To study Jesus is to study the cross.  To study the cross one must distinguish between His cross and the cross of the follower of Jesus.  The cross of Jesus will occupy our study this coming Sunday as we prepare our minds and inner lives for the Communion Table.  The cross of the follower is the one that Jesus spoke about in Matthew 16 (and other places).  We should not speak of “having a cross to bear,” and then reference some trial that we have experienced.  We may have a thorn in the flesh but we do not have a cross to bear.  Jesus took our sins on the cross, rose from the dead and ascended to the Father to make a “penalty cross” for us unnecessary.  However, Jesus did say that those who want to follow Him must take up their cross.  Leon Morris was the author that helped me understand this best.  When a person takes up their cross, it refers to a “one-way trip.”  As the chorus says so well, “No turning back, no turning back.”  Jesus said that to follow Him required cross-like commitment.  If we dabble with Jesus’ teachings we will not follow Him when the times get tough.  We’ll wait to make our decision about His advice until we’re in the heat of the moment.  However, if we make the decision before hand, when the tough choice is before us, the decision has been made.  There is a cost to following Jesus but there is also a cost to ignoring Him!  I like this statement by Oswald Chambers, “There is a method of making disciples which is not sanctioned by our Lord…it is unworthy of the dignity of the gospel.  Today there is a tendency to take the harshness out of our Lord’s statements.  What Jesus says is hard; it is easy however, for those who are His disciples.”  What Chambers meant was that once we realize how good Jesus’ advice is, it will be more natural for us to trust Him and do what He says.   Of course there is a cost to following Jesus, we can’t “have it all.”  The cross metaphor implies there is some pain and suffering involved in doing the will of God.  Just to be clear, Chambers also said, “Self-denial does not primarily mean giving up things, it means giving up my right to myself.”  Quite often, giving up things would be easier!  So, Jesus set aside His own comfort and convenience (his right to Himself) that we might have life.  Our life with Him continues as we set aside our right to ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him.  We cannot be an apprentice of Jesus without self-denial, abandon to Jesus and imitation of Him.  It’s hard…so is the alternative .