Scripture

Mark 15:20-21 (NIV)

And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him. A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross.

Consider

Weakened from his brutal scourging, Jesus was probably unable to carry his patibulum, or crossbeam, which would be fastened to the vertical beam already in place on Golgotha to form his death cross. The soldiers therefore grabbed a passerby—Simon of Cyrene—and forced him to “take up” the cross and follow Jesus to the execution site.

A short while before, Jesus had told his disciples, “If anyone would ‘follow/come after’ me (that is, share my journey), he must deny himself and ‘take up’ his cross and ‘follow/come after’ me” (Mark 8:34 NIV). Among Jesus’ listeners was another Simon, also called Peter, who misunderstood Jesus’ mission and would deny and abandon his Master at a critical time. The gospel writer offers a counterpoint to Peter’s failure in the action of Simon of Cyrene, whose literal sharing of Jesus’ journey gives us a metaphorical image of true discipleship.

Jesus invites us to join him in his redemptive work by denying or turning away from our selfish pursuits and “taking up” the work of God already in progress. As disciples of Jesus, we accept his cross as ours to bear and his redemptive work as ours to facilitate. In turn, Jesus never leaves us alone but helps us to bear our own crosses, strengthening us with truth and grace and ceaselessly interceding with the Father on our behalf.

Often our heaviest crosses can be found in our relationships. We struggle with conflict, violated trust, broken promises, misunderstandings, and sometimes outright abuse and oppression. It comforts us to know that Jesus is tirelessly working for our healing and growth in our most hopeless situations. Choosing to take up the cross means denying our temptation to return evil for evil and hurt for hurt, and doing the hard work of loving those who are difficult to love and forgiving those who least deserve it. It means listening for God’s voice in our thoughts and hearts and allowing Jesus to help us carry what seems impossible to manage on our own.

Pray

Heavenly Father, I thank you for the deep love that sent Jesus to the cross and gave me the choice to turn from my selfish ways and live for you. Thank you that your Spirit constantly prays for me and for the healing of our broken world. Help me to turn away from malicious intentions and do the hard work of loving and forgiving the difficult people in my life.

Reflect

Mark 8:31-35; Romans 8:26, 34-36

Ponder

What relationship difficulty has kept me from journeying with Jesus?