Abc - The Building Blocks Of Faith - Cross Series

Today we continue our series entitled, The ABC’s of faith. The larger idea is based on the idea that we learn over time through an exploration process of success and failure. Everything we come to know and understand is built over time on the foundation of trial and error.

We learned last week, the wooden blocks we have all played with were an idea in 1594, a practical concept 100 years after that, and only then it would take another 175 years to be mass practiced and produced as the blocks we know and love from Brooklyn, New York.

Last week, we talked about the confusion of humanity and this week we continue with our “C” alliteration by building on the ideas of creation, corruption, catastrophe, confusion and the Christ by talking about another important aspect of our Christian witness: Cross

On this Palm Sunday, I’d like for us to take the Joy of Jesus entry into Jeruslalen to the reality of what it would bring about. To do that, I’d like to show you a picture and have all of us take a minute to reflect on famous painting called:

<Please put The Shadow of Death by William Holman Hunt on the Screens>

The Manchester City Art Gallery houses a painting of Christ by Holman Hunt. It shows Jesus standing inside his father’s carpenter shop in Nazareth. He has momentarily put his saw down and is stripped down to a cloth around his waist. A weary Jesus stretches his arms above his head, casting a shadow onto the wall, a shadow in the shape of a person crucified. A long narrow tool rack hanging on the wall intersects perfectly with his shadow to give the impression of the crossbeam of the cross.There is a woman in the foreground on the left hand side. She kneels among the woodchips, with her hands resting upon a chest that houses the gifts of the magi. It is Mary, startled by the cross like a shadow cast by her son.

Hunt shows us in art form what the Gospels show us with words.

About ? of the Gospels are about the death of Jesus.

1/2 of Mark's Gospel is about his death.

The rest of the New Testament is explaining why he died.

The focus of historical worship of the Christian church is all about the broken body, the shed blood of Jesus.

Why? Well, most leaders who’ve influenced nations or even changed the world are remembered for the impact of their lives. Jesus, who more than any other person changed the face of world history, is remembered for his death even more than his life.

The shadow of the cross was cast over Christ’s life from the beginning. His death lies at the heart of his story, and ours.

What do the following people have in common: Carrie Underwood, Tom Hanks, Tyler Perry, Denzel Washington, Nicole Kidman, Patrick Mahoms, and the Pope?

There may be a variety of answers, but one answer is they all wear a cross. And there’s nothing wrong with that, but has it ever struck you as a little weird, because the cross was a form of execution. What would you have felt today if when you came in I greeted you wearing a syringe around my neck! Or suppose I was wearing an electric chair around my neck. What would you feel?

The truth is The Cross was the instrument of Roman execution from 100BC to almost 400AD. For 500 years it was the world’s most known method of punishment.

In crucifixion a person was either tied or nailed to a wooden cross and left to hang until dead. Death would be slow and excruciatingly painful; in fact, the word excruciating literally means “out of crucifying.” However, just like almost everything Christ engages with, the meaning of death on the cross is completely different.

In Christianity, the cross is the intersection of God’s love and His justice.

Kilmer Meyers was the pastor of a church in Manhattan, USA. One of the more disturbing aspects of his pastorate was a woman named Emma who used to stand outside the church every day at 4pm and scream insults at Jesus. Emma’s pain was understandable – she was a Holocaust survivor. One day Bishop Meyers went outside and said to Emma, “Why don’t you go inside and tell him?” She disappeared into the church. An hour went by and Emma had not returned. The bishop was worried and decided to look in on her. He found Emma, lying before the cross, absolutely still. Reaching down, he touched her shoulder. She looked up with tears in her eyes and said quietly, “After all, he was a Jew too.”Source: Maggie Ross, The Fire of Your Life.

The cross impresses on us all the lengths God would go to rescue/redeem his creation. It is the overarching message of the Bible—the story of redemption. While God created the heavens and the earth and everythings else for that matter, the temptations of Satan (the serpent) inspired humanity to turn from God’s grace to self propulsion. An action that passes the curse of sin on to our children so that everyone inherits their sin and guilt. A tragedy God foresaw and took action on our behalf. God would send his one and only Son into the world to take on human flesh and to be the Savior of His people. Born of a virgin, Jesus avoided the curse of the fall that infects all other human beings. As the sinless Son of God, He could provide the unblemished sacrifice that God requires. God’s justice demanded judgment and punishment for sin; God’s love moved Him to send His one and only Son to stand in our place for our and all the sins of humanity.