Matthew 10:38-39 NIVUK
38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.
Take up your cross and follow me. I wonder what Jesus’ disciples would have made of that phrase before Good Friday? The cross was the punishment for insurrection, for revolutionaries. Is Jesus calling them to act in such a way as to overthrow the world order or to live by a different set of rules and acknowledge a different leader other than Caesar? You would take up your cross as you walked to the site of your crucifixion, to say this means become to become ‘a dead man walking’, live as if you have already lost your life. Of course Good Friday would have changed how they heard this phrase completely, when Jesus took up his cross, this was an act of self-sacrifice to demonstrate his love for the world and give it a chance for a fresh start.
Father, help me to live not for myself but for you and for others.
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