Church Fathers Commentary Matthew 16:24-25

"Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever would save his life shall lose it: and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake shall find it." — Matthew 16:24-25 (ASV)

St. John Chrysostom: Peter had said, "Far be it from you, Lord; this shall not happen to you," and had been answered, "Get behind me, Satan." But the Lord was not satisfied with this rebuke; He also desired to show the error of what Peter had said and the fruit of His own passion.

From this, it is added, "Then Jesus said to his disciples, If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." It is as if to say, "You say to me, 'Far be it from you,' but I say to you that not only is it harmful for you to prevent Me from My Passion, but you yourself will not be able to be saved unless you suffer, die, and always renounce your life."¹

Note that He does not speak of this as compulsory, for He does not say, "Though you are unwilling, you must still suffer this," but rather, "If anyone wishes..." By saying this, He drew them to Himself, for someone who leaves his listener at liberty attracts him all the more, whereas one who uses force often pushes him away.

He proposes this doctrine not only to His disciples but to the whole world, saying, "If anyone wishes..."—that is, woman or man, king or free person, or slave. Three things are mentioned: "let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me."

St. Gregory the Great: For unless a person departs from himself, he does not draw near to Him who is above him. But if we leave ourselves, where shall we go outside of ourselves? Or if we have forsaken ourselves, who is it that goes? Indeed, we are one thing when fallen by sin and another thing as we were made by nature. Therefore, we leave and deny ourselves when we avoid what we were in the past and strive toward that to which we are called in newness.²

Whoever is changed for the better denies himself, beginning to be what he was not and ceasing to be what he was.³

He also denies himself who, having trodden underfoot the stirrings of pride, shows himself in the eyes of God to be separate from his former self.⁴

Origen of Alexandria: But though a person may seem to keep from sin, if he does not believe in the cross of Christ, he cannot be said to be crucified with Christ. From this it follows, "And take up his cross."

St. John Chrysostom: Alternatively, consider this: one who disowns another—whether a brother, a servant, or anyone else—may see him beaten or suffering anything else and neither helps nor befriends him. In this way, God would have us deny our body, so that whether it is beaten or afflicted in any other way, we do not spare it.

For this is true care. In the same way, parents show the most care for their children when they hand them over to tutors, instructing them not to spare them. And so that you do not think this self-denial extends only to words or insults, He shows to what degree we should deny ourselves: to death, and the most shameful death at that—the death of the cross. This He signifies when He says, "And take up his cross, and follow me."

St. Hilary of Poitiers: We are to follow our Lord by taking up the cross of His passion; and if not in deed, then in will, we must accompany Him.

St. John Chrysostom: And because criminals often suffer grievous things, He adds the reason for our suffering, so that you should not suppose that simply enduring evil is enough. He says, "And follow me." For His sake you are to endure all things and to learn His other virtues. For this is to follow Christ correctly: to be diligent in the practice of virtue and to suffer all things for His sake.

St. Gregory the Great: There are two ways of taking up our cross: when the body is afflicted by abstinence, or when the heart is pained by compassion for another. Since our very virtues are beset with faults, we must recognize that vainglory sometimes accompanies abstinence of the flesh, for the emaciated body and pale face betray this high virtue to the world for praise. Likewise, compassion is sometimes attended by a false affection, which by this is led to consent to sin. To exclude these, He adds, "and follow me."⁵

St. Jerome: Alternatively, he takes up his cross who is crucified to the world; and he to whom the world is crucified follows his crucified Lord.

St. John Chrysostom: And then, because this seemed severe, He softens it by showing the abundant rewards for our pains and the punishment for evil, saying, "Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it."

Origen of Alexandria: This may be understood in two ways. First, if any lover of this present life spares his life, fearing to die and supposing that his life ends with this death, he who seeks to save his life in this way will lose it, separating it from eternal life. But if anyone, despising the present life, contends for the truth to the point of death, he will lose his life as far as this present life is concerned; but since he loses it for Christ, he will all the more save it for eternal life.

Alternatively, if anyone understands what true salvation is and desires to obtain it for the salvation of his own soul, he, by denying himself, loses his life regarding the enjoyments of the flesh but saves it by works of piety. By saying, "For whoever wishes..." He shows that this passage must be connected in meaning with what came before. If, then, we understand the first part, "Let him deny himself," as referring to the death of the body, we must take what follows to refer only to death. But if we understand the first part as mortifying the desires of the flesh, then to lose one's life signifies to give up carnal pleasures.

1. Hom. iv
2. Hom. in Ev., xxxii, 2
3. in Ezech., Hom. i, 10
4. Mor., xxxiii, 6
5. Hom. in Ev., xxxii, 3