Smarmy Crucifixion

“LIKE” IF YOU LOVE JESUS AND AREN’T ASHAMED TO ADMIT IT!

FORWARD THIS EMAIL IF YOU AREN’T EMBARRASSED BY JESUS! HE ISN’T EMBARRASSED BY YOU!

COPY AND REPOST IF YOU BELIEVE JESUS SAVES!

Perhaps you will find me grumpy when I say, I am not a fan of attempting to “carry my cross” for Jesus by forwarding an email. And yet I think that such a way to pick up one's cross is rather smarmy. Smarmy Crucifixion. When I see such silly challenges to publicly declare one’s faith, I can’t help but think of the million other, more significant, opportunities we have to do so that we refuse on a daily basis. Even as we are beckoned to follow Christ, we walk right by the cross. We pass up the opportunity to carry the cross in favor of a lighter load…the hammer.

It was us who nailed Him up there you know.

We pick up that hammer every time we see ourselves as more valuable to God than our neighbor (especially the ones not brave enough to forward, “like”, or repost). We pick that hammer up when our personal stresses are expressed in short-temperedness, anger and impatience which we then take out on the innocent bystanders in our life. We pick up that hammer in our struggle to forgive God’s other kids when they are unfair to us (even when we fall short of being practically perfect in every way). We pick up that hammer when we refuse to share because we honestly believe our money did not FIRST belong to the Lord. We pick up the hammer every time we are stingy with allegiance and loyalty to the One true King, but give it, almost without thinking, to a thousand and one lesser kings (food, alcohol, drugs, t.v., shopping, career, status, appearance, money, etc.).

We pick up the hammer every time we refuse to pick up the cross. You know what they say about idle hands…

Look, here’s the thing. Jesus doesn’t need your smarmy email. Following Chris is tough. Your commitment to a life of discipleship has some serious, soul-searchingly difficult consequences. It also has some exhilarating, life-restoring eternal benefits! But, Jesus needs your WHOLE heart. He wants and deserves your WHOLE life. Do you have the chutzpah to give that over like He did? That is just what he asked us to do.

“Then he said to them all, ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.’” Luke 9:23-24

If you love Jesus and aren’t ashamed to admit it, then sure, forward that email, click “LIKE”, or copy and repost the whole bloomin’ Apostle’s Creed if you want. However, before you are tempted to pound the pressure of shame into your peers…have some humility, use some discretion and remember...

…the cross has always made a bigger impact than the hammer.