The Blog

Have you ever had something at the back of your mind that you just can’t seem to not think about it? Not like a song stuck in your head, and not necessarily something you don’t want to think about, but something that seems to work its way into almost every thought and situation? That’s where I’ve been for a few months now with thinking about the cross.
I remember a song we used to sing at church, it’s not that old, but the chorus goes, “oh the wonderful cross, oh the wonderful cross” and I just remember that that song used to bug me. Because the cross was horrid, it is the most torturous experience ever invented by man, the pain suffered on the cross was so intense that the word excruciating literally means “from the cross.” Yeah, we invented a word for it. I just didn’t get why we would say something like that was wonderful.
But like I said I’ve been reflecting a lot on the cross lately, and the thing that is hard to get your mind around is that the cross is really wonderful. In John 15:13, Jesus says, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” The beauty of the cross is that Christ suffered and died cause he loves us, and he loves us with the greatest love anyone can have. It doesn’t make much sense to our natural minds, but God uses the foolish things of this world to shame the wise. (1Corinthians 1:27) Now the crazy thing is that we don’t do more to make it known.
Really, think about it, the penalty for sin is death (Romans 6:23), and God allowed Himself to be murdered to take that penalty for us. How dare we keep that to ourselves! If we’ve truly experienced such amazing grace as Christ has shown us how can we possibly just sit back and not tell the world about it?! The message of the cross is offensive to our imperfect notions of justice, but we can’t let the fact that our message is going to make some people uncomfortable stop us from spreading it wherever we go.



“When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of Glory died
My richest gain I count but loss
And pour contempt on all my pride

See from his head, his hands, his feet
Sorrow and love flow mingled down
Did ever such love and sorrow meet
Or thorns compose so rich a crown

O the wonderful cross, O the wonderful cross
Bids me come and die and find that I may truly live
O the wonderful cross, O the wonderful cross
All who gather here by grace draw near and bless
Your name

Were the whole realm of nature mine
That were an offering far too small
Love so amazing, so divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all”

Written By Casey Cragie