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."
Jesus had been humiliated, beaten, spit upon, scourged, and rejected. He is being taken to the place of the skull, a place of death, the place where common criminals were executed. As they bring Him out of the common hall of judgment, they make Simon of Cyrene to carry the cross up the hill.
There are a couple things about this verse that I must confess this morning as I write. First, I had always pictured that Jesus must have stumbled and then they made Simon carry the cross the rest of the way. Now where did I get that image in my mind? As I think back, it was from a television movie concerning the death of Jesus. So, for myself and others, I say be careful what we accept to be fact. I went back this morning to all four accounts of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. No where does it say Jesus stumbled out of weakness and then they made Simon carry the cross the rest of the way. As I read the four accounts, I see immediately they compelled Simon to carry the cross of Jesus.
The next thing I noticed in this verse of Scripture is that Mark names the two sons of Simon. Confession time again, I had never before noticed this while reading the book of Mark. Why would Mark mention the names of Simon's two sons? It seems logical to me that Mark would have known the two men. They are later mentioned in Scripture. Alexander is mentioned in the book of Acts and Rufus is mentioned in the book of Romans. By that time, Mark would have been traveling with Paul and later with Barnabas.
So for me this morning, my devotion is two fold. First, something is not a fact just because you see it on television or in the movies. The second thing that comes to mind concerns Simon and his sons. I have to wonder in my mind how many times did Simon describe the experience of carrying the cross of Jesus. How many times did he relay his feelings to his family and friends? I have to wonder how many times did he sit his two sons down and tell them about the physical appearance of Jesus as they brought Him out of the judgment hall? It surely had an affect on both of them. And I have to believe they would later tell a young man by the name of John Mark about their father's deed of carrying the cross of Jesus.
It's very important as parents and as friends that we share our experience with Jesus with one another. He is so good to every one of us and we all should take time to share with others that we might be an encouragement to them.
Jesus had been humiliated, beaten, spit upon, scourged, and rejected. He is being taken to the place of the skull, a place of death, the place where common criminals were executed. As they bring Him out of the common hall of judgment, they make Simon of Cyrene to carry the cross up the hill.
There are a couple things about this verse that I must confess this morning as I write. First, I had always pictured that Jesus must have stumbled and then they made Simon carry the cross the rest of the way. Now where did I get that image in my mind? As I think back, it was from a television movie concerning the death of Jesus. So, for myself and others, I say be careful what we accept to be fact. I went back this morning to all four accounts of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. No where does it say Jesus stumbled out of weakness and then they made Simon carry the cross the rest of the way. As I read the four accounts, I see immediately they compelled Simon to carry the cross of Jesus.
The next thing I noticed in this verse of Scripture is that Mark names the two sons of Simon. Confession time again, I had never before noticed this while reading the book of Mark. Why would Mark mention the names of Simon's two sons? It seems logical to me that Mark would have known the two men. They are later mentioned in Scripture. Alexander is mentioned in the book of Acts and Rufus is mentioned in the book of Romans. By that time, Mark would have been traveling with Paul and later with Barnabas.
So for me this morning, my devotion is two fold. First, something is not a fact just because you see it on television or in the movies. The second thing that comes to mind concerns Simon and his sons. I have to wonder in my mind how many times did Simon describe the experience of carrying the cross of Jesus. How many times did he relay his feelings to his family and friends? I have to wonder how many times did he sit his two sons down and tell them about the physical appearance of Jesus as they brought Him out of the judgment hall? It surely had an affect on both of them. And I have to believe they would later tell a young man by the name of John Mark about their father's deed of carrying the cross of Jesus.
It's very important as parents and as friends that we share our experience with Jesus with one another. He is so good to every one of us and we all should take time to share with others that we might be an encouragement to them.