I Thought I Knew the Story of Easter

I THOUGHT I knew the story of Easter pretty well…

I’d learned about my Savior’s suffering, and resurrection since I was a child.

I have imagined it many times..
I have read the story in the bible MANY times over

I THOUGHT I knew the Characters in the story.

I had studied them.
I had put myself in their shoes.
I had pondered deeply on how the events of Holy Week affected them.

How must I have felt to be…

Mary the mother of Jesus..watching her baby be murdered

Judas,who sold Christ for a small amount of silver …to be delivered to Crucifixion.

Peter, Christs beloved companion and apostle, who denied his master 3 times.

Pilate who found no guilt in Christ, yet delivered him to the people to unjustly be killed.

His many dear friends …Who stood by helpless.

Joseph of Aramethea who begged for the body of Christ from the Roman soldiers to put it in his own tomb

The Roman soldiers who were assigned to guard the tomb, to be sure no one “feigned resurrection”

Mary Magdalene, who was first to see our risen Lord.

In all my years of study…..

In all my years of worshiping Christ at Easter…

I realized……. I missed a person.

As I was preparing to teach my children about Holy Week …. I came across a coloring page of Jesus Carrying the cross.

And I realized…it was NOT JESUS CARRYING THE CROSS!!!!

I knew that someone had helped him…but I didn’t really ever think about that mans story!!

When we teach the kids in homeschool we always ask them QUESTIONS about what they read to see how much they learned.

So I anticipated the question….

Who WAS the man who carried the cross for My Savior.??

Who WAS this man who stepped in when Christ was at his weakest, who literally bore the cross of the Lord on his own back?

To be honest ….I had always thought it was one of Jesus’ disciples.

Of COURSE one of the people who loved Jesus the MOST would have gladly dove through the jeering crowds and helped Jesus bear the cross!

Right?!!

But Who WAS the man who carried the cross of my Savior ??

Maybe everyone else always knew this part of the story …but I didn’t!??

His name was Simon of Cyrene.

Some people believe this Simon was a “discrete” follower of Jesus.

Some people believe he was merely a passer by whom the Romans plucked from the crowd to bear the cross of a stranger.

Many believe that him and his family became Christians AFTER he bore the cross that day.

Ok ….so after I got over my guilt that I had never even given much thought to this part of the story….

This man’s story has weaved it’s way through my heart as I have thought and prayed over it the past few days….

I have learned that God places every piece in every story FOR A REASON!!
That reason…. is for us to LEARN something!!

What IF this man WAS a stranger to Jesus ?!

What does it MEAN to us that God chose a stranger to carry the cross of his beloved son at the most vulnerable moment of his life???

Is it significant that Jesus was sold and denied by his closest friends …and then a stranger bore his cross??!!

What would you have done if that had been YOU plucked from the crowds???

How would it have FELT to look into the eyes of an exhausted Jesus ….and help him shoulder the beam….and then watch him be brutally nailed to it??

How must it have affected this man for the rest of his life?!!

How would that day have affected this man’s family for generations to come??

What LESSONS can we learn from this man??

I asked myself this ….

When was the last time that I helped carry the cross of a stranger??

Do I judge who is worthy of my service ???

Do I see someone in need and leave them to shoulder their own burdens ??

Do I judge???
Do I hold back love because I don’t understand them??

Do I hold back from helping because I feel they deserve their predicament???

I mean this man would have thought Jesus was a criminal!!!
It would have been disgraceful to help a criminal right?!!

Yet …unknowingly …he bore the burden of the Redeemer of the world!

What did I learn this week??!

You can never judge someone’s cross they are called to carry.

You are only asked to love your neighbor as yourself.

Your neighbor is your brother and Everyone is a child of God.

So …when you see a burden …

Do you stand far off??

Do you gossip to your friend about it??

Do you hesitate to help out of fear of what others will perceive you as ??

Do you throw insults like rocks at them through your unkind words??

Do you wait timidly until the one in need passes you by??

Do you refuse to help because you believe they deserve it?!?

Do you refuse to help because you don’t quite understand it??

What do you do when YOU see a burden on someone’s shoulders??

Remember that the Romans did not really understand Jesus. And yet…they did not stop injustice. They nailed him to a cross.

Maybe the crowd didn’t understand Jesus …..but they did nothing to stop the torture.

And yet this man….who could have refused… Who may not have even known ANYTHING of Jesus …..allowed the burden of Jesus to fall on his back.

What is our responsibility to our fellow men?!

Jesus answered that question over and over again.

Judge not.
Feed the hungry.
Clothe the naked.
Heal the sick and afflicted.
Visit those in prison.
LOVE your neighbor as yourself.

You don’t need to understand someone’s story.
You don’t even need to know them at all.
You do not need to judge wether or not they deserve your help.

Christ already paid for their sins….they are whole and wholly loved in Jesus.

And so are YOU.

Your part…your responsibility …is just to LOVE.

No matter the circumstances…. God has asked you to help them carry their burdens.

Christ bore ALL our burdens.

May we lighten the load on his shoulders…by helping our brothers and sisters shoulder their burdens.

Here is an Easter Challenge….

Love someone today that you might find hard to love.

Forgive someone today.

Quietly serve anyone who is in reach of your arms.

And open your heart…. And allow the Savior to fill it will HIS love today.

He suffered…so you could be set free from your burdens.

Give them over to Him who conquered sin and death. Give your burdens to Him who loves you wholly and can make you whole. ❤️

Today is “Good Friday”
And oh how Good our God is to us …for giving us his Son Jesus Christ.
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Luke 6:
32 For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them.

33 And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same.

34 And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? for sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again.

35 But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

36 Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.

37 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:

38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure…..For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
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