Whoever doesn’t carry their own cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.- Luke 14:27
I don’t know about you but sometimes I fall into the trap of wondering if I believe hard enough. I think it’s a real temptation Satan throws our way. I’ll be in the midst of my prayers and in the back of my head will be a nagging “did you really mean that?” Sometimes I’ll be out on a walk thinking about heaven and wonder if I can imagine it, and if I can’t imagine anything if I can really believe it. I can’t imagine this is just me. There are all sorts of things in this world we all take for granted without a second’s thought, but when it comes to the things of God we stop and wonder “do I really believe this hard enough?”
Perhaps that comes from growing up hearing sermons that ended in a call to pray the sinners prayer. “If you have faith then say this prayer and you will be saved.” And every time we got to that point I would wonder if I believe hard enough, or rightly enough, or purely enough.
I was reading the above verse in Luke recently, and it occurred to me that Jesus does not ask his disciples to believe in him hard enough. It’s hard to tell what it means to believe in something hard enough. That’s why I think it’s a temptation in the end. But what Jesus asks his disciples to do is to take up their cross and follow. Jesus doesn’t ask for a strong enough inner sense of believing him. Jesus asks that we put our money where our mouth is. He asks us to act when the rubber meets the road. He asks us to pick up our cross and follow.
That can be harder, but it is also clearer. The phrase “take up your cross” is purposefully evocative. Jesus is asking that we put everything else aside for his sake. That we put our lives in service to his Lordship. That we should be merciful, forgiving, loving, and truthful. James says “faith without works is dead.” (James 2:17) When he said that he didn’t mean to disparage faith. He meant that focusing on faith without works is a trap. “Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.” (James 2:18) We know what we believe because we act on it. Do we believe in Jesus? Do we have faith? Do we have faith “hard enough”? That can only be known by our fruits. We’ve got to act on it.