The Fullness of Life
Self-denial (part II)
Christian discipleship is a response to our Lord Jesus Christ's invitation to His would-be-followers to deny themselves, carry their cross everyday and to follow His life and teaching. But, we have to make some necessary clarification: to deny oneself is not opposed to self-acceptance and it is not self-rejection.
While self-rejection comes from a failure to accept onself, and even from a lack of gratitude for what God has given true self-denial comes only after arriving at a mature degree of self-acceptance.
Love is the main motive behind Christian self-denial. If love is absent then our self-denial becomes a mere facade to some selfish motives. St. Paul was quite aware of this when he said, "If I give everything I have to feed the poor and hand over my body to be burned, but have no love, I gain nothing," (1 Cor. 13:3).
Through the power of love we are liberated from our attachment to illusory goods, and to our selfishness. Since "God is love," every genuine act of love can only come from God. By his love we are redeemed and saved. It is His love which gives life, meaning, and value to our self-denial.
Self-denial for the sake of our neighbors who are sinful as we are, is what our Lord was asking us to do when He said, "Whatever you have done to the least of my brothers you have done it to me," A beautiful story of such a self-denial is found in the lives of the early Christian monks in the desert of Egypt.
St. Macarius the Great (300-390 AD), was an Egyptian camel driver before he decided to live the monastic life in the desert, following the example of St. Anthony the Great (251-356 AD), considered as the first to live the monastic life in the desert of Egypt.
When St. Macarius was living a solitary life in the desert, people flock to him for spiritual advice and for prayers on their behalf. One time they gave him some fresh grapes. He greatly desired to eat them, but wanting to practice self-denial for the love of Christ, he sent these grapes to another monk who was ill and was also fond of grapes. The sick brother received the grapes with great delight, but on second thought he decided also to make an act of self-denial for the love of God immediately sent the grapes to still another brother, pretending that he had no appetite because of his illness. Upon receiving the grapes the next brother did the same although he also greatly wished to eat them.
The grapes went around from one monk to another until they were sent back to Macarius by another monk. Macarius recognized the grapes and after some inquiries, discovered what had happened, he marveled and thank God for the fraternal love and self-denial of the brothers.
"Whoever wishes to be my follower must deny his very self, take up his cross each day and follow my steps. Whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will save it" (Luke 9:23-24)