{"id":11904,"date":"2022-10-10T17:23:49","date_gmt":"2022-10-10T22:23:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jfbelievers.com\/?p=11904"},"modified":"2022-10-10T17:23:49","modified_gmt":"2022-10-10T22:23:49","slug":"called-to-crucify","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/2022\/10\/10\/called-to-crucify\/","title":{"rendered":"CALLED to CRUCIFY"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Judas wasn\u2019t the only betrayer in the group. Nor was Peter the only denier. Truth is, every<\/em> disciple is predestined to become not only a denier<\/em>, and a betrayer<\/em>, but ultimately, a crucifier<\/em> as well. Committing these particular acts, like it or not, is inevitable for anyone who truly follows Christ. The real issue, therefore, isn\u2019t whether you\u2019ll eventually do such things as these, but who<\/em> will be on the receiving end of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s either you or Jesus<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DESTINED TO DENY<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Denial is a dirty word in the Christian dialect, and it\u2019s all Peter\u2019s fault. On the night of Christ\u2019s arrest, when Jesus needed him most, Peter denied knowing Him three times over. And this wasn\u2019t Peter\u2019s first bout with denial either. Just a few short hours earlier, Jesus told Peter that he was destined <\/em>to deny. And in true form, Peter flat-out denied<\/em> it! Thanks to him, denial has been associated with sin ever since.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s critical to remember, however, that not all denial is a sin. In our case, it\u2019s<\/em> required<\/em>. One of the prerequisites of following Jesus is having a propensity for denial. In fact, if a person isn\u2019t willing to deny<\/em>, they won\u2019t even be allowed<\/em> to follow Christ at all. In Luke 9:23<\/strong> Jesus said, \u201cWhoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves<\/em>\u201d. Whether it\u2019s a dirty word or not, \u201cdenial\u201d <\/em>is a \u201cmust\u201d<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Somebody in your Christian life is being denied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s either you or Jesus\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BOUND TO BETRAY<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When Judas Iscariot was chosen by Jesus, his fate was already decided. \u201cJesus knew from the beginning who it was that would betray Him<\/em>\u201d (John 6:64<\/strong>). His future was as fixed as the Word of God Itself. Judas was bound to betray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But then again, so were the other eleven<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Betrayal is in the cards for all<\/em> of Christ\u2019s disciples. The word \u201cbetray<\/em>\u201d means to \u2018hand over\u2019 or \u2018abandon\u2019, and it carries with it a sense of close, personal involvement. Anyone can do it, and everyone will. We\u2019re bound to it<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All who follow Christ are called to the abandonment, or \u2018betrayal\u2019 of self<\/em>. Jesus encourages all of His disciples to \u201cGive up your life for me, (then) you will find it<\/em>\u201d (Matthew 10:39<\/strong>). Some, however, will reject that kind of self-betrayal. To them, a second option is given: Abandon Christ instead.<\/em> Just like Judas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Somebody in your Christian life will get betrayed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s either you or Jesus\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

CALLED TO CRUCIFY<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The Nicene Creed reminds us that Jesus was \u201ccrucified under Pontius Pilate<\/em>\u201d. But truth be told, crucifixion is an activity in which everybody takes part. From the High Priest to the Apostles, and the ancient Jew to the modern gentile, everyone<\/em> is a crucifier. This, of course, includes me and you. We may not have held the mallet, or delivered the blows, but I assure you, it was our<\/em> sins that got Him killed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rising from the dead, however, Jesus now calls us to become active participants in yet another crucifixion: Our own<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus commands us to \u201cpick up our cross<\/em>\u201d (Mark 8:34<\/strong>), and to \u201ccrucify our flesh with its passions and desires<\/em>\u201d (Galatians 5:24<\/strong>). We\u2019re commanded to \u201cPut to death (crucify) whatever is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry<\/em>\u201d (Colossians 3:5<\/strong>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once more this leaves us with a choice: We can either crucify ourselves<\/em>, or we can \u201ccrucify Christ all over again, putting Him to open shame<\/em>\u201d. There\u2019s no way around it. We\u2019ve been called to crucify.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Somebody in your Christian life is being put to death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s either you or Jesus…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MAN ON A MISSION<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

By choosing Judas, Jesus was making the conscious decision to offer Himself up for betrayal. By choosing Peter, Jesus presented Himself to be denied. And by choosing God\u2019s will, Jesus willingly offered Himself up for crucifixion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your Savior already knows what it\u2019s like to be the victim of denial, betrayal, and<\/em> crucifixion. Do you? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your desire to be like Jesus is a single decision away from being fulfilled. Yield yourself to the only experiences that will truly unite you to Christ. You have been given the power & authority to deny, betray, and crucify. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Use that power wisely. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Judas wasn\u2019t the only betrayer in the group. Nor was Peter the only denier. Truth is, every disciple is predestined to become not only a denier, and a betrayer, but ultimately, a crucifier as well. Committing these particular acts, like it or not, is inevitable for anyone who truly follows Christ. The real issue, therefore, … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":11905,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11904","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pastors-notes"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11904","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11904"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11904\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11905"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11904"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11904"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11904"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}