Get Up, Take your Mat and Go Home

Deny Yourself, Take up your cross and follow me

 

Jesus gives us 3 steps towards obeying God by Faith.

 

  1. Willingness to go another way. Jesus tells the men that can’t walk to do something that he might of never done before in his life on earth and that is to “Get Up”. He also tells people, to do something closely the same, this idea to “deny myself”. The World teaches us, follow your heart and desires and dreams, but Jesus is saying, “No, forget the plans that you have, deny yourself”. If we deny something, we must accept something else, and in this case the men must accept that he can “Get Up” and we must “Deny Ourselves”, this is a step or act of Faith. The first thing we are called to do is step out by Faith. Kind of like Peter being calls to step out on the water, out of the safety of a boat, we to must deny the truths of this world, and accept the truths of God’s world. It’s crazy to step out of a boat and think your just going to walk on water, but if we truly deny ourselves and Get up, and make that choice, of stepping out by faith, who knows, who knows what might come from it, maybe just maybe you and me will be like Peter and walk on water just for a few moments.
  2. Jesus told the men to take up his mat and he tells us to take up our cross. Yets drew our focus on the words “Take Up” instead of mat and cross. See when God wants to do something new in our lives, he wants our hands and feet to be part of it. God wants us doing something to. See God isn’t just putting on a show for us to sit back and watch. He wants us to be part of it. When John was having visions in the book of revelation, right at chapter 10 verse 8, God tells John, “Go, take the scroll”. God does this same thing with Ezekiel in the old testament. We got to picture God more in the view of a God to he is putting on a show, and we are the actors that he has an designs plan for us to do something within that overall plan. So in this, I saw God isn’t looking for Watchers, he is looking for actors. He wants us part of the show.
  3. We can’t just stay where we are, we can not just think that our present situation is the final location in life. Heaven is our final, when creation is restored back to its original state. In the meantime, God calls us to make a move. The move is to follow Him. What does that mean though? Quit everything and forget about life? I don’t think so. Jesus told the men to go home, he told John to eat a scroll and write this and don’t write that. He used Paul to write the new testament. The way we follow Jesus is personal. See what I mean by that is that everyone in the church has their own mission God gave them in life. For me for some reason, I write books that don’t sell. I use all my resources I got to share Jesus with folks, I go far to reach a person for God’s Name Sake.But this isn’t true for everyone. Jesus told you personally what mission he has for you. Some give up everything and become missionaries, while others gain everything and reach people in high up positions in companies. God has a mission for you, find it, and your will find joy, peace, and most of all Love, for those around you. But We can not stay where we are, God has calls us to Follow Him.