Simon of Cyrene

Simon of Cyrene

Bible:Mark 15:16-24

A certain man from Cyrene . . . was passing by on his way in from the country,
and they forced him to carry the cross (V.21).

Reading

Simon was pulled from the watching crowd and forced to help Jesus, exhausted from being beaten and whipped, to carry His cross. Mark tells us that Simon was from Cyrene, a part of North Africa that had a large population of Jews during Jesus’ time. Simon had probably travelled to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. Then he found himself in the middle of this unjust execution. Yet he offered a small but meaningful act of service to Jesus (MARK 15:21). Earlier in the gospel of Mark, Jesus had told His followers, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (8:34). On the road to Golgotha, Simon literally did what Jesus figuratively told His followers to do: he took up the cross given to him and
carried it for Jesus’ sake. We, too, have crosses to bear—illness, grief, selfishness we need to give up, bad habits we need to break, difficult people we have to support. As we carry on working through these things with Jesus, we give a glimpse to others of the God we live for. Because Jesus went to the cross for us and paid for our sin, we have a brand new, unbreakable relationship with God. Now He is with us and gives us the strength to carry our crosses, and to never give up.

SAYING “YES” TO JESUS MEANS
SAYING “NO” TO MYSELF.

Youth Edition – Our Daily Bread Ministries