The Way To The Cross: October 12, 2025
Carrying Your Cross: Finding Purpose in Discipleship
Pastor Michael's latest sermon, diving into Luke 23:26-31, may have been a little shorter than our usual deep-dives (Praise God, as he joked!), but it packed a powerful punch. The message centered on the sobering yet essential core of what it means to be a follower of Jesus: dying to ourselves and carrying our cross.
A Forced Act, A Universal Call
We looked at the moment Jesus, beaten and weakened on the way to the cross, could no longer carry the heavy crossbeam. The Roman guards conscripted Simon of Cyrene, a man just coming into the city, to carry it for him. This random, forced act became a visual lesson for all of us.
Pastor Michael reminded us that Jesus had already told his disciples: "If you want to be my disciple, you have to carry your own cross." Simon's story, included right here in the Passion Narrative, is a dramatic reminder that this walk—submitting your will to God's—is our walk too. Discipleship is fundamentally about saying, "Not my will, but yours," no matter how weighty the burden.
A Legacy of Faithfulness
One of the most encouraging takeaways was the connection between Simon and his sons, Rufus and Alexander, who may have gone on to be faithful leaders in the early church.
The pastor stressed that when we faithfully commit to Christ—dying to our desires, loving deeply, and showing hospitality—we can leave a legacy of faithfulness for our children to follow. Carrying your cross isn't just about your own salvation; it’s about modeling a purposeful, Christ-centered life for the next generation.
Two Pathways to Death
The second part of the text showed Jesus turning to a group of weeping women and saying, "Do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children." Jesus, in his moment of greatest suffering, was still compassionate enough to warn them of the coming tragic judgment on Jerusalem.
This created a stark contrast:
Dying with meaning, purpose, and a legacy (the path Simon and Jesus embody).
Dying a meaningless, hopeless death (the fate of those who reject Jesus).
We will all eventually die, but we get to choose how we live until then. Pastor Michael's final challenge was direct: What are you going to do?
In a world full of options, the only one that truly matters is choosing the purposeful life. Let's earnestly pray for the grace to lay down our lives and follow Christ to the cross, knowing that in losing our lives, we find our purpose.
