Simon of Cyrene, Compelled to Carry the Cross

When Jesus collapses from exhaustion, the Roman soldiers seize Simon of Cyrene as he passes by and force him to carry the cross in his place. Simon was only a stranger who had come to Jerusalem to keep the Passover, and he finds himself on that road with no preparation of heart at all.

All the way to Golgotha, Simon sees from close at hand how Jesus is nailed to the cross, the words he exchanges with the robbers, his patience and his silence. The road he began against his will opened his eyes, and in later years his son Rufus and his household became a family of faith who gave great help to the apostle Paul.

It is all right if the work of God begins under compulsion. In worldly work, the harder one strives, the heavier the burden grows, but the work of God becomes lighter the more one shoulders it. That one day when he happened to be seized made Simon and his descendants a blessed people.