His Cross Is My Cross
Accepting Jesus Christ without reservation means embracing His friends and enemies, and being prepared to face rejection and judgment.
A.W. Tozer emphasizes the profound implications of fully accepting Jesus Christ into one's life, which includes embracing His friends and recognizing His enemies as our own. He asserts that accepting Christ's cross means sharing in His rejection and standing firm in faith, even when it leads to isolation. Tozer calls for preachers to faithfully convey the true cost of discipleship to prevent backsliding among believers. He passionately declares that true followers of Christ must align themselves with His values, regardless of societal divisions. Ultimately, he warns that unfaithful preaching will have serious consequences at the judgment seat of Christ.
Text
To take Jesus Christ into your life without reservation is to accept His friends as your friends and to know that His enemies will be your enemies! It means that we accept His rejection as our rejection. We knowingly accept His cross as our cross. If you then find yourself in an area where Christ has no friends, you will be friendless-except for the one Friend who will stick closer than a brother. I made up my mind a long time ago. Those who declare themselves enemies of Jesus Christ must look upon me as their enemy, and I ask no quarter from them!
And if they are friends of Christ they are my friends-and I do not care what color they are or what denomination they belong to.
If the preachers would faithfully tell the people what it actually means to receive Christ and obey Him and live for Him, we would have fewer converts backsliding and foundering. Preachers who are not faithful one day will stand before the judgment seat of Christ and answer to a faithful Savior why they betrayed His people in this way!
Sermon Outline
- I. Accepting Christ's Cross
- A. Accepting His friends as our friends
- B. Accepting His enemies as our enemies
- C. Accepting His rejection as our rejection
- II. The Consequences of Accepting Christ's Cross
- A. Being friendless in areas where Christ has no friends
- B. Being a friend to those who are friends of Christ
- III. The Importance of Faithful Preaching
- A. Preachers must faithfully tell people about receiving Christ
- B. The consequences of unfaithful preaching
Key Quotes
“To take Jesus Christ into your life without reservation is to accept His friends as your friends and to know that His enemies will be your enemies!” — A.W. Tozer
“If you then find yourself in an area where Christ has no friends, you will be friendless-except for the one Friend who will stick closer than a brother.” — A.W. Tozer
“Preachers who are not faithful one day will stand before the judgment seat of Christ and answer to a faithful Savior why they betrayed His people in this way!” — A.W. Tozer
Application Points
- We must be willing to accept the consequences of accepting Christ, including being friendless in areas where He has no friends.
- We must be faithful to Christ and His teachings, even if it means standing out from the crowd.
- We must hold preachers accountable for faithfully preaching the message of Christ.