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Point of Reference
by Fred Price
If I were to ask you to imagine yourself as someone else – or to identify with their situation – who would it be?
Conceiving a mental image of a person, event or possible outcome to our choices is often necessary to plan for the future, as almost every physical action is the result of a mental image or idea. Identifying with someone entails gaining an understanding of who they are and the situation they find themselves, so that we are tempted to respond on their behalf or in concert with them. The choice before us then becoming whether we merely sympathize with them – usually expressed as a sharing of their mental state and emotions – or empathize with them, which involves more of an intellectual identification of their situation and circumstances – seeing what they see and feeling what they feel – yet rising above the emotional response of the moment to a more rational response to the circumstances they are dealing with. Being able to “put ourselves in someone else’s shoes” and thus feeling their joy or pain is instrumental in relating to them as a friend and confidant (Romans 12:15), yet stepping back and making a non-emotional assessment of their situation is often imperative. Only then can we make a reasonable decision as to whether we follow their example or involve ourselves in their lives.
Having said all that, I’d like to challenge you now to imagine yourself as Simon of Cyrene. Who? The man selected from the crowd of onlookers to help Christ carry his cross to Golgotha’s hill. (Matthew 27:32, Luke 23:26) Why would I do that? He deserves our sympathy, yet I would rather you empathize with him instead. To fully understand and identify with him we must first feel for him; the confusion, embarrassment and fear this experience surely brought to him. But a more thorough examination of this man, as far as the evidence allows, and the circumstances he found himself in that day, may allow us to more fully understand him and emulate the person he became as a result.
Matthew and Luke seem to indicate that Simon was picked at random to help a physically beaten and exhausted Christ carry his cross to the crucifixion site. He evidently wasn’t antagonistic to Jesus; so was he merely curious as so many others were, a secret admirer, or a somewhat sympathetic bystander watching a convicted criminal led away to his death? Either way, he was now being so closely identified with Him as to share in his punishment; at the very least facing ridicule for his participation in “escorting” Christ to his appointment with death. What did he think of all that was happening around him – all that was now being done to him as the guards so cavalierly “recruited” his help?
Mark 15:21 makes a point of mentioning Simon’s sons, Alexander and Rufus. And while no specific details are given of either one, a Rufus and his mother are mentioned by Paul in Romans 16:13; praised for their faithfulness to the church and in particular Paul’s needs – tradition holding that this is indeed Simon’s wife and son, followers of the Way as a result of Simon’s life-changing experience.
Imagine what it would have been like to be Simon, carrying Christ’s cross to Calvary.1 What would it have been like to share in the humiliation, ridicule and rejection Christ suffered as He was led out of the city? What would it have been like to feel the sticky warmth of Jesus’ blood as it smeared from the cross on to his clothes and skin or to feel the increasing dread as the place of execution neared? What would it have been like to see the executioner’s waiting impassively with hammers in hand and then to have that burdensome cross lifted from your shoulders as someone says, ‘This is his cross now – you’re free to go.’?
Do you think he was relieved to get away from the execution site, the press of the crowd, the inquisitive eyes, the questions as to his involvement in this sordid scene, the suspicion that – just maybe – he was really a follower of this criminal and just as guilty? Would he have been pleased at the prospect of leaving this wretched city as he “escaped” back home to the country? Did he rejoice or mourn with his wife and family as he recounted the experiences of his day? And more importantly, do you think he thought about, brooded over and made inquiry into the life of the one he had so closely shared in at its end? And if, as is believed, he himself later found salvation by professing belief in Jesus as the Son of God, wouldn’t that explain he and his family’s willingness to then live their lives in obedience to His word through ministry?
Which brings us to the question: How far have you gone in identifying with Jesus Christ? Have you expressed love and devotion to him – in word and deed – worshipping him as God’s son and your Savior? Will you take up his cross as your own, willingly suffering and dying alongside him as you walk your own “way of the cross”? (Matthew 16:24; 10:38 & Luke 14:27)The sobering reality of identifying with Christ’s initial call of “Come, follow me…” Matthew 4:19, finding completion in obedience to His demand for self-denial as a consequence of losing ourselves in His will communicated to us through His gospel. (Mark 8:34,35)
1Based on a devotional published in Passion With A Purpose, submitted by Anne Graham Lutz from her book, The Joy of My Heart.
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Fred Price - married (50 years), father of two grown children, grandfather of six.
Fred retired earlier this year after 42 years as a factory worker. He has always had a heart for young people and the challenges they face today. Over the years Fred has taught Discipleship Groups for High School and college students.
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