Cross

Why is There a Cross – On Top of the Steeple?

/ pastorpete51 / Leave a comment

And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. John 12:32 KJV

Have you ever wondered why most churches have a cross at the top of their steeples, or that hundreds of millions of Christians wear crosses around their necks? It certainly isn’t stated anywhere in the Bible that we are supposed to do this – and yet we do.

In fact, when we think about the events of the gospel it might seem more appropriate to have an empty tomb on the roof showing the victory of Jesus over death or a throne showing that He is King of the universe. But there is something about the cross that attracts us to Jesus. But maybe we shouldn’t be surprised. Jesus told us that when He was lifted up that He would draw people to himself. Jesus healed lepers, multiplied bread, and walked on water but the lepers went home, the bread eaters stopped following and even Peter who had walked on water with Him, denied knowing Him. But on the cross things began to happen no could have imagined. At the cross, a thief believed and was promised paradise, and a Roman soldier cried out that He was the Son of God. Nicodemus came and boldly requested to give Jesus a proper burial and even His enemies remembered His claim of resurrection and asked for the tomb to be guarded and sealed. Repentance and faith, remembering His words and watching the tomb all began at the cross. The cross calls for us to take a stand and gives a place where we can see and believe that Jesus is God’s Son. So keep putting the cross where everyone can see because He has promised that when He is lifted up that He will draw all men to Him!

Fragrance of the Sacrifice

/ pastorpete51 / 1 Comment

And live a life of love just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

I have often wondered about the prayer Jesus prayed in Gethsemane. The awesome power that Jesus had to command wind and waves and to raise the dead was humbled in His plea to be delivered from the cross. He could have miraculously hidden himself again or struck down a thousand soldiers by a word and yet He struggled and sweat blood as He yielded Himself to His Father’s will and the shame and suffering that lay ahead.

He could have prayed; “I know I have to die so let’s just get this over.” In sullen acceptance, but instead He yielded His heart in love. How often I have prayed and given grudgingly but without surrender? I dodge the bullet of disobedience but miss the mark of true sacrifice.

But because Jesus gave His life in loving obedience, Peter was brought to full repentance, Nicodemus had opportunity to be courageous and a thief was brought to paradise. A rich man had the chance to learn how to give and just three days later Mary Magdalene got to be the first to see Him risen and alive. These all received because Jesus gave himself willingly. They became a part of the fragrance of the offering of Jesus. So what about this morning? Will we surrender whatever is in our hands today to God? Will we willingly let go of what is ours to gain something for others? Will we surrender and follow our Lord and offer a sacrifice with a sweet fragrance to God today?

The Beauty of Sunsets

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich. 2 Corinthians 8:9 ESV

Unless there is an eclipse going on we will never see folks flocking to the shore to snap photos of the sun at noon. That’s because at noon the sun is way too bright for all but the most expensive camera lenses to capture and it’s just so ordinary. But come sunset, especially if there are clouds on the horizon, people wait with anticipation for the first colors of sunset as the sun slowly descends into the sea.

In that same way, the love of God in Christ was far too brilliant for most of His followers to receive while Jesus was healing the sick or calming seas. But at the cross as Jesus suffered and His body was wracked with agonizing pains the beauty of sunset dimmed by clouds began to be seen by unlikely candidates. One thief on a cross next to Jesus repented and received the promise of heaven. A Roman executioner believed and a young disciple was entrusted with the protection and care of Jesus’ own mother. In the sunset of His life on earth Jesus died in my place, paid the full price for our salvation and drew even fearful followers out of hiding to place Him in the tomb. How humble and kind of our Lord that He would allow Himself to die that we could see the beauty of His love in His sunset hours on Calvary!