DO YOU HAVE A CRUCIFIX?

I have one in my study. I look at it many times a day. It helps me pray, show gratitude, and stay focused. I asked as a boy why our cross was empty and the Catholics had Jesus on it. I was told that we believed in the resurrection. (Hmm. So did they). Paul believed in the resurrection. He also said, “I have determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (I Cor. 2:2). Why?

IT IS THE CENTER OF THE GOSPEL.

“For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (I Cor. 1:18).  “And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:8).

I DIED WITH CHRIST.

Christ not only died for me; he died with me. Paul wrote, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in thee Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). “And those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Galatians 5:24). “We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be done away with, that we would no longer be enslaved to sin” (Romans 6:6).

I AM TO DIE DAILY.

Paul said, “I die every day” (I Cor. 15:31). Many think that death is a once-for-all experience at the cross. I had expectations going into marriage that didn’t help me a bit, expectations of what Karen would do for me. I now tell young couples heading into marriage, “Write down your expectations, then burn them.” Expectations create entitlement. As one person said, “They are resentments in the making.” Marriages are filled with victims who have unwritten hopes pinned on their spouse that remain unfulfilled. They are like demands with words written on them, “Pay up.” And they are giving their spouse the power to make them miserable, a right we should never give to another human being. When I gave up my expectations and instead died to myself as Christ did for his Bride (Ephesians 5:25), our marriage grew stronger. I told my sons, “Never use the “s” word–’submit.’ Die instead!” It works. Dying to ourselves and serving others demonstrates love–as Christ did.

When I look at the cross, it not only reminds me what Christ did for me, evoking thanksgiving, but it reminds me what I am called to do every day, evoking commitment. Jesus didn’t die so I could have an easy life. He died so I could suffer well. Peter wrote, “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps…He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness” (I Peter 2:21,24). I am looking at the crucifix now as I write this. It gives me love for the unparalleled work of Christ on the cross. It also gives me courage–to die!

THE CROSS–HIS AND MINE (part 2)

All the apostles emphasized suffering as the norm. Paul got the message even before his name was changed from Saul. The Lord told him through Ananias, “He is a chosen instrument of mine…I will show him how much he must suffer for my name“ (Acts 9:16). He told Timothy, who needed encouragement to stay faithful:  “Suffer hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (2 Tim. 2:3). Wow. Thanks for the lift, Paul. But he didn’t preach the message and not live it. We are in a war, not on a picnic. Sure helps to know that when the fighting gets severe. Paul told the cranky Corinthians that “our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all” (2 Cor. 4:17).

Peter wrote that Christ’s death was an example for us. “For to this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps” (I Peter 2:21). Jesus died so we could live. But he also died so we could die! Peter had more to say about suffering per verse than any book in the Bible. He said that “since Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourself with the same thought. For he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin…” (I Peter 4:1). He taught that suffering was a legitimate way to strengthen a marriage (3:1-6), to deal with overbearing employers (2:18-21) or troublesome and worldly people (2:12, 3:9, 3:15). Peter sounds like Paul when he says, “In this [an eternal inheritance] you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials” (I Peter 1:7).

John was different, right? He was the apostle of love. He was softer on people. Hardly. He wrote the book of Revelation. He said that we overcome the enemy by proclaiming the victory of the Lamb and by not shrinking from death (12:11). Live or die—we’re on the winning team. Suffering without complaining offers us many gifts. It decreases sin in our lives (I Peter 4:1), increases fellowship with the Lord (Phil. 3:10; I Peter 4:13), teaches us obedience as it did Christ (Heb. 5:8), causes comfort to abound (2 Cor. 1:4-6), and decentralizes us to prepare us for eternity. Let us maximize this gift by thanking God in the midst of our hardships!

Jesus came not to be served but to serve. Same for us. You are not here to be served but to give yourself away and to get hurt doing it. You will be misunderstood. It doesn’t matter. You are a slave, and you have responsibilities but not rights. Christ’s words are exactly the opposite of our culture, where we are entitled to sue those who step on our toes. We major in rights and forget about responsibilities. You don’t have the right for people to appreciate you. They will get offended, but you can’t—or you will stop working or complain while you do. Welcome to the cross-centered life. Nothing is more powerful!

THE CROSS–HIS & MINE (part 1)

The best advice I received when starting a discipleship school was, “Under-promise—over-deliver.” I had already done some over-promising. We like to convince people with come-ons. Did Jesus do a sales job on you? He said, “In the world you will have trouble.” Doesn’t sound close to hype.

Peter wrote, “Do not be surprised at the fiery trial…” Then why are we? Words about suffering seem to go right over our heads. We expect it to be easier than it is. Then when it is hard, it’s really hard.

Did Jesus mislead you? Did anything he say to you make you think of Disneyland? He consistently calls us to a life of self-denial and taking up our cross. Crosses are meant for execution. When he told prospective disciples to take up their crosses, they most likely grimaced. They did not smile. You do not form world-changers with a sales pitch. In The Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote that when Jesus called his disciples, he called them to come and die. We are more familiar with the cross of Christ than with our cross. In fact, he talked about ours at the same time he talked about his. But we know little about our cross. It’s for dying!

He also said that he would not only die but suffer:  “The son of man must suffer many things and be rejected…and he must be killed…” (Mark 8:31). After he said this, “Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him” (32). Why did Jesus have such a strong reaction to Peter? Because it expressed a philosophy that runs counter to the Gospel, an easy alternative to the cross, something more positive and inviting, something we would naturally gravitate toward. Then Jesus said, “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” Note what he did not say: “If any man would come after me, he can expect to be blessed, happy, and rich.” Nor did he say that Christ died to give us a positive self-image and a good identity. It is not about you. Right from the get-go we are called to deny ourselves. That does not mean to deny ourselves things. We deny our selves. Notice that this is not aimed at the super-elite but for anyone who would follow Jesus. We know about the cross of Christ. We know less about ours.

Suffering comes to us not as an intrusion but as a gift. Paul, who founded the church in Philippi out of deep hardship, wrote his dear friends and said, “It has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake” (1:29).  People who suffer with thanksgiving grow hope, enabling them to go the distance. When it is about you, giving up is hard not to do. When you are on a self-denying mission, you can take a lot more.

Suffering was on the mind of Jesus. He talked about His return, then said, “But first he must suffer many things” (Luke 17:25). Suffering was not peripheral. He was called “the man of sorrows.” He admonished the men on the way to Emmaus who were discouraged by the loss of their friend, “Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” (Luke 24:26). Suffering was central to the whole plan. The young man Jesus “learned obedience through the things that he suffered” (Heb. 5:8). Same for us. (Part 2 next).

THE HEALING POWER OF THE CROSS

The world views strength as conquest.  God’s power is shown in surrender. Jesus said, “I have power to lay down my life.” Nowhere is God’s power shown more clearly than in the cross, portrayed graphically by Isaiah seven hundred years before. The prophet writes that “he had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.  He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering” (Isaiah 53:2,3). Far from being attractive or domineering, he was an insignificant “root out of dry ground.” The prophet shows us three ways that the slain Lamb demonstrates might, the kind the world knows nothing about.

THE CROSS BRINGS HEALING FROM SIN.  Some may say, “We don’t need healing; we need forgiveness.” Jesus said to the Pharisees:  “They that are well have no need of a physician but they that are sick.” Sin is a sickness. But “there is a balm in Gilead to heal the sin-sick soul,” like the song goes. For “he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed” (5).  Thankfully, the cross brings healing not only from the penalty of sin but also from the power. Jesus said to the woman caught in adultery, “Neither do I condemn you.” In those words she experienced the acceptance of grace.  It gave her power to receive the truth: “Go and sin no more.” “He breaks the power of cancelled sin, He sets the prisoner free.” That power is found in the cross.

THE CROSS BRINGS HEALING FROM SORROW.   We have sinned, and we have been sinned against.  The devastating work of sin has brought untold sorrow.  A man abandons his family, leaving a wife and children to cope. Another hopes for a promotion and is terminated unjustly after thirty years of service. Jesus heals broken hearts.  His hometown sermon was taken from Isaiah 61: “He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted…” (1). He did that through the cross: “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows…” (Isaiah 53:4a).  He can give us a “crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair” (Isaiah 61:3). People who have walked with deep grief may say, “Impossible.”  But that power comes from the cross.

THE CROSS BRINGS HEALING FROM SICKNESS.  Matthew was a reject like Jesus, but of a different kind; he collected taxes. Jesus made the right choice in calling him. Years later, Matthew painted one of the most beautiful portraits of Christ ever penned.  When Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law, Matthew thought back on the day, adding these words: “This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: ‘He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases’” (Matthew 8:17). I find no greater reason to pray for the sick than this, that when Jesus died, He carried not only our sins and sorrow but our sicknesses as well. May you know the power of the cross in your life—today!

(Moved the domain name from wordpress.com to our registrar in November. Whoops! Knocked out notifications. Sorry! Back on target!)

TWO THIEVES–TWO DESTINIES

“Two robbers were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left” (Matt. 27:38). They joined the tirade of insults from close range. Why would they? They probably heard that Jesus could do miracles—and they needed one. They lived irresponsibly; they were dying irresponsibly.

Then sorrow replaced sarcasm. Perhaps seeing the way Jesus died showed him how different they were. By acknowledging the justice of what was occurring, it brought one to a place of trust. In his dying moments he humbled himself.

One thief received the justice he refused to acknowledge. He sneered, “Save yourself, and us,” hanging within feet of the One able to honor his request, but not on those terms. He died as he lived, taking without giving.

Two thieves had a history. They were most likely Jews, religious at one time. Bad resolve turned them toward evil. One knew that he had made a mark, but it was not a good one. He asked Jesus to remember him when He came into his kingdom. Revelation comes with honesty. Incredibly, he could see that Jesus…

1. was a king;
2. had a kingdom over which He reigned; and
3. had power over death. Remarkable insight!

The sins Jesus died for included his. He entered eternity free of guilt for criminal activity. Sadly, the other thief did not come into the light.

The conscience-stricken man spoke to two people—his partner, then to Jesus. He rebuked his friend, then acknowledged his blame. The man who had wasted his life said, “This man has done nothing wrong.” What discernment!

Jesus spoke powerful words: “Today you will be with me in paradise.”

1. When Jesus said “today,” He did not mean in the near future or sometime soon. He meant “today,” and He delivered.
2. With me—Jesus knew His destiny was not to stay in the grave. A former thief would enjoy His companionship—forever!
3. In paradise—from a life of wickedness to an eternity of bliss, through the blood of a man who did nothing wrong. He died believing!

Pilate had mockingly put on the cross the only title Jesus ever had: “This is Jesus; king of the Jews.” One Jew at the cross acknowledged Jesus as his king. He had no time to prove his decision. Still the grace of God reached him and drew him into the love of the One whose arms were stretched out on the cross as if to receive him. Moments later he took his final breath and stepped into eternity—to receive the reward that Jesus paid for as they hung side by side. The other one would not share his destiny.

They now reside as far away as darkness is from light. Hell was not made for that thief but for the devil and his angels. He chose to be Satan’s companion rather than a brother of the Son of God. Close to death, one met the author of life as he clung weakly to life itself. The other rejected the offer and slipped into a Christ-less eternity.

If you are drawing breath, it is not too late to embrace the forgiveness won at the cross, which when you die will bring you into the personal presence of the King!

THE HEALING POWER OF THE CROSS

The world views strength as conquest. God’s power is shown in surrender. Jesus said, “I have power to lay down my life.” Nowhere is God’s power shown more clearly than in the cross, portrayed graphically by Isaiah seven hundred years before.

The prophet writes that “he had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering” (Isaiah 53:2,3). Far from being attractive or domineering, he was an insignificant “root out of dry ground.”

The prophet shows us three ways that the slain Lamb demonstrates might, the kind the world knows nothing about.

THE CROSS BRINGS HEALING FROM SIN. Some may say, “We don’t need healing; we need forgiveness.” Jesus said to the Pharisees: “They that are well have no need of a physician but they that are sick.” Sin is a sickness.

But “there is a balm in Gilead to heal the sin-sick soul,” like the song goes.   For “he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed” (5).

Thankfully, the cross brings healing not only from the penalty of sin but also from the power. Jesus said to the woman caught in adultery, “Neither do I condemn you.” In those words she experienced the acceptance of grace. It gave her power to receive the truth: “Go and sin no more.” “He breaks the power of cancelled sin, He sets the prisoner free.” That power is found in the cross.

THE CROSS BRINGS HEALING FROM SORROW.   We have sinned, and we have been sinned against. Sin brings guilt; sorrow brings shame and sadness. The devastating work of sin has brought untold sorrow. A man abandons his family, leaving a wife and children to cope. Another hopes for a promotion and is terminated unjustly after thirty years of service.

Jesus heals broken hearts. His home-town sermon was taken from Isaiah 61: “He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted…” (1). He did that through the cross: “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows…” (4a).

He can give us a “crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair” (Isaiah 61:3).

People who have walked with sorrow may say, “Impossible.” But that power comes from the cross.

THE CROSS BRINGS HEALING FROM SICKNESS. Matthew was a reject like Jesus, but of a different kind; he collected taxes. But Jesus made the right choice. Years later, Matthew painted one of the most beautiful portraits of Christ ever penned. When Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law, Matthew thought back on the day, adding these words: “This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: ‘He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases’” (Matthew 8:17).

I find no greater reason to pray for the sick than this, that when Jesus died, He carried our sicknesses as well as our sins and sorrows. May you know the power of the cross in your life—today!