The Purpose of the Cross
1 Corinthians 1:18 8 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
- Is a Strange Message
- The scripture says its foolishness
- Foolishness in Greek comes from the word moron.
- The world thinks that we are morons, crazy, We are not morons because we could not make it if we didn’t not know Jesus Loved Us.
- Romans 5:8: God commended his love toward us in that while we were yet sinners He died for us.
- Salvation is not just what God delivered you from salvation is also what God keeps you from what he kept you from getting involved in
- We can only glory through the cross
- For us being saved: many believe when you accept Jesus you become perfect overnight (we know that’s not true) you don’t become saved we are being saved.
- Immediate:
- Processional:
- Eternal:
- the process where he is saving me from something everyday. I’m better off today than I what I had last year. There was somethings I had last year that God has delivered me from by this time this year..
- Saved means: to be delivered
- God is delivering us every day Thank Him for delivering you from what you used to be.
- Ex. That means to praise him you haven’t gone off on anyone all day, praise him Give Him Glory
- God made a statement
- His statement of love
- Jeremiah 31:3-5 Love with an everlasting love plans I have for you
- Isaiah 54:17 No weapon formed shall be able to prosper
- John 3:16 God so loved you
- Your sin is not greater than God’s Grace
- The cross has meaning. The cross symbolizes a message the world doesn’t want to hear.
- The cross represents self-sacrifice,
- The cross represents submission. I’m submitted to someone else’s will.
- The cross represents death, physical and material death.
- It represents being rejected.
- Represents being Crucified even though you were not guilty.
- It means punished for doing no wrong
- It means publicly being embarrassed and exposed
- It means being forsaken by those whom you love and trust but you still love them.
- Represents a God that looks beyond your faults and shows what you need
- This represents that our sin debt had been satisfied by the blood of Jesus
- This represents and symbolizes that Satan was defeated
- His Blood washes all of our sins away
- See the hanging on the cross was powerful because others were hung especially when looking at the other two beside him but when they died nothing happened but when Jesus died hell shook, our sins got washed away We are to take up your cross daily
- The cross what does it mean?
- Galatians 6:14 May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which[a] the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.
- we don’t have anything to brag about cars, jobs, or clothes. The only thing we have is that if it had not been for the Lord on your side you would’ve been swallowed up. If you arrived there you only got there by what Jesus did on the cross for you
- If he hadn’t awakened, you every morning you wouldn’t have even been above ground to do the things you do
- If he didn’t give you the brains or body you wouldn’t be. You arrived there bc of Jesus. Some think they did but it was nothing but the blood
- We are to take up our cross daily
- Luke 9:23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.
- It’s an everyday deal. I need Jesus every day. I need Him to fight my battles, I need Him to keep the devil out of my hair I need Him to answer my prayer
- It Provides Salvation
- Jesus is the way the truth and the life.
- It’s not by my doing its about what God did ( what has been done for you)
- Thank God the sins I committed is not a tattoo and just a stain
- He washes our sins away. Thank God He died on the cross. You can dress out in white and still have a black soul.
- If you have No Cross, You have No Crown
- Luke 14:27 And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.
- Whoever is not willing to pick up self-sacrifice, not willing to pick up submission, not willing to be embarrassed or ashamed, for standing for Jesus
- People want to accept Jesus to get the blessings but don’t want to pay the price that’s associated with it. Don’t want to tell their friends no, don’t want to live righteous. If you don’t pick up your cross you can’t be a disciple.. we have a lot of believers but we don’t have a lot of disciples
- There’s a difference between believers and disciples.
- A believer believes but the devil believes also
- A disciple is somebody that believes but also does what the Bible tells you to do.
- God says I have hundreds of thousands that a believers but how many are trying to live out the scriptures day after day after day
- Are You Disciple?
- Who are the disciples that are getting up loving those that despite fully using you.
- Who are the people that are disciples when they smite you on one cheek you turn and give them the other. Do we have any disciples
- Some people are plotting and thinking about hurting someone that hurt you, that’s not being a disciple
- a disciple recognizes that Jesus said vengeance is mine says the Lord, I will repay. If they hurt you I will get them back, don’t you get them back I will take care of them and we serve of God that when He defends you and He protects you He does it right.
- A disciple lets this word dictate his life you have to pick up your cross
5) Embrace the Assignment
Luke 22:19-20 NKJV
And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” Likewise also the cup after supper saying, this cup is the New Testament in my blood, which is shed for you.
A. HE TAKES YOU TO REVEAL YOUR GREATNESS
A. God Will Use You Without Your Permission
B. He Always Has A Plan When You Are In His Hand
B. BE THANKFUL FOR THE REVELATION OF HIS GOODNESS
- Thankful to See His Hand in All of It
- Never Forget the Blessing in On Your Life
- Thanksgiving and Gratitude: Jesus gave thanks before breaking the bread and sharing it with his disciples.
- This emphasizes the importance of gratitude in our lives, even in the midst of difficult circumstances. Despite knowing what awaited him, Jesus expressed thankfulness, setting an example for his followers to have a heart of gratitude in all situations.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
C. HE TEST YOU TO GET YOU READY FOR THE GOAL
A. Brokenness Reveals Your Character
B. Brokenness Reveals Your Commitment
D. IT’S TIME FOR YOU TO BE RELEASED FOR HIS GLORY
A. Your Season Has Been Sanctioned
B. What You Went Through Was for More Than You
E. We’ve Been Reconciled to God by the Cross
- Ephesians 2:14-16 For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, 16 and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.
- we have access now
- Through the crucifixion God put all of our sins on Jesus for us to have life
- It should’ve been us. All the wrong in our life it should’ve been us but Jesus says I will take their place. Dead and on our way to hell but he did it for us.
- Isaiah 53:5-8 Wounded for my transgressions he died for me
- The cross is about defeating Satan.
- Satan does not care about us because he is the enemy of God
- He hated us because God loves us
- He hates us because he knows the fight is fixed
- You can bind but please understand he has already been defeated. We are no match for the devil. He’s taken out greater people than us and he thought he had Jesus.
Conclusion: That’s the purpose of the cross: the blood of Jesus is sufficient today to wash you of all of your sins. It breaks every chain, looses every shackle, it transforms your life.
-
- Gives you right thinking, a clear path
- He lived, He died, He rose again.
- I’m creating a cross where we are all one body in Christ.
- We were separated but now brought into one place and one access.
- He hung, stretched him wide. Laid him in the grave.
- He was Wounded for my transgressions bruised for my iniquities.
- I don’t care how low and lowdown you have fallen God’s precious blood had the power to wash you