The choice to "take up your cross" DAILY, is to choose the Tree of Life over the Tree of Knowledgeon a DAILY basis.

     As an important next step or follow on to the initial "salvation call", there is a "personal choice" that we ALL need to make. And besides the choice of where we spend time in perpetuity, it is the single most important personal choice we will ever make this side of eternity. And, likewise, it too has its own set of specific, eternal consequences. Whereas God alone draws us unto salvation, this is a choice we all need to make by ourselves individually. This is where God's design of free will serves its next distinguishing purpose. Whilst our salvation is both the greatest endeavour of love ever demonstrated, and entirely the personal labour of Jesus alone, there remains thereafter, a further fundamental choice that God leaves us all to singularly make. For the most of us, the salvation call is personally experienced as a gentle insistence by God, unto which we either yield, or unto which we deliberately refuse to surrender, with each response having its own particular long-term consequences. But this ensuing choice, God seems to leave entirely up to us. And it has the distinction of being the most important decision that we will all ever make "on our own".

     In fact, it's the same choice Adam and Eve before us also had to make. Yes. EVERY man in Creation - past, present and future - is presented with the same choice. Adam and Eve were ALREADY SAVED. Their spirits were ALREADY alive to God. They abided in the manifest presence of God. Yet they still needed to make a personal choice. By their own free will. Adam and Eve needed to choose either the "lordship of GOD" over their lives, a choice they were to make by choosing the Tree of Life, or alternatively, they were to choose their "OWN lordship" over their lives instead, a choice represented by the choosing of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. And, as we can all appreciate in hindsight, it was the most important, single, personal choice they would ever make. And in just the same way as Adam and Eve before us, we also need to choose whether to accept Jesus as our personal "Lord", and not just as our personal "Saviour".

     Many people confuse "the salvation call" and "the giving up the right to self" as the same thing. They mistake the confessing unto salvation, and a "verbal acknowledgment" of His Lordship, with the matter of "actually living out" under His lordship. The "moment" of salvation, and whether we, thereafter, "live out" under God's way, lordship and wisdom, or our own way, lordship and wisdom, in an "ongoing lifestyle", are two different, yet closely-related things. Hence why God calls out salvation and lordship separately. "And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord AND my God!”” (John 20:28 - emphasis mine). It is God ALONE who saves. But we have free will as to whether WE allow God to also be the Lord of our lives. It is for THIS reason that God says in John 4:24 that we are to worship Him not just "in spirit" (in salvation) but "IN TRUTH" (in lordship) too.

     "And He said to them, If any man will (willingly choose to) come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me." - Luke 9:23 [comment added]. This fundamental, life-changing, eternity-shaping matter of Lordship all comes down to a fundamental choice, a personal choice, and a daily choice, at that. And this choice is framed by God in Luke 9:23 above. The choice to "deny oneself" is the choice to deny the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil; and the choice to "take up your cross" DAILY, is to choose the Tree of Life over the Tree of Knowledge, on a DAILY basis. And to continually live out that choice daily, to both die to self and to follow Him daily (to take up our cross), is to make Him LORD, not just Saviour. It simply means: He leads, we follow.

     Another way to express this choice that is accomplished ultimately through the twin operations of a "daily dying to self" and a "daily coming alive to Jesus", is through the metaphorical "Peter choice" of either remaining in the shallow boat of "self rule" and self dependence, a form of self-government by the shallow wisdom of man, versus getting out onto the deep water of faith and dependence on God, and following the deep wisdom and government of Jesus.

     Ultimately, these choices we make are all "governmental in nature". They are choosing a life of either self-government, or the government of the Holy Spirit. THIS is how we die to self: by renouncing our right to ourselves each day, by renouncing our right to self-government daily. THIS is how we come alive to Jesus: by taking up the Cross of the leading and Lordship of Jesus daily. The Cross represents the twin realities of dying (to self) and coming alive (to the resurrection power and life of Jesus) sufficient to restoring us to the Adam relationship prior to the Fall. And hence the counsel of the Lord Jesus, “For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?” (Luke 9:24-25). If you choose to save your life now, it means you choose to live by the comfort and independence of your own rules and your own determination of will and wisdom as opposed to by the government of the Holy Spirit and the written Word.

     Much of God's Word deals with governmental issues. So it's not surprising that when we look at life in the natural, governmental issues are also a central theme. In God's magnificent way, for those who God delights with eyes to see and ears to hear. much of what we are subject to in the physical serves as a parallel pointer to something in the spiritual. If we would only just stop and take note, so many signposts to this parallelism abound in our daily lives. At the same time, we would quickly also equally realize that there are no coincidences in God's creation and plan. Everything by God's hand, every last detail, is deliberate and in some way, shape or form, serves some greater didactic purpose that points us to God, to salvation and to the wisest life choices.

     Right from the beginning, God introduces man to the principle and office of government. Government is the central theme of the Garden of Eden. God's two trees are an object lesson in government. If you choose the "tree of knowledge of good and evil", you are choosing the "government of self-rule". It's a case of "my way", as opposed to God's way. It's about opting for the system and government of "personal independence". Adam and Eve chose the option of "independence" simply by being outwitted and deceived, which in itself is both ironic and a striking testimony to the true measure of man's level of wisdom versus the supremacy of Godly wisdom. Essentially, this deception promised man wisdom and knowledge akin to God's. Even today, unregenerate man remains equally deceived, presuming great human wisdom that in reality falls way short of the glory of God. In continuing to usurp God's offer of free will, man ultimately makes precisely the same choice as Adam and Eve beforehand. Repeatedly. Again and again. From generation to generation. Man foolishly believes that by opting for a life of self-government, and self-rule, that for better or for worse, he has chosen best, because it's HIS choice. But the deception runs much deeper. In reality, when he elects for independence from God, what man is really choosing instead is actually not for self-government (for therein lies the hidden deception) but for the government both of and by the prince of the air, a dark and malevolent ruler who, unlike God, has absolutely no intention of making life better for man.

     On the other hand, opting in favour of the way of the "tree of life" is about voting into authority and power the government of the Holy Spirit. It's a case of preferring dependence upon God's wisdom and provision as opposed to one's own wisdom and competence. It's about restoring the severed umbilical with the Creator and great I AM.

     Another way of looking at it is to juxtapose it as staying in the shallow boat of the flesh, on the one hand, or getting out on the deep water of the spirit, like Peter. Getting out of the boat is about forsaking personal independence (the boat) and instead, choosing to become dependent on God again (walking on water). It's about restoring the Garden of Eden government. It's about the government of His Kingdom and relinquishing independence and self rule. It's about expanding the jurisdictional status of Jesus as Saviour to embracing Jesus as LORD. Moving from being "rightly related" (salvation only) to "relating rightly" (relationship - a Garden of Eden relationship). It's about getting onto the water so that Jesus becomes our shepherd and, as His sheep, to us intimately knowing His voice. Namely, life by His government.

    We give up on the life of self-government and renounce freedom-of-choice, and declare our dependence on God, and His ways, and His government and authority. We take upon ourselves, then, not just the "garment of salvation", but also the "garment of the bride". For the foolish brides in Matthew 25:1-13 are the brides who elect self-government. But the wise brides are they who have the oil of their lamps filled with the government and wisdom of God.

     Dear LORD, for all of man, for all of Your church, I humbly and with thanksgiving beseech and petition of You, my LORD, that You reserve for us all, as our Lord AND Saviour, a seat at Your great banqueting table. Dress us in Your garments of fine linen. Prepare us as Your bride, for the second coming of Christ. I ask that You give us all the keys to the kingdom of heaven. And leave us not by the door, but invite us in to dine with You, our King, showing us each to our reserved seat, and to the room you have gone ahead of us all to prepare for each of us in Your Father's house. Let not any of us be of those to whom You declare on that great day, "depart from Me, for I know you not." But rather, may we all hear You say, "Well done, My good and faithful servant." This we humbly ask and pray and thank You for, in the hallowed and glorious and holy name of Jesus, amen and amen.

- To God be all the glory. Forever and ever. Amen and amen.