Under Roman law, a soldier could force any member of the public to carry his belongings for up to 1000 paces. It didn’t matter if you were occupied with your own affairs or hurrying to be somewhere, if the soldier called on you to do it, you were expected to do so. The practice, known as being “pressed into service” was deeply resented by the local population, especially the Jews.

On His way to Calvary, Jesus is unable to carry His cross. He is in a weakened and emaciated state, and the load of the crossbeam is too great for Him to bear.

Thus, Simon, who has just arrived in Jerusalem for the Passover celebration, is “pressed into service” by the soldiers and forced to carry Jesus’ cross for Him.

Some scholars have speculated that this experience may have led to Simon’s conversion to Christianity after the resurrection and that his sons – named in Mark’s account – became well known figures in the Early Church.

The truth is, we don’t know but we do know what Jesus had to say about carrying a cross.

Jesus once told a crowd of people that if any of them wanted to be His disciple then they must “deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me.” (Mark 8:34)

In that culture, people didn’t voluntarily “take up a cross.” To do so meant you were on a one-way trip. People forced to carry a cross were going to a place of execution – every person who saw the cross-carrier paraded through the town knew he wasn’t coming back.

When we take up the cross of Jesus, we are saying to the rest of the world, “I am totally committed to following Jesus. I have given my life to Him completely and I am not going back.” As the old song says, “I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back.”

Have you taken up the cross of Jesus yet?

Today’s Bible reading: Mark 15:16-20