Jesus was betrayed by one of his “direct reports.”

He was hauled to a kangaroo court and sentenced to what is arguably the most monstrous means of execution even devised by man.

He was rejected, beaten up, flogged, stripped, spat at and mocked at.

Finally, brutal Roman soldiers hammered spikes through his wrists and feet, then raised Him up, stark naked, on a rough wooden cross like a piece of raw meat.

We all know that Jesus went through a horrible, excruciating crucifixion. What we don’t usually think about is where He is now. Anticipating Easter, God raised Him up not only from the dead, but to kingly dominion – the crown.

The “no cross, no crown” principle is universal. The warrior’s motto is “no guts, no glory.” Health buffs chant “no pain, no gain.” No Olympic athlete can expect winning a gold medal without the rigors and sacrifices of training.

A friend of mine was hired as a church secretary. Now you may think that working in a church is like a preview of Heaven, blissful harmony with co-workers who are candidates for sainthood.

A shock awaited her. Her predecessor gave her such a hard time during the turn-over period that she felt humiliated and overworked.

My friend told the senior pastor that she wanted to quit just a few days after being hired. The pastor sympathetically listened. After she poured out her grief, he wisely said, “You are free to resign, but you will be missing out on the glory had you stayed.”

Encouraged, she put up with her predecessor’s attitude until it was the latter’s time to leave. Now with free hand, she re-organized the systems and files of the church office until it was the model of efficiency. She stayed on for three years, capping each year with an excellent rating in her performance appraisals.

When it was her time to leave, she made sure that her replacement would not go through a hurtful and frustrating turnover she had before. In fact, she was so organized, the turn-over to the new secretary took less than a day. My friend left in glory.

When you will bear your own cross – being overworked and underpaid, being shouted at or exploited, being in obscurity or despair – I encourage you to consider Him who endured His cross until the time He was raised to a position of indisputable, glorious authority.

Perhaps your cross is being jobless in the first place.

But as long as we entrust ourselves to the Father, He will make everything right in the end.

It was true during the first Holy Week. It remains true this week.