I’m sure we’ve all seen them. The crosses on the side of the road where someone lost their life. It’s always a tragic day when a new sign is put up.
The cross has been used for quite some time in instances like these. It’s seen as a symbol of death. Furthermore, going back some 2,000+ years, it was used as a tool for crucifixions. This method of death penalty is seen by many historians to be the cruelest form of capital punishment known to mankind. And when researched, it’s easy to see why.
There were several civilizations that used hangings and other forms of crucifixions as their preferred method of punishment, but normally when we think of crucifixions, we think of the ancient Romans. The Roman Empire is said to have perfected that death penalty. And while they toyed with many different symbols, the cross, or ‘T’, was the one they used the most. It would have the criminal tied to the crossbeam, or for the worst of the worst nailed to it, and then watched as the offender, most of the time, suffocated to death.
This is how the ancients viewed this symbol. However, this changed when one person was crucified. His name was Jesus of Nazareth.
It’s been said He had some difficult teachings and many followed after Him. To those followers, and many more still to this day, the cross is seen as the opposite. To them, it’s a sign of life.
If you believe the story of Jesus, as documented in the Bible, you’ll see that three days after He was put to death, He resurrected. Hundreds of people saw Jesus after He arose (1 Corinthians 15:6). Why was He resurrected? To show He had power of the grave. To prove He was the Son of God and what He said was true. That those who believe on Him would not perish in the end, but also be resurrected in the last day. To be at home with God forevermore. This is what is called “the gospel”. If you want to have a relationship with God, you can. As the words of Jessie Brown Pounds say, "the way of the cross leads home."
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