What Does the Cross Mean to You?

The death of Jesus on the cross was an event about which He had a realization - He was convinced of His purpose and taught His disciples accordingly. Here is a breathtaking passage from Matthew chapter 16:
21 From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.
22 Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"
23 But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."

So He taught them about what was about to happen - not only His death, but His resurrection.  And, in verses 24 and 25, He uses a word that I think is quite significant:
24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
25 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

What did He say - those who would come after Him would take up their cross.  Isn't it interesting that as He taught His disciples about things to come, that He would use that language.  And, just as He took up His cross for us, He calls us to take up the cross - to die to self, so that we might follow Him wholeheartedly.  As Jesus was crucified, so we take the steps to enter into His life through salvation and put to death the deeds of the flesh.

+++++

In Galatians 6, as Paul wraps up this letter, He writes about the power of the cross:
14 But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.
15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation.

I was thinking on this Good Friday about a movie I saw not long ago - it continues to be in theaters, and it's called, Do You Believe?  I could summarize the movie by saying that it is designed to cause us to think about the cross and what it means to us.

Leadership guru Brian Dodd came up with 41 Leadership Lessons and Quotes from Do You Believe? The Movie.   He says that:

Today, my family had the incredible privilege to watch the movie Do You Believe? It is the best movie I have seen since God’s Not Dead. Do not miss this incredible film. It is a gift to the Body of Christ.

Do You Believe chronicles the stories of 12 individuals who comes [sic] to terms with the cross of Jesus Christ and what it means to each of them personally. It also vividly demonstrates the incredible tapestry God is weaving through human history and how individual stories are woven together.

I want to share some of the 41 "Lessons and Quotes" from Brian Dodd.   The movie shows a large cross in plain view in the city.  He refers to the quote, "Thousands pass under the cross. But how many people know what it means?”  He adds that I Corinthians 1:18 says, “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

Dodd also highlights a concept in the film that, "The Cross Alone Offers Hope To Everyone." He writes, "Do not be fooled by counterfeit solutions or options. Pastor Matthew correctly points out, 'The cross offers us a way out. The only way out.'"

And, he also made the point that, "Christian Leaders Have a Great Destiny." Dodd says that, "The movie’s narrator concludes the movie with the following thoughts, “The genius of God’s handiwork will one day become clear. At the center of it all we’ll see the cross…I can’t wait to see His masterpiece.”

So, what does the cross mean to you?  Has it changed your life?  Think about what Jesus did for you on the cross, and renew your devotion to die to self and live to Him.