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Mar 04, 2018

Faces at the Cross: Simon of Cyrene

Faces at the Cross: Simon of Cyrene

Passage: Mark 15:16-26

Speaker: Michael E. Karunas

Series: Lent Sermon Series

Category: 2018 Lent Sermon Series

The last week of Jesus’ life began with him riding into Jerusalem on a colt, with crowds cheering his entrance.  He was there to celebrate Passover, a yearly religious festival.  In fact, many people from all over the country came to Jerusalem, like Jesus, to celebrate Passover there.  In Jerusalem, during the Passover, he held his “last supper” with his disciples.  He then went to a garden called Gethsemane to pray.  In the garden he was arrested by Jewish guards, who took him to the home of Caiaphas, the High Priest.  The rest of the council – called The Sanhedrin and comprised of 70 priests in all – was already there.  During the night they looked for a reason to put him Jesus to death.  All the charges were flimsy.  The priests were trying to see if anything might stick.  Finally, they agreed that Jesus claimed he would destroy the temple, which was blasphemy to God.  That was enough to sentence him to death.

But they couldn’t execute him themselves.  Only a Roman governor could.  So first thing in the morning, they brought Jesus to Pontius Pilate and the crowds that gathered before Pilate demanded that Jesus be put to death.  That’s where we ended things last week.  “So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowds, released Barabbas for them and after flogging Jesus, handed him over to be crucified” (MK 15:15).  Here’s what happened next (Read MK 15:16-26)

(INRI – Iesous Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum)

“They compelled a passerby, coming in from the countryside, to carry his cross.  It was Simon of Cyrene.”  He is our theme for today – Simon of Cyrene – though all we hear about him is one, single verse.  And it makes us wonder: Who was this Simon of Cyrene, who carried Jesus’ cross? 

In some ways, he seems to be well known to Mark, who’s telling this story – and to the people to whom Mark is telling it.  Of all the people in the crowds around Jesus at this time, his is the only name that’s mentioned.  As though people reading it would recognize him (“Oh, look, Simon of Cyrene was there”).  Even his sons are mentioned, Alexander and Rufus, as though they might be recognized too – or that Simon was so well known to people they also know his family.  But what might he have been known for?

He’s from a city called Cyrene, which was quite far away.  It’s in modern day Libya, hundreds of miles west of the Nile River in Egypt.  But since he was familiar to the people in Jerusalem, perhaps he traveled the often.  Archaeologists have discovered that there was a large medical school in Cyrene, so perhaps Simon was a doctor; a servant of the community; a respected healer?  Maybe he brought these talents to Jerusalem and helped people there?

Of course, he’s well known to us because he carries Jesus’ cross.  And we know that the Roman soldiers “compel” him to do this.  Did they force him?  Grab him by the arm and pull him from the crowd?  Did Simon do this against his will?  Was he reluctant?  Hesitant?  Or did he do so willingly?  Was he eager to help Jesus?  In the Stations of the Cross, Simon of Cyrene is station #5.  According to Catholic tradition, Simon is eager to help Jesus, moved to compassion by the great suffering of Christ.  According to Mel Gibson’s famous Passion of the Christ, Simon is at first unwilling to help Jesus and has to be forced to do so.  But in the course of helping him, Simon has a “conversion” of sorts and ultimately gladly helps him. 

I’m not sure any of us can be certain about any of this.  But what we do know is that he was in the crowd that day as Jesus went to his death, as opposed to the disciples who fled!  All of them deserted Jesus when he was arrested the night before.  In his time of need, they all abandoned him.  But not Simon.  He stayed close.  Which means that he’s going to be a witness to everything that happened next.  As soon as Jesus died and rose, there were disputes over what actually happened.  There were some who said that Jesus didn’t really die; that the resurrection was an illusion; more myth than miracle.  But Simon of Cyrene, because he was in the crowd and because he didn’t run away, is going to be able to say “I saw Jesus die.  Therefore, the resurrection is real.  I even helped him carry this cross!” 

We also know that he’s coming in from the countryside, as Jesus is trudging by.  In other words, he’s just getting there, like he’s a little late in arriving on the scene.  Which means that he wasn’t there in the crowd that demanded Jesus die.  So he doesn’t represent the fickle nature of the duplicitous crowd which says one thing one moment and something completely different the next.  He’s not tainted by the sin of the crowd that stood before Pilate and said “Crucify him.”  Simon is consistently committed to Christ where they are not.

We see that most clearly in the way Simon literally takes up Jesus’ cross and follows him.  Earlier in Jesus’ ministry, he said “Whoever wishes to be my disciple, let them take up the cross and follow me.”  This is exactly what Simon did and it is the most important thing to know about him.  He stands in contrast to the crowds who could say one thing one moment and another much different thing the next; who were inconsistent in their relationship to Christ.  We don’t hear Simon of Cyrene speak at all.  Yet, didn’t use his silence as an excuse to hide in the crowd, rather he stepped up in the crowd and stepped out away from the crowd when that was what Jesus needed..  And he stands in contrast to the disciples.  We hear them talking often.  Peter bragged that he wouldn’t deny Jesus.  James and John demanded that Jesus give them the privileged positions in the kingdom.  And the rest of them argued about who was the greatest.  But when action was required of them they had nothing to offer.  For when Jesus was arrested, we are told they all deserted and fled. 

Jesus once told a parable that went like this: A man had two sons.  He said to the first, “Go and work in the vineyard.”  He answered, “I will go,” but did not actually go.  He went to the second son and said the same thing.  He said, “I will not go,” but later changed his mind and went.  And it is clear that the one Jesus praises is the second son; the one who actually does the will of the father.  That’s Simon. 

 

Last week, as we thought about the crowds around Jesus, we were invited to see ourselves in the crowd – to see ourselves as people with the capability to do great good, but also great harm; to shout “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord” one day and “Let him be crucified” the next.  Today, we seek to follow Simon’s example and step up and out from the crowd because such faithfulness and commitment is what is asked of all of us.  So as we move into this coming week, I invite us all to consider this question: “Where is Christ calling you to step up and take on some challenge?  Maybe it’s a brand new one.  Maybe it’s one we’ve been thinking about for a long time.  Where is Christ calling you to step out of the crowd and lead by example?  In a way you haven’t done before?