Take Up Your Cross

(2 Timothy 3:16) The Message "....Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God's way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us."

Why did Jesus talk in stories (parables)? Just think about it. How many of you on Sunday listen to your Pastor when he's telling a great story versus being lectured to? Jesus was no dummy, He knew how to crawl inside our souls and stir our emotions.

He wanted us to see through the eyes of others.

I hear it daily, "I just want "it" (whatever ''it'' is) to be fair." Whatever we do in the work place, at school or yes even Church, it needs to be fair. Well, why? What was fair about how we treated our Savior? Jesus was clear in the story of the workers wages that "it" would not be fair. And He helped us see why; He pulled us into the story through the eyes of both sides. He helped us see our pettiness. But how soon we forget.

Jesus came to teach us about ourselves so that we too could see through the eyes of others. He wanted us to have compassion; He wanted us to understand the "suffering with" so that we could embrace each other, because we are really no different from each other.

Scripture says, "Take up your Cross...." not take up your Crown now does it? (Matthew 16:24) There was pain and suffering at the Cross. The reward was (is) on the other side of this life. It's waiting on us in the form of…---- yes, a Crown.

We are all hurting, broken and in need of a Savior. And Jesus is the only way.

Blessings.