Matthew 16:24-28 24Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”
This is one of the most profound and challenging verses recorded in the Bible. It gets to the heart of what it means to be a disciple. Jesus has just revealed to his disciples his identity and what he needed to do as the Messiah. He would be walking the way of the cross for their salvation. They did not understand this at this time but would come to know later on. The Romans used crosses as a form of public execution. The cruelty and humiliation of death on a cross was well known to everyone. It is highly likely that the disciples had seen people executed on crosses during their long journeys with Jesus around Israel and Galilee. The words that Jesus spoke in this passage would have deeper meaning for the disciples later on after they saw Jesus experience death on a Roman cross.
The invitation to be a disciple of Jesus is open to anyone, but there are conditions to being a disciple. Four significant verbs mark the path of discipleship. First, come after shows imitation and learning. A disciple follows his or her master and takes on the master’s qualities and character. To be a disciple is to be Christlike–to think like Jesus and act like Jesus.
Second, deny signifies the decision to set aside selfish ambition and fleshly desires and put Jesus first. The self is the biggest hurdle to being a disciple. To deny oneself is a decision that must be repeated everyday. The values of the world seek to creep into our lives, distorting our thinking, and inflaming our selfishness. The love of God grown within us by the Holy Spirit takes our eyes off of self and puts it on others.
Third, take up shows willingness to bear the image of the cross in how we live. The cross is not always easy to carry. The “cross” we bear may be unique to us but will always focus on the matter of lordship–who is in control of our lives. The usual two choices are self or Jesus. The cross represented death to people of that time. Death marks the end of a relationship. In the spiritual journey, death to selfishness is the crucial step to rejecting the control of sin over us. When we put our faith in Jesus, we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to “crucify” the old person and be remade into the likeness of Jesus (Ephesians 4:22-24).
Fourth, follow summarizes the previous three verbs. Being like Jesus and obeying his commands is the essence of faithful discipleship. We are not a disciple if we follow our own path, desires, and thinking. We must be transformed from the inside out. Our goal becomes to imitate Jesus in our minds and actions. Jesus in the Gospel of John shows that love is at the heart of following him. The tense of this imperative verb is present, showing that this is a continual process: “keep on following.” Discipleship is a way of life, and this cross-stye life is the way of love and commitment.
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