On Holy Ground © 1999 by Charles Stanley APRIL 3 The Cry of the Cross SCRIPTURE READING: 1 Corinthians 2 KEY VERSE: 1 Corinthians 2:2 I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. To some, a cross might seem an odd symbol for a religious faith. It does, after all, carry the same meaning as an electric chair or a hangman’s noose—death. Yet this gruesome form of Roman torture stands at the heart of Christianity. An emblem such as the sign of the fish is a legitimate New Testament expression, but the cross of Jesus Christ is the authentic badge of Christianity. You see, God so loved you that Christ died for you. There was no way around it. Sin—the state and condition into which all men are born—had carved an abyss between God and man that nothing but the Cross could traverse. The message of the Cross is love, God’s immeasurable, amazing love for man. The holy love of God sent His Son to earth in human form and placed Him on two pieces of timber. When you think upon the cross and its painful accoutrements—nails, thorns, jeers, whips, and ridicule—think of the overwhelming love of God. God loves you. He died for you. He was raised for you. He saves all who trust Him for forgiveness of sin. He reserves eternity in your name. That is the love of God and the consummate cry of the cross. Lord, thank You for Your overwhelming love demonstrated at Calvary. You died for me. You were raised for me. You saved me and have reserved eternity in my name. Thank You that I have heard the cry of the cross.