What does it mean to you to follow Jesus?

Let us see how Simon responded...

We are now in the gospel of Matthew with the author’s account of Jesus last moments on earth. Jesus has been condemned by Pilate in the Antonian Fortress and Matthew moves directly from Pilate’s condemnation of Jesus to Jesus with His cross headed to his execution site outside the city walls.

 

Bible text - Matthew 27:32

“As they were coming out, they found a man of Cyrene named Simon, whom they pressed into service to bear His cross.”

 

First let us understand what is happening. Jesus is leaving the Antonian Fortress where Pilate condemned Him before the crowds. The actual distance that Jesus would have walked from the Antonian Fortress to the crucifixion site is roughly about 500 meters. Given a normal person’s walk, this distance in about 15 minutes.

 

But given the debilitating state following the beatings, scourging, and sleepless nights this is an ordeal for Jesus. This is a real challenge.

 

The Romans forced the condemned to carry his own cross to the crucifixion site. It is most likely that the traditional “t-shaped” cross was used for Jesus. The prisoner would have carried only the horizontal beam which would have been placed across Jesus’ shoulders and tied to his arms for the walk. The beam was not exceptionally large or heavy, but Jesus was in no condition to carry anything, and much less a cross.

 

We see in the verse we just read, as soon as Jesus picks up his cross and he begins to walk out of the Fortress, he falls. Right away the Roman guards realised that Jesus cannot carry his cross to the crucifixion site on His own, so they appoint a nearby passer-by to help.

 

Matthew says that they choose a man named Simon from Cyrene, who is a man who lives in the diaspora who was in Jerusalem specifically for the Passover. This is an annual pilgrimage for the Jews under the Jewish Law. Like the rest of the crowd, Simon was likely there witnessing the national Passover Lamb to be sacrificed in the temple at 9 am that morning. He just happens to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Or, should we say, at the right place at the right time. The sermon will tell. But now he is required by the guards to follow Jesus for the entire walk to the crucifixion site carrying Jesus’ wooden beam.

 

Though Simon was not nailed to the cross, he shared in the abuse that Jesus endured on the way there because a condemned man walking to his execution site, would have travelled through densely packed crowds in narrow city streets. There would be about 2 million Jews walking the streets of that day. And in that overwhelming crowd, you have someone being pushed through his death. You can be sure that these crowds were pressing on the man, jeering at him, hurling abuse, spitting on him, throwing objects, and even punches at him. It would be non-stop abuse. This is the scene for Jesus as He walks to his execution site. In such tight and chaotic space, anyone who was near Jesus was going to found themselves in the crossfire. The abuse was not intended for Simon obviously, but those misdirected rocks, spit, and punches still landed on him, with a sting. 

And the closer Simon walked with Jesus, the more of the abuse came his way.

 

At the same time, Simon’s role also gained him the benefit of a front row seat where he can witness Jesus’ personal suffering.

 

As Simon followed closely behind Jesus, he experienced moments that maybe are not recorded in the Gospels. At the very least, Simon witnessed the way Jesus handled these unbearable circumstances, including noticing what Jesus did not do.

 

Normally, a convicted criminal headed to the cross was in no mood to be pleasant or kind with the abusive crowd. Jesus responded so differently, showing concern for others and being so calm. This must have puzzled Simon greatly. Jesus never uttered an insult against anyone involved in His death, no cursing, no crying even. Jesus accepted the abuse willingly and this must have made an impression on Simon.

 

If Simon walks closely to Jesus, he will see and hear remarkable things, but it also meant he will endure abuse too. He could have dropped back a little bit or faded away to leave space between himself and Jesus. If he did that, he would definitely have lessened the abuse he received but he would also have missed the experience of what Jesus went through. He would have heard less of Jesus’ word, and witnessed less of Jesus’ behaviour. I wonder what he chose. What would have mattered most to him.

 

I think the LORD arranged for Simon to walk with Jesus in this way so we would have this perfect picture of how our walk with Jesus, metaphorically speaking, always include blessings and sacrifice. That is the closer we walk with Jesus, the more we are going to suffer as He did, because as Jesus said, they hated Him first, so they will hate us too.

 

Jesus said: “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.” (John 15:18-19)

 

This is such a beautiful comparison. The world loves its own. It is a spiritual issue we are talking here. We are not talking about personal preferences. It is something that is so deeply seeded in the human nature that they cannot name it, but they can certainly feel it. And the world knows its own. By the same token, the world hates God because God convicts the world of its ungodliness even if they do not want to talk about it. Instinctively, there is a sense of conviction from the world that when they are in the presence of God or anyone who would represent Him in an honest way. That is why they hate us. As we have been chosen by God to be His ambassadors, and when we are like Him in any way, then Jesus says we have become enemies of the world.

 

Therefore, the closer we walk with Jesus, the more we look and sound like Jesus to the world, the world will hate us more. It is inevitable. We are like Simon walking closely with Jesus, carrying our cross as Jesus told us to do. And as we walk closely to Jesus, we will be subject to the same hatred and abuse that was directed against Jesus. And when that happens, they are not hating us, spiritually speaking, they are hating Jesus and God in us, we are just collateral damage. And like Simon, we have a choice, we can lessen the abuse. We can stay back and distance ourselves from Jesus, blending in the crowd. We do not want to sound so much like Him, to talk like Him and to be near Him. If we do that, we are not less saved. It is not a question of who we are in Christ. Our identity is not changing. 

The question is: who do we want to be identified with?

 

But, of course, if we do that we also lose the experience of walking with Christ. Like seeing Him at work in our life in different ways and hearing from His word. Things that would have been part of our life are not there because we are too far. We cannot have it both ways. We cannot walk closely and avoid the negative consequences that naturally follow. The Bible says that Christians cannot be friends with Jesus and friends with the world.

 

James says: “You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (James 4:4)

 

That must have been the dilemma that Simon faced. I think this man Simon, was enlisted by God, and became part of the story of Jesus’ death to remind Christ followers that they have to be willing to be identified with Jesus. 

That is our calling!

 

Interestingly, this man is named Simon, the same name as Jesus’ chief disciple Simon Peter. We have one Simon who is present following Jesus to the cross while the other Simon (Peter) is notably absent. He has gone AWOL! That Simon was hiding somewhere trying to avoid the abuse that was falling on Jesus, while this Simon took his place.

 

That is a remarkably interesting footnote, it is a reminder that if we will not walk with Jesus and serve Him, Jesus will find someone else who will. 

When we fail to walk with Jesus, He does not lose out, but we do. 

There is nothing that God needs us to do. Because if He did, He would not be God. 

But God is offering us an opportunity to do something with Him. 

If we miss out, we lose out on these marvellous, amazing, and sometimes challenging things that we would have encountered while following Jesus doing His work. We do not know what we will be missing when we decide to drop back and fade into the crowd.

 

And to close, one final thought, Simon followed Jesus, suffering along the way, but he did not suffer the death that Jesus did. Once he made his way to the cross, Simon was free to go. Jesus stayed behind to die that day, which reminds us that even as we follow Jesus, He still takes our place when it matters most. Simon was set free when Jesus took his place on the cross. So are we, we are set free when Jesus took our condemnation on the cross.

 

That is why our walk with Him will never bring us to a place where we have to pay for our own sins. That payment was paid once for all.

 

Yes we are called to bear a cross of service to Jesus, of identity with Jesus and of suffering for Jesus. But He bears the marks of the cross and suffered for us so that we will not have to suffer in eternity.

 

Prayer

 

Heavenly Father, thank you for Your Word, for its trustworthiness and the details that you have given to us so that we would know that it is true. Thank you Father for revealing its meaning to us as we devote ourselves to the Word.

 

Thank you Father for man like Simon. Father we are so much like him. I reflect on how you have worked in my life. How you turn situations for your glory. Simon did not ask to be in that place. He did not apply. He did not choose to walk behind your son while on the way to the cross. He did not choose to be in that moment. Father, you put him there. You made it happen that he should be there at the right moment just when Your son was leaving the Fortress. Father he then began to follow the Messiah, not literally but in his heart. And Father you can do that to anyone at any time. We could be at the wrong place at the wrong time. And you make it the right place for the right time.

 

Father I pray that anyone who is hearing the story of Jesus for the first time, I pray that You show them the truth of it. I pray Father that you move their heart today. Move them to know that Jesus is the promised one, the Messiah who died for them and that if they accept His death on the cross in their own place, they may receive eternal life.

 

And Father, for all of us who know this to be true. My prayer Father is that You help us to walk with Jesus in a visible way without fear, without worry that persecutions may arrive, or bad things may happen. But Father, knowing that it is Your plan and ultimately, Father, knowing that glory awaits.

 

Thank you Father for the privilege that is to follow Christ who did so much for us.

 

We pray in Jesus’ name.

 

Amen

 

Bibliography:

Matthew - Lesson 27D | Verse By Verse Ministry International