Menu
Palm Sunday
The Essence of the Cross
Matthew 27:30 And they spat on Him, and took the reed and began to beat Him on the head. 31 And after they had mocked Him, they took the robe off of Him and put His own garments on Him, and led Him away to crucify Him.
Introduction
This morning as we enter Holy Week, everything about our service (from the procession of the palms, to the readings, to the hymns, to the blood red color of the vestments) is given to remind us of where we are heading throughout the course of this week.
Throughout this week, we are following Jesus as He draws closer and closer to the Cross.
Therefore, this morning, I want us to spend our time together by looking at the Cross. That is, I want us to look at exactly what Christ accomplished for us on the Cross and what this means for our walk with God.
To put this another way: over and again you are reminded that the grace that saves you is a grace that changes you.
This morning we are going to see the basis of that statement. Not only that we are going to find that this twofold nature of grace is at the very heart of the Cross and therefore at the very heart of the salvation that Christ accomplished for us on the Cross.
The Benefits of the Cross- The message of Scripture is that the Cross is the source of the whole of Salvation. That is, the Cross is the source of both your forgiveness and your renewal/change/growth.
2 Peter 1:3 His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness
In other words, the salvation that God provides is a twofold transaction. Notice then the witness of Scripture is:
A] The Cross is the source of your Forgiveness– on the Cross Jesus bore the judgment and penalty for all your sins thereby removing all that stood against you before God (Isa 53:5).
1 Peter 2:24 He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross,
However, at the same time, Scripture also maintains as emphatically that
B] The Cross is the source of your Righteousness, Growth, and Renewal– How? FN#1 Remember, Christ did not just die for us He also lived a life of perfect obedience. In other words, Christ came to us and as one of us fulfilled for us all that God requires of us FN#2.
Matthew 5:17 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. FN#3
Importance: on the Cross these two aspects of salvation are inseparably bound and simultaneously accomplished. In fact, if the Cross does not accomplish both of these aspects (forgiveness and healing), it accomplishes neither. As such, you cannot have one without the other and where there is one there is by necessity the other. Why?
· Christ’s perfect obedience qualified Him to offer the perfect, unblemished sacrifice (c.f. Ex 12:5 & I Pet 1:19).
Hebrews 5:8 Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He endured. 9 And once made perfect/complete, He became to all those who obey Him the source of eternal salvation,
In other words, without Christ’s perfect obedience there would be no perfect unblemished sacrifice for our sins.
· In turn, Christ’s perfect sacrifice is the fulfillment/culmination of His obedience to God’s purpose/plan for His life.
Philippians 2:8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (Luke 22:41-42)
In other words, without Christ’s sacrifice for our sins, there would be no perfect obedience to the Father’s will/purpose.
Simply put, on the Cross perfect sacrifice and perfect obedience (forgiveness and renewal) are inseparably bound, mutually dependent, and simultaneously accomplished. Where there is one there is by necessity the other.
Notice the result: the Cross is at its essence a twofold transaction. That is, the Cross is both what God takes from us (sin) and what God puts in its place (Christ’s perfect obedience for us, as one of us).
In fact, the Cross itself provides a beautiful illustration of this very point: Think about it: the Cross is made up of two parts.
· It has a horizontal plain (the horizontal represents what Christ took from us. Christ bore our sins).
· The Cross also has a vertical plain (the vertical represents what Christ provided for us. Christ fulfills and offers up on our
behalf the perfect obedience required of us) FN#4
Notice then over and again we hear Scripture testifying to this twofold transaction/salvation (Deut 6:22-23; Ez 36:25-27; Titus 2:14; Col 1:13).
1 Peter 2:24 and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. (II Cor 5:21)
Colossians 1:13 For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,
Bottom line: this week as you follow Christ to the Cross, remember the Cross is the source of both your forgiveness and your change. Therefore, you look to Christ for both. In fact, the twofold transaction of the Cross means that every prayer for forgiveness is simultaneously a prayer for change
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Footnotes
1] Think about it: when we look at the cross amid all the blood, gore, and death, it is easy to see the price that Jesus paid for our sins in order to forgive us of those sins. However, when we step back and look a second time, where (amid all the blood, gore, and the punitive nature of the Cross) do we find the righteousness, healing, and renewal that we desperately need. The answer is that we cannot just look at what is being done on the Cross, we must also look at the one to whom it is being done. In other words, when you look at the Cross you see the source of your forgiveness in the price that was paid. At the same time, you see the source of your righteousness (along with the renewal and change that unfolds it in your life) in the one who is making the payment- Jesus Christ the Righteous. Notice then when we step back and look at the Cross we find the two key aspects of salvation in plain view: on the Cross we see both payment and fulfillment/righteousness.
Bottom line: just as Jesus’ death is the source of our forgiveness, so too His life of perfect obedience is the source of our healing, renewal, and righteousness.
2] Notice the Result: when we look at the Cross and see a perfect sacrifice and perfect obedience, both of these aspects are accomplished and offered by Christ on our behalf
3] 2 Corinthians 5:21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
4] Notice at once, we see this very transaction and exchange each week at the Lord’s Table. Where? In the chalice we see the blood of a perfect sacrifice and the blood of perfect obedience. Thus, each week at the Table, Christ hands you the receipt for the whole of salvation paid in full (both the removal of all you have failed to do as well as the satisfaction of all that you are required to do). Notice the result: what Christ accomplished for you, the Holy Spirit is now applying and unfolding in you.