“And he said to [them] all, If any [man] will come after me, let him deny himself... Peter then denied again…” Since the Bible interprets itself, we need not go to any other source. Peter did not deny the existence or presence of Christ, but having any relationship or camaraderie with Him. One can acknowledge the reality of Christ, yet deny Him any recognition or rights to his or her life.
And so it is with self-denial. When Jesus spoke of denying self, He was speaking of refusing the old Adamic nature that we were born with, any and all privileges in one’s life. His opinions, feelings, understanding, reasoning, morals, and wisdom, along with all his other ego-centric assertions, are to be denied him. HE HAS NO RIGHTS!
After these many years of living with the other “Me,” I find the best way to deal with his persuasive pleadings and logical arguments is to simply say, “NO!” then to ask God for His strength and help to keep on saying it.
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