Jump Start # 1276

Mark 15:21 “They pressed into service a passer-by coming from the country, Simon of Cyrene (the father of Alexander and Rufus), to bear His cross.”

  Mark records the Lord’s journey to the place of His execution. Tired, beaten, scourged, Jesus struggles with the heavy cross beam of the cross that will hold His body in a very short time. Luke tells us that the cross was placed on Simon and he walked behind Jesus.

Simon was just an innocent person coming into Jerusalem. He most likely didn’t know all that was going on. The Romans, in charge of the execution, grab Simon and make him bear the cross to Calvary. He must have thought, “Why, me? I’m not going that direction.” He may have wondered, I hope they don’t kill me as well.

What is interesting about our verse today from Mark, is that Simon does not seem to be an obscure person that had a moment in history and then disappeared. Mark mentions Alexander and Rufus, the sons of Simon. Mark writing to Christians, assumes his audience knows Alexander and Rufus. That thought, implies that Alexander and Rufus were Christians. Later, as Paul acknowledges many Christians in Romans, he writes, “Greet Rufus, a choice man in the Lord, also his mother and mine.” The Rufus of Romans may well be the Rufus that Mark mentions. If that’s the case, then his father carried Jesus’ cross. In the aftermath of all of that, as the gospel message was told, spread and understood, Rufus became a Christian.

My dad carried Jesus’ cross is something that Rufus would have grown up knowing. That fact, wouldn’t punch his ticket into Heaven, nor would it even buy him a cup of coffee, but it is a personal connection and something that Mark wanted his readers to know. This event wasn’t planned by the Romans. It was spontaneous, however, it was life changing. Those things often happen. The bent over woman who happened to be in the synagogue when Jesus was, healed and changed forever. That wasn’t staged nor planned. The young man who had died and was being carried out to the cemetery, his grieving mother following with a sad crowd of mourners, crossed paths with Jesus and His disciples. Jesus interrupted the funeral procession, touched the coffin and told the young man to arise. Jesus spoke to the dead man and he heard and obeyed.  Innocent coincidences that altered the destinies of many lives.

The same happens today. I have heard of folks leaving literature about the Bible on a bus or in a public bathroom. Someone comes along and finds it. They read it and in the process of time, they search out a church, a Bible study takes place and they become a Christian. The one who left the literature hoped such would happen. Often, they are unaware of the good that is done. I know of others who listened to the gospel being preached on radio broadcasts. They followed along in their Bibles as they listened. In time, their hearts were turned and they became a Christian. There is a lot of good that has been done in the past that was just like this.

One must wonder what happened to Simon after Calvary. Did he dump the cross once the crowd reached their destination and then scurry away to Jerusalem to tend to his business? Did he stick around to see what happened? Was he in the crowd when Jesus uttered, “My God, My God…” Did he make a connection to the darkening skies and the death of Jesus? Did he see the resurrected righteous coming into the city? Many emotions and heated words about Jesus filled the city.

The Bible doesn’t give us “The Rest of the Story,” with most events because that is not the intention of the Bible. We wonder. We wonder about Rufus, Simon’s son. Was it because of dad that Rufus became a Christian and earned the powerful compliment from Paul, “a choice man in the Lord.”

Building a bridge with that thought, what we do as parents, impacts the future of our children. We know that in theory, but it’s the reality that we often overlook. Comments on the way home from worship, what we say about our church family, how engaged we are in the lives of others, how important things are to us, are picked up quickly and easily by younger eyes. They, more than anyone, can soon grasp how meaningful these things are to us. That becomes a measurement of how important these same things will be to them.

I remember sitting next to my dad during worship. He carried mints in his suit pocket. I’d reach in and help myself once in a while. I remember seeing my mom being baptized. That was a turning point in our family. Things were taken more seriously and we became more engaged when that happened. It’s hard to know how much of an impression those things have on young hearts, but today I walk with the Lord. Many of us today are who we are because our dads carried the cross. Family choices were made. Church attendance wasn’t something that was decided week to week, it was a given, we are going. Certain words, shows, friends were automatically off limits because we, as a family, were walking with Christ. Those decisions helped shape other decisions. Those decisions came with expectations. Our attitudes, words, and behavior was expected to be a certain high standard. We couldn’t talk back to our parents. Cheating in school was never allowed. If we got in trouble, anywhere, we really got in trouble at home. On Sunday, we wore our “church clothes,” and then changed into our play clothes when we got home. We were expected to sit up and be still during worship. If we were fussy, we got taken out and that wasn’t a good thing. When we were older, we might get a polite and directed thump on our heads, which meant to straighten up. We knew. Preachers and elders were like Moses and Abraham to us. Old, reverent and not to be messed with. They were always seen in dark suits. I remember the first time I saw a preacher in blue jeans. I thought he must have lost his faith. He happened to be cutting his yard. I guess I figured he wore his dark suit to mow the yard. To my generation, these scenes were our Simon’s carrying the cross. Godly people doing their best for the Lord.

And now, we are the Rufus’ . We have been shaped and molded in a positive way by these examples and impressions. Many of us are serving as deacons, elders, preachers and are busy raising godly families today.

Simon carried, Rufus became. There is a connection there. There is also a connection between what we do and what our children become. There is no greater blessing as a parent than to see your grown children, busy in the kingdom, teaching, leading, helping others to know the way of the Lord. I wonder if Simon lived long enough to see Rufus become a follower of Jesus? I hope so.

Roger