Day 13 of 28
Is Christianity Hard or Easy?
The Paradox of Dying to Self
Scripture Readings
Today's Reading
Read Matthew 16:24-25: "Then Jesus told his disciples, 'If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.'"
Then read Galatians 5:24: "And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires."
Reflection
Is the Christian life hard or easy? Lewis answers: both, depending on how you approach it.
If you try to keep some areas of your life for yourself while giving God the rest — a little religion here, a little morality there, but my career, my relationships, my comfort zone remain mine — then Christianity is impossibly hard. You will be constantly fighting on two fronts, trying to serve two masters, exhausting yourself in the attempt.
But if you hand over everything — the total surrender that Jesus demands — something paradoxical happens. It becomes easier. Not because the demands decrease, but because you are no longer fighting against the very thing that is trying to help you.
"The terrible thing, the almost impossible thing, is to hand over your whole self — all your wishes and precautions — to Christ. But it is far easier than what we are all trying to do instead."
Lewis is articulating the paradox at the heart of Jesus's teaching. Saving your life means losing it; losing your life means finding it. The person who clings to self-sovereignty ends up enslaved to a thousand competing desires. The person who surrenders everything to Christ discovers a freedom they never knew existed.
"Christ says 'Give me All. I don't want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want You... Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked — the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead.'"
Notice that Lewis does not say "give up your bad habits." He says give up your whole self — including the desires you think are perfectly fine. This is not because those desires are necessarily sinful but because Christ wants to be Lord of everything, not just the obviously broken parts.
Galatians 5:24 puts it starkly: those who belong to Christ have "crucified the flesh with its passions and desires." Crucifixion is not partial. It is total.
Going Deeper
The half-hearted Christian is, paradoxically, the most miserable person of all. Too committed to enjoy the world without guilt, too uncommitted to enjoy the freedom of full surrender. Lewis's challenge is to stop living in the no-man's-land between two kingdoms and to choose.
Jesus said the same thing more bluntly: "No one can serve two masters" (Matthew 6:24). The question is not whether you will serve, but whom.
Key Quotes
“The terrible thing, the almost impossible thing, is to hand over your whole self — all your wishes and precautions — to Christ. But it is far easier than what we are all trying to do instead.”
“Christ says 'Give me All. I don't want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want You... Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked — the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead.'”
Prayer Focus
Surrendering not just your obvious sins but your whole self — your plans, your ambitions, your comfort — into God's hands
Meditation
Where are you trying to give God 'part' of yourself while holding something back? What would total surrender look like in that area?
Question for Discussion
Lewis says the half-hearted Christian is the most miserable — too committed to enjoy the world, too uncommitted to enjoy Christ. Do you think most Christians in your circle are living in that no-man's-land? What would it take to move toward total surrender, and what are you most afraid of losing?