Denying the Self, Picking Up the Cross, and Following Jesus
Discipleship is Part of Salvation
A lot of church people will say discipleship should be done after you get saved. Jesus thought otherwise. He taught that salvation and discipleship should go together. When you share about eternal life to someone (about getting saved from sin), it's vital to simultaneously discuss about discipleship---in particular, talk about denying the self, picking up our cross from Jesus, and following him. People need to understand what receiving Jesus really means. It's clear in the passage context.
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When Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23), he laid down the radical essence of discipleship and connected it to salvation in verses 24-25; Jesus said anyone who wants to save his life will lose it if we ignore his challenge to deny the self and pick up our cross to follow him. This call is not about half-hearted commitment or selective obedience—it is about surrendering everything, even the things we thought were good, and embracing His way alone. People need to understand this right at the outset when they're presented the Gospel salvation. You cannot be saved without being his disciple. It's silly to tell him on Judgement Day, "I'm saved but I'm not your disciple."
Denying the Self
Denying the self is more than resisting sinful impulses or putting the flesh to death. It is a total renunciation of ownership over our lives. Jesus emphasized giving up everything—our possessions, ambitions, dreams, and even our religious identities—because they can subtly become idols.
- Beyond Sinful Nature: Many believers equate self-denial with resisting lust, greed, or pride. While this is crucial, Jesus’ teaching goes deeper. It is about surrendering even the “good” things we thought were aligned with God’s will but were actually rooted in human tradition or self-interest.
- False Security in Religion: Churches often teach practices that appear spiritual but are more about pleasing man than God. Denying the self means letting go of denominational pride, doctrinal walls, and traditions that divide the body of Christ. Jesus prayed for complete unity in John 17, yet denominations perpetuate division. To deny self is to abandon these man-made identities and embrace the oneness of His body.
- Surrendering Goals and Dreams: Our ambitions—even noble ones—must die. We exchange our preferences for His priorities, our ideas for His truth, our dreams for His kingdom vision. A lot of our dreams and ambitions before genuinely knowing Jesus were formed by the flesh, the ego, the sinful nature. We must put all these to death. This is not passive resignation but active alignment with Christ’s will.
True self-denial is a stripping away of ego, religious pride, and personal agendas, leaving only Christ as the center.
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Picking Up the Cross
The cross is not merely a symbol of suffering—it is the burden Jesus Himself places on our lives. It is His assignment, His calling, His yoke.
- Jesus’ Burden vs. Man’s Burden: Many church activities—choir practices, endless programs, stressful events, invented ministries—are burdens imposed by religion, not by Christ. These often exhaust believers, leaving them drained but not spiritually transformed. Jesus said His yoke is easy and His burden is light (Matthew 11:30). Picking up the cross means discarding man-made obligations and embracing only what Christ asks of us.
- Daily Obedience: The cross is not carried once but daily. It is a continual choice to embrace sacrifice, humility, and obedience. Sometimes this means enduring rejection, persecution, or loneliness for the sake of truth.
- Freedom from Religious Performance: Carrying the cross liberates us from the pressure to perform for audiences. Instead of striving to impress people, turning the altar into a stage for performing, we live to please God alone. We begin to understand that private worship is what the Father wants. What we do in secret is seen by the Father and rewards what is done in secret.
The cross is not about religious busyness—it is about faithful obedience to Christ’s unique call on our lives.
Following Jesus
Following Jesus is the culmination of denying self and carrying the cross. It is a radical reorientation of life where Christ becomes the sole leader, teacher, and shepherd.
- End of Ego: Following Jesus means putting a final end to everything that feeds self-importance. Titles, degrees, recognition, and religious achievements lose their value. We no longer live for applause but for His approval.
- Beyond “Born-Again” Religion: Many believers are trapped in a cycle of religious burdens disguised as spirituality. True discipleship is not about conforming to denominational expectations but about walking intimately with Christ.
- Living in Unity and Love: Following Jesus means embodying His prayer for unity. We stop clinging to denominational labels and instead embrace the reality that we are one body, one Spirit, one in hope.
To follow Jesus is to walk in His footsteps, not the footsteps of religious systems. It is to embody His humility, His love, and His truth in every aspect of life.
Conclusion
Denying the self, picking up the cross, and following Jesus is not a comfortable path—it is a radical surrender. It means:
- Letting go of possessions, ambitions, and even religious identities.
- Carrying only the burdens Christ Himself places on us, not those imposed by man.
- Walking in unity, humility, and obedience, free from ego and performance.
This is the essence of discipleship: a life emptied of self and filled with Christ. Only with a readiness to commit to this discipleship will salvation (receiving Jesus Christ as Savior) have real meaning. Only then can we truly say, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20) after receiving Jesus and being empowered to be called children of God.
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JESUS' 11 MUST TEACHINGS ON HOW TO BE SAVED AND ENTER HEAVEN
- Whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
[John 3.16] - Receive Jesus. [John 1.12]
- Be born of water and Spirit to enter the Kingdom of God. [John 3.3-8]
- Deny self, pick up your cross and follow Him. [Matthew 16.24]
- Give up everything you have. [Luke 14.33]
- Sell all you have and give to the poor. [Matthew 19.21]
- Do good to the needy, hungry, thirsty and the stranger. [Matthew 25.34-46]
- Obedience [Matthew 7.21]
- Enter the narrow door. [Luke 13.24]
- Become like little children. [Matthew 18.3]
- Relationship with Jesus. [John 14.6]
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