When Christ brings his cross, he brings his presence; and where he is, none is desolate, and there is no room for despair. As he knows his own, so he knows how to comfort them, using sometimes the very grief itself, and straining it to a sweetness of peace unattainable by those ignorant of sorrow.
–Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861)
For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
— 1 Corinthians 2:2
Me: G_d i’ve let you down so many times.
G_d: you can’t let Me down because you don’t hold Me up. Neither did you hold Me on the cross. My Love and Righteousness held me there. I even brought you through that process with me that the old man you were would die – and the new man would live fully in Me. Make no mistake my precious child I, not you, uphold you with My Righteous Right Hand.
Oh dear one, may we hear this one blessed truth: The ground is level at the foot of the cross. All are welcome. No one is bad enough to be turned away. And no one is good enough to deserve to go to that holy place. We are invited by the One who endured this ordeal to come and be witnesses of its power.
Sin is deadening us spiritually. Sin is affecting us like a creeping black mold; or a rust that dulls the sharp edge of our commitment. Time is short in this world, and it is time for us to come and die to that sin in our lives at the one place where it can be killed.
There is sin in our camp. And just like it caused Joshua’s army to taste defeat, it will cause the church stumble in its march to fulfill the great commission. We – each of us – must take it all to Him, confess it, and dump it at the foot of the cross. If we don’t, we face the prospect that our Christian walks will be dull, irrelevant, and poor replicas of the real thing. If we live, in fact, horrible lives while speaking great things about our faith, it will be a sad, isolated, and powerless existence devoid of the only Power required to actually live the impossible Christian Life.
How do we do this? The only answer is Jesus. This same Jesus Christ is the One that ushers us into His presence. This Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. Him, and all His work implies, so that we might find the full benefit of what He has done for us.
Meet me there tonight friend. The ground is level, and wide open. There is room for us all. And just as surely as there is room, there is a need for us all to go.
In the cross is health, in the cross is life, in the cross is protection from enemies, in the cross is heavenly sweetness, in the cross strength of mind, in the cross joy of the Spirit, in the cross the height of virtue, in the cross perfection of holiness. There is no health of the soul, no hope of eternal life, save in the cross.
–Thomas à Kempis (c. 1380-1471)
Thanks to Anne-Graham Lotz, and her message at the 9/11 Wake-up call simulcast for inspiration of many of the phrases in this post. See the website for this event at Wake-Up Call
Thanks too to the ministry of Eric Ludy for additional inspiration. See www.ellerslie.com for more
