Luke 9:23
“And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.”
King James Version (KJV)
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Jesus speaks these words to His disciples and the crowd shortly after Peter's confession and Jesus' first prediction of His own suffering and death.
What Does Luke 9:23 Mean?
Here Jesus lays out the cost and shape of following Him in three clear steps: deny yourself, take up your cross daily, and follow Him. He speaks these words "to them all," making clear that this is not a special calling for a few but the path for every disciple. Following Jesus is not a casual association; it is a wholehearted commitment that reorders one's whole life.
To "deny himself" means to set aside self-rule -- to stop making one's own desires the center and to yield that place to Christ. To "take up his cross daily" is a striking image. The cross was an instrument of death, and to carry it meant a readiness to die to self each day. Luke alone adds the word "daily," showing that this is not a single dramatic moment but a continual, everyday choice. To "follow me" means to walk where Jesus walks, to take Him as Lord and pattern for life. Together these form the essence of discipleship: a daily, ongoing surrender of self in order to follow Christ fully. This is demanding, yet in the verses that follow Jesus explains the paradox -- that those who lose their lives for His sake will truly find them. The path of self-denial is, in the end, the path to real and abundant life.
In the Original Language
The verb aparneomai means "to deny utterly, disown." Akoloutheo (follow) means to walk the same road as another, as a disciple follows a teacher.
Cross References
“Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”
- Matthew 16:24
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.”
- Galatians 2:20
“For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.”
- Luke 9:24
Application
Choose daily to set aside self-rule and follow Christ, trusting that the path of surrender leads to true life.