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The phrase “bearing the cross” is a common expression in Christianity. Jesus mentions the cross several times, particularly in the context of following Him:
“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” (Mark 8:34).
“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” (Matthew 16:24).
“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” (Luke 9:23).
We should carefully consider Luke 9:23, as Luke uses the word daily. Although Mark and Matthew undoubtedly had the same aim in their transmission of the text, Luke calls the Christian to walk daily with the Lord. Jesus answered explicitly on what this teaching meant in Luke 9:24: “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.”
Following Christ does not come without a price. Are we prepared to lay down our desires, passions, and sins to follow Jesus? Are you ready to give up your life for your faith if necessary? Later, Jesus elaborated on the concept of following Him: “And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:27). In Luke 14:26, the Lord taught, “One must hate his own life to be His disciple.”
Christians are aware that being made new in Christ correlates to what we refer to as being born-again or regenerated. According to the Scriptures (John 3:3, 2 Corinthians 5:17), it is evident that such regeneration is necessary for salvation. The Lord makes sinners new creations in Him. The Lord opens the unbelievers’ eyes as the light has conquered the darkness.
Certainly, sin remains within creation, even in born-again Christians. However, because of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and being regenerated (made new), believers can now repent their sins and walk with the Lord.
The visual picture of picking up or bearing your cross is essential in any spiritual walk with the Lord. Anglican Priest William Sykes wrote, “It was the duty of a criminal to carry the gibbet upon which he was to be hung. Christ carried His cross till He was exhausted. This was part of the punishment and intimated the burden and disgrace of the bearer.”[1] The Christian knows well that he, too, is a criminal, a sinner in need of a Savior.
The cross signifies a punishment for sin, a new beginning, a new life with Christ, and a last battle. Later, in the last Gospel, John uses the term “bearing” when Jesus carries His cross: “And he bearing his cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha: Where they crucified him, and two other with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst” (John 19:17-18).
Sykes concluded on the significance of bearing the cross, “To carry the cross, therefore, signifies the sufferings, and the sorrows which every child of God must endure in the cause of Christ, and which he must consider as part of his Christian life.”[2]
The Greatest Commandment best supports the meaning of bearing the cross: “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. This is the first and great Commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” (Matthew 22:37-39)
Jesus perfectly taught these priorities in life: a complete commitment to God and second a pledge to fellow humanity (your neighbor).
The concept of taking up your cross is a challenge for every believer. We should never forget that the Lord calls us daily to follow Him. The cross allows us to meditate on our sins, judgments, and, most joyously, our new life in Christ. Following Christ does not come without a cost. Christians must place their lives to the side and bear their own cross.
[1] William Sykes, The Salt of the Covenant, 1908, Reprint, (Harrisonburg: Sprinkle Publications, 2016), 169.
[2] Ibid.