement or a password that you give along with a secret handshake when you join a society of some sort.
This is a declaration of faith!
It’s a declaration of COMMITMENT to Jesus as THE Christ, THE Son of God.
So Jesus sets the stage by getting His men to verbalize this truth…
II. But then Jesus adds another layer to His teaching.
In Luke 9:22 (right after Peter makes his “good confession”) Jesus tells His disciples:
"The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life."
Why would Jesus say THIS to them at this point?
I believe it was because it was not enough for His men to simply “believe” that Jesus was the Son of God. If His followers simply believe that statement of faith but go no farther with it, then God can be reduced to being some celestial deity that lives “way up there” and doesn’t care about us or what happens to us.
In fact, skeptics often discount the idea that Jesus came for the explicit purpose of dying for our sins. They believe that He was simply a nice man who got caught up in the political intrigues of the day and got Himself crucified for His troubles.
Even Peter was tempted to look at Jesus this way.
When Christ told His disciples that He was going to Jerusalem to die Peter was appalled.
In Matthew 16:22 he cries "Never, Lord! This shall never happen to you!"
Peter even went so far as to draw his sword, when Jesus was arrested, and cut off the ear of one of the men present in the party who’d come for his master.
Peter didn’t want a Jesus who would die.
In spite of “good confession” he still looked at Jesus as just one more mortal teacher.
ILLUS: Those who look at Jesus in this way tend to view Christianity as just one more of the many world religions. Just one more plate on the great buffet of religious teachings from which they pick and choose as they please.
But if Jesus came to this earth – specifically to die on the cross for our sins - then Jesus NOT ONLY taught a great set of lessons, but He loved us so much that He was willing to pay the price for our sins.
And because He did this, He has claim to a much higher truth than any other religion can give us because - while other religious founders taught some good NONE of them ever gave their lives for us.
III. Now all that brings us to the upside down teaching of Jesus we started with:
“If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” Luke 9:23
It always helps to look at a statement like this context.
In our text this morning:
· 1st Peter declares that Jesus is the Christ the Son of the Living God
· THEN Jesus uses this confession to teach about His imminent death
Jesus builds on those truths:
1. I am the Son of God
2. I have come to die for your sins
3. And I will have taken up MY cross for you
4. NOW – you’ll need to take up your cross for me.
ILLUS: A business man visited the great Passion Play in Eureka Springs, Arkansas.
After the play, the man went backstage to meet the actor who portrayed Jesus. As they talked, the man saw the cross that the actor carried in the play.
Before the actor had a chance to stop him, the business man handed over his camera and said, "Hey, take a picture of me carrying the cross." And He bent over and tried in vain to lift the huge cross to his shoulders.
With sweat rolling down his face, he turned in frustration to the actor and said, "I thought it would be hollow; why is it so heavy?"
With a smile of compassion the actor answered, "If I could not feel the weight of it, it would be impossible to play the part."
So how do I do that?
How do I take up my cross and follow Him?
Do I need to erect a wooden cross and have someone drive nails through my hands and feet?
ILLUS: They actually do that in the Philippines. Every year on the Friday before Easter, at least 10 Philippine young men volunteer to have their hands and feet nailed to a wooden cross for a brief time to imitate the crucifixion of Jesus.
So is that what Jesus had in mind when He asked to pick up our cross?
(Pause) Nooo!
But He used this imagery because it left such a powerful message for us.
ILLUS: A.W. Tozer described it this way. He said that people who are crucified with Christ have three distinct marks:
1. They are facing only one direction.
2. They can never turn back.
3. They no longer have plans of their own.
Think about that for a couple of moments.
The Christian who picks up their cross and follows Jesus has decided their life is not their own
· Yes, they will be in church and gather at the Lord’s table every Sunday
· Yes, they will give of their time to serve Jesus and His church
· Yes, they will give of their money to support His church/missions
· Yes, they will teach/ sing/ go on missions trips, etc.
But I’ve known people who’ve done these things all of their lives… but they never actually felt the weight of Christ’s Cross. They did what they did because that’s what was expected of them. They did it because they HAD to.
But those who have taken up Christ’s cross and carried daily have had their lives are so changed that they do the things they do because they can’t help it. They love Jesus so much that they wouldn’t be able to think of living their lives any other way.
ILLUS: After Jesus’ trial - and after He’d been beaten and mocked by the Roman soldiers - they put a cross on His shoulders and forced Him to carry it thru Jerusalem to the place of His execution.
But somewhere along the way, the cruelty of His punishments, the exhaustion of spending the last 16 hours or so being tried before the Sanhedrin, and Herod and Pilate, and the weight of that cross combined to the point that He couldn’t carry it any further. And so the Roman soldiers forced a man from the crowd to carry it for him.
Does anyone know the name of that man? (Simon of Cyrene)
You know his name because up until that moment Simon had just been a nameless bystander. He was just part of crowd. But once he carried Christ’s cross his life changed. Once he felt the weight of Christ’s cross it had such an impact on his life that he because a follower of Jesus. And not only him, but also his sons Alexander and Rufus (Mark 15:21). His boys are named along with him because Simon’s experience at the cross impacted his entire family.
Simon felt the weight of Jesus’ cross.
To pick up your cross and follow Jesus is the message of a favorite invitation hymn:
(sing it)
“I have decided to follow Jesus
I have decided to follow Jesus
I have decided to follow Jesus
No turning back
No turning back.”
If we can’t feel the weight of His cross in our lives… it’s impossible for us to truly live as Christians
But when we take up our cross and follow Jesus,
· we’re not playing a part
· we’re not playing church
· we’re honoring our Savior
CLOSE: In his book The Tale of the Tardy Oxcart Charles Swindoll tells of one Chicago youth minister took his youth might on a mission trip to Florida. To prepare for it, he fashioned a cross from 2 pieces of lumber. Just before they climbed on the bus, he showed it to the group.
"I want all of you to remember the whole purpose of our going is to glorify the name of Christ, to lift up the Cross - the message of the cross, the emphasis of the Cross, the Christ of the Cross, so, we’re going to take this cross wherever we go."
The teenagers looked at one another, a little unsure of his plan. But they agreed to do it and dragged the cross on the bus. It banged back and forth in the aisle all the way to Florida.
It went with them into restaurants. It stayed overnight where they stayed overnight.
It stood in the sand while the ministered on the beach.
At first, lugging the cross around embarrassed the kids. But later, it became a point of identification. That cross was a constant, silent reminder of who they were & why they had come. They eventually regarded carrying it as an honor and privilege.
The night before they went home, the youth leader handed out two nails to each of the kids. He told them that if they wanted to commit themselves to what the cross stood for, they could hammer one nail into it, and keep the other with them.
One by one, the teens drove their nail into the cross.
About 15 years later, one fellow - now a stockbroker - called the youth leader. He told him that he still keeps the nail with him in his desk drawer. Whenever he loses his sense of focus, he looks at the nail and remembers the cross on the that beach in Florida. It reminds him of what is at the core of his life - his commitment to Jesus Christ.
In Galatians 6:14 Paul put it this way “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”
