At some point in my life, frankly speaking, I wondered whether Jesus was a racist.

Here’s why:

According to some research, Simon of Cyrene, who assisted Jesus at the most critical moment on His way to the Cross but received no iota of appreciation from Him, was a black man. He was a man of colour, according to some historians. Could it be that Jesus didn’t like black men?  Could Jesus have been racist?

At a certain point in my life, a myriad of such thoughts flooded into my mind.

Nevertheless, even then, it was impossible for such suggestions to stick. That was not the Jesus I had come to know from the Bible. So the thoughts didn’t last long at all; but, honestly, they swirled in my mind for a few minutes.

Then one day, the Holy Spirit opened my eyes and I saw it!

“…and when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on Him, then they laid Him out to crucify Him. A certain man of Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus was passing by on his way from the country and they forced him to carry the cross.”
~Mark 15:20-21

The Cyrene was compelled to carry Jesus’ cross.

This man didn’t do it of his own volition. It wasn’t voluntary. It wasn’t something he did willingly. He was forced; compelled to carry the cross of Jesus Christ.

When I saw that Simon of Cyrene was forced to carry the cross of Jesus Christ, I understood why Jesus Christ never acknowledged his help: It was worthless to Him.

The element of sacrifice in your worship is not enough to make your worship acceptable; it must be voluntary.