Walking With Jesus

WALKING WITH JESUS

Luke 9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Perhaps the greatest epitaph ever written for any man was composed by God for a man called Enoch; Gen 5:24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
CAN we too, walk with God? If you desire God to be your companion in your daily walk, you must not expect Him to wander the paths of worldliness with you.

I. Examine the text.
A. If any man WILL; There is a great difference between I Wish I could and I WILL! The second thought springs from the first. There is a difference between desire and determination and YOU control the difference.

B. Come after ME. Keep in mind WHOM it is you are to follow. If you set out to follow any man, it is your responsibility to be sure that HE is following Christ. 1 Cor 11:1 Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.

C. It is dangerous to follow others, but Christ has proven His ability to pilot and guide. God doesn’t lead His people AROUND wildernesses, storms or battles, but safely through them.

D. Let him deny HIMSELF. (SELF) The only one who can hinder you in your service to God is YOU. This denial of self must be complete. "I want" must constantly be "Thy will be done"
The only one who can consecrate you is YOU.

E. Take up his cross daily. Remember that a cross had only one purpose; Rom 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
Rom 6:7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.
Rom 6:8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:
Rom 6:9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.
Rom 6:10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.
Rom 6:11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Rom 6:12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
Gal 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
This consecration must be a continual, DAILY thing. It should be as true and real on Saturday night as on Sunday morning.

E. And FOLLOW me.
1. In obedience to the Father, follow ME; It never once occurred to Christ to try to find a loop-hole in the Father’s will.
2. In steadfastness- NOT blowing hot and cold. We must have steadfastness and consistency in our Christian living.
3. In morality, language, dress, honesty, actions --’follow me’

II. Two Basic Propositions.

A. No one can take up his own cross and follow Jesus who has not first come to the Cross of Christ.

B. None will ever find contentment and fulfillment in a Christian life who refuse to follow.