DYNAMIS!
A publication of St. George Orthodox Christian Cathedral
Wichita, KS
Saint Mark 8:34-9:1
(9/18-10/1)
The Sunday after the Elevation of the Holy Cross
Following The Crucified: Saint Mark 8:34-9:1, especially
vs. 34: “When [Jesus] had
called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them,
‘Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his
cross, and follow Me.’”
After Divine Liturgy, the Priest,
in royal vestments, exits the royal doors and offers the ‘blessing
cross’ to members of the congregation who file forward to receive a
benediction. The Priest extends the
cross and speaks a word of blessing to each one. It is customary for worshipers first to
kiss the cross and then the Priest’s hand as he speaks. In this exchange, the Priest serves as a
living icon of Christ, and the worshiper, reverently, should be committing
himself to the Lord Jesus: “Lord, in Thy mercy, bless me to come after
Thee, deny myself, take up my cross, and follow Thee.”
Iconically, it is truly Christ Himself Who extends the cross and
blesses; and, since He meets us, should we not kiss both His Cross and His
extended hand? Above all, may we
determine to fulfill the conditions for ‘following’ that He states
in this present reading.
The foremost issue focuses on what you and I
‘desire’ (vss. 34,35). To kiss the Cross that Christ extends by
the hand of His Priest is to declare that my foremost desire is to follow
Him. But I need to ask myself,
“Is this truly my heart’s desire?” You and I determine whether this is so
or not by embracing the three conditions that the Lord stipulates in these
verses: 1) denying self, 2) taking one’s own cross, and 3) following the
Lord.
First is the decision to “deny” one’s
self (vs. 34). But what is the
‘self’ that the Lord is asking us to deny? At first, He speaks of one’s
‘life’ (vs. 35) and a little later of one’s
‘soul’ (vss. 36,37). In both instances, the word being
translated is the same in the original, ‘psyche.’ In other places in the New Testament,
‘psyche’ is sometimes translated as ‘self’ (Lk. 12:19 NAB). Thus,
self-denial entails surrendering the control of one’s entire inward and
outward life to God. Inwardly it
refers to surrendering the soul, i.e., our rational faculties, our emotions and
our will or decision-making capacity:
“...not as I will, but as You will”
(Mt. 26:39).
Outwardly, ‘psyche’ can also refer to
one’s physical life (Lk. 12:20). Understand that the Lord is not asking
for surrender just in our religious activity, or in matters of personal taste
and preference, or even in obeying the basic commandments of God. His meaning is clear: if we truly desire
to come after Jesus Christ (Mk. 8:34), then we are to hand over the control of
our entire life to His guidance - inward and outward, without qualification, come what may.
It is no accident that our Lord next mentions ‘taking
up one’s cross’ (vs. 34).
True, self-denial-in-Christ is a mindset that strives always and only to
respond to His directives and not to one’s own desires. It involves a certain kind of
‘death’ - psychic and behavioral. The cost is constant
‘crucifixion’ of my desires for earthly gain, self-esteem, personal
profit, independence, or pleasure.
How very counter this runs to the self-realization fostered by
contemporary culture! Here is one
way Saint Paul describes taking up the cross: “For what I will to do,
that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do” (Rom. 7:15). How often do we,
and people generally, give up control?
The soul fights to the death, yet surrender is worth the
‘loss’ (Mk. 8:35; Php. 3:8).
Finally, we come to ‘following,’ which is the
Lord Jesus’ way of calling us to a life-long denial or ‘dying to
self' a step at a time with Christ Himself leading us. If we do not follow His lead, then we
necessarily rely on our own strength instead; and we will fail! However, if we take each decision, seek
and apply His will to everything before us and rely solely on His strength, we
“...will not taste death till [we] see the kingdom of God present with
power” (Mk. 9:1).
Keep us ever as warriors invincible, and make us all
victors even unto the end.
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