Dear Family in Christ,
We are in the middle of preparations for our soon-coming Gathering at the end of this month. I see new Life and heart flowing in the people as they are working together in love, covering and helping each other, and doing so much more than just tasks but manifesting that they truly are the Body of Jesus.
One of our preparations is renewing an old altar/kneeler. One of the women who was refinishing it accidentally blemished it which left a mar on the altar that could not be covered up. Another person noticed the blemish, and as they were trying to remove it the Lord spoke to their hearts and said, “It may have cracks and blemishes on it… but it is still an altar!” How true it is. No matter what is going on, how we feel, and even in the midst of failures we can still be His altar and offer up the Son. That is the true spirit of our Gathering together… to love Him and show Him that our hearts are with Him. To offer up our ‘love letters’ in oh so many ways that let Jesus know we love Him and He is what is important to us. Our desire is to reach His heart and to minister to Him.
Please remember all those who are coming to the Gathering in your hearts and prayers. May this time be a feast to His Heart as we come together for Him as His. I know that some of you would love to come and yet are unable to. May all of our hearts Gather in One and pour over Him. He is worthy of all our love.
Thank you for your hearts to reach His,
Randy
Choosing the Symbol of the Cross
How can the cross, as seen by one group, appear as a symbol of their faith, while the same symbol, to another group, appears to be a mockery of Jesus? How can the thing that put the Son of God to death in such a shameful way be a symbol of honor to Him by some? Instead, it appears as the worst failure ever made by God to others.
Roman Use of the Cross
In Roman days, the cross was one of their most deadly weapons. During the time of its use, there were thousands upon thousands who were crucified for different reasons. If the goal was mere extermination then it was too clumsy as that kind of a weapon. To that end it would have been better to use the massive Roman army with its powerful weapons they invented or took from other cultures.
But the use of crucifixion was used by them for other purposes. It was a “public weapon.” Death on a cross involved a long excruciating affair that required patience on behalf of the executioners. It was orchestrated to send a message to the observers as well as to those being crucified. As an observer, you could look up and catch all the details of an excruciating death.
Because the cross was raised up high from the earth it could be seen by large crowds who gathered. They not only saw the death at the end but could literally see the pain and agony of the sufferer during the process. In other words, it was not just a tool of death but of exacting suffering and pain meant to warn and deter any more of the activities that brought about what the crowd was beholding. It was an effective way to keep the masses docile and in check.
But it was also a convenient tool on behalf of those who wanted to release some final “I told you so’s.” If there were any arguments over who was right or wrong, or the need to gloat over the agony of the other or to gather doubters to come to look and be convinced, then crucifixion would add an exclamation point to that end, dispelling all questions or arguments.
Crucifixion was a mocker's dream. With it, the one crucified, instead of getting a quick death, would suffer extreme agony at the hands of the ones they disagreed with. And because of the nails, they are rendered defenseless to retaliate because hands and feet can’t be used. And, because death is not done quickly, it is a convenient tool that gives you time to gather all your friends so that all may celebrate your victory with you. But, for the one crucified, they not only suffered agonizing pain but, if innocent, must also watch and listen as shame that should be placed on someone else would wrongfully be borne with no chance of giving your side, or presenting evidence to the contrary. Your lungs are collapsing.
It is a most horrible tool on so many levels. As noted, it is a tool of public shame and physical pain. It takes away all your rights. It ends the life of the person appearing at their weakest, most vulnerable time, while stripped of dignity and clothes. It favors the side of unjust and cruel men who long to retaliate, get vengeance, and bring men down publicly, not just to end their lives but to end their remembrance in shame.
The Romans saw the cross as a weapon and as one of their most effective weapons toward stopping people from contemplating breaking with Rome in order to seek freedom from under their yoke. It was a means of control! To be threatened with the cross would keep the masses and their leaders in line with that control. However, the civic and religious leaders in Israel saw its value toward the same end but, in order to keep their hands clean, they would never crucify anyone, but would manipulate the circumstances so that the Roman occupation would carry out their dirty deeds. They probably considered manipulating the beastly Romans toward their own ends easier than fighting against their power or publicly adopting the cross as a Jewish tool. The outcry would be too strong.
The Foolishness of the Cross
With all that in mind, can you imagine the outcry of some Jews who became Christians in those early days when choosing the cross as THE symbol of their religion and faith was first mentioned? Why, it would appear as blasphemy! It would look like lunacy!
Let’s take that one step further! Think about these same believers when Paul started preaching the cross. Some probably thought that he had not really and truly converted but was merely acting like it. These were, at that same time, putting what happened to Jesus on the cross in a more favorable light, meaning that the scandal of the cross was diminished so that maybe the breakaway Christians would now return to the fold of Judaism. After all, Saul of Tarsus (Paul) was their most active member toward squelching the new “rebellion” because he stood so firmly on the Jewish religion, as Paul referred to it in Galatians 1.
So let’s consider further how the Roman cross with its results would appear to be the furtherest thing from representing the true God. To do this we must go back through portions of the crucifixion of Jesus and point out three things!
(1.) For believers after His crucifixion, presenting the cross as the symbol of what they stand for would be odious. It would bring a reminder of the Roman and Jewish leaders' way of using the cross to accomplish their purposes in destroying their Savior.
(2.) Just to visualize Jesus hanging there, bloody and dying, because He was falsely accused, would remind them of the motives behind the Romans in using this weapon, as well as the motives of their own Jewish leaders and people who cried out, “Crucify Him,” and how the nature behind it is contrary to the way Christ wants us to proceed in life.
(3.) And then after this, discovering which attributes and realities of the cross are actually a good reason for making it the symbol of Christianity.
As long as "Rome" remained some believers' understanding and use of the cross, they would continue to be confused as to its true meaning. But Paul preached, “God forbid that I glory, but in the cross, by which I am crucified to the world and the world to me” (Gal. 6:14). He also said, “I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I but Christ lives in me” (Gal. 2:20). In other words, he saw it as the means of destruction of all of us and, because of that, he reckoned it as an object to glory in. This cross was meant to be much more than a means of salvation in this world, but to bring about a whole New Creation.
But even today, Christians can focus primarily on the Roman and Jewish leaders regarding the way they used the cross to accomplish their evil purposes. They are able to see the nature behind it, and how it is contrary to the way Christ wants us to proceed in life. However, all of that is seen through the knowledge of good and evil, instead of through the glorious understanding of the nature and way of the Lamb.
In conclusion, the cross is not meant to be an instrument for identifying right and wrong. It is meant to unveil to us the true nature of God. And as we see Him, our hearts should yearn to be like Him. But, to do that we must discover which attributes and realities of the cross are actually a good reason for making it the symbol of Christianity. Only the Holy Spirit can make that truly known. ***
Blog Podcasts on Spotify!
A few folks got together and are making a podcast station on Spotify of the "At the Scent of Water" Blogs. I did not ask them to do this, but I appreciate their love for the Lord and their desire to get His Word out in creative new ways. I would like to send out a special thanks to my friend Mike Gentry for the creative introductions that he is making for each podcast!
Click the Image below for the Spotify Podcast Station
MARCH OF THE MESSAGE NEWSLETTER
Life in the Spirit Ministries
P.O. Box 2696
Denton, TX 76202
Contact Number: 940-453-9909
Email: [email protected]
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"Preaching the message of
Christ and Him Crucified"
