May 15, 2023

Mark 15: 24 And they crucified him. (NIV)

Our contemporary secular society specializes in making everything superficial and common.*

It is a blessing that the gospel writers were more interested in sharing the facts than the gory details of Jesus’ execution. On the other hand, maybe we should have a more vivid picture of what our Lord endured on our behalf. I just read an article, written by a doctor, about the practice of crucifixion. It made my stomach hurt. One of my professors in Bible college gave a very dramatic presentation of Jesus’ death, including the speculation that flies would have swarmed his open wounds. And viewing the movie, The Passion of the Christ, relieved me of my inability to picture the suffering of my Savior.

One writer maintains, “In an era when the cross has become a decorative object and even a good-luck charm, we need the reminder that originally it was ugly and monstrous.”* It was not a beautiful thing that the Son of God did for us. There was no halo glowing over his head; he wasn’t wrapped in snowy white linen; his countenance was not serene.

I wouldn’t condemn you for wearing cross-shaped jewelry, but unless it reminds you of the real cross – that ugly, bloody one – it’s just a piece of metal. Is it a symbol that we wear so that others will recognize that we are Christians? Perhaps. But let’s not reduce an instrument of torture to the equivalent of a rabbit’s foot. Let the cross of Christ stand for what it is – “foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (I Corinthians 1: 18)

Toward that cross the incarnate Word, Jesus Christ, directed His life.*