Simon the Cyrene - Carrying the Cross of Christ

THE CHARACTER OF OUR STORY

Luke 23:26 — And as they led him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus.

Matt. 27:32 — And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to bear his cross.

Mark 15:21 — And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.

In order to understand why there’s even a need for our character this morning we have to understand what’s taken place in the last 24 hours.

Jesus and His disciples, after having celebrated the feast of the passover, had made their way out to the garden of Gethsemane where Jesus would pray that if it be the will of the Father that this cup would pass from Him.

After praying, we see the officers of high priests court come to take Jesus for Judas had betrayed Him to them for 30 pieces of silver.

They take Jesus to Caiaphas house where scribes and elders were assembled to try our Lord and Savior.

For a length of time they tried our Lord, one witness after another falsely accusing Him but in the end their stories held no ounce of truth and were found without merit.

Finally, Caiaphas fed up with his failed attempt, addresses Jesus on his own and says, “I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God!”

To which Jesus replies, “thou has said: nevertheless I say unto you, hereafter shall you see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.”

This infuriated Caiaphas thus leading him to charge Jesus with a charge of blasphemy at which time the others decided it was a crime guilty of death!

From this point, they would beat our Lord by punching Him in the face, then they spat in His face and began to slap Him and mock Him by saying, “prophesy unto us who is he that smote thee.”

When morning came, they bound Jesus and carried Him to Pontius Pilate, the governor, to have him sentenced to death.

After questioning Jesus himself, Pilate says, “I find no fault in this man” but the high priests wouldn’t let it go.

Then Jesus was sent to Herod to be questioned but he also found no fault in Jesus.

After this, He was brought back to Pilate at which time Pilate thought to set Him free but the high priest, scribes and elders would not have it.

They had rather had a murderer released instead of the man who was sent to save their souls and so they basically put Pilate in a bad position at which time he basically says, “I wash my hands of this situation. Do with Him what you wish.”

He orders Jesus to be scourged and their desire to see Jesus put to death carried out by crucifixion.

Our Lord was then flogged and mocked by having a robe placed upon Him and a crown of thorns placed upon His head and a reed placed in His right hand.

It’s after this, that they begin to lead Him away from Pilate’s hall to the hill called Golgotha and we are introduced to our character today.

But before we get to him, you need to understand the process of flogging because it along with the gruesome night of beating before is the why behind the need for our character.

It has been said that it was common practice that before a person condemned to die by crucifixion was crucified they were to suffer some form of punishment so as to shorten then length of time they would hang on the cross before dying.

In the case of our Lord, that punishment was that of flogging.

Chuck Swindoll writes, “A flagrum was a whip with long, leather tails, often with small weights or bits of sheep bone braided into the straps in order to inflict maximum damage. After the lictor completed his cruel task, the executioner stripped his prisoner naked, and the prisoner was then forced to carry the implement of their own demise to the place of execution. They hung a titulus around the neck of the condemned, a crude sign bearing the prisoner’s name and a list of their crimes. The execution detail would attach the sign to the cross above their head to let everyone know why they had been condemned.”

This process of scourging or flogging would bruise the deep tissue of the muscles and the bits of bone in the ends of whip would rip and tear the skin thus causing extreme pain, anguish and the loss of blood.

It often times caused severe disfigurement and because of the trauma that was inflicted was sometimes referred to as the “half-death.”

It was this endured infliction that brings us to the character of our story today.

After the beatings the night before from the elders and the scribes, the lack of rest, the lack of food and drink, the total exhaustion of our Lord along with the now extreme loss of blood and bruising from the flogging, our Lord was then asked to carry His own cross to the place of crucifixion.

It was customary that the criminal would carry what’s known as the patibulum or the cross beam section of the cross to their place of crucifixion.

The stipes or vertical section would already be in place and then, once the victim reached the place of crucifixion they would be attached to the cross beam and then hung upon the vertical section for final placement.

This patibulum or cross beam section could weigh upwards of 100 lbs, so imagine in your mind for a just moment, our Lord having endured the desecration and degradation of His body over the last 12-18 hrs, He now has to try and carry this beam on His shoulder some 650 yards from Pilate’s hall to the hill of Golgotha.

An upward stride the entire way, beaten, battered and literally torn, our Lord has reached the limits of His physical body.

In my personal opinion, the only thing that even kept Him alive to make it to Golgotha was the sheer determination on His part to finish what He had started so that He could die for His creation and save the very beings that were about to crucify Him!

Something that stood out to me this week was the fact that when Pilate said he was washing his hands of the blood that was about to be shed, the crowd shouted… “let His blood be upon us and our children!”

Little did they know, that it was His blood that would be shed to save them and children and become the offering for sin that would bring about eternal life!

So, here’s Jesus making His way from Pilate’s hall to the hill called Golgotha. One writer stated that...

“When someone was condemned to death in that day, the procession was led by a Roman centurion and a herald went ahead of the death procession, proclaiming the name of the prisoner, his father, his offense, and the names of the witnesses on whose testimony he was condemned.

The crime was written on a white, wooden board which was carried by the herald. Anyone who could prove the innocence of the prisoner was asked to step forward. This is one reason why the longest route possible was taken to the place of execution. Even on the day of the execution, efforts were made to acquit the person.

If the person was to be crucified, he would carry the beam to which he would be nailed. Following the condemned prisoner would be four soldiers. This was the quota for each person who would be crucified. Behind the soldiers would be the people that demanded the execution. In the case of Jesus, it would be the members of the Sanhedrin.” — Mattoon Treasures

Now, in order to understand the story before us you have to keep in mind that this is the time of the passover celebration.

Hundred’s of thousands, if not millions, of Jews would flock to Jerusalem for this time of celebration and therefore the streets were undoubtedly crowded with people everywhere.

And here’s Jesus and this large procession making their way to Calvary. A soldier and a herald in front of Him. Potentially four soldiers behind Him ushering Him through the city and towards the place that He would soon be crucified.

All of a sudden, Jesus collapses under the weight of His cross. It has finally become to much to bear. His body cannot bear another step under its weight. His physical strength has now depleted and if He’s going to make this final trek it’s going to have to be through the help of another.

It was Roman law that at any point and time a Roman soldier could compel a citizen to help them in whatever matter they may need.

Jesus eluded to this when He said in...

Matthew 5:41 — And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.

If a Roman soldier asked you to carry his load for a mile, Jesus said to go with him two and now this statute was to be put into action and little did he know it, but a man most unsuspecting was about to experience this statement first hand.

With Jesus unable to continue under the weight of the cross, one of the Roman soldiers looked amongst the crowd and chose out the character of our story today…Simon the Cyrene.

Now, there’s very little we can know about this man but there’s enough here that I believe God led me here for a reason.

First off, it’s ironic that the sovereignty of God chose a man by the name of Simon to help bear His cross.

Simon Peter had told Jesus he would die for him but in His most desperate moment, Simon Peter could not be found!

God in His infinite wisdom and power though, chose Him out another rock to follow His Son’s lead!

Secondly, we’re told Simon is a Cyrenian.

The city of Cyrene was located in Northeast Africa in what today is the country of Libya. It was roughly an 800 mile journey from Cyrene to Jerusalem.

It is said that the city had a large Jewish population and seeing as it was every Jew’s dream to try and make it to Jerusalem for passover, this is why our friend Simon had made the trip.

So, get it in your mind now, the streets are packed with people everywhere! I mean stuffed like a can of sardines and here’s this procession of Christ making it’s way to Calvary and all of a sudden, the procession stops and everyone around is looking at the events taking place and out of nowhere, this Roman soldier lays the flat edge of his spear upon Simon’s shoulder, which was the custom when a soldier chose you to do something.

“Help this man! Pick up His cross and follow Him!” is the command!

Can you imagine the thoughts racing through Simon’s mind?

We will allow this question to lead us to our next point which is THE CROSS HE WAS COMPELLED TO CARRY.

THE CROSS HE WAS COMPELLED TO CARRY

I want us to think for a few moments about the thoughts that went rushing through Simon’s mind.

No doubt it probably started out as a thought of shame.

Here is Simon and the Bible in multiple gospels says “he’s coming out of the country.”

Now, we don’t know if he’s just getting into town or what but chances are, he has no idea what’s going on until he runs upon the scene before us.

He was probably super excited to visit the temple court and see the wonders of the city but all was halted as he makes his way upon this procession of Jesus.

You see, crucifixion was reserved for the most hardened of criminals and so to be a Jew and to be asked to bear a cross, undoubtedly brought a feeling of shame and reproach upon Simon even though it wasn’t technically his cross to bear.

He was probably startled at the request.

“Why me! Of all these people packed in this street, why me!”

Then there was probably the thought of association.

Chances are, up unto this point, Simon did not know Jesus personally and the thought that the passers by would associate him with Jesus, possibly as one of His followers, weighed on him heavily.

“What will they think of me being associated with this man. Will I be looked on differently? Will my friends still talk to me? Will they still allow me into the synagogue when I get back to Cyrene?”

As he picked up the cross of Christ, thought after thought went rushing through his mind!

And for the first few hundred yards, the only thing he probably thought of was himself and how this would effect him.

But then, somewhere along this journey to Calvary, this thought began to sink in to Simon.

“It’s not about me! They aren’t looking at me, they are looking at this man named Jesus.

Look at Him. Look at what they have done to this poor man. Look at the trail of blood He leaves with every step.

The poor guy can barely walk! The lashes on His back are enough to kill any normal man! I can’t imagine how that crown of thorns upon His head must hurt! It must be excruciating!

And look at His face! They have beaten this poor man to the point of death! I can’t even tell what He is supposed to look like because His face is so swollen!

And those patches of His beard that are missing! I can’t imagine how that must have hurt.

He truly is unrecognizable!

No wonder He wasn’t able to carry this heavy cross!

My it is awful heavy!

And this pathway gets a little steeper seems like with every step.

I don’t even know if I can bear this cross the entire way but if I don’t, then these soldiers are going to start beating on me!

It’s heavy, it’s hot, it’s steep but compared to this man I’m carrying it for, I’m in pretty good shape so I’m going to do it for Him!

I’m not sure what this man has done to deserve this, but He doesn’t seem like most of the normal criminals I’ve seen.

He’s not yelling back at the crowd. He’s not pleading His case. He’s not trying to stop them from walking Him up this hill!

It’s almost as if He’s preparing Himself!

It’s almost as if He’s looking forward to what’s about to befall Him!

It’s almost as if it’s His mission to die on this awful rugged cross!

His demeanor is one of humility.

His demeanor is one of determination.

I’m not sure what this man did but I am beginning to wonder if whatever it was really deserved this kind of punishment?

What exactly did He do to deserve this?

Nothing I’ve seen so far from Him is deserving of this.”

The rest of the way, I believe these thoughts began to weigh on him and his mind until they reached the summit of Mt. Calvary!

“Here we are! It’s time. I can finally rid myself of the weight of this cross!”

But just as Simon lays down the crossbeam and begins to walk away he hears the mocking of the crowd.

He hears the wailing of Jesus’ followers.

He hears the screams of Jesus as they nail His hands to this rugged beam he’s just carried for the last 650 yards!

It’s at this moment, Simon’s conscience won’t allow him to leave. Something is tugging at him and he doesn’t know what it is but he can’t just walk away!

Something about this man is different. Something about this man and His situation is drawing him back!

Something about this man named Jesus and what He is going through right now just isn’t right!

“I’ve got to stay and see this through”, is the thought upon his mind!”

“I’ve got to see how this thing ends!”

He turns back just as they hang the patibulum upon the stipes.

As they nail Jesus feet into place, Simon can’t bare to watch!

He turns his eyes to the crowd of followers of Jesus only to see the majority of them are women and there’s one man standing there with a lady who seems to be this man’s mother.

At this point he hears Jesus say to this man, “Behold thy mother. Mother behold thy son.”

Then Simon begins to hear the mocking of the crowd.... “He saved others but Himself He cannot save! If thou be the Son of God come down from there!”

“Wait what?”

This is the first time Simon has heard the charge against this man.

He turns to someone standing next to him and asks… “what did this man do?”

The reply is… “He claimed to be the Son of God. The Messiah!”

It’s at this moment, that everything slowly begins to start making sense to Simon.

“No wonder He never reviled the crowd. No wonder he didn’t fight back. No wonder he didn’t try running or stopping them from bringing Him to this awful place!”

It’s at this moment, that Jesus looks out amongst the crowd and then looks up to heaven as if He’s speaking to the creator and sustainer of life and says in the most sincere of pleas… “Father forgive them for they know not what they do!”

“Wait what?”

“Did He really just pray to God and call Him Father as if He personally knew Him as Father?!”

Simon’s mind is racing as fast as it can at this very moment trying to put all the pieces together!

The weight of that cross he just carried 650 yards is now the last thing on his mind!

Now the only thing he can think of is this… “did I just carry the cross of Christ up that hill?”

He now has a decision to make…is this truly the Son of God or did He deserve this?

All of a sudden a darkness begins to sit in upon this wretched hill. For the next three hours, Simon and the crowd sit in darkness and the thoughts from the days events are all Simon can think of.

Out of nowhere, the silence is broken with a scream from the man whose cross he bore… “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?!”

Simon sees a Roman guard grab a sponge filled with vinegar to give the man after which the man cries, “Father, into thine hand I commend my spirit” and dies.

It’s at this moment, the ground begins to shake, the veil of the temple is torn in two from the top to the bottom, rocks began to fall.

Graves burst open and the bodies of the saints who had gone on before make appearances in Jerusalem and then Simon here’s one of the Roman guards say in the most solemn of voices… “truly this was the Son of God!”

Simon stands at the foot of the cross in amazement at the days events and has nothing left to do but to ponder on what he’s just experienced.

Here was a man who thought he was just coming to observe and partake in the feast of the passover but got way more than he bargained for.

He was probably on his way to the outer court to buy himself a lamb to sacrifice but little did he know he would help the one true lamb sacrifice himself for the sins of the whole world!

The perfect lamb, spilled his perfect blood for a people who believed Him not, derided Him, mocked Him, spat upon Him, and ultimately crucified Him!

And it was Simon who bore the burden of that cross for the lamb that was slain!

Now that we’ve taken an in depth look at THE CHARACTER OF OUR STORY & THE CROSS HE WAS COMPELLED TO CARRY I want you to see THE CHANGE IN THE CHARACTER OF OUR STORY.

THE CHANGE IN THE CHARACTER OF OUR STORY

So, what did Simon do after his experience of the crucifixion of our Lord?

It is believed that Simon believed upon Jesus!

It is believed that Simon was converted and became a leader in the Christian Church.

“Now, Brother Bobby where do you get that from?”

Look back with me if you will at Marks account of this incident.

Mark 15:21 — And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.

It says here that Simon of Cyrene was the father of Alexander and Rufus, right?

One commentator said this...

Simon's sons were known to Mark. There is a good chance that Simon was converted as a result of being forced to carry the cross because Mark mentions these two sons.

It is also believed that Simon's son Rufus became a leader at the church in Rome which was the recipient of Mark's gospel. — Mattoon’s Treasures

In the Book of Romans Paul says in...

Romans 16:13 — Salute Rufus chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine.

I believe after Simon’s unsuspecting but divine run in with our Lord on the Via Dolorosa that day, I believe his life was changed forever and because of that change his family became well known and highly revered in the Christian Church.

I mean, imagine the testimony this man Simon took back with him to the Church in Cyrene!

“I helped to bear the cross of the Lord, Jesus Christ!”

It doesn’t get more powerful than that does it?

Which leads me to the final point in our message today.

THE CHALLENGE TO THOSE WHO WOULD CARRY THE CROSS TODAY

You see, Simon was chosen out of a crowd of who knows how many, to bear the cross of Christ and implications of this to us today are a perfect parallel to our position as believers.

The first thing I want to bring your attention to is THE WEIGHT OF THE CROSS.

THE WEIGHT OF THE CROSS

Carrying the cross of Christ was a heavy burden for Simon.

Yes, it was heavy physically but it was also heavy spiritually. The reproach and shame that Simon himself bore for bearing Christ’s cross was more than likely unimaginable.

I’m sure people looked at him differently. They probably talked about him behind his back. They more than likely mocked him as well once he turned to belief in Christ and this weighed heavily on Simon just as it does on those of us who bear the cross today!

The weight of the cross can at times be hard to bear!

When you lose friends, family members, co-workers, jobs and potentially your life for the cause of Christ, it can at times seem to be an unbearable cross to carry!

But I believe, just as Simon helped to bear that cross for Christ, when our cross gets to heavy to bear, Christ steps in and helps to bears our cross for his name’s sake!

2 Corinthians 12:10 — Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Proverbs 18:24 — A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: And there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.

Hebrews 13:5c — “for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”

The cross of Christ is heavy but we must remember we’re not carrying it alone.

Not only is there THE WEIGHT OF THE CROSS but there is also THE WAY OF THE CROSS.

THE WAY OF THE CROSS

The way to Calvary was all up hill. It wasn’t an easy way.

These prosperity preachers say, “just come to Christ and He will fix all your problems. You won’t have any rough times if you come and make Him your Lord! Just name it and claim it and it’s yours!”

But this simply isn’t the case, Church!

Jesus actually promised right the opposite. He said in...

John 16:33 — These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

The only thing Jesus promised us in this world is tribulation for following Him!

“You shall have tribulation!”

But He went on to say, “be of good cheer for I have overcome the world!”

And what I believe Jesus is saying to us in this verse is this… “You will have tribulation! The road will NOT be easy! There will be ups and downs, good days and bad, easy times and hard times but when those bad days come, when those hard times come, when those times of tribulation come, you can overcome them because I overcame the world and I am in you and you are in me and together we can overcome anything this world throws at us!”

The way of the cross is definitely not the easiest path to take!

The way of the world is the easy way but the way of Christ is a hard way!

Jesus said in...

John 15:19-21 — 19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. 20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things will they do unto you for my name’s sake, because they know not him that sent me.

Listen to me this morning friend, because I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. The way of the cross will be hard at times.

It will require you to make sacrifices...

That’s why Paul said in...

Romans 12:1 — I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

And dear friend, sometimes those sacrifices will be severe but when asked to make a sacrifice for Christ keep this thought in mind…Jesus was the sacrifice for you so that you and I might inherit eternal life!

He gave His life a sacrifice so the least you and I can do is live our life as a sacrifice for Him, Amen!

Luke 9:23 — 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.

The Way of the Cross is a tough one but lastly this morning, I want you to see THE WORTH OF THE CROSS!

THE WORTH OF THE CROSS

Now, I don’t want anyone here to get the wrong idea so let me spell it out for you big, plain and straight.

It’s not the cross that saves a man.

The wood of that cross has no intrinsic value whatsoever.

But it’s what took place on that cross and who it was that gave their life on it for you! That’s where the worth of the cross lies.

The one and only Son of God, stepped out of the throne room of heaven and was born by the virgin Mary into this world of woe.

He relinquished Himself from the splendors of heaven and made Himself of no reputation, the Bible says, and came in the form of a servant!

He lived a perfect life and died a perfect death and in His perfect death, He shed His perfect blood for the sins of all mankind!

He became the perfect, eternal sacrifice so that all who would believe in and call upon His name should be saved!

What took place on that cross at Calvary was the shedding of perfect blood for the remission of sins and what you need to know this morning dear friend is that, that blood was shed for you!

So that you might believe and be gloriously saved!

Jesus Christ, the one and only Son of God, while on that cross, suspended between heaven and earth, bridged the gap between God and man that was set in motion in the Garden of Eden.

He became our high priest, so man no longer needed to go speak to priest for forgiveness of sins. Now man can go directly to God through the Lord Jesus Christ!

He who knew no sin, became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him!

And it’s through His blood only that mankind will enter the throws of the Father for Jesus is the way, the truth and the life and no man will cometh to the Father but through Him!

The worth of the blood that was shed on that cross that day is priceless!

And the question I ask each of you this day is this…have you applied the shed blood of Jesus to your life?

Have you ever asked Jesus to come into your heart and save you?

Have you ever publicly professed Him as Lord of your life?

If not, won’t you do so today?

The Bible says, “it is appointed unto man once to die and then the judgement.”

My prayer is that there’s not a single person here who would be weighed in the balances and found wanting!

Can you imagine standing before God one day and hearing those dreaded words… “depart from me, ye that work iniquity, I know ye not!”

You need to know you don’t have to worry about that for Jesus has made a way and all you have to do is to believe in that way this morning.

Won’t you do that right now?

As they come get us a song, and everyone else bows their head in prayer, if God is dealing with your heart this morning won’t you come get things straight with Him?

Now is the accepted time and today is the day of salvation. Come while there is still time!