I've done this once before, way back in Issue 37. Issue 37 was about Grace, but instead of spewing my ideas about Grace,
I gave you all a bunch of quotes about Grace. This issue is about the Cross. But you've probably all read or know what I have
to say on the subject. So here is an adventure in thought on the Cross.
Jesus really
died. . . . Tacitus, a Roman historian, confirmed that Pontius Pilate crucified Jesus. We know that the Romans were pretty
good at this crucifixion stuff. They lay open their prisoners back with a whip and nailed their feet and hands to a wooden
cross. The people would die of suffocation because every breath meant standing up on the nails in their feet and scraping
their backs on the wooden cross to take a breath. Eventually the people grew too tired and didn't breathe anymore. A spear
was stuck in Jesus' side and blood and water flowed out separately. This would mean that the pericardium, the sac of fluid
that surrounds the heart, was enlarged with fluid. Basically Jesus died of a broken heart. In Jesus' case he was in a solid
stone tomb with a huge rock in front of it. Some think the rock weighed at least a ton. A special Roman seal and a well-trained
guard were placed in front of the tomb, to tell everybody not to mess with place.
-Dave
Overholt
Therefore
when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.
-John
19:30 (NASB)
When you
were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven
us all our transgressions, having cancelled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile
to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
-Paul
from Tarsus, Colossians 3:13-14 (NASB)
i want
to say that the cross of jesus means everything to me... i know that is the good christian response... but unfortunately i
do not feel that way.
-Lynne
Rasmussen
I cannot
begin to unfold the meaning of the death of Christ without first confessing that much remains a mystery.
-John
Stott
On a hill
far away stood an old rugged cross,
The emblem
of suff'ring and shame;
And I
honour that cross where the dearest and best
For a
world of lost sinners was slain.
So I'll
cherish the old rugged cross,
Till my
burdens at last I lay down,
And by
grace I will carry my cross,
And exchange
it some day for a crown.
-Rev.
George Bennard
Who's
that man they made Him a prisoner
They tortured
Him and nailed Him to a tree
Was He
so bad who did He threaten
Did He
deserve to die between two thieves
-Rich
Mullins
All I
am and hope for is forever riveted to that mysterious moment that freezes history in focus: the cross of Christ! At that pivot
of time where nothing moves, I find both excellence and shame. There Jesus' sacrificial death stands embarrassingly close
to my self-centeredness. There I bring my greed and beg his generosity. There I bring my trivial whimperings and marvel again
how far his suffering is willing to go.
-Calvin
Miller
The cross
is where the love and truth of God was most perfectly manifested.
-Matthew
J. Slick
The cross
means freedom. Freedom from sin, yes. Definitely. But more than that. Freedom from guilt--it is an introduction to Grace--to
the wild uncontainable Love of God. Because Jesus died, I am free. I still sin, I still hate the sin, but I know that God
has freed me from the sin. The Cross is an introduction to Love so great that I cannot comprehend it--God loves me no matter
what. It is the start of Life, the start of my salvation, the way that I can know God and can dare say that I love Him.
-Will
Ferrey
Well I've
heard it said that a man would climb a mountain
Just to be with the one he
loves
How many times has he broken
that promise?
It has never been done
Well I've never climbed the
highest mountain, but I walked the hill of Calvary
Just to be with you I'd do
anything
There's no price I would not
pay
Just to be with you I'd give
anything
Yes, I'd give my life away
-Third
Day
If I had
to use one word to describe His [Jesus'] Cross, I would say that in it is our Hope satisfied.
-Jonathan
Hoskin
The cross
means to me . . . that Jesus Christ was the ultimate sacrifice, and the last for our sins, that we are free from the bondage
of sin. That this innocent wonderful man (GOD) died for me before I was in my Mother's womb. That he arose to tell us he would
be coming back for us, that he was going to prepare my place in heaven. How wonderful!
-Reba
The cross
not only substituted Christ's sinlessness for our filth, it also substituted His life for ours. So God looks at us as though
we have lived Christ's life. Perfect. Because we accepted His sacrifice.
-Jesse
Robertson (based on Peg Peters)
The cross
represents the death of Jesus Christ, our only Lord and Saviour, who through his own death and resurrection spared us from
eternal death in hell and granted us instead the best resurrection we could ever imagine; because of what Jesus did on the
cross for us, we are able to live for eternity with the Creator of the universe, the Author and Perfector of our Faith, the
Way, the Truth and the Life, the Ancient of Days, the Rock, the Wonderful Counselor, the Prince of Peace, the God of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob, YHWH Himself, the Lord God Almighty! And that's really cool!
-Josh
Arnold
Both truth
and love are based on the cross of Christ. At the cross we see the perfection of truth and love realized together on the hard
lines of that bloodied tree. It is true that Jesus died and rose again. It is true that His love for us bought us our salvation.
It is true that the cross is the only hope for mankind. It is true that people need to die to themselves. It is true that
love is sacrificial and that it can cost us our lives. It is true that there is such a thing as sin and it is true that we
can point out what is right and wrong in the world because Jesus lived what was right and wrong, died, and rose from the dead
to prove that what He was true.
-Matthew
J. Slick
The center
of salvation is the Cross of Jesus, and the reason it is so easy to obtain salvation is because it cost God so much.
-Oswald
Chambers
Citations
Arnold,
Josh; Will Ferrey, Jonathan Hoskin, Lynne Rasmussen, Jesse Robertson, and Reba. Personal e-mails to editor.
Bennard,
George. "The Old Rugged Cross." From The Book of Common Praise. Toronto: Anglican Book Centre, 1938. Hymn 786.
Chambers,
Oswald. My Utmost for His Highest. Discovery House, 1935. April 6.
Miller,
Calvin. Once Upon a Tree. Baker Book House Company, 1967, 1991. p. 7.
Mullins,
Rich. "Surely God Is with Us." From The Jesus Record. Nashville: Myrrh Records, 1998.
Overholt,
Dave. Reasons to Believe. Church on the Rock Publishing, 2001. p. 45.
Slick,
Matthew J. 1) CARM Newsletter 10/17/2002 2) CARM Newsletter 10/04/2002
Stott,
John. Basic Christianity. London: Inter-Varsity Press, 1999. p. 86.
Third
Day. Offerings. Essential Records.
Scripture
taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE ®, Copyright ©1960, 1962, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman
Foundation. Used by permission.