Deny Self and Follow Him

May it please Almighty God to bless our souls as we gather together to meditate in His Word. Let's turn to the Gospel of Matthew chapter 16. and I intend to speak principally on verse 24, but we'll just read together the last few verses in this chapter from verse 24. So let's turn to Matthew 16 and read from verse 24.

Then said Jesus unto his disciples, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it, and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. For what is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? or watch no man give an exchange for his soul. For the Son of Man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he shall reward every man according to his works. Very I say unto you, There'll be some standing here which will not taste of death till they see the kingdom, to see the son of man coming in his kingdom.

Well, we should be thankful that we have a glorious gospel And we have the words recorded, or many of the words that the Lord Jesus Christ spoke when he was on the earth. And so we have statements here that he was with his disciples and speaking to them. and asked the question who the people thought he was. And we're thankful, of course, that Peter did come and say, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And when we come down to this word that the Lord spoke, then said Jesus unto his disciples.

And he says, if any man will come after me, to question if any man will come after me. Then there are three points the Lord brings before us, which if we are amongst those who truly desire to go with and to seek and follow the wonderful example of the Lord Jesus Christ, then these three points, are set before us.

Firstly, let him deny himself. and take up his cross, secondly, and thirdly, and follow me. And it's interesting that in Luke's gospel, these words are spoken again very similarly, but with one or two additional points in it. And if we turn to the ninth chapter of Luke, And from verse 23 to 26, this is what we read. So Luke's gospel, chapter nine, and we read this.

And he said unto them all, if any man will come after me, same words, let him deny himself, same words, and take up his cross, same words. But he adds this additional word daily. So it's not just perhaps on a Sunday taking up the cross, it's every day you and I are commanded, if we desire to be a true follower of the Saviour, to follow this pattern which he sets before us. We are to deny ourself, We're going to take up his cross daily and to follow him.

It's a wonderful testimony, a wonderful example, and how probably if we examine ourselves, we all fail. We all come short. We don't do exactly what these words speak to us. So the question is, if any man will come after me, Well, we need to answer that question, don't we? In a personal way. If it's addressed to you and addressed to me. The Lord says to us, will you come after me? What are we going to say? Perhaps we might think, oh yes, I'd like to do that. I'm sure that's a good thing to do, which it is. But we must realise there are these three qualifications. And they're very relevant. qualifications. They're important qualifications and they're not easy qualifications.

And so the Lord says, if we will come after the Saviour, and I hope we all have a desire to do that, to come after him, we have his wonderful example in the Bible, tells us how he lived, what he said, what he did, and it's therefore a glorious example for you and me today.

And therefore, having asked that, he then says, let him deny himself. That really means that you and I are not to go around just pleasing ourselves, thinking, well, I think I'll do that. Yes, I'd like to do that. We ought to analyze it. Analyze it in our mind as to whether it will be of benefit to us.

There are many temptations in the world today, probably more temptations in one way than there ever have been. so easily it is to find ourselves enticed by our great adversary, the devil, to do things, to say things, to listen to things, which, if we are honest, they do not really benefit our souls. They may benefit our natural life to a certain extent, They may benefit the lusts of our flesh. They may benefit those things which are not of God. And yet, you see, the word of God encourages us, therefore, to deny ourself from those things which do not profit.

The question really is, if we do things, if we think of things, Will it really benefit our souls? It's a good question, isn't it? It's a good test as to whether things are good and right or whether things are wrong. Will they be a benefit to us in our spiritual life or will they move us away from the things of God?

I think sometimes, you know, we come together, don't we, on a Lord's Day to worship, and it's good and right and proper. But, you know, the interesting thing is how we spent the previous day, how we spent the previous week, how we filled our minds, perhaps, with things which won't do us any real eternal good. And therefore, when we come together to worship, our mind is buzzing with the things of time.

It's not easy then to concentrate upon the things of God. Well, that's just what the devil wants. He doesn't want you and me to concentrate on the things of God at all. So if he can therefore give us, perhaps, we might think, those excuses. I mean, sometimes, of course, we might not want to listen. We might be very pleased to be able to think upon things which are not relevant to the things of God. But what a blessing it is if God has given us a desire after the things of God. Now, we must not forget that the life of a believer is a battle. It's not easy. We're not promised an easy life. We're promised a battle. And therefore we need to be on our watch. and not allow the cunning devices of Satan to come into our minds and hearts and distract us from the great things of God. You may remember, going right back to the Garden of Eden, how did Satan come to Eve?

He posed a question. Hath God said? He hasn't changed his technique. He still uses the same technique today. And you may perhaps have some temptation which comes into your life. And you think, well, should I be involved in this? And perhaps the devil says, well, hath God said? And poses a question, well, when we're walking with the Lord, we will know what the answer is. We will know whether it's positive or whether it's negative. And therefore, this question then becomes very real and very important.

If, it's a great if, any man will come after me, let him deny himself. Now if God gives you and me strength, spiritual strength, to deny ourself, to turn away from those things which do not profit, do not benefit us, and to commit our way unto the Lord and to trust in him and to seek that he will bless us and do us good, Well, what an encouragement to us then, if God enables us to overcome.

We don't overcome because of our own natural strength. We overcome through the blood of the Lamb. That's a glorious truth, isn't it? To overcome through what Christ has done. He's given his life. He died upon that cross at Calvary, so that by His grace, we might be overcomers.

Well, are we denying ourself? Or are we really denying the Lord Jesus Christ? Are we really saying, I will not have this man to reign over me. I'm not gonna have my life, my natural enjoyment, spoiled. I'm not gonna give up this or give up that. That's why the Lord in his grace has given us a clear statement. His word, it's not my word, it's the word of the Savior. How relevant it is.

So often, in the age in which we live, there are so many, many temptations. There always have been temptations. the world in which we live today, there are more and more. And it always becomes more and more difficult to deny ourself because there are many people who will perhaps encourage us to not deny ourself, but to partake of things which do not profit, do not profit.

And we have to realize Indeed, as the Lord goes on to say in the verses we read, for whosoever will save his life, spiritual life, will lose it. We don't want to lose our life, do we? Our spiritual life, because we have not denied ourself. And you know, God gives you and me grace to deny ourself. It's a wonderful favour and there is a blessing in so doing because we find that God gives us peace, peace in our souls. We don't have peace when we follow our flesh, when we follow the things of our natural life. It doesn't bring peace. But my friends, if God gives us strength to deny ourselves we have peace with God. That's a wonderful blessing. That's a wonderful favour. The devil doesn't care about you and me having peace with God, he wants us to enjoy ourselves with all the things of time. But here the Lord graciously lays down these three points.

And it's important for us to remember them. And so the question was, if any man will come after me, if we don't desire to go after the Lord, to follow his example, then these points have no reference to us. But if we do desire, then they really do. So says Jesus then, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself. So that's the first point, denying ourselves. You read it, let me reiterate, it's not easy. It's a battle. It's a battle. Life is a battle. And it's a battle against the devil and all his angels.

And so may God give us that grace, that super abounding grace to hear his voice. And when we are tempted, as we will be, to remember his words, gracious words, wonderful words, let us deny ourselves If any man will come after me, let him deny himself. And then he goes on. And the second point is, and take up his cross. His cross. The Lord places before each one of us a cross. How needful it is that our God helps us to take up our cross.

And as I read in the chapter in Luke, that's not just a one-off situation. The Lord makes it very clear that every day, every day in our life, we are to take up our cross. We're not to think, oh, today I can do what I want to do. It's a free day today. If we are a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, we have a solemn responsibility to read and to remember the Lord's gracious instructions. These are not just vague words.

They weren't words which had no reference to the things of God. They emanated from the mouth of Jesus when he was on the earth, instructing his disciples, what wonderful words they were. And then they'd been recorded, recorded through the Holy Spirit's work. Matthew, in this case, was able to write these great truths. And then these words have been translated into our language, and today, We can read them. You know, it's a wonderful blessing.

We don't really appreciate that God has given us the Bible to read with so much instruction from Genesis to Revelation. And it's not there just a book to read and to pass over and pat ourselves on the back and say, well, I've read the Bible, of course. The effect, the trouble is, has it had? and effect upon us. Have we read it as the Word of God speaking to our souls? Or perhaps we've read something which we don't particularly like, perhaps we don't particularly like this verse, and therefore we skip over it and carry on to what we might think is something more interesting.

But every Word of God is true. Every word of God is written for our instruction. And we should not therefore take it as of no relevance, because the word of God is written for our benefit. Not our natural benefit, although very often it does help us naturally, but our spiritual benefit.

And again, Running on in these verses, the Lord says, for what is a man profited? Let's note that. What is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? So often, we lose sight of the value of our soul. The devil doesn't want you to concentrate and consider such an important truth. And therefore, when we read this word that we are to take up our cross daily, We listen to what the devil says. And he says, well, you needn't worry too much about that. Just carry on doing what you want to do.

Well, the Lord then reminds us, reminds us by these words, what is a man profited? And you and I need to evaluate that in view of eternity. Will this benefit our eternal soul? What is a man profited if he should gain the whole world? That's a very comprehensive statement, isn't it? Gain the whole world. Perhaps you might think, wow, if I had everything I wanted, I would really be happy. I'd really enjoy it. But just ponder, if you had everything, the whole world, how long would it last?

How long would it last? Maybe a hundred years? Maybe a hundred years? And if you're young, you might think, well, that's a long time. So it is. But if we compare it with eternity, It's a very, very, very short time. What has a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? Desperate, isn't it, to think of that? To think that you and I lose our soul, and that's not for 100 years. That's for eternity. No looking back. We can never change our eternal state. Once we pass out of time, we can never change our eternal state.

So such a word like this then suddenly becomes important. At least I hope it does. I hope it really makes us think and consider. The word of God tells us to consider our ways. The devil doesn't want you to consider your ways. He wants you to carry on doing that which is against. His Word. He doesn't want you to take up your cross daily. He doesn't want you to follow the wonderful and glorious example of the Lord Jesus Christ. He doesn't want you to bow down and worship God. The devil wants you to bow down and worship him. He wants you to involve yourself in all the vanities of this world.

And remember, we have a wonderful example in the case of King Solomon, who was the wisest man and the most worthy man that's ever lived. And he was given the opportunity to try everything out that was available when he lived to see if he could find happiness in the things of time. Well, just replace that with today's thing. If you were given the opportunity to have everything you wanted, to please yourself just as you liked, spend each day just as you wanted to, well, Solomon had that opportunity. and he was given a wonderful blessing of wisdom.

He'd asked for God, that he would give him wisdom, and God heard that cry and prayer and gave him wisdom. But what was his conclusion? Well, I hope you know what his conclusion was. His conclusion was, all, not something, all is vanity of vanity. and vexation of spirit. Amen. He never really was happy following his own will. No, he never was. And yet he had the opportunity. And God has given us such a testimony in the Bible to show to us the reality of these things.

So when we're tempted, which we will be, to not take up our cross, to remember here, the Lord says, if any man will come after me, the second condition is that we are to take up our cross daily. Well, my friends, it's a testing word, isn't it? It's a testing word, because it tests the reality of our religion. It tests whether we do desire to follow the Lord Jesus Christ, or whether it's just make-believe, whether we're just pretending. a natural fact we still want to follow our own way.

Well, what a blessing it will be if God gives you and me his spirit to resist the devil, that he may flee from us. God can do that. You and I can't do it, but he can. To give us then that willingness to do just what the Lord instructs us here, if, that's the great if, which you and I need to answer, if we, we can be one of those any men or women or children, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross.

Well, we may think, That's not very easy. Well, we can be sure it is because in an earlier chapter in this Gospel of Mark, we read that the Lord tells us, For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Why? because it's Christ which gives us this ability. The word tells us, come unto me, come unto me. All you that labour and are heavy laden, you and I may labour, not wanting to take up our cross, come unto me. all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. You can read that in the 11th chapter of this book of Matthew, the 30th verse, and it's good to read. It's a lovely text. It's a wonderful word and how true it is that God gives us this help and this strength.

And so we hear that glorious invitation and what an invitation it is to unworthy sinners, you and me. have followed our own way. We haven't followed that which the Lord instructs us. We haven't denied ourself. We haven't taken up our cross. And yet how wonderful when the Lord comes and speaks a word of encouragement and tells us, come unto me. Oh, there's rest. Rest and happiness. and peace and eventual glory. Come unto me. The devil doesn't want you to hear that word. He wants that word cut out of the Bible. But what a mercy God has put it in the Bible for our encouragement. Come unto me, the Lord Jesus Christ.

And why? because Jesus knows all about us. He knows the battles we have. He knows the temptations we pass through. Why? Because we're told the Lord Jesus Christ was tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin. The Saviour's not a stranger. to what you and I are passing through, we may think, well, I'm sure no one else has had a battle like I do. Well, consider him. Remember what the Saviour endured and how important and relevant that is. Tempted in all points, everything, nothing omitted. You might think, well surely Jesus wasn't tempted in this or that. The Bible tells us he was. And that's why. He understands us.

It's really a tremendous thought, isn't it? To think that almighty God, the creator of all things, understands every detail of your and my little life. He understands and knows every thought that you and I have. We can't hide anything from God. He knows all about us. But the consolation is, although that's in one sense a terrible thought to think that God looks into our heart and knows everything, yet, He encouraged us to come to him. You know what we can do? We can come to him. We can tell him everything. We can tell him everything because he understands.

No one else does. You might think, well, so-and-so will understand if I explain to them what my problem is. They may do, they may not. But be sure of this, Jesus understands. He knows everything. And that's why he's given us such a glorious statement. Come unto me. Don't go elsewhere. Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. How many times, perhaps, And we passed over that and never done it. Struggled on, trying to get rid of this difficulty.

And yet there we have this wonderful invitation in the word of God. And so faced with this question, if any man will come after me, he is to take up his cross. And you and I have to do that. The Lord places us in positions in the world to be a witness for Him.

Not to go around just doing what we want, but to turn away from temptation. To turn away from those things which do not profit. And we need to recognize that this, of course, directs us to this great truth, as we've already mentioned, eternity. Eternity. If you were to please yourself for all your life, and then you and I would come to the end of our life. We don't live naturally forever. We don't live naturally. We have to come to that day and die. And then our souls live eternally either in glory with the Saviour or in hell with all the devil and his angels.

Well, we should recognise that the Lord has given us these words to encourage us and to strengthen us and to make us wise, wise unto salvation. And therefore let's not forget these two verses, 25 and 26. For whosoever... There's a number of whosoevers in the Word of God. We should be thankful for them. They are inclusive. Whosoever will save his life shall lose it. If we look to natural things, we try and do that which is pleasing to our flesh and enjoy ourselves, we shall lose it. for my sake. And whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.

So are we doing God's will? Are we following His word? Or are we listening to the words of Satan? And don't forget, he was a liar, and he is a liar, and he will be a liar. And he's deceived many, many people. Well, may he not deceive you and me. But may we believe the great and glorious truths of the Bible.

However sinful and evil we may feel to be, perhaps it's totally true, yet to remember we have a God, a great God who died upon that cross at Calvary to save our souls, to redeem us from all our sin. What does that mean? That means that you and I have a debt that's been paid, which you and I could never pay. And yet, you see, the one who paid it for us gives us these few words to take on board and to listen to. and obey, because there is great benefit and great blessing in following a despised and crucified man.

So we are therefore to take up our cross, those things that the Lord has instructed us to do, We're not to avoid them. We're not to think, well, I'm not gonna do that. We are to take them up because if God is on our side, who can be against us? Let him take up his cross and follow me. Sounds simple, doesn't it? Sounds simple. Well, In one sense, it is. It's not a long statement, is it? You might say, what does that really mean?

Well, we have God's, the Christ's example in the word of God. We know how he lived. We know how he reacted under temptation. We know the things that he said and did. We know how he prayed to his father. We know how he lived his life. And it's good sometimes to just meditate on the life of the Savior. Remember, he came from glory. He'd been there from eternity, which you and I can't understand. He'd been there from eternity. We don't understand the length of eternity. It's beyond our comprehension. And yet he'd been there in that perfect condition of bliss.

But He came, and we're told, aren't we, in John 3, 16, for God so loved the world, He sent His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. What a blessing if you and I take on board that great statement And may we then take up this word, if any man will come after me, we are to follow the blessed saviour. And as I've said, we have his example set before us in the New Testament. We don't need to think, well, what does that involve? Just read the Bible. Just read the New Testament. You'll find there everything you need to know about following the despised and crucified man. It's not an easy path. The Word of God tells us, Jesus tells us, it is through much tribulation, that we shall enter the kingdom. It's not an easy path, but there's a good result.

And the good result is that we shall enter the kingdom. We shall enter into glory. What a wonderful position that is. What a wonderful prospect that is. So yes, we will find our life on this earth. Not easy. We will find opposition. We will find temptation. But let us be found looking unto Jesus. the author and the finisher of our faith. Oh, what a wonderful example we have. So here we have this statement, we are to follow him, follow me. If, that's the question, if any man will come after me, We're told we are to follow Him. We need, therefore, don't we, to examine ourselves in our life. Have we done these three things? Have we denied ourselves? Have we taken up our cross? Have we followed a despised and crucified man? You must answer before God, mustn't you?

You have a conscience, you know whether that's true or whether that's false. And yet just don't forget the cost of your salvation. But blessed Savior, in order to take away your sin, which would prohibit you from entering into glory, There's no body in heaven with any remnant of sin.

They are all forgiven sinners. They're all washed in the blood of the Lamb. What a wonderful situation. Heaven's a holy place, a place where sin no more defiles. where Jesus shows his lovely face and looks and loves and smiles. And that's for eternity. So meditate on these things. Realize that these words are very true.

And don't forget, as we read, for whosoever will save his life shall lose it. And whosoever will lose his life For my sake shall find it. For what is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world, remember, just for a short time, and lose his own soul for eternity? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

Well, these are words very important, very relevant. They're the words of Jesus. Let us not pass them over and think they don't apply to me. They do apply to every one of us. And so remember the words of Jesus. If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me. Amen.

Deny Self and Follow Him

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Deny Self and Follow Him

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