However pain is necessary for healing. All of our problems stem from sin--from our own sin or from the sin of others against us (and our sinful reaction to it) or from the fallen world in which we live. It was not redemptive. These miracles teach us the utterly unique nature of our Lord’s sacrifice. The Romans used it as a very painful way to execute criminals. God was violated. What is the death due to us for sin? The cross is mentioned a number of times in the Bible, but most significantly in the letters of Paul. Falling from grace does not mean to fall into sin. It didn’t mean anything to anybody else. He did what He did on the cross to provide a salvation for God that God might gather into His presence, a redeemed humanity that would forever and ever serve and honor and praise and glorify Him. Most of us know the story very well. Anchor is a “gospel book” that explains the Good News in a simple and persuasive manner. We have been purchased for God. In this devotional series you'll learn of these varied and meaning behind the names, titles and descriptions of Christ. After clicking 'Register', you will receive an email with a link to verify your account and to complete your registration. How Can I Be Filled With the Holy Spirit? The message of the cross is God’s means of salvation - … The Roman empire used the cross as a means of execution. He took our sins and the full wrath of God against our sins, all the people through all history who will ever believe, and absorbed it all in three hours. Christ endured that penalty for His people willingly. Every word He spoke was for God’s honor. It was God who was the recipient of every sacrifice. Please contact the publisher to obtain copies of this resource. It’s an “Oh” because there aren’t enough words in his vocabulary. I have several crosses to show you. Read the latest on “The Anchor Project” and how you can be support our work. It was by the hands of the priest and with the hands of the offerer laid on that offering, offered to God. You watch his pen “draw out” meaning. God required punishment. While the phrase is commonly understood to mean acceptance of some burdensome task, the command to take up the cross is much more than a symbol of the difficulties experienced by humanity. Every sacrifice that was given was to rise to God as a sweet smelling savor in His nostrils. John 4:34, Jesus said, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work.”  Christ came obviously and rendered to His Father perfect submission and perfect obedience. Subscribe to the weekly sermon from Keep Believing Ministries. ~ Debbi The cross is a powerful reminder of the beautiful sacrifice Jesus made. The phrase "a cross to bear" is a popular derivation of the words of Jesus: "Take up your cross and follow Me." Acts 20 talks about us being purchased by God with His own blood. But is it possible for disciples to not understand the meaning of the cross? He obeyed God perfectly in every way, every second of His existence on earth. Service : Jesus said He “did not come to be served, but to serve and to … That love and that desire to express that love within the Trinity results in God’s design of redemption to bring sinners out of sin and judgment into heavenly bliss so that they can praise Him forever. “It’s about the cross”! a. He was commanded to do so by the Father, and He willingly submitted to that command. The following is adapted from Mr. Graham’s message on Nov. 18, the first evening of the Crusade. Here’s the fact – God sent His only Son, Jesus, to come live the perfect life as fully man and fully God, take the wrath of God (penalty for our past, present, and future sins), and die on the Cross. What does the cross mean to you? Help us, Lord, never to grow weary, never to become overly familiar with these truths so that they do not lift us up in joy and rejoicing. You listen to John Piper. Heavenly Father, thank you that you loved us so much that you sent your Son to die on a cross. It is emotional for us to think about this. We’re not our own. As his disciples, help us … You know what this is, don't you? There’s a lot of sentiment about the cross, a lot of emotion about the cross, a lot of, I suppose, artificially-induced emotion. When we come to this wonderful beloved table before us, the table that is set for us to remember the cross, I want us to look at the cross not from the perspective of what it means to us, but what it meant to God. There was never a sacrifice offered to a man. Propitiation relates to God. “But for this purpose I came to this hour. © 2020 Grace to You. He saw the cross as glorifying God. By 6:00 p.m. the party had started in earnest. That is the benediction that Paul gives to 11 chapters of discussion on the great truth of salvation. God is fully satisfied with the work of his Son. It was a submission to God. The most important aspect of the cross is not about you. Join us as we read about Jesus' crucifixion in Mark 15:21-41 and unfold the mystery of the cross. If you exult in the hope of glory you, should be exulting in the cross of Christ. Romans 5 says that. This verse promises that when you suffer in your flesh, that is to say, when you take up your cross and deny the sinful thoughts that come up in you during the day, you will actually cease from sin! God was transgressed. He died as God’s chosen substitute. I’ll give you several things to think about. While you’re turning to Romans chapter 11, you might remember that our Lord said to Peter in John 21:9, He said essentially to Peter, “You’re going to die. It is unsearchable, unfathomable, and in the end, verse 36, “For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. In this message, Pastor John Lindell shares an impactful sermon titled, What Does the Cross Mean? Fulfilled Prophecies. All sacrifices, all offerings prescribed in the Old Testament, laid out in the law of Moses, and you’re familiar with them; all of them were offered to God. Justice had to be satisfied, and it is satisfied in the death of Christ. Peter’s death was the death of one man. 12. Might be we’ve exaggerated by saying so but the message of the Church is gradually being diluted to please men and not God. If we are to find endurance, encouragement, and comfort amidst the pressures, losses, and tragedies of life, man must turn to the Bible, the Word of God. I have authority to take it up again. John 10:17, Jesus said this, “For this reason the Father loves Me because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. You look at a Bible text on the screen. His justice is satisfied.”  God demonstrates that He is satisfied by raising Christ from the dead. “To make hostile or unsympathetic” c. The following sermon transcript does not match the video version of the sermon—it matches only the audio version. They say 30,000 Jews were crucified around Palestine in that time in human history. Christ having been offered once to bear the sins of many. That God sent Christ to bear our sins means that God does not just shrug off our sin. Why is He saving sinners? God’s holiness was ignored. Everything […], Easter comes in just six weeks. Sometimes, people use this phrase … Here at Grace to You Europe we take our data protection responsibilities very seriously and, as you would expect, have undertaken a significant programme of work to ensure that we are ready for this important legislative change. He came into the world to seek the Father’s glory. Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come (in the scroll of the book it is written of Me) to do your will, O God.’”, There is the statement of our Lord Himself, really a prophetic statement that comes out of the Old Testament book of Psalms where the Messiah Himself understands that He comes as a sacrifice in submission to God. Here's a brief explanation why. It's true that many people don't truly understand what the cross means. The death of Jesus Christ was a sacrifice for God and a submission to God. Can You Trust God With the Details of Your Life? - I Corinthians 1:23 A. It would take all the sinners forever to suffer what He absorbed in those hours. Oh yes, oh yes. Jesus is the focal point of heaven and While the cross included us, the cross really was for God. It was all Him. If you look at Hebrews chapter 9, Hebrews chapter 9. God required judgment. Think about it this way, Jesus lived for God. During the days of Jesus, the cross was a symbol of shame, embarrassment, a symbol of terror. It was for God, primarily. He submitted to Him in all things, and it culminated in death. Philippians 2:5-11 The expression NO CROSS, NO CROWN has been widely used and among the early users was William Penn, founder of the Quaker colony which became Pennsylvania in his tract NO CROSS, NO CROWN published in London in 1669. Through Christs death on the cross, those who turn to Him are delivered from both the penalty and the power of sin. It was His. Log In Father save Me from this hour?” the hour of His death. All glory goes to God. It is an emotion stirred in us by a clear understanding of the reality of the cross, what it really is. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. It was God who needed to be appeased in that sense. He offers Himself,” in verse 12. In this lesson we connect what seems to be two unconnected stories with a lesson Jesus teaches about the true meaning of the cross. Why is He saving people? “To alienate the affections” b. Listen to or download a digital audio version of one of these messages or receive them via our podcast and feed. Here's a brief explanation why. Verse 33, “Oh, the depths of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”. His anger is propitiated. Second Corinthians 5:14 said, “One died for all.”  Verse 21, “God made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”  First Peter 2:24 says, “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. Secondly, the death of Christ was not only a sacrifice to God; it was a submission not God. All those things are true, but those are secondary purposes for the cross. And if you’re not emotional about the cross, if you’re not swept away by feelings about the cross, somehow your obedience is not legitimate. The Bible contains many names of Christ. And the sacrifice has to be offered to God. He worked for God. His fury is placated. It isn’t that. Peter affirms that when he says in 1 Peter 4:11, “In all things God is glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Please notice that. He died as a sacrifice because God required that. Then He rose again defeating sin and death! We’re touching pretty lightly on some very profound realities, but one other thing comes to mind when we think about the sacrifice and submission of Christ and the salvation He provides. His names tell us why we worship him. But what does the Cross really mean to you?? It wasn’t always a popular symbol. You fall from grace when you depend on your own effort to get what God has already given you. Those who come to him find that their sins are forgiven forever. Spurgeon called it the heart of the gospel. He was perfectly obedient, perfectly righteous, absolutely holy throughout His entire life from birth to ascension. The cross reveals the great heart of God, and that heart is filled with love. Paul says, “We’re bought with a price. Thirdly, the death of Christ was a substitution to God. Register. He is a substitute. Of course you do, it is a cross. It can’t be reduced to concepts and words. It was God who was disobeyed. We sent you an email. He worshipped for God’s honor. Every sacrifice was an offering to God, and the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ was no different. As a disciple you follow Jesus Christ, who is the Master and by living … Thus the solutions to our problems center in the cross of Christ. Eternal exclusion from God’s presence. “ – given for you. So bad that they would not execute Roman citizens because it was so shameful. A lot of people were flogged. But if the death that meant nothing to anyone else could glorify God, how much more does the death of our Lord Jesus Christ, which means everything to all who believe, glorify God? Even your salvation is for God. The message of the cross is the power of God - I Corinthians 1:18 B. Peter also said in 1 Peter 3:18, “He died, the just One for the unjust.”. Acts 20 talk about us being redeemed. The promises to us are amazing, God will honor us, but in the end our response to Him honoring us is to give Him glory. People commit horrible crimes and get off with a slap o… That is, Christ’s death then was a means of bringing sons to God, bringing sons to God. So that they can come to heaven and glorify Him forever. Incense rose to God as a symbol of prayers that were lifted up before Him. 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