190. Saturday after First Sunday after Easter.
Lord, give me grace gladly to
carry thy cross after thee. Amen.
John 21, 20-23. Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved, following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee? Peter, seeing him, saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do? Jesus saith unto him, if I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me. Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?
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“Follow me,” says Jesus to Peter; meaning: Follow me in suffering and death. Then the Lord rises, and leaves the table; and Peter follows him. In like manner he shall follow him in dying on the cross. John also follows him. Peter then asks; either on behalf of John, in order that he also may know the fate which awaits him, or by reason of surprise and curiosity: “Lord, and what shall this man do?” Jesus, however, dismisses the question, and says that is a matter which he himself will dispose of. Was John, then, not to go the way of the cross in following the Lord? Certainly he was. There is no other way on which the Lord’s footsteps may be followed. “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow me.” “Whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.” But the cross is not the same for all. Peter has one kind, and John another. The Lord gives to each that which best fits his shoulders. He can, if it be his will, exempt his dearest friend from the death of the martyr, thereby exempting him from the martyr’s crown also; or he can give him other sufferings and other honor equally great. The duty of each to take up his own cross is the very thing which Jesus here emphasizes by dismissing the question which Peter asks. Do not be dissatisfied and curious to learn whether others suffer less than you, or whether there be more honor connected with their cross than with yours; or why your path must be more narrow, or your strength less in proportion to the size of the cross. No believer has a cross which is too heavy or too light. None could afford to exchange it for any other. There is a self-willed and obstinate dissatisfaction, which murmurs against God and envies others; be careful not to let it gain a foothold in you. If you were permitted to make the exchange, you would soon discover that your neighbor’s yoke does not fit your neck. Take up your own cross, and follow Jesus. There is an obedient devotion, which teaches us to suffer without complaint, to be grateful for everything, and gladly to bear the burden for others. “Follow thou me,” says the Lord. We will take this word with us, and then go and do it. In that case none of us shall want the conflict and the suffering of the cross; but neither shall its happiness and honor, its eternal blessing, be wanting.
Draw us after thee, Lord Jesus; thou knowest that it is our wish to follow thee, and thou knowest how reluctant our flesh is to bear the cross. Draw us after thee. Give us grace to walk in thy footsteps, and to bear our cross willingly and gladly, that thy name may be honored, and that the brethren may be strengthened. Amen.
Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure,
By the cross are sanctified;
Peace is there that knows no measure,
Joys that through all time abide.
In the cross of Christ I glory,
Towering o’er the wrecks of time;
All the light of sacred story
Gathers round its head sublime.
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