By Thomas à Kempis Why, then, do you fear to take up the cross when through it you can enter the kingdom? In the cross is salvation, in the cross is life, in the cross is protection from enemies, in the cross is infusion of heavenly sweetness, in the cross is strength of mind, in the cross is joy of spirit, in the cross is highest virtue, in the cross is perfect holiness. There is no salvation of soul nor hope of everlasting life but in the cross. Take up your cross, therefore, and follow Jesus, and you shall enter eternal life! He Himself opened the way before you in carrying His cross, and upon it He died for you that you, too, might take up your cross and long to die upon it. If you die with Him, you shall also live with Him, and if you share His suffering, you shall also share His glory. Behold, in the cross is everything, and everything depends upon your dying on the cross. There is no other way to life and to true inward peace than the way of the holy cross and daily mortification. Go where you will, seek what you will, you will not find a higher way, nor a less exalted but safer way, than the way of the holy cross. If you carry the cross willingly, it will carry and lead you to the desired goal. If you cast away one cross, you will find another and perhaps a heavier one. It is not in the virtue of man to carry the cross, to love the cross, to resist the appetites of the body and bring in absolute subjection, to shun honours, to endure affronts gladly, to be content to be despised by others, to bear with calm resignation the loss of fortune, to suffer any adversity and loss, to desire no prosperous days on earth—this is not man’s way. If you rely upon yourself, you can do none of these things, but if you trust in the Lord, strength will be given you from heaven, and the world and the flesh will be made subject to your dominion. You will not even fear your enemy, the devil, if you are armed with faith and signed with the cross of Christ. When you shall have come to the point where suffering is sweet and welcome for the sake of Christ, then consider yourself fortunate, for you have found paradise on earth. But as long as suffering is burdensome to you and you seek to escape it, so long will you be troubled, and the tribulation you seek to evade will follow you wherever you go. If, indeed, there were anything better or more useful for man’s salvation than suffering, Christ would have shown it by word and example. But He clearly exhorts the disciples and all who wish to follow Him to carry the cross, saying: “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” Luke 9:23. When, therefore, we have read and searched all that has been written, let this be the final conclusion—“We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.” Acts 14:22.

There are many words in the Scriptures that contradict each other according to the letter, but once we get to see the spirit in them, they prove to be in full harmony with each other. And as the Scriptures state, by adding one thing to another, we find out the reason. Eccl. 7:27. In Galatians 1:10 it is written, “For if I still pleased men, I would not be a servant of Christ.” And in 1 Corinthians 10:33: “Just as I also [endeavor to] please all men in all things . . . .” In these words that are so contradictory according to the letter, we discover a most blessed relationship. The Word’s always aims at man’s inclinations according to the flesh. It is like a sword that pierces and like an arrow that hits the mark, but it also comes with healing. It reveals our folly but opens a new way in sanctification and honor. If we are to please God, then the flesh with its passions and desires has to be crucified. And if we are to endeavor to please all men, it must be according to God’s will, for we are not debtors to the flesh that we should live according to the flesh. Rom. 8:12. What was wrong with seeking to please men? Primarily, because then we would not seek God’s will. We are priests for God and must stand before Him and serve Him, for it is He who tells us how we shall behave toward all men. Secondly, we would be led by our natural inclinations to please others and get them to agree with us. Then “I” would receive the honor and the flesh would be satisfied. Then I served myself and not Christ. Most believing leaders live in this state throughout their entire life. They seek honor from people and temporary gain, preferring to be honored by people instead of by God. Jesus’ words apply to these people: The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil.” John 7:7. As priests before God, we have been appointed to use the sword against all flesh. In doing so, it will happen to us as it did to Jesus: We will be hated by the world because we testify with our life and in word that its works are evil. What is the reason that, in spite of everything, so many people seek to please men? They are either cowardly or afraid of using God’s Word for what it is—namely, a sword—and cannot manage to stand firm as a servant of the truth who demands death to all flesh and self-life; or they are haughty and unbelieving, thinking they will do it so much better in their own way. Instead of the sword, they think one should use love and persuasion, and in their folly they think they know better than God. The Word, which has a two-fold effect, cannot accomplish God’s purpose in that way. The Word puts the old to death first, and then it gives new life. If we take away the first effect of the Word, then the second falls away by itself. “Oh, that you had heeded My commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea.” Isa. 48:18. This is not a matter of being permitted to break down; it advances in its natural strength without pity. We must not be merciful to the flesh, because then no one is conformed to Christ. How can we then endeavor to please all men in all things? We can do that by always doing God’s will. On this point, the usual inclination to like one person and dislike the other must be put to death. There Paul sought to please all men in all things. The difficulty arises when it comes to pleasing the person we do not like according to the flesh. We gain a great victory when we can please all men. All prejudice and aversion to the one person or the other must be removed. All natural inclination to prefer the one over the other, just as all hatred and an unforgiving mind, must be subjected to Christ’s laws. Pleasing all men is an expression of love. We do not make any demands on others, but rather we lay down our life for them. We do not become dissatisfied because we do not get what we want and because the others are not as we wish they were. We have victory in our life and become the owners of the fruits of the Spirit, which are love, joy, peace, etc. We become happy because our name is written in the Book of Life, because Christ has taken care of us and wants to finish His work until that Day. And He will do it even if “this world with devils filled should threaten to undo us.”From the hymn A Mighty Fortress Is Our God by Dr. Martin Luther. Therefore we do and will rejoice, and in the joy of the Lord, which is our strength, we will continue to endeavor to please all men.Andreas Nilsen

You pray for something that you want. You worship God who is the Perfect One, having no specific request to put before Him. You devote yourself blindly and submissively to His work and guidance. You neither will nor can nor dare to have any will of your own. Worship is the most perfect form of prayer. You worship when you neither dare to nor want to have an opinion. It is perfect submission under God’s decrees. When you pray, you want to accomplish something. When you worship, there is nothing that you want to accomplish.Elias Aslaksen