“Jesus said unto him, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life: no man comes unto the Father, but by Me.” John 14:6

The only way to God the Father is through Jesus Christ, not Buddha, mohammed, Mary or Oprah.  No one, no not a one, has come to God through good works either.  Believing in the Person of Jesus Christ and entrusting oneself to His atoning work on Calvary’s Cross for eternal Salvation and dominion over sin this side of Heaven gives the Believer access to the Throne of God.  Corruption will put on incorruption once we enter the pearly gates (1 Corinthians 15:53-55) but until then, we are given dominion over sin this side of Glory when our faith remains in the Cross of Christ for everything we receive from God (Rom. 6:14).

“³ Know you not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death?

⁴ Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

⁵ For if we have been planted together in the likeness of His death, we shall be also in the likeness of His Resurrection:”  Romans 6:3-5

The only way to Jesus Christ is through the Cross.  Unless we are (present tense) buried with Him; planted together in the likeness of His death, we will not be in the likeness of His Resurrection.  The “Resurrection Life” in which the Believer seeks is found in the Cross of Christ, not the Resurrection.  This is by no means to demean the Resurrection, God forbid no! However, understanding Who Jesus is and what He did on Calvary’s Cross to pay the penalty of sin for the sinner and break the power of sin for the Believer’s life, there is no doubt as to His Resurrection.

“And He (Jesus) said to them all, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” Luke 9:23

No one can come to the Cross of Christ and be planted together is the likeness of His death unless we deny ourselves.  By denying our self will, self efforts, intellect, ability, education, talent, and own strength, we then purposely place our faith in Jesus as the Source and His Cross the means by which we receive from God the Father…this is “our cross” that we pick up.  The benefits afforded the Believer through the Cross of Christ was a place of great suffering for our Lord but for the believing Believer, the Cross of Christ is a place of great blessing.  This is “our cross” which we bear and glorifies our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, as we pick it up and follow Him.

We cannot follow Christ Jesus unless we deny ourselves and we cannot deny ourselves lest we be buried with Jesus by the baptism into His death.  It is HIS death that paid the penalty of sin and broke the power of sin utterly and completely.  Our self will, self abasement or penance cannot do any of this…no matter what religious man claims.

Finally, we cannot approach our heavenly Father and let God be God in our lives unless we have accepted His plan of Salvation.  Then and only then, when our faith is placed solely and exclusively in the Cross of Christ for everything we need, is the Holy Spirit commissioned to superintend the Will of God in our lives.  Precept upon precept, line upon line, old things pass away and all things become new.  We become a new creature in Christ Jesus.  He places His desires in our heart and then gives us the desires of our heart.

Jesus Christ and Him crucified…be determined to know nothing else.

-Donna Clark Warren