“And he said to them all, “If you want to come with me, you must forget yourself, take up your cross every day, and follow me.” (Luke 9:23 Good News Translation)
Immediately, by your natural thought process, you tried to figure out the connection between the title of this meditation and the scripture that follows, a verse I always use to stress going beyond our comfort zones and following Christ, forgetting selfishly inclined objectives, and making a life like the Savior our objective. I can help you figure it out. First let me tell you that “double-crossed” is not referring to being deceived or tricked. It is just the opposite. For the term “double-crossed” is a reference to an object that I will describe below and use it to teach something of importance.
I once wore an ancient Greek coin from biblical days during Jesus’ time, a denarii. One of my sons brought it for me as a gift when living in Europe. I had a hole drilled in it and a loop put in it so I could wear it daily on a chain. The denarii reminded me to remain humble and to think about the lost coin in Luke 15 where we have been taught the importance of searching out and finding lost persons who need to be found. I wore the denarii for a couple of years, not taking it off even in the shower. You know what that means, right? Yes, it started to tarnish so I took it off and placed it in a collection of old coins from around the world.
Until recently, while I had dabbled in wearing other men’s chains, I had not found one that had any Christian duty or spiritual significance or real religious meaning. But about a month ago, I found a chain with a two crosses on it, one on top of the other. The cross on top was gold. The cross behind it was black. This was an object lesson for me. Hear me out. The gold one represented royalty, as a matter of fact, I took it to represent Jesus. The black one represented me, not because of my race or the color of my skin, or my ethnicity, but because while it emphasizes that I am under the shadow of the cross. That’s not all! I took it a little bit further, and thus, here is the connection between the title of this meditation and the opening verse above, a verse I do not want you to forget. You see, as Jesus’ disciples, we must be willing to pick up our cross and follow Him. Yes, we must be willing to surrender to His word, His will, His wisdom, and His worthiness as Lord of Lord, and King of Kings. We must be willing to follow Him. Even without this piece of jewelry around your neck, you too should feel “double crossed” in the same way that I do.
Did you catch the teaching? I hope so! No, I don’t just hope. I pray that you did. And more so, I pray that you will “Consider your ways,” recognize, realize, and respond in obedience.
I will close this Tuesday morning with some words from an old, perhaps a familiar hymn, “I Surrender All,” composed by Justin W. Van Deventer in 1896. His past pledge should be our present pledge. His past position should be our present disposition. His past decision should be our present decision. As you read or sing the words of the song, may you be moved and motivated to make even more of a difference in the kingdom of the Lord. Be blessed!
“All to Jesus I surrender,
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live.
All to Jesus I surrender,
Humbly at His feet I bow;
Worldly pleasures all forsaken.”
Mark L. King