Message by Robert Jones
Associate Pastor
The Lighthouse Church
Three Aspects of the Cross
“Then he said to them all: ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me'” Luke 9:23.
The Cross is the focus of God’s entire plan of redemption. It is not just the way of salvation. It is also a way of life. But before we can take up our cross and follow the Lord, we first need to understand what we are taking up. There are in fact three aspects to the Cross:
The heart of the Cross
The work of the Cross
The way of the Cross
“For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in [Jesus], and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross” Colossians 1:19-20.
1. The Heart of the Cross
“All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast – all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world ” Revelation 13:8.
…who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity, 2 Timothy 1:9
The Cross wasn”™t something God thought up at the last moment. From the moment of Adam’s fall, the plan of the Cross was put in motion. The “heart of the Cross”, the sacrificial love which resulted in the sending of Jesus to die, has always been in the heart of the Father. His love is absolute. The Cross was simply its greatest expression.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall have eternal life” John 3:16.
2. The Work of the Cross
“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed” 1 Peter 2:24.
“But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons” Galatians 4:4-5.
Some two thousand years ago, the heart of the Cross was revealed at Calvary. This was the sacrifice of Jesus upon the Cross which we look back to (1 Corinthians 15:3). This work of the Cross has two important parts:
Christ died for you
When Jesus died, He took the judgment which you should have received. Christ was your substitute. Because He died for you, you have eternal life.
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” Romans 5:8.
Christ died as you
Not only did Jesus die for you, He died as you. When Christ died on the Cross, God saw you dying on the Cross in Christ. Your old sinful nature was crucified in Christ. Christ was your representative. Because He died as you, you are now a new creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” Galatians 2:20.
The work of the Cross is a finished work. The Cross of Christ dealt with both the judgment of sin AND the power of sin. This was the work of the Son on your behalf.
“For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin – because anyone who has died has been freed from sin” Romans 6:6-7.
“Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace” Romans 6: 12-14.
Many Christians understand the first part of the work of the Cross (the receiving of eternal life), but don’t understand the second part (living as a new creation). Many believe they are now supposed to “die out to themselves” and “crucify the old man.” But the Bible tells us that you have already been crucified with Christ. This was the work of the Cross for you. You do not have to try to struggle to “die” to sin. You are already dead to sin in Christ (Galatians 5:24).
“The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus” Romans 6:10-11.
Just as Jesus died to sin once for all time, so you are now to count yourself dead to sin once for all time! And just as Jesus is now alive to God, so you too are alive to God in Christ!
3. The Way of the Cross
“And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple” Luke 14:27.
When Jesus told us to take up our cross and follow Him, He did not mean for us to crucify ourselves. We cannot kill off the old nature. That was the work of the Cross. It is the new creation that takes up its cross and lays down its life for others. It means:
Having the Heart of the Cross
We are called to have the heart of the Cross like the Father. God has designed for this heart of sacrificial love to motivate the new creation life (John 15:12-13).
Denying Ourselves
We deny our own interests and comfort by the Holy Spirit (John 12:24; 1 Corinthians 15:31; 2 Corinthians 4:7-12; 5:15; Revelation 12:11). We do not do this because we are trying to complete our own salvation. We do this because of love for God (Romans 12:1) and love for others (2 Corinthians 5:14)
“Then he said to them all: ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me'” Luke 9:23.