The Way of the CrossSample

Taking Up Our Cross

Matthew 16:21-28

Jesus Predicts His Death

From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”

Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can someone give in exchange for their soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done.

“Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

Reflection on the passage:
What does it mean to follow Jesus in the way of the cross? This path is one that we understandably may want to resist, hoping for a detour. Peter certainly did as we see in today’s passage. But Jesus beckons us, inviting us into His path of life for our souls.

Peter had his own plan in mind for Jesus, one that involved Jewish hopes for a politically victorious Messiah. That’s why when Jesus told His disciples that He was going to suffer many things at the hands of the religious leaders and die on a cross, Peter had the gall to take Jesus aside and rebuke Him. In so doing, Peter was the mouthpiece of Satan to tempt Jesus to skip over suffering and the cross. Jesus strongly rebuked and corrected Peter by saying, “you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”

Then Jesus went a step further. Not only must the disciples understand that their beloved Messiah must suffer and die, but also that they too were being invited into the way of the cross: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me”. The disciples would have understood “take up their cross” as crucifixion, for the Romans forced those who were sentenced to die to carry their own crosses to the place of crucifixion.

In the disciples’ struggle to accept the path to the cross, they missed the other part of what Jesus was saying. He wasn’t glorifying suffering and death as though that was the end point. Rather in God’s wisdom, Jesus knew that it was the way they must walk to get to the other side – to resurrection, to real life, to the salvation of their souls, to heavenly reward, and to see Christ in His glory and the Kingdom come”.

Temptation is all around us to try to skip the suffering part and save our own souls. In big and small ways, we seek to fix, comfort, free, and elevate ourselves, resorting to our own coping mechanisms, even when we know better. Our crucified and resurrected Lord is right there inviting us to die daily to our false selves and walk through the way of the cross to the new life we have in Him.

Suggested spiritual practices:
Entering a story in Scripture.

1. Ask the Holy Spirit to speak to you through this story of Jesus, offering your imagination to God.

2. Read Matthew 16:21-28 again, this time putting yourself in the scene. Allow yourself to see, smell, touch, and hear your surroundings in this scene.

3. What is your reaction to Jesus’ words? To Peter’s rebuke of Jesus and Jesus’ rebuke of Peter? To Jesus’ teaching about taking up your cross? Are there any of Jesus’ words that are particularly standing out to you right now? Notice your feelings and thoughts.

4. Now Jesus turns to you. Is there a question you want to ask Him or something else you want to express? Do you hear a response? Allow this conversation to become a prayer.

5. Close by thanking God for this time of prayer in Scripture.