They were tempting Jesus to live rather than die on the cross.

As Jesus was being crucified,

passersby shook their heads and mocked Him,

saying, “You who said you would destroy the temple

and rebuild it in three days, save yourself!

If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross!”

The chief priests, along with the teachers of the law and the elders, also

mocked Him, saying, “He saved others, but he cannot save himself!

He is the King of Israel—let him come down from the cross now,

and we will believe in him.

He trusts in God and claims to be God’s Son;

if God delights in him, let Him save him now.”

Even the criminals who were crucified with Him

hurled insults at Him in the same way

(Matthew 27:38-44).

As I meditate on this passage,

I realize that just as Jesus was tested by the devil

before beginning His public ministry (Matthew 4:1-11),

He was also tested while hanging on the cross by the devil’s servants:

The passersby, the chief priests, teachers of the law, and elders,

the two criminals crucified alongside Him.

The essence of this test can be summed up in one phrase: "Save yourself!"

In other words, they were tempting Jesus

not to die on the cross but to save His own life.

If we face such a test and, like the apostle Peter, fall into Satan’s temptation—

thinking not of God’s concerns but of human concerns—

we will refuse to take up our cross and seek to save our own lives.

However, if we are filled with the Holy Spirit

and set our minds on the things of God,

we will obey Jesus’ words, take up our cross,

follow Him, and surrender our lives for His sake.

Jesus said: “Whoever wants to save their life will lose it,

but whoever loses their life for my sake will find it”

(Ref.: Matthew 16:22-25, Korean Modern Bible).