This past Easter season, as many people do, I spent some time reflecting on the power of the cross. So, I want to ask you, when was the last time that you sat and wept over the meaning of the cross? Until just a few days ago, it had been a while for me.
I have heard the stories of Good Friday and Easter Sunday countless times. I can practically recite the scripture to you describing the scene of Good Friday. When I was seven years old, I gave my life to Christ at Vacation Bible School at First Baptist Church of Lancaster. I can vividly remember the moment that I felt the weight of my sin for the very first time. I remember recognizing my flaws and my broken nature. I cried. I cried because I fully understood what Christ did for me. Christ died a brutal humiliating death on a cross, for ME.
As Christians, we hear this message over and over again. Nearly every Sunday our Pastors incorporate this Gospel Truth into their sermons. We are reminded weekly in our small groups, in our homes, and over and over in the Bible. But today I sit and wonder, have we become numb to the cross?
I began to wonder why my instinct is not to weep every time I am reminded of this story. As I meditated on the power of the cross and the direct impact that it has on my life, I realized that as we lose sight of the cross's importance, we lose sight of our sin. If we do not view our sin for what it is, a direct offense to our Heavenly Father, then we can look at our sin without even wincing.
Hosea 9:15 says, "Because of all their wickedness in Gilgal, I hated them there. Because of their sinful deeds, I will drive them out of my house. I will no longer love them". This is what we deserve. The consequence of our sins should be that we are driven out of the Father's house and He should no longer love us. But by God's amazing grace, that is not how He wrote the story. The cross reminds us that we are free from this punishment because of what Jesus did for us.
We need to be a people that get to know our sins. Knowing our sins is a righteous thing, and knowing ourselves as sinners is a precious thing. This realization allows us to comprehend how desperately we need a Savior. If we don't believe that we are sinners, why would we believe we need a Savior? Let us be like David in Psalm 51. He prays, "I am conscious of my rebellion, and my sin is always before me." Psalm 51:3
We need to recognize our sinful nature and truly grasp the punishment that we deserve so that we never forget to be abundantly grateful for the cross. I don't know about you, but THAT makes me weep. I want everything that is hidden to be exposed to light. For sin grows in darkness, but, in the light, our sin melts like wax.
The more heavily I view the weight of my sin, the more gloriously I view the power of the cross. This is why Christians meet to tell the same story over and over again. This is why we take communion. Jesus said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me." We are to remember. We must remember the weight of our sins to remember the power of what Jesus has done for us.
Let us seek to recognize the total fullness of our broken nature today. Then, let us remember our great God and let the truth of His complete forgiveness wash over us. Let us not be a people who are numb to the Cross, but let us live as though we believe in its power.
Oh Lord, restore unto me the joy of your salvation. Psalm 51:12
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