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Home , Simon of Cyrene

The Transforming Power of the Cross and the Resurrection

Have you ever planned something special to do—something that you have really been looking forward to for a very long time—it could be a special trip or vacation—or maybe even something as simple as sitting down and reading a good book you’ve been waiting to read or watching a movie on DVD that you have been wanting to see. But, just when you get into doing it—something interrupts you. You have started out on your dream vacation—but the car has a flat tire. You are reading that book or watching the movie—and the phone rings. And you think, “Wow, why does this always happen to me?” I have to believe that that is the way that Simon must have felt on the day that was crucified. And not referring to Simon Peter, Jesus’ . No, this is a different Simon—one who doesn’t receive quite as much attention in the . But this Simon has a story that bears telling, because in many ways he reflects the wonder and transforming power of the Cross and of the in a manner that is compelling for all of us. His story teaches us that sometimes an interruption is exactly what we may need. You see, from all indications, Simon had planned one of those special things that he has longed to do all of his life. He had scrimped and saved his money for a trip from his home town in Cyrene in order to go to the Holy City of . It was a long voyage to Jerusalem because Cyrene was located in North Africa in what is now the City of Tripoli, the capital of modern-day .1 Since the time of the Greek rule in Palestine, there had been a large Jewish community in Cyrene and they all relished the opportunity to finally get to Jerusalem to take part in the Passover celebration. And that’s why Simon was going—he was either an ethnic Jew living in Cyrene or a recent convert to Judaism. Either way, apparently his dedication to the faith motivated him to make this special trip. So he boarded a sailing ship headed east across the Mediterranean Sea and landed in a port on the Palestinian coast, and then walked inland all the way to Jerusalem. But when he got there, he was surprised by what he saw. There was this huge crowd of people outside the city gate and there seemed to be some kind of procession going on that was being orchestrated by Roman soldiers. They seemed to be conducting three criminals up a hill for their execution. So as Simon came near to this, he naturally wanted to know what was going on. Simon may have asked, “What in the world is happening here! Why aren’t the people inside the City, surrounding the Temple in celebration of Passover? I have traveled many miles for this celebration—not just to see some criminals executed!” As Simon watched the lead criminal approaching, followed by two thieves, he would have likely seen a sign being carried behind each of them. Sometimes the Roman would do this and write upon the signs the crimes that the criminals had

1 committed in an effort to further shame them. The signs connected with the two criminals who were bringing up the rear probably stated nothing more than the word “Thief.” But, Simon could not make any sense of the sign that related to the Man out front—the one that was approaching him now and was only a few feet away—because that sign read in three languages—Hebrew, Greek and Latin: “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.”2 Simon must have found that very puzzling. The “King of the Jews”?—wait a minute, Simon thought, “The only King of the Jews is the Messiah.” Any good Jew knew that the Messiah would have the “government upon his shoulders.” After all, that is exactly what Isaiah prophesied when he said: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty

God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6 (NIV) So, how could this “criminal” be the Messiah—the only thing upon His shoulder was the wooden beam of a cross? Although Simon was apparently a devout Jew and remembered part of Isaiah’s prophecy, somehow he had forgotten something else that Isaiah said about the Messiah: 4 “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. 12 He willingly gave his life and shared the fate of evil men. He took the place of many sinners and prayed that they might be forgiven.” Isaiah 53:4-5 (ESV) 12 (TEV) Turning to a man in the crowd standing beside him, Simon may have asked why was this Man called “King of the Jews”? But the man didn’t pay Simon any attention. He was too busy was shouting in an angry voice, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” So Simon would have likely turned the other way, and may have seen a woman there who was weeping. So he asked her the same question and all that she could get out through her sobs and her tears is: “His name is Jesus of Nazareth, and He is our Savior.” Now Simon was even more confused, for how could this criminal, this Jesus, be anyone’s savior, not to mention the Messiah? After all, it was quite evident that He was about to be executed. No sooner than the thought crossed Simon’s mind, did something unexpected happen—something that would bring on that unwanted interruption of Simon’s well-planned Passover trip. Up to this point, Jesus had been moving along slowly, painfully—but under His own power. Until now, Jesus had been able to bear the weight of the Cross. But, just as Jesus got outside the city gates and started to pass in front of Simon, He collapsed and fell to the ground—the heavy wooden cross-beam pounding Him as He hit the pavement. And Jesus just laid there at Simon’s feet. Now for the first time, Simon could see more clearly the mangled flesh on His back from the beating He took from Roman whips. He could see Jesus’ battered and bloody face from the fists of the soldiers who had struck Him repeatedly. And

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Simon could see a very odd, crude crown that this Jesus was wearing—it wasn’t the kind of crown he would have associated with a King. It was one made of thorns that had been pressed harshly upon Jesus’ brow, causing even more trickles of blood to run down His face. And then that unexpected thing happened. Simon felt something on his shoulder—the tap of a sword. And that tap of the sword had a well-known meaning in the Roman world. If a Roman soldier did such a thing, it meant that you had been commandeered into the service of Rome. In other words, the soldier was making it clear that Simon was being commanded to take up Jesus’ cross and carry it the rest of the way up that steep hill that the locals called the “Skull”, due to its gruesome shape.3 Now just to be clear, the soldier wasn’t doing this out of compassion for Jesus. Rather, the soldiers who were escorting Jesus wanted to make sure that Jesus survived His walk up that hill. And the reason they wanted Him to survive was to be certain that Jesus could be crucified and tortured to the fullest extent possible—right up to the time that one of them would thrust a spear into His side as Jesus hung on the Cross. And so it was that Simon of Cyrene was now compelled by Roman law to carry the Cross of Christ the remainder of the way to Calvary. And that is exactly what Simon did. He didn’t want to do it. Until he met Jesus, Simon was headed into the city. That’s where he wanted to go—begin that Passover celebration in the Holy City as he had long dreamed about—he was carrying out his own plans for his life. The last thing that he had planned to do was to head away from the city and up a hill to assist in the execution of a criminal. But Jesus has a way of re-routing the plans of those who come to Him. Jesus has a way of turning people’s direction completely around—and such was the case with Simon. But, Simon still had quite a bit more to experience before he would take on the direction that Jesus had in store for him. It is hard to imagine that Simon and Jesus did not have at least some interaction as they climbed Calvary together—if not by words, then by perception. If Simon looked into the eyes of Jesus as he took up His Cross, he didn’t see the eyes of a guilty man. He did not see the eyes of an angry man. He did not see the eyes of a defeated man. Rather, he would have seen, through the pain that wracked Jesus’ face, the divine eyes of a man who was doing something that He had planned for all of His life. Strangely enough, Simon would have observed in Jesus’ eyes the expression of joy. It was the joy described in the Scriptures that tell us: “[Look] to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of

God.” Hebrews 12:2 (ESV) Those who will look into the eyes of Jesus can never be the same again. Those who carry the Cross of Christ are forever changed. For Simon, this truth was becoming a reality.

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The Scriptures do not tell us what Simon did once he reached the top of Calvary’s hill. We do not know what happened to him once he laid the cross down and the soldiers made Jesus ready for His execution by nailing spikes through His hands and feet and lifted Jesus up on the Cross to die. But I am convinced that Simon remained there by the Cross to the very end.4 If so, he must have stood amazed when Jesus looked upon those who were inflicting such great pain upon Him and prayed to God, on their behalf, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34 (KJV) And Simon’s thoughts must have begun to change as he heard that short conversation between Jesus and the thieves who occupied the crosses next to Him. One thief mocked Jesus. But the Scriptures tell us: 40 The other one, however, rebuked him [referring to the mocking thief], saying, "Don't you fear God? You received the same sentence he did. 41 Ours, however, is only right, because we are getting what we deserve for what we did; but he has done no wrong." 42 And he said to Jesus, "Remember me, Jesus, when you come as King!" 43 Jesus said to him, "I promise you that today you will be in Paradise with me." Luke 23:40-43 (TEV) And even the Roman centurion, after He witnessed how Jesus died, declared, "Surely this man was the Son of God!"5 And if Simon took all of this in, as seems to be the case, then His heart was transformed. His thoughts were turned away from celebration and became focused on proclamation—proclamation of the Good News of Jesus Christ. But for the time being, Simon—like Jesus’ disciples—was simply bewildered by all of this. For as the agonizing hours passed, Jesus died on that Cross. If this Man was the Son of God, as the centurion said, then how could anyone explain the fact that Jesus was now dead? And this would trouble Simon of Cyrene, and Simon Peter, and James and John and the rest of the disciples from this darkest of Friday afternoons, until the dawn of the Third Day. Until Sunday morning, all of them were headed down a road of despair. But, on that Sunday morn, something even more unexpected was discovered, and it would change the thinking and the hearts of all of Jesus’ followers— of which Simon of Cyrene was now a part. and another woman named Mary went to Jesus’ tomb at dawn on Sunday morning. There they found and who told them: 5 “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’” Matthew 28:5-7 (NIV) This great news of the Resurrection came to the disciples, and Jesus—in the flesh—eventually visited them as well. And then, beyond any shadow of a doubt, they knew that He was there King, their Lord and their Savior. All of this changed them radically from a group that was bitterly discouraged and hiding in the shadows, to true

4 followers of Jesus Christ who would boldly carry His message of salvation to “Jerusalem, and to all and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”6 And I have no doubt that Simon of Cyrene was among them in carrying the message to the far reaches of the earth. Now that is not just mere speculation on my part. Any reasonable reading of the Scriptures indicates that Simon’s life was completely changed by His experience with Jesus during that Passover week and because of that Resurrection Morning. Note that Mark’s Gospel gives us a little added information about Simon of Cyrene. It tells us that he was the father of “ and Rufus.”7 Now there is really no reason to mention his son’s names unless they were familiar to the Christian community during that the time Mark wrote his Gospel—in about 60 A.D., which was about 30 years after Jesus’ . With this being the case, it is reasonable to assume that Alexander and Rufus were prominent Christians in the early Church. This, in turn, is a pretty good indicator that Simon, their father, had become a Christian and converted his entire family to following Christ. But that’s not all. In Romans 16:13, Paul offers a greeting in which he states: “Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too.” Romans 16:13 (NIV) And in Acts 19, reference is made to a Jewish convert to Christianity named Alexander. scholars believe that both references are to the sons of Simon of Cyrene—indicating that Simon’s experience with Jesus in carrying that Cross up the hill of Calvary made all the difference in not only his life, but that of his family as well. Isaiah had spoken of the Messiah and said that the “government would be on his shoulders.” Simon came to realize what that was all about. The “government” that Jesus carried on His shoulders was The Cross. This is what His “government”—His rule, is all about.8 The Cross represents His rule of service and sacrifice. And it is that obligation of service and sacrifice that Jesus calls us to accept today.

[Jesus said,] “Anyone who does not take his cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me.” Matthew 10:38 (NIV) The first person to actually do that, in a very literal way, was Simon of Cyrene. We are called to do the same. But “bearing our crosses” doesn’t mean to merely be patient and courageous during times of trial. It doesn’t mean simply to accept the burden of our Christian obligations. Rather, it means that we accept the fact that we are to go to our own .9 So the question is how do we do this—how do we bear our own crucifixions? Our crucifixions are mild compared to the suffering of Jesus, but they include those times in life that when we are faced with tasks that we’d rather not perform—those times when we feel the pain of sacrificing our precious time in service to others. Maybe they are little things like visiting a sick friend, offering a kind word to a stranger down on their luck, lending a helping hand to those whom we know can never repay us, or actually speaking to someone about the Gospel even though you feel shy or even

5 uncomfortable about doing so. These things are not natural to us unless we carry the Cross of Jesus— the Cross that transforms our desires, our thinking and our perceptions. When we carry the Cross of Jesus and experience its effect on our lives, we crucify our old natural inclinations that would otherwise avoid service to others. That’s how we go to our own crucifixions. And we do it with the confidence of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. When Simon was headed into Jerusalem with the Passover celebration in his plans, those plans were interrupted. For Simon, it was an interruption that changed his life and saved his soul. What about you?—are your life plans in need of a little interruption? That is certainly the case with some life plans—for example, those committed solely to pleasure (alcohol, drugs, sex, etc.), or a life plan that is completely dedicated to the acquisition of material things, or one that is self-centered and dominated by the idea that we are only to look out for “number one.” Other life plans are not necessarily bad, in and of themselves—the pursuit of marriage and family, the pursuit of a career, the pursuit of a better standard of living—nothing implicitly evil there. But, life pursuits apart from Christ are always bad plans. Rather, make Jesus a part of your plans by living your life according to His plan. The Blood of Christ in His crucifixion and His resurrection from dead guarantee that that’s a plan that can never go wrong. If you want that kind of plan—the only plan for salvation—it’s time to let Jesus do a little interrupting in your life today. Let us pray.

Forest Hill Baptist Church Darvin Satterwhite, Pastor ©2017 Easter: April 16, 2017

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1 NET , First ed. (Richardson, TX: Biblical Studies Press, 1996), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under: "Chapter 27".

2 :37 (ESV) And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.” 3 Matthew 27:32-33 (NIV) 32 As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. 33 They came to a place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull).

4 See: James Montgomery Boice, An Expositional Commentary – The , Volume 2: The Triumph of the King (Matthew 18-28), Paperback ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2006), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, 614-615.

5 :39 (NIV) 39 And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and saw how he died, he said, "Surely this man was the Son of God!"

6 Acts 1:8 (NKJV) But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.

7 Mark 15:21 (NIV) A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross.

8 Jon Courson, Jon Courson's Application Commentary – Jon Courson's Application Commentary New Testament, (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2004), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, 208-209. 9 The Bible Study: Simon of Cyrene, http://thebiblestudy.co.uk/study/simon-of-cyrene.

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