Jesus said, “If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let them renounce themselves and take up their cross every day and follow me. Anyone who wants to save their life will lose it; but anyone who loses their life for my sake will save it. What benefit is it to anyone to win the whole world and forfeit or lose their very self?” (Luke 9:23-25)

Steeped in the life of Christ and his love for others, the disciples are men and women who want to live as he lived. During the public life of Jesus, a crowd of disciples walked behind him. They followed him from one place to another to hear his teaching. Some of them continued to follow him until the very end, in the darkest hours of the cross and of his death. But there were only a few of them. Many had gone away earlier, having stayed with him for a longer or shorter time.

For those who want to walk with him, Christ’s call is radical and unequivocal. He asks us to "renounce" ourselves. This is a difficult word for the mentality of today. It does not mean that we must deny what we are. We are called to abandon that part of ourselves that goes against the life of Christ and his teachings. With verse 25, we understand clearly that Jesus does not ask us to lose ourselves. He rather invites us to discover our true self by following him. It is not by a lukewarm and lazy attitude, but only with all their heart and all their strength that the disciples can follow the path of the Master.

The cross which Jesus speaks of here is that of “every day” that each person is called to bear. Jesus knew that his followers would face many trials and difficulties. He encouraged them to be daring, to accept the challenge, to give themselves for the Gospel without being afraid of suffering and thus to find the fullness of life.

In fact, if we walk in the footsteps of Christ, now just as at the time of the Apostles, it is inevitable that we will have to have to swim against the tide and, at times, become a “sign of contradiction” in society. For fear of losing face or security, will we turn back before the various obstacles, or move forward with confidence, audacity and the gift of ourselves? Christ himself did not suffer passively but gave his life for others. It is true that his call is demanding. But to those who give themselves because of Christ and the Gospel, the joy and the rewards promised are offered a hundredfold (see Mark 10:28-30).

 What does it mean for me to “walk in the steps of Christ” today? What is “my cross”, the one I am called to “carry every day” on this road?

 In what circumstances do we become a “sign of contradiction” in our societies?