The Cross

Is it my imagination, or has the symbol of the cross become about as cliche and mundane as peace signs? You see people every day wearing a cross pendant on a necklace or have a cross hanging from their rear view mirror or maybe they have a cross tattooed on their body, but can these people even comprehend the deep significance of the cross? My step-grandmother and my grandfather both wear cross necklaces, hers is encrusted in huge diamonds and his is made of solid gold. They display them proudly not as a sign of their devotion to Christ, but because of the materials in which they have been fashioned from. Their words and actions would not exemplify a love for Christ. In fact, my grandfather admits he merely said the sinner's prayer to avoid going to hell. "I'd rather be a pauper in heaven than a citizen of hell" is the exact phrase he uses to describe the depth of his relationship with Christ. Basically, it's words only. It's a head knowledge, his "fire insurance".

Why do we wear crosses? Is it so when all else fails people will have visual conformation that we believe in God? Do people wear crosses, the symbol of Christ's atoning sacrifice for our sins, to show people they believe? Should our words and actions not show that? It's not enough to just believe in God, put on a cross, and then show the world. It seems in today's society too many people worship the Cross and not the Christ. People clutch their cross pendant and send a quick prayer up to heaven when something in life isn't going right. They look at their cross dangling from the rear-view mirror and mumble a feeble "thank you God" when they narrowly avoid a car accident. Do these people have any idea just how much the cross means to a believer? To them, it makes a nice piece of jewelry or a means to show people they have some degree of faith. To me, it reminds me of the manner in which Christ had to die so that every sin I will commit in my lifetime can be forgiven. See, it's not so much the cross that makes Jesus's sacrifice what it is. Had Jesus come at any other period in time, He would have been executed by whatever method was being used at that time. When did the cross go from being a cruel method of punishment for crimes committed to a fashion statement?

I urge you all to reflect deeply on what took place on that cross when Jesus died. Imagine His fear, pain, and shame. He lived the sinless life and yet He was placed upon that cruel device used for the most vile criminals, put on display for people to laugh at Him, taunt Him, and spit on Him. He didn't deserve it just as we don't deserve to spend eternity with God, but He did it for all of mankind. Knowing this how could anyone merely wear the cross for fashion's sake?

Good stuff.

I agree, awesome post. And I think you're right, a lot of people take the symbol of the cross for granted. They don't really stop and think about all the cross is. They don't stop and think about everything that happened on that cross, just so that we could have the ability to turn our lives to Christ.

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"For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." Matthew 18:20
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"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." II Chronicles 7:14
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I used to wear a cross when i was younger, this was given to me. At the time i did not completely understand the significance and i wasn't really interested. I stopped wearing it, more recently i've started again as i've become a lot more spiritual and closer to Jesus and want to show my love for him by wearing it.

Looking at me in the street you would probably think, that im just some dude trying to keep up with the fashion by wearing it. So be it....and truth be told no one is going to know whether i'm a believer, or merely a fashion victim. Just as much as im going to know if i see someone in the street wearing one, or a driver nearby. People's faith is not as everyone else's and is often tested but hey the still deserve to wear the cross!

Of course they do. I'm not disputing a person's right to wear the cross. My post was to challenge my brothers and sisters in Christ to personally reflect upon what the cross means to them so that we won't get caught up with wearing one simply to be fashionable.

is it just me, or does wearing a cross constantly keep you mind on Christ?

also some people wear crosses to mock us...and Him...it is a sad sad thing...

I guess it really depends on the person. In my honest opinion, certain "pop-Christianity" accessories and apparell such as WWJD bracelets and Jesus is My Homeboy t-shirts can keep one's mind focused on Christ; however, we don't necessarily need them. We are certainly entitled to wearing them, but if our focus is consistently doing God's will and radiating His love we don't need an outward symbol to remind us to keep our inward focus on Christ. I need to do some research. I'm not exactly sure as to the origins of using the cross as an accessory or decorative item. I wonder if it's somehow linked to the Catholics' use of the rosary?

Yes, that is very sad.

The Roman cross was one of the most brutal and inhumane instruments of torture ever devised. There was nothing remotely beautiful about it. Just imagine a heavy, rough, splintered wooden beam with a cross piece several feet above eye level. The wood and the ground around it are soaked with the blood of the man who died there, bleeding from large impalement wounds to the hands and feet, and also from exposed muscle tissue on the back from being scourged by Roman guards. On average, it took several days for the crucified to die, not hours as in Jesus' case. Being executed on the cross was one of the most painful and humiliating ways a person could ever be killed. If you want to wear the symbol of the cross as a fashion accessory, that's your choice; just remember what it symbolizes.

Amen, mbuc. Isn't it amazing though that as it was prophesied that not one bone would be broken in Jesus's body, that as the guards were about to break his knees to speed up his death they found He was already dead?

I agree with the people that wear them should be believers and that they should try to be as Jesus was and is.

Everytime I see one though I smile and give thanks to God for the uplift in my day!

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