Read Luke 9:23

Can you recall Jesus' radical philosophy of being a servant to others? The basis of that statement is tucked away in His words:

He was saying to them all, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me." (Luke 9:23)

Following Christ as His disciple is a costly, unselfish decision. It calls for a radical examination of our self-centred lifestyles. Whew! That's one of those easy things to say but tough to carry out.

Let's see if I can break this down into smaller bite-sized chunks so we don't gag on it. When you look closely at Jesus' statement, a couple of things seem important. First, those who desire to follow Him closely must come to terms with self-denial. And second, this decision to give ourselves to others (taking up our cross) has to be a daily matter.

That's costly stuff. Terribly expensive.

If we take His words seriously, then it isn't difficult to see some questions that we must ask and answer ourselves, like:

• Am I serious about being a close follower of Jesus Christ?
• Do I think of others to such an extent that self-denial is becoming the rule rather than the exception in my life?
• Is my walk with Him a daily thing?

Excerpted from Improving Your Serve: The Art of Unselfish Living, Copyright 1981 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. (Thomas Nelson Publishers). All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission.