The Cross

WKU Teaching

You guys have been walking through a series of what it looks like to be Kingdom citizens, to live in this new reality of Jesus as King. A part of that is knowing the Kingdom essentials. Which is essentially giving some proper groundwork of what it is we believe, whats the foundation of it.

Tonight, we will be talking about the cross. What is the cross? Whats the point? Why is it important?

The verse we have for this is 1 Peter 2:24. I am going to read for us 1 Peter 2:21-25:

- 21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 22 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23 When he was reviled(insulted, verbally abused), he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. 25 For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

There is a lot in this passage, it's really dense.

So within context this letter is being written to people who are suffering, who are suffering at the hand of others for their faith in Jesus and Peter is writing to encourage them. He does so by pointing to Jesus the one they are following as the example. SO as we break this verse down we are going to have two parts, why the cross and what does that mean for us?

First one is why the cross, I never understood this as a kid and even a college kid. To me it was a piece of Jewelry I wore as a necklace that added swag. But why a cross, why did Jesus have to die?

- Before we answer that question let me ask you guys a question, what is something that breaks your heart? What in this world do you long for it to be corrected?

o Children without parents, kids being trafficked, what pain do you long for this world to be without.

- Whatever it may be in the opening pages of the bible we see the bibles perspective on why things are the way they are. God creates humanity and he creates them to walk with Him and to rule this world on His behalf, to take care of it. God says this is very good. However humanity decides to define good on their own, they don’t let God say what good is they think they know best.

o A good example is sprints, no one likes sprints or two a days. But to the coach they are good and as players, as atheltes we are to trust the coach, trust what the coach thinks is good so we can perform to the best of our ability. We trust what the coach thinks is good.

o A more extreme example is child trafficking, no one thinks that children should be trafficked for the pleasures of others. Yet it's a reality all around us, why? Because to some it is good in their eyes.

o But God desires humanity to walk with Him, God has made a promise to humanity and He will not break that promise. So whats the move?

- The bible continues and God rescues a group of people out of slavery in Egypt and he is going to make them his, God is starting over. God’s way back to redeeming the whole world is through this group of people. So what he needs to do is form them, form them into his people, but they also need to be cleansed. The decisions they have made to define good on their own cannot just go on unchecked. So they institute the animal sacrificial system.

o Back to the sprints example, say you walk out of practice one day saying you aren’t going to do conditioning. You can come back, the coach can forgive you but no one will trust you. There is consequences, your teammates will have to sacrifice to trust you again, it will cost them to trust you.

o BP - Animal sacrifice was a symbol of God’s justice and grace. Remember, we are contributors to the evil, therefore evil should be removed, we all long for this, but that would mean I would be removed. Yet God is allowing this animals life to be a substitute and it is symbolically dying in my place.

- But why does an animal have to die? The severity of defining good on our own. We have damaged our life, the life of others and the world around us.

- Lev – Lev 17:11

- 11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.[1]

o BP - “This animal dies to tell me that the stakes are so high, that my moral choices matter, my sin fractures relationships, it's the death of healthy relationships, it ruins myself, and it ruins God’s good world.”

o Usually at this part we start to think that our sin is not that bad or wow God is so extreme. But this gives us an insight into the heart of God.

§ There are things that we could go around the world that break all of our hearts, we could go around the room and we could all share something that we wish was different. The abandoned child, abuse, slavery, sex trafficking, stealing. Whatever it is this shows us that as much as we wish these things were different God cares even more so. So much so that he longs for us to walk with Him, trusting what he says is good. Even what we may view as not that bad God says you are devaluing yourself, devluaing other, ruining this world, and that is not good. So God institutes a way for the humans to turn back to good, animal sacrifice.

§ Continuing to read in the OT the sacrificial system becomes meaningless to the people, they are just going through the motions but not actually living in their forgiveness. So we long for a good King to come and make it right, to set things straight, to finally inaugurate God’s Kingdom on Earth.

§ In Steps Jesus.

· 1 Peter 2:24-25 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. 25 For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

o Jesus covered the debt that humans owe God for the evil we have created. It also is purifying, washing away the vandalism we have created in the world around us.

But practically what does that mean now?

- In Jesus we are stepping into forgiveness, we are stepping into being cleansed of all the times we have hurt ourselves, hurt others, hurt the world, and given stiff arm to God. However we are not just cleansed to be cleansed, we step into following Jesus because He is King, we live under a new King, we are no longer slaves to our desires, slaves to the opion of others, but we walk in freedom under the King. How do we do this?

- Luke 9:23 – “And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up their cross and follow me daily.”

o Jesus says here and as it's mentioned in the passage we first read, Jesus becomes our example. Which is why we come to Jesus for new life but this new life looks like taking up your cross.

- But what does that mean?

Cross – laughable – execution tool

- Celsus – 2 Century Philosopher – “Far from being an impressive… , this man whom Christians called lord was an abject failure….” Celcius could hardly hold back laughter. He ridiculed Christians for glorying in something as crude and ignominious as a cross.”

o The cross to the ancient world was a sign of a failed revolution, it was a sign that you had lost. It was shameful and this is the very thing that Jesus died upon for the world.

We belong to a King who died a shameful death, that is looked down upon by the world, what does that mean for us? It may very well mean the same thing.

It means we take up our cross, die to our desires, and walk after Jesus. Sit with Jesus, learn the way of Jesus, and show to those around us what life under Jesus looks like.

- It's going to look a lot of different ways, no longer getting your approval from social media, no longer seeking to be like by others, walking in purity because your world view believes in a higher standard of how to treat humans.

Our walk needs to match what we say we believe, we need to display to the world there is a crucified and risen King on the throne.

Jon Tyson said in a podcast

We are people who are scared to acknowledge Jesus and love the praise of people more than God. That is slavery not freedom. If I live in a world where I have to be liked and agreed with by the wider culture in order to be happy, joyful, and at peace that is not freedom that is slavery. Slavery to editing self constantly, slavery to performance. There is a freedom to dying to the need of being approved of and like by the wider culture. And it will hurt, it will feel like death. What if I became the kind of person that didn’t need to approval of the world but could still be joyful, at peace, and happy, that sounds like freedom on found in Jesus.

- The way of Jesus can be challenging at times, but it is true freedom, true life. And as Jesus put it life to the full. You are forgiven in Jesus, cleansed of the wrong, but let that cleansing lead you to new life. What is that going to look like at WKU? What does that look like for you? How can you live a life of freedom not being slave to the opinions of others, slave to your performance on the field?

That’s where what we believe about Jesus becomes real for the world

[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Le 17:11). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.