When
I was a young boy, I always thought ignorantly that carrying the cross
was to die on the cross or suffer physical death, like Jesus Christ or
many early Christians, at the end or at a certain point of our lives. I
told myself, "Oh boy, that was a horrible death which is too much for
me. If that is really what God demands from me, Oh sorry, I can't do
it." Hence, I would always reject anyone who preached Christianity to
me. However, I began to understand more only when I started to read the
Bible myself.
Now I realize that carrying the cross is not to die
like Christ. It is to keep His commandments. Of course, we know that
there were Christians who died on the cross, because they kept His
commandments, like Peter and many early Christians. Some sold everything
to follow Jesus. Some suffered tragic death and persecution from the
world. However, will all of us die physically on the cross? No,
certainly not. Will all of us give up everything tangible to follow
Jesus? No, Jesus gave no such commandment for all of us to die on the
cross or sell everything; He gave it only to His twelve disciples and a
young ruler (who had kept and followed all the Ten Commandments).
However, Jesus was sad to find that the young ruler could not keep His
only commandment to follow Him (Mat 19:2, Mar 10:21, Luk 18:22). If you
read all the three Bible verses above, you will notice that the tone
that Jesus used when He spoke to the young ruler was not to test
him, insult him, or make things difficult for him because he kept the
Ten Commandments. It meant that Jesus approved what he did, but He
wanted him to do one more thing - ie. to sell everything and follow Him.
Of course, Jesus would not want everyone to do this today. He has
already risen, but He would still want us to keep God's commandments,
help the poor, and carry our cross. Many of us was confused by another
incident when a lawyer tested Jesus about the keeping of God's
commandments:
Mat 22:35-40 KJV Then one of them, which was a lawyer,
asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, (36) Master, which is
the great commandment in the law? (37) Jesus said unto him, Thou
shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul,
and with all thy mind. (38) This is the first and great commandment.
(39) And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as
thyself. (40) On these two commandments hang all the law and the
prophets.
In fact, the lawyer, trying to justify himself, asked Jesus
again later, "Who is my neighbour?" However, Jesus' answer to him was
not only to know and teach the commandments, but to do the commandments
(see Luk 10:33 - the parable of the good Samaritan).
I have shown
you that selling everything and giving it away to the poor is not a
commandment to everyone today, but carrying our cross is a commandment
to everyone. How do we know that?
Mat 16:24 KJV 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.
Mar 8:34 KJV And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
Luk 9:23 KJV 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.
If this has been mentioned three times in the gospels, it is indeed a commandment for everyone who follows Him.
The
Lord had actually given a commandment to Peter. Peter had to carry his
own cross by taking care of His sheep and showing it with his death too:
Joh
21:15-22 KJV So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter,
Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him,
Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my
lambs. .. (18) Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young,
thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when
thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall
gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. (19) This spake
he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.
(20) Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved
following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord,
which is he that betrayeth thee? (21) Peter seeing him saith to Jesus,
Lord, and what shall this man do? (22) Jesus saith unto him, If I
will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.
Today,
do we still carry the cross like Peter's? No, that is why Jesus did not
say that we carry Peter's cross or His cross; but our (own) cross. If
we know His commandments, we will carry our cross. That is why He also
said, If ye love me, keep my commandments (Joh 14:15 KJV). If we keep
His commandments, we will take our cross (daily - Luk 9:23) in our
hearts and minds. We will do His works too:
Rev 2:5-7 KJV Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works;
or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick
out of his place, except thou repent. (6) But this thou hast, that
thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. (7) He
that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;
To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is
in the midst of the paradise of God.
(The cross that I have
chosen is a simple wooden cross. It is a simple picture for the
community, with no one being nailed on it. It is not made to crucify
Jesus, myself, or anyone on it; but to remind ourselves that we have the
cross (or His commandments) in our churches, in our hearts, and in our
minds daily. Jesus has shown us that taking up the cross should be main
focus of our message in the churches. However, sadly most preachers have
found that it is hard to blend with their preaching of prosperity
gospel and decided to 'freeze' it merely as a symbol behind their pulpit
or a piece of useless fixture to show people that they are in the
church.)
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