Sermons on the cross of Christ

The cross has come to symbolize many things –

In Roman times, it was reserved for the worst, vilest, offenders of the law in order to torture and humiliate them before the public as a witness to their disobedience of Roman law and authority. A roman citizen was rarely crucified because it was too repulsive and degrading.

- Today, for some, the cross has become a religious icon – appearing in stained glass windows of elaborate cathedrals, or in classic paintings.

- Or, it is a piece of jewelry worn around the neck for decoration and declaration.

- Some make ‘the sign of the cross’ as a good luck gesture, as if it holds special powers.

 -The cross is the subject of many of the songs we sing…

And - If we are not careful, we trivialize the cross...  But, for the apostle Paul, he said it is the cornerstone of faith.

It is the starting point. It is the place we begin to unfold and understand the mysteries of God, and his degree of love for us.

1 Cor. 15:3-6a reads, “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time…”

Paul says this is of ‘first importance,’ this is the main point we have to get, this is where we start, without this piece of the puzzle – nothing else fits.

Christ died. He was buried. He rose. – That must be the essence of our faith.

In fact, he goes on to say in verse 17 “and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.”

So, this Easter morning, I want to ask you, “What does the cross and the empty tomb say about Jesus?”

I want to share three observations this morning, and if you take the first letter of each word – it will spell the word CROSS:

1. The Cross and the Empty Tomb Speaks of: Christ’s Response to Our Sins and Selfishness

The cross of Roman times meant one thing – death. That was its only purpose. It was the cruelest, most heinous form of execution ever devised by mankind.

And yet, we must remember: We deserve death…

- All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

- The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life.

- There is none righteous, no not one.

Left to ourselves, we self-destruct. We are sinful and selfish. 

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” - Eph. 2:4-7

1 Pet. 2:24,25 says, “and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. 25 For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.”

The cross demonstrates the EXTENT of Jesus’ love for us.

We deserve death, yet He offers life.

2. The Cross speaks of: Christ’s Reward for Obedient Servanthood and Sacrifice

Have you ever heard the expression, “Well, that’s some thanks I get…” when you have maybe done something nice for someone and they don’t appreciate it?

Jesus could have easily said that about his coming to earth. “[He] became flesh and dwelt among us so we could behold his glory, Glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” according to John 1:14…

…and what thanks did he get – being condemned, falsely accused, humiliated, beaten, spat upon, and put to death… “Some thanks I get!”

“Some reward…”  But, there is another aspect to the reward he received:

Paul in Phil. 2:5-9 says, “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,”

Never think the cross was easy for Christ to endure. If he had had his own way, he wouldn’t have done it, but “He became obedient – to the point of death.”

– In fact, Hebrews 5 states, “Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered.” – Heb. 5:8

Jesus had to learn obedience?  The creator of the universe, according to John 1, had to learn obedience – he had to learn to be human and face the pain and suffering of a fallen world. He had to learn to deal with the temptations you and I face every day.

He experienced the pain and penalty of every sin ever committed. He “who knew no sin became sin” on our behalf.

Our challenge is to become like him, to humble ourselves, to have the same mind/attitude he had, which Peter speaks of in1 Peter 2:21-23:

“For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, 22 who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in his mouth; 23 and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously;”

The NIV renders verse 23 as, “When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.”

They were not content with breaking his body, they were trying to break his spirit.

How did he survive the pain and agony of the cross, by revealing the secret that will help us through any and every circumstance – ‘he entrusted himself to the father.’

That is the reward Christ offers– He trusted God. If Christ could endure what he faced, we can certainly endure anything we may have to face in this life.

Do we entrust ourselves to the Father that he will see us through every situation in life?

Christ was rewarded for his obedient servanthood and sacrifice and we can follow in his steps and receive the rewards of Heaven because Jesus is today seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

3. The Cross, and the empty tomb, speaks of: Christ’s Redemption for Our Sins and Separation

Rom. 5:6-9 “For while we were still helpless (KJV - without strength), at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.”

Jn. 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.”

“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” – 2 Cor. 5:21

The cross has spared us from the wrath of God and allows God to see us as righteous – made holy by the blood of the lamb.

Col. 2:13-15 “When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, 14 having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.”

What we were: hostile towards God… And we say, “No, not us. That was the Jewish leaders who placed him on the cross.”  But, we fall into the same category. We all, at times, have turned our backs against God.

The cross shows the extent to which God was willing to go to restore fallen man in his sinful state, to restore the relationship He had with man in the beginning, in the garden, when God looked upon his creation and said “it is good” and walked with man in the cool of the evening.

God’s voice from the cross is one of forgiveness. Restoration. Redemption. His response to our sin: “Though we have sinned” there is still hope.

There is forgiveness. There is an invitation back into his presence. We can enter the garden once again where the ‘tree of life’ will be found, and we can fellowship and walk with God forever – because of the power of the cross and the risen Christ.

Redeeming fallen man. That is what the cross was/is all about.

That is why Peter, James and John, Paul and so many others spent their lives in fervent devotion to Christ. Voicing the victory found in Jesus. That is why they were willing to die, if necessary, to spread the message of the cross.

Those who witnessed the cross, gave a ‘voice to the cross.’ They went about preaching and proclaiming the hope and salvation they had found in a risen Christ.

What voice do you and I give to the cross? Are we eager to let others know of the love that God has for us? That he sent his son so we might have life and have it abundantly?  

If the name of the savior is precious to you, will you not tell it today?

Is your voice, the voice of the cross?

Shared on Preacher’s Stuff by David Robison