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In The Shadow of the Cross: Perfectly Logical? The boss was getting very, very frustrated with his new secretary. Every time the telephone would ring, she would ignore it and not answer it. One day, he just couldn't take it anymore and confronted her—"You must answer the phone!" "All right," she replied, "but it seems so silly. After all, nine times out of ten, it's for you!" It sounds crazy, but isn't that the way we often see it? No matter what God has to say in His word, whether it be direction or reprimand, many want to believe that nine times out of ten, it's for someone else. As we go through the Lenten season, it is absolutely crucial that we answer the phone, so to speak, for the Lord wants to speak something very clearly into our hearts right now. The Cross of Jesus Christ is the centerpiece of all of human history—even all of time was separated by it, B.C. and A.D. As the famous hymn puts it, "In the Cross of Christ I glory, towering o'er the wrecks of time"—this towering Cross casts a very long shadow! And just as shadows get longer in the setting sun, in these last of days, the Cross' shadow reaches out great distances to overshadow and influence so very many. Normally, we would focus on those right at the Cross on that ominous day, but let's take a broader perspective—let's go back to the very moment it's shadow first touched the disciple Simon Peter. In Matthew 16, Jesus wants to know who people think He is. Then Jesus made it much more personal—"What do you think? It was Simon Peter who boldly answered, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." (vs. 16b) In this very moment, Peter was taking it very personally—he didn't just think it; he knew it! After commending Peter for hearing directly from God, Jesus went on to declare, "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." (vs. 18) Peter was certainly center stage here—the "fisher of men" was evidently quite the "catch" himself! But let's not misunderstand something here—Jesus was not setting up a line of supreme and infallible church leaders that would extend throughout the centuries. He is using a play-on-words here—in calling him "Peter," the Greek being "Petros," Jesus is labeling him "a small stone." But when He goes on to speak of a "rock," the Greek is "Petra," meaning "a massive rock or a rocky cliff." In other words, the Church would not be built on Peter per se, but on His adamant profession of the Gospel truth—Jesus Christ is the "Rock of Ages, Cleft for me," and as Peter would later come to know, "…the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word…" (1 Peter 2:7b,8) While many won't submit to this crucial call, the true church will! And when they allow that to be full and real in them, Jesus is no longer an offense—and the stumbling ceases. What about Peter and his faith-walk? He seems to be doing great, but then the bomb drops—Jesus will suffer, die, and be raised three days later. From our perspective—on this side of the Cross and the empty tomb—this new message seems to be Good News, but it isn't to Peter—he "…took Him, and began to rebuke Him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee." (vs. 22) Did you hear that? Did Peter just tell Jesus He was…wrong? How many times have we done that by refusing to surrender to His ways…fully? Human logic says, "No way!" He is savior—how can He possibly die? But in mercy, Jesus now rebukes Peter and says, "Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men." (vs. 23) Oh my, from mountain-top euphoria to the darkest valley in just a few minutes! Corrie ten Boom once said, "Faith brings us on highways that make our reasoning dizzy." You see, when we get all wrapped up in human logic, we miss the blissful eternity of God's perfect logic! A. W. Tozer spoke of it, too—"Real faith is not the stuff dreams are made of; rather, it is tough, practical, and altogether realistic—a world not of fiction, but of fact!" This reality will go beyond the stark fact that Jesus would suffer, die, and rise again to take away our sin. Yes, it is true—this work of the Cross would pay the eternally mandated price for sin, even death of the sinless Son of the living God. But it is perfectly logical that since such a price has been paid, that the beneficiaries of such an arrangement—namely, you and me—would enter into it…and stay there! The call for Peter and us is not to just visit the Cross at special times of the year, but to live in it. Peter, however, would continue to flip-flop around in his own logic until he was baptized in the Holy Ghost and fire! (see Mt. 26:31-35; Luke 22:54-62; Acts 2) Let me show you what I mean. After Jesus' announcement that He would be "rejected" and even "slain", Luke gives this small but significant detail—"And He said to them all." (9:23a) Praise God—His word is for all! Verses 23b-26 declare, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away? For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when He shall come in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels." The italics in this passage are my own, for I want us all—every one of us—to see and experience something here. Everyone of these words—"rejected," "slain," "deny," "lose," and "cast away,"—all incorporate the Greek prefix "apo," which inserts the proposition, "from." In other words, Jesus' being rejected points to His separation from the ritualistic, dead religion of the day. As His followers, we will also come out from the dead ministries that promote entertainment, self-gratification, and indulgence. Now, beware—these churches don't look dead because they are packed, perpetually growing, and inundated with programs. As they focus on prosperity hype, purpose-driven everything, and other such foolishness, they prove their spiritual deadness by redefining repentance. In this, Christ and His true church are "slain," while sin and self live on. If you, however, will be dead to these—sin and self, you will find yourself to be considered "dead" by many around you, who would rather that you "lighten up." Many pastors today won't even hardly mention sin in their preaching, let alone stand against it. And yet, this is the very center of the Gospel—"the remission of sin"—literally in the Greek, "standing against sin." As we come with Jesus under the shadow of the Cross, we won't promote "self," but, rather, deny it—and not just occasionally, but daily! So many have turned the faith-walk into just a past experience at an altar—or for some, even just the moment of church membership—and then assume they are saved, no matter how much the life doesn't line up. Many "Christians" are totally wrapped up in themselves, refusing to be connected to, or even dependant upon, others in the Body of Christ—not caring one iota about what people go through. Quite frankly, this is rebellion, and to continue in it, is stubbornness. 1 Sam. 15:23 says, "…Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry." It's demonic! No wonder Jesus said for Satan to get back behind Him! G. Steinberger once wrote, "Herein we learn to understand the meaning of the Cross, to comprehend its power, and to walk in its shadow. The deepest meaning of the Cross is to give up one's self." When Jesus mentions the "losing" of life, in the Greek, it means to come away from that which we had. If our whole focus in life is to get what we want, and thereby, saving and keeping our own lives, we lose—right now and throughout all eternity! Lastly, Jesus warns us of refusing to follow Him His way—we will be "cast away" from His redeeming presence. Do you see it? Peter, as well as each and everyone of us, are being called away from human logic that can even want God, but in our own way, and into a perfect logic that is vitally connected to a faithful surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. It is perfectly logical that the Lord, in His boundless love, would call us away from our own ideas and into His, for as Peter himself would later say, He is,"…not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9b) The phone is ringing, and it’s the "Boss" who is calling! Answer it! This Lenten season, don't just visit the Cross; truly enter into its all-enveloping shadow and influence through true repentance, and live right there! Copyright (c)
2005 Christ Our Rock Bible Church. |
