THE CROSS
Bible, spiritual symbols, and spiritual practices. A few weeks ago I asked an audience of 300 teens a very basic and simple Bible question. To my amazement, I found they were clueless. I had to start at the most foundational teaching or I would have just been rambling. Today we cannot assume anything. We especially cannot assume that people understand the cross of Christ and what it means to us as Christians. Crosses are seen everywhere. Many people wear a cross as some form of jewelry. But very few know the depth of meaning in Christ’s cross. Very few understand the truth Max Lucado expressed: “The Cross is not an event in history—it is the event in history.”
A
LL OVER THE WORLD, church leaders have to deal with a common problem— cluelessness about God, the
to go through the cross to get to us. Jesus said, “I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself” (John 12:32 NIV).
Bigger than the words we say is the love we share.
The Cross Needs to Be Discovered
A clueless generation needs to discover the Cross rather than just being told about it. Young people today are much differ- ent from 20 years ago. I grew up believing everything my parents and church taught me. Later in life and through study, I came to the realization that I now chose to believe what I had been taught because I experienced it for myself.
In schools and universities across the nation, everything is up for debate and doubt. It is no longer acceptable to
EXPLAINING THE CROSS TO A
CLUELESS CROWD
by MIKE NELSON
How do we explain the pivotal point of all Christianity to others who have no idea of its importance? They wear crosses and openly commit acts of sin without regard to what Christ’s cross says and does.
The Cross Is a Symbol of Love, Not Hate
The Roman cross was a device used to punish and bring justice to people who broke the law and were full of guilt. Jesus comes to free us from guilt, and He does it through love. “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13 NIV). Through the greatest event in history, Jesus demon- strated the greatest form of love. Love takes on many forms to people today. People “love” their favorite teams, dog, phones, car, clothes, and friends. The word gets lost in its overuse. Loving people as Christ did—unconditionally— will demonstrate genuine love to people who know nothing about the Cross. Divine love drew us to Jesus, and He had
12 EVANGEL • APR 2010
believe something simply because some- one says it is so. As Christian educators and preachers to the clueless, we must engage the audience, bringing them to tension points that allow them to search for and find the true meaning of the Cross for themselves. Discovering it for themselves seals it in their hearts. One way to engage people in this process is to make resources available that will lead them in their search. Another way, and probably the most crucial, is to provide opportunities for people to serve sacrificially to awaken something deep within them that demonstrates love and illuminates the true meaning of the Cross. We can talk about serving and what it does for us all day, but until we go and do it for ourselves, we’ll never capture a compassionate heart. Although I’m not a lover of hospital visitation, I know as a pastor I should love to do it. I dread doing it until I get in the hospital room and start talking with the family and patient. It then becomes one
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