Take up his cross daily

Thursday after Ash Wednesday

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 9,22-25.

He said, "The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised." Then he said to all, "If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. What profit is there for one to gain the whole world yet lose or forfeit himself?

Commentary:

This is a classic example that the author had just put something in the mouth of Jesus, i.e. "take up his cross daily."

Why should Jesus be refering into his cross when he was not yet crucified.

Did he abosolutely know that Judas will betray him and that Pontius Pilate will order his crucifixion, because he is God and therefore he knows everything.

If that's the case then Judas and Pilate and the other member of the gang were just playing their roles in the script and thereby not accountable for their evil deeds. Such is absolutely contradictory to Christian understanding of man's freedom.

But whether Jesus said it or not is actually not an issue. The message of this pericope is that one should be willling to sacrifice or suffer when necessity arises, not willing the suffering per se but willingness to suffer for the greater good. For example if it is necessary to put your life and the life of your family at risk because you need to stand as a witness against someone who is a big person in the government, then so be it. You don't have to worry because after the cross there is always a resurrection.