The Radical Cross

I just finished the book "The Radical Cross" by A.W. Tozer this evening. I was left both challenged and in awe of how the Lord divinely orchestrated everything from the very beginning of time. It is truly remarkable and nearly impossible to comprehend.

This book touched on nearly every topic imaginable relating to the topic of the cross. The main parts that spoke to me were the parts talking about how our views of the cross have changed over the years. There was once a time when Christians knew that, to be a Christian, he must follow Jesus even to death. It meant laying our own lives down for Him - crucifying our flesh to its own desires and pleasures. On the other hand, the "new" cross, as the author refers to it as, lets us live without interference. Our life motivation is unchanged. We still live for our own pleasure. The difference is that the pleasure is now on a higher place morally. Nevertheless, it is still counterfeit pleasure. (pg. 53) In other words, when we come to Christ, we should not simply bring our old life up to a higher moral standard, we should leave it at the cross completely.

"Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it." ~ Matthew 16:24-25

We should ask ourselves not "what is the least we can do and still stay saved?", but "what is the very most we can do because we are saved?"