We Have A Cross
The Cross is central to our faith. If we didn't have the Cross, we'd have just another religion. But Christianity isn't just a set of teachings or ethics that we have to conform to. It is much more living and active than that!
The Son of God died for us and paid for our sins. Now we can skip over the burden of trying to perfectly conform to a set of laws in the hope that we can attain Heaven in the future....an impossible task!
All those who rely on the forgiveness of Jesus, rather than on their own ability to earn a relationship with God, are citizens of Heaven NOW. We have been cleansed by Jesus' work on the Cross for all eternity. That's why we are free to follow after God's heart as sons rather than slaves. The issue of sin is closed. Hmm, that bears repeating ... the issue of sin is CLOSED because we have a Cross.
Just what the Cross means will grow bigger and BIGGER and BIGGER in our minds as we spend our years with God - wrapped closely in the relationship that was purchased for us.
We can't dilute the Cross by one drop and hold onto the true meaning of what it is to be IN Christ. We can't be in Christ without the Cross and we can't stay in Him if the Cross is weak and needs our help. We would keep falling in and out of Jesus!
Because of the Cross, no further sacrifice is needed to compensate for sins. When you are able to grasp this ... to live by it, you are free indeed!
Some people teach that there are many things you must do to maintain your position in God's family. This nullifies the Cross, and places fear and religious weight on people. It traps us in an impossible battle against the sin that Jesus has already defeated.
Paul openly expressed that he still saw sin working in his flesh. He acknowledged his ongoing battle against it... but for his relationship to God, he trusted and rested in the finished work of the Cross. Because of this Paul was able to do mighty things for the Kingdom. He never had to worry about his own sin before he prayed for others.
The Cross has leveled the playing field. The Law condemned us all-- any imperfection disqualifies us. But the free gift has qualified us all. In the Body, nobody stands higher than anyone else. We have all been humbled, and we have all been lifted.
Because of the Cross, we are at rest. Our efforts to be pleasing to God have ceased, but our Kingdom adventures have just begun. It's Good News! We can come before God's throne of grace anytime... not because we've earned it, but because we have a Cross.
The Cross is for you. All you need to do to get to know the awesome God who fills our universe is to ask Him to cleanse you through what He did on the Cross, and ask His Spirit to come dwell in you. That is the beginning of an eternal friendship-- it's the moment of your adoption into God's family.
You can even pause and ask Him now...
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