Should Christians be using a cross?

[thecolorsblend]

Forgive me, but please point them out to me.

I'm rather interested in seeing those myself, actually.

 

[faroukfarouk]

Does the cross show disrespect to Jesus? No not at all Jesus told us to pick up our crosses and follow him. Thats an interesting saying if it was disrespectful. The cross is mentioned as a symbol of His love for us all and the power of our mighty God.

Matthew 10:38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me.

Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.

1 Corinthians 1:17 or Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

Galatians 6:14 May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

Philippians 3:18 For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.

Whether or not a cross emblem is actually used, the cross as a Biblical doctrine is indeed extremely important.

 

[faroukfarouk]

People can make anything an idol...and if a cross on a chain is an idol to a person, then they need to address the issue. If it serves as a token of their appreciation for the price paid on the cross, it really shouldn't be a concern to you. But, if it bothers you, I'd say you should not wear one. Did Jesus Himself say, "take up your cross and follow Me."?

By the way, a cross and a bullet...two different situations, and there is really no comparison.

What I hate to see is people tossing their Bible around like a used pillow, or putting in on the floor, letting it be used as a foot rest or a prop, or just leaving it at church until the next service. Jesus might feel disrespected by that....

People do wear a cross on a chain, or cross earrings, or get a cross tattoo, etc.

pinterest dot com

 

[Psykes]

I see it as a reminder of what Jesus did for all of us. Great dude.
Love you Jesus.

 

[Goatee]

God instructed the people, via Moses, to turn to the serpent when bit.

We have the Crucifix to turn to help us in our lives! To remember Our Lords Passion.

 

[Zurückschlagen]

I carry the cross for protection purposes. And out of respect of course. Yeah, I actually carry it for protection. Not joking. You ever saw the Deliver Us From Evil movie? The way they smashed the demon with the cross? I believe that's true. I watched many documentaries about folks with possessed houses, or about possessed people (their relatives). Only the cross helps. And some passages from the Bible, and your faith in the light obviously. But how you gonna scare a demon with a gun? Some of the dark spirits often cannot be seen. You don't believe in dark spirits and in the cross, go buy an authentic Ouija board, get those for $200+ because cheaper are fakes, search in eBay for it, open it and call Zozo. This is a legendary death demon that'll make your life hell and will eventually kill you. I take no responsibility for your eventual death and the death of your relatives. Little chance for survival if you're an atheist and you go and call the demon.

 

[Philip_B]

Numbers 21:8-9
And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live.’ So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live.

John 3:14-15
And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

Wisdom of Solomon 16:7
For the one who turned towards it was saved, not by the thing that was beheld, but by you, the Saviour of all.​

I think that there is a very powerful connection between the Serpent in the wilderness and Jesus the Lord of Life lifted high upon a cross, and the writer of John's Gospel is very keen to draw it to our attention. The passage in the Wisdom of Solomon is there to remind us not to engage in idolatry, in thinking that the think in itself did the saving, but rather that it is God who saves.

 

[Goatee]

Numbers 21:8-9
And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live.’ So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live.

John 3:14-15
And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

Wisdom of Solomon 16:7
For the one who turned towards it was saved, not by the thing that was beheld, but by you, the Saviour of all.​

I think that there is a very powerful connection between the Serpent in the wilderness and Jesus the Lord of Life lifted high upon a cross, and the writer of John's Gospel is very keen to draw it to our attention. The passage in the Wisdom of Solomon is there to remind us not to engage in idolatry, in thinking that the think in itself did the saving, but rather that it is God who saves.

Thats your interpretation!

 

[Philip_B]

Thats your interpretation!

Yes, it is how I would understand it, and I thought we were in agreement, and indeed I thought I was supporting your position, however it seems clearly I do not understand your position, or perhaps you may not have fully grasped what I was saying. Three witness from the canon of Scripture - Numbers, John, and the Wisdom of Solomon back you up.

 

[Paul Yohannan]

I carry the cross for protection purposes. And out of respect of course. Yeah, I actually carry it for protection. Not joking. You ever saw the Deliver Us From Evil movie? The way they smashed the demon with the cross? I believe that's true. I watched many documentaries about folks with possessed houses, or about possessed people (their relatives). Only the cross helps. And some passages from the Bible, and your faith in the light obviously. But how you gonna scare a demon with a gun? Some of the dark spirits often cannot be seen. You don't believe in dark spirits and in the cross, go buy an authentic Ouija board, get those for $200+ because cheaper are fakes, search in eBay for it, open it and call Zozo. This is a legendary death demon that'll make your life hell and will eventually kill you. I take no responsibility for your eventual death and the death of your relatives. Little chance for survival if you're an atheist and you go and call the demon.

Whereas it is true that ouija boards have been associated with demonic posession, and crosses are known by the Orthodox to have a disuassive effect on the demonic, I would not worry about attacks from specific named demons or allow myself to develop a fear of an individual demon, because this is how they wind up deceiving us.

 

[Deidre32]

Very good. So if you're not worshiping the cross necklace, how can wearing it possibly be idolatry?

Take me, for example. I'm wearing a Ralph Lauren polo shirt. The act of doing so doesn't somehow mean I worship Ralph Lauren. It simply means I have exquisite taste in clothing and found this shirt for a pretty good bargain at 30% off in the middle of some sale the department store had going.

lol I like this explanation, thank you. I'll remember it, it makes good sense.

 

[thecolorsblend]

Whereas it is true that ouija boards have been associated with demonic posession, and crosses are known by the Orthodox to have a disuassive effect on the demonic, I would not worry about attacks from specific named demons or allow myself to develop a fear of an individual demon, because this is how they wind up deceiving us.

This is really insightful, actually. And true. Reasonable steps can be taken to minimize risk (obvious steps, really) but, as you say, having done so there's really no reason to live in fear. Demons can't go where they're not invited on some level so one's lack of an invitation is all one needs to do to eliminate (or at least greatly reduce) the risk of problems. It isn't something people should lose sleep over at bedtime.

 

[zoidar]

Jesus died a horrible death on the cross and by wearing the cross does that show disrespect to Jesus? I believe it shows disrespect because its the weapon they used to kill Jesus. By Jesus dying on the cross our sins weren't forgiven by the cross but by his death and resurrection. If Jesus hadn't been resurrected he just would have been another man who had died by the cross. So by wearing a cross you show what was used to kill Jesus. If christians want to wear something have it be a empty tomb! I believe Jesus' resurrection is more important than his death!

No, it doesn't show disrespect to Jesus. The cross Christians wear is the symbol of Jesus conquering death by carrying our sins, which he actually did on the cross. "If Jesus hadn't been resurrected", yes then it would be something else, but he WAS resurrected. Jesus death on the cross is the strongest sign of Gods LOVE for all men, that he took such a punishment on himself to free us. So the cross is a symbol of God's love for mankind. The cross and the resurrection is equally important, one couldn't be without the other. But it's harder do find a good symbol of Jesus resurrection than the symbol of the cross where he wore our punishment, don't you think? And the cross-symbol has been the symbol for Christians for centuries.

Think about this if you had a family member killed by a gun and to remember the person everyone in the community got a necklace with a bullet attached to it to remember that person. That would be messed up.

Yes, that would be messed up. But, if he got ressurected and was letting himself be shot for saving mankind, then would it be messed up?

The cross is a symbol of death the romans used it to kill tons of people! So its a weapon of death that some Christians choose to wear around there neck..etc

Yes, it is the weapon romans used to kill thousands. But it's not those crosses that the Christian cross symbolises. It symbolises ONE cross, the cross where Jesus took our punishment.

And don't forget about the third commandment
Exodus 20:4-6
4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; 5 you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

We have to look what the third commandment really say:

verse 4 "You shall not make for yourself a carved image"
verse 5 "you shall not bow down to them nor serve them".

Ok, this is pretty clear, we shouldn't make a carved image of "what?" that we bow down to and worship.

The answer is in verse 4. "likeness of anything that is in heaven above" What is in heaven above? Animals that flies, like birds! You are not to make carved images of those animals and worship them or " that is in the earth beneath" animals that live in earth beneath, rodents, snakes etc. or "that is in the water under the earth;" animals in the sea, like fishes. In other words don't make images of creatures and worship them. The only one you should worship is God.

Sadly some people believe the third commandment is about not making images of God or Jesus.

Would Jesus be okay with you wearing a cross?

Yes, I'm positive, not only would Jesus be okay with it but I'm sure he loves it. It's honoring him, and what he did. And it's a good way of showing others that you are a Christian and what you believe in. In that way you are evangelising without even saying a word. Keep on wearing your crosses ... and crucifixes for that matter.

 

[The-Doctor]

Wearing a cross does not make you a better Christian, it is an outward symbol of your faith perhaps but that said people do wear it as just an ornament. Some wear the symbol of the fish.