Can You Carry The Cross 17
Mark 15:21
A. In A.D. 162, Emperor Marcus Arilius sentenced Polycarp to
burn at the stake at the age
of 100. All he had to do to save his life was to put a pinch of
incense on the altar and say,
Caesar is Lord. Instead, Polycarp turned to Caesar
and said, Eighty and six years have I
served Him and He never wounded me; how then shall I blaspheme
my Lord and my King who
has saved me?
That brings an important question before each of us. One we need
to consider carefully, seriously and honestly. Would you be willing
to die for Jesus? Could Christians, in 2002, who live in pampered
luxury and Idle ease withstand persecution if it were to come
upon us?
a. You might ask, Why bring it up, why bother considering
such an unlikely and remote
possibility. We live in a civilized world and those things dont
happen in our world today?
(A) If that is your sincere observation you would be absolutely
wrong. It has happened
and is happening in our world today. That makes it a very real
and valid question.
In 1956, Cline Paden was dragged out of the church building in
Rome, Italy and throne in jail for preaching and deported out
of Italy by the Italian Government at the insistence of the Catholic
Church. In 1968, after graduating from Sunset School of Preaching,
John Justins car was turned over and he was stoned by Catholics
for preaching the gospel in Dublin, Ireland. That same year in
Glasgow Montana the Mormons began a campaign of harassment and
persecution against the Church with threats of violence and damaging
our building. In 1969 a 20 year old Jew named Michael Schwarts
converted to Christianity and came to Sunset School of Preaching
to study and preach the Gospel. His family pronounced Michael
Moshe Schmad (Dead, no longer alive) disowned, disinherited
him, bought a burial plot, tomb stone, casket and put all remembrances
they had of him in the casket, and buried it. In 1971, Frank Pierce
with his family were working as missionaries in Ceylon, along
with 25 new converts to Christianity, were beaten, their lives
threatened, their homes burned and told to get out of the country
by Hindus. In 1989, Ghassan Yoseph a Palestinean graduate of Sunset
School of Preaching went back to his hometown of Elibaum where
they were persecuted so badly by the Islamics they moved over
into Israel. Those are just the ones I know about.
We live in a nation today where our own liberal Democratic politicians
in the nations capital refer to us as Right Wing Religious,
Radicals, Right-Wing Extremists. Some of you know about
being slandered, lied about, spoken evil against and persecuted
by those leaders of the group that broke off and went down town
because they wanted to ignore Gods word and fellowship the
denominations.
Their leader says they wont have fellowship here again until
those conservative members of this congregation here are dead
and buried.
They might consider it after we have a few funerals.
Persecution is alive and well not only in the world, but even
in our own town. If you dont have the stomach for it, youre
in the wrong place.
(1) Jesus said, in Lk. 9:23, If any man come after me let
him deny self and take up his cross daily and follow me.
Matt. 10:30, He didnt mince words when He said, He
who is not for me is against me. Then in Vs. 38, He
that does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy
of Me.
(1) Are we ready to pay the price for following Jesus? Are you
ready and willing to bear what ever cross God gives you?
(2) Jesus had to carry His cross. He reminds us in John 15:20,
that A servant is not greater than his master.' If they
persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. You and I are
not above our Lord and we must bear whatever cross comes our way.
(2) His cross was the pain and shame of dying for sins He did
not commit. His cross was bearing the shame of our sins. We owe
Him more than we can ever repay and theres going to be a
pay day some day.
(3) Isa. 53:6, ...the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity
of us all. 1 Pet. 2:24,
He bore our sins in His own body.
(4) His cross was not heavy because of the wood. Because of the
world and our sin. He bore the cross for me. Now I must bear the
cross for Him.
3. I cannot go back to Calvary and help Jesus carry His cross.
I cannot give Him a cup of water, to sooth his brow, wash His
feet with my tears. Its to late for that.
(1) But, its not to late to show my love and devotion by
serving faithfully, enthusiastically and with total commitment
of all I am and all I have.
(1) SONG: Must Jesus Bare The Cross Alone? (Pg. 300)
(2) Stand with the apostle Paul as he proclaims in Phip. 3:10,
I long to know Him and the power of His resurrection and
the fellowship of His sufferings, by being made conformable to
His death.
(2) Thats simply Pauls way of saying, The first
thing I must do is die to self. I must put self on the cross so
Christ can reign supremely on the throne of my life.
(1) We owe God all that we have and all that we are. We desperately
need the attitude and commitment of David as expressed in 2 Sam.
24:24, I will not offer to God that which cost me nothing.
My God is not a cheap and stingy God and I will not attempt to
worship Him in a cheap and stingy way.
(2) Acts 20:32.
Spur - 03/17/2002 am
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