Chapter 3
Whose sense what is written in the Gospel of Matthew: If anyone wants to come after me, let him deny himself (Matt. 16:24). What is self-denial? or how does one who follows the Savior deny himself? On this matter I have spoken briefly in the third book of his commentary on Matthew: He who lays down the old man with his works denies himself, saying: And yet I live, but not me, but Christ lives in me (Galatians 2:20) and takes up his cross and is crucified to the world. But who has crucified the world, follows the crucified Lord. "To whom we can now add: after he showed the disciples that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the priests and scribes, and the chief priests, and to be killed; Peter, taking him aside, began to rebuke him, saying: Lord, may this never happen to you. But he turned and said to Peter: Get behind me, Satan, you are a stumbling block to me; for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of men." (Matthew 16:21-23) For, indeed, being terrified by human fear, he was afraid of the passion of the Lord. And just as, hearing he must suffer and be killed, he was afraid, so hearing, also, that he must rise again on the third day, he ought to have rejoiced, and the sadness of the passion mitigated by the glory of the resurrection. So, when this thought had seized him through fear, he spoke to all the disciples, or, according to Mark, he called the crowd with his disciples, or according to Luke, he spoke to all: "If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself; and let him take up his cross, and follow me." The meaning of this exhortation is: Confession is not delicate and secure in God. Whoever believes in me should shed his own blood. Whoever shall have lost his life in this world, shall save it in the next. Believing in Christ every day, one takes up their cross and denies themselves. Whoever was impure, turns towards chastity, temperance denying luxury. Whoever was fearful and timid, assumes the strength of courage, not knowing who they were. If the unjust follow justice, they deny injustice. If foolish, confessing Christ as God's power and wisdom, they deny foolishness (1 Corinthians 1). Knowing this, we deny ourselves what we were before not only in times of persecution and the necessity of martyrdom, but in every conversation, action, thought, and speech; and we confess that we are reborn in Christ. For this reason, the Lord was crucified so that we, who believe in him and have died to sin, are crucified with him, and we say what the Apostle Paul taught: I am crucified with Christ. (Galatians 2:19). And: But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ; by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world (Galatians 6:14). And he that is crucified with Christ, shall spoil principalities and powers; and he shall triumph over them in himself. Wherefore, in the Gospel according to Matthew, Simon of Cyrene bore the cross after him, as a type of those who were to believe in him, and to be crucified with him; which cross, according to the others, he bore himself at first.