Guidelines for Freedom in CHRIST

This is the first of six basic guidelines to be a disciple of Christ and overcome the bondage in Which we Dwell
24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.28 Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.

This passage is the central message of all four Gospels. It is self- sufficiency that is holding back revival. We are trying to do Gods work in our way with our resources and we cannot. There are six guidelines here in this set of verses. They are the foundational Guidelines for those who want to be free from the bondage of this worldly system.

1.       Deny yourself:

Denying self is not the same thing as self denial. Every student, athlete, and cult member practices self-denial, restricting themselves from the things that stop them from achieving their Goals. The ultimate Goal of this kind of self denial is self promotion; Which is pride in a subtle way, trying to gain recognition for things WE do.

 To deny self is to deny self rule. Dying to self is the primary battle of life. Jesus does not enter that battle; he has already won it at the cross. HE occupies the throne and offers to share it with us. But for some reason we want to be King and rule in our own lives. Until we deny ourselves that which was never meant to be; our wanting to be in control, to play GOD with our lives, we will never live in freedom or in peace with GOD and ourselves.

 We were not designed to function separate from GOD neither was our soul designed to function as master. No one can serve 2 masters (Matthew 6:24). When we deny ourselves We invite God to take the Throne in our life, To occupy what is right fully his, So that we may function as people Spiritually alive IN CHRIST. Denying ourselves is essential to spiritual freedom.

Next week we will look at the second guideline… Pick up your cross daily

                                                                                        Paraphrased from the bondage breaker