Compelled

Sometimes you just happen to be in the right place at the right time.  Or not.

As they went out, they came upon a man from Cyrene named Simon; they compelled this man to carry his cross. And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull), they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall; but when he tasted it, he would not drink it.  And when they had crucified him, they divided his clothes among themselves by casting lots; then they sat down there and kept watch over him. Over his head they put the charge against him, which read, "This is Jesus, the King of the Jews." Then two bandits were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. Those who passed by derided him, shaking their heads and saying, "You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross." In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking him, saying, "He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in him.  He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he wants to; for he said, "I am God's Son.'" The bandits who were crucified with him also taunted him in the same way. - Matthew 27:32-44

Simon was a foreigner.

He had traveled from Cyrene, a large city in what is now Libya and had come to Jerusalem to appear on the scene just as Jesus was carrying his cross to be crucified.

Talk about timing!

We don't know much about Simon, outside of what is mentioned here, that he was called into service by the Roman guards to carry the cross for Jesus who was struggling.

We would like to believe that he wanted to help Jesus, that his service was more than what it says here, that he was compelled to do it.

How would we feel?

The thought of carrying the cross for someone who is about to be crucified is chilling.  Imagine what was going through his mind as he watched Jesus make his way before him up the hill to his death.

Did he carry the cross the rest of the way?  Did he stay and watch?

It was not unusual for a Roman guard to conscript a Jewish subject to carry his supplies for him, but he could only do so for one mile.

But is is unusual for one to be called to carry for another Jew.

So, perhaps Simon felt honor, not for himself, but for Jesus, who was given such a gift.

Odd, isn't it, to see something positive in the moment?

Perhaps the message here is to be ready to step in and help, even if called by an enemy.  What begins as a response to authority, becomes something much greater, if we look at it through the right lens.

I can imagine the look of thanks and grace on Jesus' face when Simon grabbed the cross from him.

That was all the payment he needed.

More to come...