On the Way of the Cross

On the Way of the Cross

The spirit of divine self-sacrifice is a quality of the heart initiated by the Holy Spirit. It can’t be expressed accurately with words; but we can try to describe it.

1. True self-abnegation is insistent on silence. The soul suffers without displaying before others the depth of its suffering. A dog howls at the slightest pain or fear; but the lamb trembles and suffers in silence. Its tears are the tears of the heart. It can be offended against, be reviled, criticized, misunderstood, delayed and hindered in a thousand ways without lashing out or reviling in return.

2. The condition of self-denial cannot be separated from full submission. Moved by an intense divine love, the soul has signed the death warrant for its own self-life. It can witness a thousand small gifts and harmless earthly pleasures, and beautiful bonds of friendship being snatched from its grasp, without itself being snatched out of the divine blessing and peaceful silence.

3. It’s an agreeable spirit with no agenda of its own. It can be directed in an instant by the flick of God’s finger, anywhere God wants it to go. It can go to a prison or a palace with the same devotion and boldness. It loses its own will in union with God. It will readily wear threadbare clothes and eat a simple meal, without harbouring a single thought of envy towards others, or desire for the things they possess.

4. It finds its natural sustenance in suffering! It embraces the bare rugged cross, which so many fear, with a deep inner joy; for it knows that all suffering will only increase its love. What other Christians consider burdensome troubles to be avoided, it gladly takes upon itself; for it knows that these things will bring it into an even deeper union with God. It demands nothing more than increased love. It will gladly die again and again, that the life of Christ may be revealed in it more and more richly and perfectly. It loves its enemies with an abundance of love. This spirit longs with great desire for the Lord’s return and to be clothed with the heavenly glory.

5. The soul never receives honour of man for itself. When their fellow man bestows honour or fame upon them, their soul is continually sacrificed to the Lord, instead of enjoying the honour itself. Its greatest pleasure is to immerse itself in God and remain small. Its greatest desire is to humble itself before God and man. It avoids debates and matters of dispute.

6. It is modest and restrained. It would rather adopt the suffering of others than deprive them of their joy. It has an inner glorious vision of the person of Jesus, and it is so taken by His divine beauty and the life of the heart within, that even the most glorious and beautiful things on earth hold no attraction for it.

7. When the soul enters into this sanctification, it experiences only an inkling of this Spirit, which grows constantly and increases until the way of the cross and self-denial becomes a consuming passion. Then, the woes of the age, difficulties and such become just more fuel for the self-sacrificing fire of love.

It is this spirit that is able to turn enemies into friends and touch the hearts of sinners. This is the spirit that puts the devil to shame and makes the soul as precious to the Lord as the apple of His eye.

Then He said to them all; “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.”