I went backtracking a few of Charles H. Spurgeon’s devotions. One of them had Luke 23:36 as the message which says, “On him, they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus.” Since Holy Week changes year after year depending on a lunar cycle (which must somehow coincide with the Passover), I had to backtrack to give this Good Friday study.
We see in Simon’s carrying the cross a picture of the work of the Church throughout all generations; she is the cross-bearer after Jesus. Mark then, Christian, Jesus does not suffer so as to exclude your suffering. He bears a cross, not that you may escape it, but that you may endure it. Christ exempts you from sin, but not from sorrow. Remember that, and expect to suffer.
But let us comfort ourselves with this thought, that in our case, as in Simon’s, it is not our cross, but Christ’s cross which we carry. When you are molested for your piety; when your religion brings the trial of cruel mockings upon you, then remember it is not your cross, it is Christ’s cross; and how delightful is it to carry the cross of our Lord Jesus!
You carry the cross after him. You have blessed company; your path is marked with the footprints of your Lord. The mark of his blood-red shoulder is upon that heavy burden. ‘Tis his cross, and he goes before you as a shepherd goes before his sheep. Take up your cross daily, and follow him.
Do not forget, also, that you bear this cross in partnership. It is the opinion of some that Simon only carried one end of the cross, and not the whole of it. That is very possible; Christ may have carried the heavier part, against the transverse beam, and Simon may have borne the lighter end. Certainly it is so with you; you do but carry the light end of the cross, Christ bore the heavier end.
And remember, though Simon had to bear the cross for a very little while, it gave him lasting honour. Even so the cross we carry is only for a little while at most, and then we shall receive the crown, the glory. Surely we should love the cross, and, instead of shrinking from it, count it very dear, when it works out for us “a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.”
There’s so much talk about why the Church must suffer. Later, Paul wrote in Acts 14:22 that before the glory, there must be much Tribulation. This isn’t about salvation by works. Rather, salvation by grace through faith will produce works and will bring people to a very difficult situation. It was already difficult to believe salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Weren’t we all accustomed to salvation by works? Now, believing the Gospel which saves by faith and making good works come after is hard. Now, it gets harder after salvation, because there’s sanctification.
The language used by Jesus for following Him is to take up one’s cross (Matthew 16:24). It was in the time when crucifixion was a very common method of punishment. Aside from the crucifixion of Jesus, we can read many crucifixions before it. The Persians began an early form of crucifixion by using poles and trees. The Romans perfected it that it would cause so much agony that it’d send a message. If you’ve heard of Spartacus, you might’ve heard of the Romans have crucified several rebels and made them sidewalk decorations. Crucifixion was reserved for the worst of criminals. Jesus ended up dying a death He never deserved but it was all God’s plan to do so. Carrying the cross is to really mean, “You must carry the burden even if it means death.” Jesus willingly went up to the cross as His Father commanded. The Church today carries that cross as a symbol of atonement and forgiveness. The symbol of the cross for atonement and forgiveness was never without sacrifice.
John 15:18-26 talks about the hatred of the world. James 4:4 says whoever is a friend of the world is an enemy of God. Jesus had chosen the elect out of the world. Jesus warned in John 15:20 that a servant is not greater than a master. If they persecuted Jesus, they will persecute His followers. The persecution may not always be as grandiose as being tortured in various brutal ways (which I will not discuss in detail), to be put in an arena full of wild animals, becoming torches, crucified, exiled, etc. Sometimes, these persecutions can happen in the form of insults, isolation, disownment, putdowns, etc. Either way, there will be persecution in one form or another.
Spurgeon wisely says that the Lord Jesus didn’t suffer so we may escape it or avoid it, but to have the grace to endure it. John 15:26 talks about the Holy Spirit who will be there to be a comforter. It wouldn’t make sense for the Holy Spirit to be a comforter if there was nothing to comfort people from. In John 16:1-4, we have Jesus telling the disciples to expect persecution. This is to prevent them from falling away. What’s even worse is that some people persecuting the Christians are doing a service for God. We’re seeing that across history. In Acts, we have the Jews persecuting Christians whether they be Jew or Gentile in the name of God. We have Catholicism’s infamous campaign against Christians while claiming to be the Church founded by Jesus on 33 A.D. We have Muslims thinking they are killing who they think are Christians believing Allah is the God of Creation.
The Church has the Holy Spirit as its aid. John 16 continues down to mention the work of the Holy Spirit and that sorrow will turn to joy. The Holy Spirit will convict sin in the life of the believer. The Holy Spirit is also a comforter. There will be much sorrow in this fallen world. It’s easy to be discouraged when the wicked prospers or when disasters befall the righteous. However, there’s so much great reward for those who suffer for Christ’s sake. As Matthew 5:11-12 says, blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of Christ. It’s to rejoice and be exceeding glad because the rewards will be greater.
To close, this would be a very important message by Dr. John F. MacArthur from his book Hard to Believe. Take note that some sloppy editing happened during the first edition and had to be corrected:
Don’t believe anyone who says it’s easy to become a Christian. Salvation for sinners cost God His own Son; it cost God’s Son His life, and it’ll cost you the same thing. Salvation isn’t gained by reciting mere words. Saving faith transforms the heart, and that in turn transforms behavior. Faith’s fruit is seen in actions, not intentions. There’s no room for passive spectators: words without actions are empty and futile. Remember that what John saw in his vision of judgment was a Book of Life, not a book of Words or Book of Intellectual Musings. The life we live, not the words we speak, reveals whether our faith is authentic.
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