Tag Archives: Cross

The offensive cross

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We saw yesterday that our ministry must be performed in the shadow of the cross. The problem is, of course, is that the cross, when truly understood, is offensive. That’s what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 1, and it’s still true.

Shane Claiborne, in his book Irresistible Revolution, tells of interning at a megachurch. He noticed that there were no crosses in the sanctuary. When he asked, he was told that crosses aren’t “seeker friendly.”

Isn’t that why so many want to reduce Christianity to random acts of service? Let’s go build houses. Feed people. Do anything except talk to them about Jesus.

We need to be about service. But that’s only a part of our mission as Christians. In Mark 10:45, Jesus said, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Serve and give his life. Our service needs the cross to make sense. Without Jesus’ sacrifice, Christian service is no different than the acts of philanthropy done by other groups.

The cross may not be seeker friendly. It may be a stumbling block and an offense. But Christianity without the cross is no longer Christianity.

Shadow of the cross

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As Christians go out into the world as ambassadors of the Kingdom, we mustn’t lose sight of the cross. That is, we have to be sure that Christ’s mission shapes our mission. He came to this world to do good, healing the sick, raising the dead, feeding the hungry. He came to this world to teach, speaking with an authority that amazed people.

But it was his death on the cross that truly set Christ apart. It was in that act that he did what no one else could do, he who knew no sin dying for a sinful world. Jesus’ death was a sacrifice, a willing surrender of his life. It was not just that his teachings angered some or that his actions threatened others. Jesus came to this world to lay down his life to redeem many.

As Christians we should be doing good deeds. We should be teaching the forms of piety and morality that Jesus spoke of. But in everything we do, there must be a shadow of the cross, a message of redemption for a lost world. When we lose that aspect to our ministries, we lose the very thing that sets us apart from other doers of good.

Let us do good to others. Let us teach them about justice and self-control. But above all, let us point them to the cross.

{photo by Ian Britton}