By: Hanny Lynn Stearns
Fish N
Loaves Ministries, Inc.
“Multiplying
God’s Word Around The Globe”
August 19, 2016
Self-Denial
Luke
9:23
Then He
said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny
himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever
desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake
will save it.
Luke 4:4
But Jesus answered him, saying, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word of God.’”
Today we need to look at
what it means to deny oneself. Most folks do not like those two words, “self-denial”
and will run the other way when it is mentioned. But if a person really wants
to follow after Jesus, that is exactly what they will have to do – deny themselves.
A truly devoted Christian life is one of self-denial on a daily basis. Many say
they want to follow Jesus, but they are not willing to give certain things up.
How many times have we heard people say, “Well, I will do this and that for the
Lord, but when it comes to this____, no way!” It is sad but true.
What would our lives be
like if Jesus had taken that attitude? We would be in deep trouble. His word
from His mouth clearly states that “if” we want to follow Him, we “MUST” deny
ourselves in order to do that. When the flesh is screaming out to have its way,
we have to shout out the word of God (work the word!) even louder and tell it
to shut up. Paul talked a lot about putting his flesh under (control) and
advising the rest of the church to do the same.
What does it mean for
you and me? It means to avoid doing anything in our life that Holy Spirit tells
us not to do. It can be the addictions we have held on to for so long. But as
long as we hold on to them, we are living in sin because it is idolatry. Also,
we are saying that the thing we have been addicted to is really the lord of our
life. We might not want to say it with our mouths because we do not like the
way it sounds, but the truth comes out in our actions. What we actually do shows
who or what we really serve.
The two verses indicated
above go hand in hand. The Lord gave them to me to use today and told me
exactly that. They go together like bread and butter (pun intended, LOL!). We
cannot live on the outer things in this life. When the scripture says that man
does not live on bread alone, it really means more than just food. It means
whatever we are using to sustain us. That can be cocaine, alcohol, drugs of
various kinds, food, sugar - you fill in the blanks.
We have to be willing to
let go of what has been holding our feet bound in stocks so we can follow
Jesus. We cannot walk after someone when we are bound up, can we? We have to be
free to go where the Spirit is leading us. We cannot let food, or anything else
hold us down. If we are serious about following Jesus, then we will learn to
feed our souls and spirits on His word daily. The more we fill up on that, the
less we will feel as if we need a supplement of some kind – and we are not
talking healthy supplements here.
I have come to
understand a little more as He takes me along about what it means to deny
myself. I have to live on a food plan every day. I can look at that as a ticket
to freedom, or I could look at it as bondage. I choose to look at it as
something that gives me freedom. It gives me a healthy body and the ability to
do God’s work by encouraging people just like you! I know what it is like to
have an addiction that is like a stronghold around the neck. It is a terrible
place to be!
Counting my calories
most of the time is the only way I can keep my flesh under control. If I didn’t
I would weigh hundreds of pounds in no time, and be a broken down mess. I do
not want that. I do not want the Lord to pass me by and say, “Sorry. I asked
you to lose that weight so you could do the work I have for you, but you just
kept eating. I will have to move on to someone who is willing.” I never want to
hear that.
Do I have to look at
food every day that I might like to have, but know that I cannot if I want to
stay on the right path? Of course I do. But I have become very accustomed to
listening to the voice of Holy Spirit inside of me. I have become more
sensitive to Him. I do not want to be out of God’s will. When I have messed up,
I asked for forgiveness and got right back on the path by making the right
choices. Am I perfect at what I do? Not yet – but the Lord promised that He
would perfect that which concerns me and I know that I am on my way.
How about you? What are
you holding on to today that you know the Lord has asked you to let go of? What
is stopping you from making the commitment to go all the way with Him? Why not
take some time to walk in the garden with Him today and let Him talk with you?
Allow Him to tell you how much He loves you and wants to do for you and through
you. As you do that, I promise from my own experience that He will lift you up
in the spirit so you can do all things through Him – because He is the One who
will strengthen you in the inner man. Will you make a firm decision today to
take up your cross by denying yourself the pleasures of sin in this life so you
can do the great work that God had prepared in advance for you to do? You will
be so glad you did my sweet friend.
Working the word works
when we work it. When we speak His word out loud and decree a thing, it will be
established – if we have faith and keep standing on and working the word. God
bless you all!
No comments:
Post a Comment