What did Christ say during his ministry concerning the cross?

“He that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me is not worthy of me” (Matthew x, 38; Luke xiv, 27).

“Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me” (Mark viii, 34).

“If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke ix, 23).

These utterances are alleged to have been made early in his ministry. Now, the cross as a Christian symbol is supposed to have been adopted after, and not until after, the crucifixion. Its introduction in the passages quoted suggests one of two things: either that the Synoptics put into the mouth of Jesus words that he never uttered, or that the cross, as a religious symbol, was used before the crucifixion, in which case its adoption by the church is no proof of the crucifixion.