"To be transformed into the image of Christ I must begin to do the will of the Father in the same place where He began: He emptied Himself. There is for any serious disciple, quite simply, no other starting place. It is a matter of beginning today to say no to yourself - specifically, about something you've been insisting you must have, specifically about something you have been refusing. This is step one. You travel the road 'toward Jerusalem' from there, gladly taking up the cross (which is step two: saying yes to God) and following, knowing where the road led Jesus. It did not - and don't forget this! - end with a cross. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven.
His prayer for us is, 'Father, I desire that these men who are thy gift to me, may be with me where I am.' (John 17:24)."
~Elisabeth Elliot
I enjoy when an author or pastor imparts the Word without hesitation or compromise. Here, Elisabeth forthrightly asserts two necessary components of a serious disciple's life, neither popular attributes as the zeitgeist encourages narcissism and selfishness.
I am guilty as charged; I recognize in myself the desperate need to grow in saying "no" to my desires and "yes" to God. I, in many ways, remain a child of my culture. I am grateful that the Lord chooses to use imperfect people to do His work (2 Cor. 12:9) and that He continues to work in me to refine me (Ps. 66:10; Job 23:10; Ps. 26:2; 1 Pet. 1:7).
One could incorrectly infer from the passage above that being a Christian means leading a vapid, ascetic lifestyle; how erroneous an assertion! The God of the Bible longs for us to join Him in adventure (the book of Acts is teeming with action - and that is just 1 of 66 books of the Bible!) and desires for us to experience fullness of joy throughout our lives (Ps. 16:11; Ps. 21:6; Ps. 36:7-8). We must remember, as Elisabeth avows, that the story did not end with Christ dying on the cross. On the third day, Christ rose again. This is the very foundation of a Christian's faith.
While denying myself, carrying the cross, and obediently saying "yes" to God at each juncture might not be fun at the moment, there remains the promise of resurrection and redemption. Is it hard at times? Absolutely. Do I succeed always? Absolutely not. Will I ever make it past that which Elisabeth refers to as the "starting place?" I don't know, nor do I know if that would be beneficial. I do not want to lose sight of that basic tenet - for in it lies the message of the Gospel, which is as applicable to my life today as it was on the day I first understood and accepted it as Truth. I am confident that as I "empty" myself each day (sometimes each moment) and set my face "toward Jerusalem," God will continue to transform my desires to match His, and I will experience joy, unbound and unfettered. That which brings true and lasting joy is found only in Him, not in the things of this world - of this I am convinced, though some days I struggle to live out this aphorism.
Suddenly, in light of the promise of resurrection and redemption, saying "no" to myself and saying "yes" to God does not seem like much of a sacrifice at all. As compared to the cross Christ bore, my sacrifice is nominal, at best. No matter what God asks me to give up, be it a dream, a material possession, a timeframe, or an attitude - or what God asks me to accept, be it a hardship, a blow to my pride, or a season of persecution, I can be confident that He will redeem it in His time.
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"And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, [Jesus] said to them, 'If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?'" Mark 8:34-36
"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." Galatians 2:20
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." 2 Corinthians 5:17
"But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God..." John 1:12
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. for as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9
"For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried." Psalm 66:10
"But he knows the way I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold." Job 23:10
"Prove me, O Lord, and try me; test my heart and my mind." Psalm 26:2
"In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith - more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire - may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ." 1 Peter 1:7
"I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." Romans 12:1-2
"But [the Lord] said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me." 2 Corinthians 12:9
"You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore." Psalm 16:11
"For you make him most blessed forever; you make him glad with the joy of your presence." Psalm 21:6
"How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights." Psalm 36:7-8
Amen and Amen and Amen.
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