Mark 8:34 AMP
And Jesus called [to Him] the throng with His disciples and said to them, If anyone intends to come after Me, let him deny himself [forget, ignore, disown, and lose sight of himself and his own interests] and take up his cross, and [joining Me as a disciple and siding with My party] follow with Me [continually, cleaving steadfastly to Me].

Everyone knows of the cross, so many know it as the symbol of Christianity, even within the Christian communities, not all know the full significance and the wonders of the cross.
We all associate the cross with an instrument of torture and death of our saviour Jesus Christ, but it is much more than that. The cross bears within it so many wondrous signs as well as being the symbol of eternal hope and salvation.
Jesus predicted His coming crucifixion many times from the beginning of his ministry, a death itself that will entail glory, seen in the “lifted up” sayings which imply exaltation in John 3:14, and finally, Jesus would be vindicated by being raised from the dead as Mark 8:31 puts it.
The Cross is used as a symbolic term for suffering in contexts where believers are exhorted to “take up their cross” and follow Jesus, being ready to completely identify with him and all that he did for them according to Matthew 10:38.
Metaphorically speaking, the “cross of Christ” is the primary symbol of the spiritual effectiveness of the gospel according to 1 Corinthians 1:17 or as the symbolic “stumbling block” to the acceptance of the gospel in Galatians 5:11.
The cross is the basis of our salvation in Romans 3:24-25, and his crucifixion is for our redemption, ransom payment made by his blood in delivering us from sin as stated in Titus 2:14.
Matthew 10:38 says if we don’t take our cross, and follow him, we’re not worthy of him—a saying that was emphatically reiterates throughout the gospels and where the expression—”taking up one’s cross”—in the sense of “being prepared for trials in general for Christ’s sake. Telling us as believers to have a preparedness to go forth even to crucifixion, meaning that we must be ready to follow the example of Christ to suffer death in the cause of our faith, otherwise, we won’t be worthy of him, and does not deserve to be called his disciples.
The cross according to 1 Corinthians 1:18 is the heart of the gospel, the soul of the church’s mission and every believer.
The cross did even more than procure our salvation, it also formed a new unity between Jew and Gentile by breaking down the dividing wall of hostility by making the two one according to Ephesians 2:14-15, thereby creating new access to the Father.
The cross is a call to complete surrender to God.
The Cross represents every affliction or trial in Matthew 10:38.
It is a symbol of true discipleship in terms of self-denial as we follow Jesus.
Believers must crucify the flesh, meaning that our self-centred desires are nailed to the cross, putting to death ungodly passions and desires that may hinder our spiritual race according to Galatians 5:24.
Every one of our worldly interests dies according to Galatians 6:14.
In Romans 6:1-8 we are buried with him, imagery of baptism with the result that we are raised to a new way of life. The believer relives the death and resurrection by putting to death the old self and putting on the new according to 2 Corinthians 5:14-17 all through the wonders of the cross.
Shalom