THE GOSPELS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT place great importance on following Jesus. And probably every Christian would love to know how to be a better follower—how to heal disease and cast out sin the way he did. In fact, all three writers of the Synoptic Gospels—Matthew, Mark, and Luke—found Jesus' instructions on how to become a follower so important that each Gospel includes the same command with almost identical wording: "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me" (New Revised Standard Version; see Matt. 16:24, Mark 8:34, Luke 9:23). One notable difference is that Luke adds "daily" to the command to take up one's cross, showing that becoming a follower is not a one-time event.
Why would Jesus command those who wish to follow him to first deny themselves and take up their cross? How do these first two requirements get to the heart of how to become his follower? I think the best way to understand these three commands is to study them within the context in which they were written. This is easy to do since the context for each of these instructions is the same, which is not often the case among the Gospels.
In each account, before issuing these instructions, Jesus had just asked his disciples who other people said he was. The disciples responded with answers such as "John the Baptist," "Elijah," "Jeremiah," or one of the other prophets. Jesus then asked a follow-up question: Who did they (his disciples) think he was? Peter gave the answer that Jesus was looking for: "You are the Christ" (see Matt. 16:13–16, New International Version). It appears that Jesus was not so interested in his disciples' acknowledging his personal identity, but rather that they recognize his spiritual nature—or, in Peter's words, the Christ.
