Vision Over Visibility - pt 2 - Consider Him

Reflecting on the Word

Passages for Further Reflection

on the

Significance and Centrality

of the Cross

 1 Corinthians 1:18-25

  18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written:

       "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;

       the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate." [c]

    20 Where are the wise? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22 Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.

What are some of the ways that the message of the cross stands at odds with "conventional wisdom."

What are the ways that you find yourself stumbling, or resistant to the kind of life (or view of life) that Jesus models in His willingness to embrace the experience of the cross, in a way that continued to reflect the grace and compassion that characterized His ministry?

The Cross, probably more than any other symbol, it what has come to identify the Christian faith, and the followers of Jesus.  While there is some debate as to what the actual cross upon which Jesus was crucified looked like (was it a "T" shaped structure, a large "X" or simply an upright pole), there is no real debate over the cruel and inhumane nature of this form of execution.  Nor is there much debate over how the cross was used by Rome, as a powerful statement about the fate of those who did not comply with the will of Caesar. 

We are reflecting on the cross this week for a couple of reasons.  First, because it is the week before Easter, and central to those days leading up to the resurrection was the journey toward, and the experience of the cross.  Second, because the text we continue to look at this week invites us to explicitly consider Jesus in the light of the Cross (see Hebrews 12:1-3 - the text to the right). 

The meaning of the Cross for Christians is very different than the meaning it held for Rome.  Far from being a statement of the consequences one could anticipate if you defied Rome, it became a statement of the extent to which God was willing to go to extend grace to our world.  The kind of peace that Jesus offered was very different than the kind of peace that Rome sought to enforce.  It is important that we look at the symbol of the cross through the "eyeglasses" that arise from reflecting upon the life and ministry of Jesus, rather than the perspective that is represented by Rome's view.  The difference in those perspectives make all the difference in the world when it comes to understanding what the Cross is all about.

This week we are thinking about how seeing Jesus in the context of the cross gives us, not only a clear view of the goal toward which we are running, but also some insight into how to run well.  If you would like to listen again (or perhaps for the first time) to Pastor Ken's on this, you can click here to access our sermon library.

Hebrews 12:1-3

  Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, 2looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. 3Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart.

Take a few moments to "consider Him" this week, by reading through the gospel accounts of Jesus' experience on the cross.  Notice not just what happens to Him, but also how Jesus responds, what He says, and Who He shows Himself to be.  Linger there.  Consider Him.

The cross is not a statement from an angry God

that demands justice from His Son,

but the statement of a loving, just God

that through His Son,

willingly embraces and absorbs into Himself

the worst that sin and evil can do,

and in so doing embraces us as well.