by Joe Cady
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me” (Mt 16:24). In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus presents us with a clear and challenging picture of what it means to follow him. He tells us that if we truly want to be his disciple, we must be prepared to follow the way of the Master: the way of humility and sacrifice. In order to understand just how challenging these words must have been to Jesus’ followers, we must look at the events leading up to this: Jesus had demonstrated his power over creation by walking on water, had fed thousands of people (twice) with next to no food, performed a number of healings, and had even announced the establishment of his Church on the rock of Peter. Jesus calls Peter “blessed” and promises to give him the “keys to the kingdom” – establishing him as the foundation upon which his Church would be built and his mission continued throughout history. And then… immediately after, Matthew tells us that “From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised.” The implication is that, from this point on, Jesus was in a sense constantly reminding them of where and how their journey would end.
Imagine being the disciples… you had grown up in an environment of expectation, waiting for the promises of the Old Testament to be realized. And then, almost unbelievably, this man from Nazareth begins to announce that the time of fulfillment is at hand, and that he is inviting you to be a part of it. Jesus had called to them, personally, “Come, follow me.” And they immediately responded. But from today’s reading, we get the sense that perhaps they didn’t fully understand what they were saying “yes” to in deciding to follow Jesus.
Today in the Gospel, Jesus gives us a central piece to the discipleship puzzle, a puzzle that at times seems to contain pieces that don’t fit. On the one hand Jesus says, “come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest” and “I came so that you might have life in abundance”, but on the other hand Jesus says things like, “take up our cross and follow me”, “whoever wishes to be first among you must be the servant of all”, and “whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” There is a sense in which Jesus tells us, “I came to give you everything, but in order for you to receive it, you have to be willing to give everything away.” And this is the great paradox of the Gospel.
The fact of the matter is that Jesus DID come to give us life in abundance, Jesus DOES want to help us carry our burdens and gives us rest, he truly DOES want what is best for us, a life of joy, peace, and fulfilment. But he also knows that the only way to actually attain these things is by learning how to really live - and it turns out that the only way to really experience life is by learning how to die, how to give your life away in love of God and love of neighbor. This is why Jesus says, “Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Mt 16:25). If we really want to experience the fullness of life, the life that God created us for, we have to be willing to surrender our lives to the God, the Lord and Giver of Life.
This is the call to discipleship. It is an invitation to follow the way of Jesus, the way of the Gospel. And while this path ends in the glory the resurrection, it necessarily includes taking up our cross. And that’s the part about it that scares us. We want life, but don’t want the cross. We want happiness, but without sacrifice. We fear what following Jesus might cost us. And I think we’re afraid that following Jesus will make life boring and bland, that we’ll miss out on all the fun and exciting things in life. Why do we think this way? Because, from the very beginning of our history, humanity has had one fundamental problem in the way we relate to God… mistrust. A lack of trust in God’s goodness is at the heart of all of our sin, all of our disobedience, and our hesitation to follow him. We want to be happy, and we somehow convince ourselves that we will be happier if we live apart from God and forge our own path. But here’s the thing, God want us to be happy; in fact, he is more interested in our happiness than we are! And he sets before us a path to our greatest good! That’s what he wants to give us, that’s what the invitation to discipleship offers us… life, and life in abundance. But are we willing to trust God? Are we willing to say yes to a life of discipleship?
Pope Francis tells us, “Do not be afraid of holiness” (GE 32). He says following Jesus “will take away none of your energy, vitality or joy. On the contrary, you will become what the Father had in mind when he created you, and you will be faithful to your deepest self” (GE 32). Saying “yes” to a life of discipleship won’t make you less of who you are, but more fully who God created you to be. Pope Benedict says the same thing: “If we let Christ into our lives, we lose nothing…of what makes life free, beautiful and great…do not be afraid of Christ! He takes nothing away and he gives you everything” (The Ultimately Relationship, 12).
It is true that God asks everything of us, but “in return he offers us true life, the happiness for which we were created. He wants us to be saints and not to settle for a bland and mediocre existence” (GE 1). So, today, as we reflect upon Jesus’ call to “take up our cross and follow him” – let us not be afraid. Let us say “yes” to following him with all of our mind, heart, soul, and strength, remembering that the cross is never the end of the story. The way of the Gospel leads to glory, to joy, and to abundant life. Decide today to commit yourself to Christ and make him the center of your life, and allow him to renew, transform, and direct your life according to the way of the Gospel.