On Faith: Remember the true significance of the Cross

If you were to ask your average fellow citizen about the significance of the cross, you might hear something about an innocent man being persecuted and sentenced for crimes he did not commit. You might hear that He was a model for all who stand up for their beliefs. Many people know only the bare facts of the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth and its violation of human justice. But many seem to miss the point that there may have been a purpose, an accomplishment at the cross, that we needed Jesus to die on the cross.

By the time of Christ, it has been estimated that some 30,000 men had been crucified by the Romans in Palestine alone. Surely some of them were tried and executed wrongly. Perhaps some were sincere patriots who hoped to free their people from Roman oppression. Doubtless some died nobly for a cause they believed in. Why then does history remember the name of only one of those crucified men?

The answer lies in the opening pages of Scripture. Genesis reveals the story of Adam, Eve and the Serpent, and how they disobeyed God’s simple command to not eat of the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Sin is disobedience to God’s commands. Their sin caused the spiritual fall of the human race and brought a physical curse upon the earth. The Book of Romans tells us that the physical world we live in groans like a woman in childbirth, longing to be restored to its God-designed perfection (Rom 8:19-22). Sin always destroys. Always. Sin is the reason we have death, disease, pain and suffering in our world today.

After the fall of mankind, God gave the first promise of deliverance from the sin that cursed mankind and the physical world. God told Satan, “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heal.” God’s Son Jesus, the seed of the woman, would be bruised by Satan (at the crucifixion), but would in turn crush the serpent’s head through His victorious resurrection. Jesus died in my place on the cross. He took the eternal punishment in hell that I deserved. There was no other way for me to be saved from my sin. Jesus’ death was the only way. He had to die for me to live.

Yes, thousands of men were crucified by the Romans in Palestine. But only one of those crucified men died for the sins of the world! Only one died for you. What happened at the cross of Jesus was nothing short of God’s divine plan for you and me to have the hope of eternal life.

At the cross of Christ, our sin was carried away by His atoning death, the wrath of God was appeased for us, and we are delivered from the death and condemnation we deserve because of our sin. If you will believe (trust, rely, depend) on God’s Son, you can have assurance of forgiveness. You can have a new relationship with God as your Father and the hope of an everlasting home in his heavenly kingdom.

Maybe, like so many others, you know about the crucifixion but didn’t truly understand the significance of why Jesus died. The Scriptures teach that He died because you needed Him to die. He died for you. And He did it because He loves you. Remember that the next time you see a cross.

Tags: on faith, opinion