Pick up your cross, and follow Him.

Jun 30, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: When Your Cross Lands on the Wrong Roof

Jesus’ story about roofing the wrong house mirrors how we often carry self-made burdens rather than His cross. True discipleship means surrendering control of life’s blueprints – our careers, relationships, and even suffering become crosses only when Christ assigns them. Like the boss who assumed his plans were flawless, we risk building lives that look successful but miss God’s actual calling. The cross Christ gives won’t always feel logical, but it always leads to life reshaped by His priorities over ours. [21:34]

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding; in all your ways know him, and he will make your paths straight.
(Proverbs 3:5-6, CSB)

Reflection: What “roof” have you been building that God never asked you to carry? How might your current struggles reveal where you’ve confused your agenda with His cross?

Day 2: The Cross Before It Was Cool

The cross meant Roman execution, not wall decor – a tool of humiliation, not inspiration. Jesus’ listeners recoiled at His call to embrace shame, knowing crosses weren’t chosen but imposed. Modern faith often sanitizes this, turning discipleship into a curated journey of comfort. Yet Christ still summons followers to places where reputation dies: forgiving the unforgivable, loving the costly, standing firm when culture demands compromise. The real cross still smells like blood, not essential oils. [04:37]

For the joy set before him, he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
(Hebrews 12:2, CSB)

Reflection: Where is Jesus asking you to endure shame or rejection today? What makes this harder than carrying a decorative “faith”?

Day 3: When “Love” Becomes a Butterflies Chart

Culture reduces love to fleeting feelings, but God defines it as self-giving – even for enemies. Like the pastor’s music examples, we’ve distorted love into what gratifies us, not what crucifies us. Jesus’ command to lose our lives confronts this, demanding love that serves the unlovely, forgives the wounding, and prioritizes God’s will over romanticized ideals. True love isn’t a playlist mood; it’s the cross’s rhythm. [11:15]

Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.
(1 John 4:10, CSB)

Reflection: Who feels impossible to love in your life right now? How does Christ’s sacrificial love for you redefine what “love” requires?

Day 4: Repentance as Daily Rhythm, Not Emergency Exit

The Christian life isn’t a one-time sin purge but daily returning to the cross. Like Paul’s tension between saint and sinner, we’re called to a humble cadence: stumbling, repenting, receiving grace, rising to follow again. This rhythm guards against redefining sin as “mistakes” or “being human.” Each confession realigns us with the cross’s weight – not to earn salvation, but to walk in the freedom Christ already bought. [17:43]

Then he said to them all, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.”
(Luke 9:23, CSB)

Reflection: What sin have you recently dismissed as “no big deal”? How would naming it as rebellion change your dependence on the cross?

Day 5: The Cross You Didn’t Choose

Disciples don’t select their crosses like decor from a wall. Abraham left Ur without a map; Moses faced Pharaoh without a strategy. Christ’s call often leads to unwanted places: chronic illness, fractured relationships, cultural marginalization. Yet these become holy ground when received as His assignment, not our accident. The cross we’re given – not the one we’d design – becomes the unlikely path to finding true life. [06:44]

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways.” This is the Lord’s declaration. “For as heaven is higher than earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
(Isaiah 55:8-9, CSB)

Reflection: What unexpected burden feels like a detour? How might this very struggle be the cross Christ is using to deepen your trust in Him?

Sermon Summary

Jesus sets the terms. “Whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” The cross in his mouth is not a wall ornament or a charm. The Roman cross signals shame, rejection, and death, so the call to follow him is a call to die to self, not to add a little religion to an easier life. Luther names the cross as the place where God meets a person, usually hidden in weakness. Bonhoeffer calls it the price of obedience. Lewis says it is the way to a person’s true self. That line holds the center: the cross strips the old self and gives the true one.

The danger comes when words get quietly changed. The world shifts the meaning of love, hope, faith, and even sin, and the church often lets it happen for the sake of control and comfort. The serpent already ran that play in the garden, turning “Did God really say?” into a smoother script. When meanings change, beliefs change, and then lives drift. God does not change the meaning of sin. Paul says the wages of sin is death, not inconvenience. Sin is transgression and iniquity, not just poor judgment. That is why a real cross was needed. In the “forgiving” picture, the hands on the hammer look like ordinary hands. That is the point. Human sin drove the nails, and Christ held the sinner up even as he bore the blow.

Because he carried his cross, he now commands, not suggests. He never says choose your cross. Christ writes the story. A disciple does not. Following him means letting him lead, even when the path includes rejection, sacrifice, and weakness. That path is walked with daily repentance, the rhythm of a sinner who is also a saint. Faith is not inner pep or positive thinking. Faith relies on God’s word and goes where he leads. Stock markets, retirement plans, and personal agendas are not crosses. They are often obstacles. A replaced hip offered in fellowship can look more like a cross than a decorated wall piece.

The roofing tale lands the warning. A worker put a perfect roof on the wrong house. Numbers matched, address did not. So it goes with carrying the wrong cross. Convenience cannot replace Christ. The call is simple and hard. Return to his unchanging word. Let him name sin what it is. Receive absolution. Then take up the cross he has placed, and walk the good works he already prepared. His promises will not fail. His love will not change. His Spirit gives faith for the road he leads.

Key Takeaways

1. Do not redefine God’s words. Changing the dictionary feels small but it rewires the heart. When love turns into feelings, hope into wishing, and sin into mistakes, the cross shrinks to décor. God’s unchanging word guards the church from self-made religion and keeps the path of life narrow and clear. Receive his definitions, or the story that gets lived will not be his. [07:53]
2. The cross reveals the true self. The old self clings to control and image, but the cross pulls that mask off. In weakness, God meets a person and makes a truer life than ease can build. The self found on that road is not invented but given, born out of obedience and grace under pressure. Losing the old life is how the real one is found. [05:22]
3. Sin is transgression demanding death. Scripture does not flatter sinners with softer labels. Sin earns wages, and those wages are death. That verdict explains the weight of Calvary and the necessity of blood, not advice. Confession names the truth, and absolution sends a forgiven sinner back to the road with a clean conscience and a real cross. [12:13]
4. Faith follows where Jesus leads. Faith is not inner horsepower. Faith listens, trusts, and steps into the path Christ sets, even when clarity is thin and cost is high. Because faith is given, not engineered, it resists being used to push personal agendas. Reliance on God’s word keeps the feet moving when feelings fade. [19:05]
5. Do not choose your own cross. A handpicked cross flatters control, but Jesus never offered that option. He assigns the yoke and writes the scenes, and the disciple learns to receive rather than script. That posture protects from building a perfect roof on the wrong house and calls the church into faithful, costly obedience. [16:46]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:30] - Cup of water and reward
[01:44] - When words shift underfoot
[03:27] - Carry the cross Jesus means
[04:56] - Voices on the way of the cross
[06:44] - Christ leads, disciples do not choose
[07:53] - The danger of redefining truth
[11:15] - For God so loved, not butterflies
[12:13] - Sin is not a mistake
[16:46] - No custom crosses
[17:43] - Daily repentance rhythm
[19:05] - Faith relies on God’s word
[20:21] - Carrying the wrong cross
[28:40] - Follow with his unchanging word

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
- Matthew 10:38-39 (CSB): "Whoever doesn’t take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Anyone who finds his life will lose it, and anyone who loses his life because of me will find it."
- Romans 6:23 (CSB): "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Observation Questions

According to Matthew 10:38, what does Jesus say about the relationship between taking up the cross and being "worthy" of Him? How does the sermon contrast the Roman cross’s original meaning with modern cultural perceptions of the cross? [03:27]
The sermon warns against redefining words like sin, love, and faith. What specific example does it give for how the world has softened the meaning of sin? [12:13]
What does the story about the roofing worker who built a roof on the wrong house illustrate about carrying the "wrong cross"? [20:21]

Interpretation Questions

Why does the sermon emphasize that Jesus "never says choose your cross"? How might choosing our own "cross" (e.g., self-selected hardships or goals) lead us away from Christ’s calling? [16:46]
The sermon states, "Sin is transgression demanding death." How does Romans 6:23 clarify the gravity of sin, and why does this make Christ’s sacrifice necessary?
The roofing story warns about "carrying the wrong cross." What might it look like for someone to prioritize personal agendas (e.g., career, comfort) over the cross Christ assigns? [20:21]

Application Questions

The sermon describes daily repentance as a "rhythm" for Christians. What practical step could you take this week to intentionally practice repentance in a specific area of struggle?
Reflect on a time when you tried to "choose your own cross" (e.g., pursuing a goal God didn’t assign). How did it affect your relationship with Christ, and what would surrendering that look like now? [16:46]
The sermon warns against redefining sin as "poor judgment" or "mistakes." Is there a sin in your life you’ve minimized with softer language? How might confessing it as transgression change your response? [12:13]
The roofing worker’s error came from relying on his own plan. Where are you tempted to trust your own understanding (e.g., finances, relationships) instead of seeking Christ’s direction? [20:21]
The sermon says, "Faith relies on God’s word, not inner pep." What promise from Scripture could you cling to this week when feelings of doubt or fear arise? [19:05]

Sermon Clips

44s

#PutJesusFirst

“``In in fact, we want others to make us a priority before Jesus. Listen to what I'm saying. And Jesus said, No. No. No. Be careful. Don't don't don't put the roof in the wrong house. Listen to me. Because things might sound good. It might be the right number, but it might be the wrong address. Each day we return return to him through his word to repent, to say, Lord, I need to see clearly the path that you have laid before me. This is your god. This is your savior. He carried the cross for you.”

51s

#ChristWritesTheStory

“But when you're listening to him, not don't listen to the stock market. That's not the cross. Your investments are not your cross. They're your obstacle. Your retirement is your obstacle. Because you think that's your cross, man. That is if that was your cross, can I take some of your crosses? How do you take mine? Notice that what Jesus does not say. He never says choose your cross. Does he say that? The Christian does not write the story. Christ does. How many of us want to write the story? Unintentionally, we're doing it.”

60s

#DailyRepentance

“The Christian does not write the story of Christ as following Jesus means trusting him enough to walk where he's leading you even if it means rejection. Even when the role includes sacrifice, rejection, and suffering. It is called to remain faithful to Christ wherever he's leading you. And because we still struggle with sin every day, the Christian life is one, a daily repentance. Daily repentance. It is how we deal with our lives each day with this rhythm because like Paul says we are sinners and saints. Paul says, this that I want to do I don't do and I always find myself in the things I don't want to do. That's us.”

48s

#GodDefinesLove

“Hope becomes wishful thinking instead of confidence in what God has promised for us. Faith becomes positive thinking instead of trusting in Christ. Love becomes whatever feels good. If you had the butterflies, that is love. And I will sing like Tina Turner. What's love got to do with that? Instead of self giving according to God's will, that's what God well, God defines love. Self giving according to his will. For God so loved the world. For God so denied himself and give himself for the world. That is love.”

52s

#WagesOfSinIsDeath

“No one is perfect. But God never changes the meaning of the word sin. The apostle Paul writes in for in in Romans six twenty three, The wages of sin is what? It's not the wages of mistakes. It's not the wages of pleasing. It is the wages of sin. Not inconvenience, not embarrassment, not simply emotional pain, death. That's the wages of sin, your sin. Someone had to die for you. Even if you look at the mirror and you see a a wonderful person.”

44s

#ProtectGodsWord

“One of the greatest danger we face in the church today is not simply rejecting God's truth or God's word. Even though a lot of people in in the midst of all the need that we that the church are dying, they say, we we we need to go let people know about God's word, and and they're not denying the word. But they quietly change the meaning of God's word. Quietly change the meaning of God's word. And often, we do it for the sake of control. We change the word for control.”

52s

#WordsMatter

“In the garden, Satan tried to change the word, and he was good. Oh, that's not what God really meant. That's not what he says. Eat of it. And you will be like God. Oh, is that what he meant? That sounds good to my ear. Let's do this. Let's claim it and name it. And what happened? We got spell for the garden. We got spell because when words change meaning, things changes. When meaning change, beliefs change. When beliefs change, we will we change the way we live our lives.”

58s

#JesusAboveAll

“So that's the wrong address. And I think about that because sometimes we carry the wrong crosses. And Jesus will say, you put the you carry the wrong cross, buddy. All this time, you thought you got it all figured out. You probably will not let you see that you're carrying the wrong your own cross. That's not what God is telling you here today. He's not contradicting himself. He says that you must make the priority that Jesus is above all things, above yourself, above your family. Sometimes we make ourselves a a priority before Jesus. In in fact, we want others to make us a priority before Jesus.”

52s

#CrossMeansSacrifice

“Today, the cross hangs in our churches and it hangs around our neck sometimes, and and sometimes we use it as a decorative part in our houses. It has become a universal symbol of Christianity. But when Jesus was talking about the cross, it had a different meaning. The Romans didn't carry crosses around because those crosses for them meant execution. It meant that there was suffering, that there was shame. In fact, the cross meant rejection and death. So how many of them would like to carry a cross like that? Oh, I'm rejecting and I'm ashamed.”

51s

#TakeUpYourCross

“But the scripture tells us that something way beyond happened. Jesus carried his cross because our sin was real. It was not a mistake. It was a transgression. Say with me, transgression. Transgression. That's that's a heavy word. In fact, there's another word for that, iniquities. He died the death we earn because of our iniquities, because of our sins, because of our transgressions. And because he carried his cross, he now says, take up your cross and follow me. And what cross is it? The cross of pain.”

50s

#SinSeparatesUs

“Since sin separate us from him, sin leave us unsafe. If if it was no savior, if it was not cross, your sin will still condemn you forever. And if we change the word sin, we change the word and the meaning of the cross. The cross becomes just a nice decoration and it's something that happened way way way way way back then in the Roman times. Right? In fact, Roman how many of you can Google Rome right now? It's all disappeared. I mean all this stuff is If we change the word sin, we change the meaning of the cross.”

49s

#LoveIsAction

“That is love. Love is not a feeling. Because love, if it was a feeling, you think God would ask you to love your enemy? Because who of us have a feeling of loving our enemies? We don't have that feeling. In fact, we will get a nice clay that has some something in their mix so we can get rid of that. And then if we change those words, then we change the word sin, sin becomes a mistake, a weakness, a poor judgment, or simply, I'm only human. No one is perfect.”

52s

#CountTheCost

“That is why Jesus' words were so shocking for his followers. He wasn't inviting the disciples to have an easier life. It seems like we are having an easier life. How many of you when somebody the Romans went to your house this week and say, you believe in Jesus? That's a easy life. In fact, I was the lady in the game yesterday, last night. Jesus was inviting them to have a tough life. He was calling them to follow him even if he meant to giving up everything they have.”

44s

#DieToSelf

“And and if we hear, you know, even Paul says, their ears are itching to hear what they like to hear. Oh, that sounds powerful. But we're not called here to be inspired, to be powerful and great. In fact, we're called to die. We change words to fit our narratives and our agendas. That's who we are. And when we when when that happens, when we control the agenda, we seek to control our destiny.”

51s

#OurSinsNailedHim

“We use our own nails to crucify Jesus. We use our hands to do that. Sometimes we did it intentionally. We neglected sin that we do. We neglect the truth and we this we follow our desire. We have done that. Not always we nobody's perfect. Right? But we have done that. And it only took one of your sin and my sin to nail him to the cross. I think there's something that we need to get clear here today. It is that, what does a cross mean for us?”

54s

#FaithIsNotSelfHelp

“We change the meaning of God's word often. Sometimes we do intentionally, sometimes we do it by nature. We have used the word love for only those who get along with us. The word truth for only when it satisfies us and it fits our agenda. But as an inner strength that God calls us, sometimes we use the faith like that. Because how many times have you hear the word faith? I have faith. I mean, like, yours, Michael, you gotta have faith faith faith. And I got my sons. Right? But faith is not your inner strength.”

54s

#FaithFromGod

“But faith is not your inner strength. Okay. Let me see. Let me see if I can I got faith? I can make this flow. That's not faith. That's wishful thinking. Faith is relying in God's word. Faith is following where he's leading. I have enough faith. Well, it becomes like an inner strength. I had this strength that you don't have. I got faith. Wait a minute. And who gives me the faith? It's the same one that calls you. It's the same one that told told you, you are mine. Faith is not something that we can use to fit our agenda. It is to serve the church. It's to walk in Christ.”

54s

#FollowGodsDirection

“Here here's the thing for us. The disciples did not chose where they were going. Christ was leaving them. They didn't choose where they were the direction they were gonna go. How often do we do that? We choose the direction. if you look at Abraham, Moses and all the all the stories in the bible, none of them picked the place where they wanna go. It was God choosing the direction and the place. They did not choose persecution. Or how many of you like to choose persecution? None of them did, but Christ prepared them for that persecution.”

47s

#DontTakeMattersIntoYourOwnHands

“I had a friend who who was my boss roofing. He he was very strict with me. He says, I want you to get this roof done and this this this, put this this. I mean, will lay it out. One day we were so packed with work that he says, I'm gonna go work. I'm gonna go show you how to do a roof. To the boss. I said, fine. Go do it. And then next Friday, there was a Friday until the next Friday, his brother says, my brother decided to try to take matters into his own hands and screwed up.”

56s

#RightNumberWrongAddress

“my brother decided to try to take matters into his own hands and screwed up. And everybody was, okay, did he screwed up? We wanted to know because this is the this is the guy who thinks everything is perfect. There were two streets and both sides of the streets had the same numbers. He put the roof in the wrong house. carried those shingles up the roof in the wrong house. He turned off the roof in the wrong house. And guess what? The owner of the house came and asked him, would you like some water? But when he got done, the owner said he went to the owner and said, okay, can you sign here? I said, why? Well, because I put a new roof. That's the contract. Said, what contract?”

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St. Paul Lutheran Church Harlingen, Texas This sermon · AI assistant

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