Take Up Your Cross and Follow Me - What Does it Mean?

“Take Up Your Cross and Follow Me” - What does it mean? 

“We bear the cross not to be crushed, but to rise; it is the burden that brings us to freedom in Christ.” - St. Ambrose 

How many times have you heard people refer to life's difficulties, or the temptations and struggles they have with sin as ‘their cross’ almost like Eeyore - like they’ll never conquer their desires, or escape the sins they are trapped in? Maybe you’ve even said it yourself.  Let’s explore what Scripture and the Church teach about this powerful invitation! 

Jesus’s teaching on the cross appears in three Gospels - Matthew, Mark, and Luke, an indication of how shocking, profound, and important it is. 

When Jesus said, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me" (Matthew 16:24), He issued a radical invitation, one that reshapes how we understand discipleship, suffering, and victory.

It’s easy to water down today’s understanding of the cross, reducing it to a symbol of sickness, hardship, or temptation and spiritual struggles. But Scripture and Christian tradition tell us that the cross is so much more: it is a process of profound transformation. Think of a caterpillar entering a cocoon to emerge as a butterfly - it doesn’t stay a caterpillar, it becomes something entirely new and beautiful. We are called to become a new creation in Christ through the journey of dying to ourselves, growing in humility and virtue, sharing in Christ’s redeeming love, and ultimately His resurrection and life. The beauty of this transformation is that it is both inward and outward. Just as a butterfly emerges radiant and free, when we take up the cross in the way Jesus called us to, we are transformed into the image of Christ. Like the stages inside a cocoon, the changes in our character should be evident and continuous, yet the final product is not instantaneous; the renewal process gradually produces the new creation.

The Cross and Victory 

The cross cannot be understood apart from the Resurrection. What looked like Jesus’s defeat became the moment of His greatest triumph.

 Jesus reminds us: “In the world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

Through the cross, Jesus conquered sin and death. Through the cross, the power of the world is exposed and defeated. And through the cross, we are invited not only to suffer with Jesus, but to share in His victory - to conquer those temptations and struggles, instead of accepting them as permanent fixtures in our lives. 

What did Jesus’ first listeners think of this teaching? 

Jesus spoke these words before His own crucifixion, when the cross was not yet a religious symbol, and would have had zero spiritual meaning to anyone listening. 

The English word ‘excruciating’ literally means tormented on a cross! Today we use this word to describe any mental or physical anguish that we want to express as the ultimate form of torture we can imagine. But for first-century listeners who had seen many crucifixions, “taking up your cross” would have instantly evoked a vivid image they didn’t need to imagine: a condemned man carrying the horizontal beam of his own execution to the place where he would die. 

Those listening understood this was not a metaphor for inconveniences or hurt feelings, or an excuse for failing to overcome sin. It is a call to total surrender and submission, accepting the most humiliation public shaming imaginable, and willingly choosing to die to your old way of life. The Greek word here arato implies an intentional, decisive action—not something passively endured, but something you actively and willfully choose.

Jesus begins with: “Let him deny himself.”

This isn’t just giving up junk food or scrolling less on your phone (though those are good things!), but the total rejection of self-sovereignty — the part of us that is proud and hates being humbled, insists on being in control, or determined to ‘live our best life now’ and following ‘our truth’ -  ultimately putting your own desires, comfort, and plans above those of the immortal God.

“To take up the cross is to will what Christ wills, to die to what we desire, and to live by Him.”  - St. Augustine

The importance of Suffering

We are called to find purpose in suffering and the testing of our faith because “we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope” (Romans 5:3-5, James 1:2-4, Hebrews 10:36). 

The cross signifies the death of our old sinful nature, and the purification of our heart, our morals, and our desires. When we embrace the transformative power of suffering in faith and obedience, it becomes the place where God reshapes our heart and our desires. Virtues grow where self-will once ruled. Humility replaces pride. Charity and love replaces selfishness. Trust replaces fear.

This is why the Church speaks of sanctification as a kind of ongoing crucifixion—not as a morbid fixation on pain, but the hopeful and joyful understanding of the process of becoming holy.

But following Jesus and carrying the Cross means entering into the full mystery of Jesus’s life - both the crucifixion AND the resurrection - until Christ is fully formed in us. 

St. Paul describes this mystery beautifully: 

"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me" (Galatians 2:20).

“Our old self was crucified with him…that we should no longer be slaves to sin" (Romans 6:6).

So what is Virtue? 

In Scripture, virtue is not just a single trait but moral excellence of character and heart that flows from faith; it’s a way of living that reflects God’s own character. Virtue is both inner transformation and outward behavior.

The word translated as virtue comes from the Hebrew for goodness, strength, and integrity, and the Greek word arete meaning Moral excellence, or praiseworthy character. 

“Add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge…”— 2 Peter 1:5 

 
Scripture teaches that virtue is rooted in God’s character. God himself is the standard we are called to live up to; the priceless treasure we are to tirelessly seek. Virtue means living in a way that reflects His holiness and perfect goodness. As Charlie Kirk often said, Courage is choosing what is right, no matter the cost. 

Biblical virtue is never hidden in a person’s life—it always shows up in your actions. It shapes your thoughts, what you do, and permeates relationships.  It is choosing what is right and saying yes to God so often that it becomes your natural habitual response to everything in life.

Life is full of choices that quietly shape your life. Most choices won’t feel dramatic in the moment, but they all affect your heart, and who you are will either point people to Jesus, or push you further from Him.

"By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit" (Matthew 7:16-17)

 
"His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness" (2 Peter 1:3)

 
“Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.” — (Proverbs 31:10)

The virtuous person shows strength, wisdom, diligence, faithfulness, and fear of the Lord (Proverbs 31:25-30)

"Train yourself to be godly" (1 Timothy 4:7)

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” - Galatians 5:22-23

Living the Cross in your Life

Jesus said: "Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds" (John 12:24)

When Jesus says, “Follow me,” He invites us to walk in His footsteps, trusting God even when we cannot see the outcome. My prayer for all of you is that you will love God even when it costs you, always offering Him your very best. Like the powerful example of Mary, may you always give Jesus your yes—embracing suffering when it comes, trusting that the Lord will swiftly bring victory and resurrection power to every situation, and choosing truth over the comforts of this world, rejecting every form of evil even when it is difficult or painful.

As St. John Paul II taught, the cross is not an interruption to Christian life—it is the shape of Christian life.

And because Christ has risen, we do not walk toward despair–we walk towards resurrection. As we pick up our cross each day, we do so with the full knowledge and trust that suffering is never the end of the story!