There is NOTHING more important in the Holy Word of God than the entire culmination of history pointing to the cross ( death) of Jesus Christ for the redemption of those who will follow after Him in obedience. (Hebrews 5:9)
When we look to the bible, the cross....or better, the death of Christ was the heart and soul of the message from the man (Apostle Paul) who recorded via the Holy Spirit, most of the New Testament writings. In this text of scripture he tells us about the cross of Christ.
Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
1 Corinthians 15
Did you notice that Paul does not even mention the cross itself in this important text and why? If we understand God's redemption plan, the means by which Christ died is NOT of great importance to God's plan. He needed to go to His death, shed His blood and die as the PERFECT sacrifice for the world, once and for all then rise again to defeat death. While His death was indeed foretold, if people focus on the cross (the means of execution or its shape) they will MISS the point about the Living Christ by a mile.
It is true that the cross itself has become a kind of religious idol, a mere fashionable symbol, jewelry and even adornment for much of the world today. Imagine hanging an electric chair around your neck if Jesus died that way? It is foolishness. Is that really how God wants us to embrace the cross(death) of His Son or is there a deeper meaning we must have to really be in line with God's Word? We say no, so we avoid this symbol today and focus on Christ and His act, not the cross as a symbol as man made religion does.
Please go here and read an article about how the cross is sadly viewed today and it will add insight to this article for you.
Once we looked into the history of this topic it was plain to see the truth. Jesus was really put on a stake and the wood nailed to His hands made a cross shape. He was not put on a cross but a stake as the Greek root word shows. It is clear for the reasons below; you must reject the cross symbol out right if you claim Gods truth! For the record, we ourselves do reject ALL pagan ways wrongly associated with our Lord, and this cross is another pagan unbiblical concern to us.
Let's consider a biblical look at the cross of Christ and see if we should really be using the shape of the cross or should we be about... the theology and THE One who died upon it for our sins?
To frame the discussion better, we want to focus on the cross in the historical light of Christ's life.
The cross ( the stake really ) was simply the cruel execution means of the Roman empire at that time. We all know the term crucifixion but understanding the meanings may help us:
The Greek word for cross is stauros...
It means a upright stake / execution device of Rome.
The English word cross comes from the Latin word... crux
Crux means .... a tree or a frame of wood.
The English term crucifix in Latin means to be fastened to a cross
It is well documented and few historians would dispute that Christ was a REAL person who walked the earth and He WAS executed around 30-33AD on a stake. ( the wood beam he was nailed to made a cross shape once lifted up )
Jesus reminded His followers of the cost to seek Him.
And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Luke 9:23
In this verse the word cross in Greek is stow-ros'
It means a stake or post, that is, or cross (as an instrument of capital punishment) Jesus didnt mean we carry a literal dross, but all the struggles to follow Him.
The shape of it lacks importance once you know it was a means of execution! (Like an electric chair or a firing squad.)
What about the cross in ancient history? Those people who oppose it in Christianity will say that the ancient Egyptians used the cross long before Christ walked the earth and so did other pagan cultures. They say the cross is a pagan add on from those cultures and not part of biblical Christianity at all. It is true the roman catholic faith is guilty of bringing in many pagan ways to Christianity and they say the cross is just one more of them. (See Constantine who perverted the faith of Christ using a cross symbol ) The cross shape or symbol was NEVER used in the biblical faith until Roman pagans brought it in..... please remember that point.
The truth is, none of that has ANY relevance to the biblical atoning cross of Christ. What matters is the meaning of His death and resurrection NOT the execution process.
As our article on the cross as adornment (click HERE to read it) says; the truth is people all over the world abuse the cross shape and have demeaned it into a religious icon as they ignore God's truth. This is shameful! That said, we don't display the cross at all. We also don't advise ANYONE to have an image of it in their homes, around their necks or on religious buildings. By following the model and example of the first century church (not man made religion) we as house fellowship NT saints are cleansed of such unbiblical ways. It is THE death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior that is our focus and it means everything for our eternal life to come ( not some shape or means of execution tool )!
By avoiding such tradition of man's ways (displaying crosses) we care not about the shape of the death structure but about what happen there with Christ, the Son of God. What happen at the cross (His shed blood/defeating death) NOT the shape of the cross itself is what matters most!
Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself. Hebrews 7:27
Please if you claim Christ, do not waste your time embracing the cross shape. His true people are told to redeem the time (Ephesians 5) and to cling to truth not pagan ways and this cross foolishness that is not a means to gain in godliness for the Lord.
Preach the gospel, OBEY the gospel to find eternal life ( Hebrews 5.9) proclaim His death, cling to ALL of His Word, live holy and obedient for the Lord. In that His death (not the cross), Resurrection and the Father are glorified through His people.
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