Carrying Our Stone

 ‘Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place…’ John 19:17

 

I read an old African legend which is not a true story of Jesus but certainly points us to a true spiritual principle regarding obedience.  The story was about Jesus and His disciples walking upon a rocky path.  Jesus asked them each to pick up a stone and carry it up the mountain.  Peter picked up a small pebble while John picked up a heavy rock.  When they arrived at the top of the mountain Jesus turned the stones into bread.  The disciple with the small one barely had anything to eat, while the one with the large stone had a huge loaf of bread.  A few days later they were walking on another rocky path and were instructed to pick up a stone and carry it for Him.  This time Peter picked up a large stone while John picked up a small one.  Jesus led them to a river and asked them to throw them in the water. The men watched for a miracle but nothing happened.  No bread…no miracle. As Jesus saw their disappointment and confusion, He looked at them and asked, ‘For whom did you carry your stone?’    

 

For whom indeed…Christ obeyed God all the way to the cross.  He not only carried the heavy cross up the hill but willingly was placed on it.  The cross boasted anything but blessings.  His motivation to surrender everything was fueled by His love for God and His sacrifice for us.  Many times, the overflow of our obedience may bless us and many times the blessings are for other people.  If we are only obeying God with an expectation to receive, we are missing the whole point.  We receive God's best when we are giving Him the best of our love.  John Piper says it perfectly, ‘God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.’   When Jesus asks us to carry something for Him, we must leave the decision of blessings up to Him.  Every action we take to serve God should be out of the overflow of our hearts for Him.  ‘When we are obedient…we live in spiritual abundance…When we’re disobedient…we find ourselves in spiritual poverty.’ Take Courage, Jennifer Rothschild, p. 74

 

Obedience is not a pick and choose endeavor, rather a decision to lean into the complete agenda of God.  We should not try to measure or determine the pro’s and con’s ‘picking up our stones.’