Looking for the Cross

Sometimes I get so wrapped up in how good God is just in the day to day, I forget the cross.  If you look back over my blogs, you can see the hand of God and how faithful it is.  The beautiful hand of God is what has shaped and strengthened my faith.  However, I don't ever want to put too much attention on the things God has done for me that I take my eyes off the cross.  The cross is what our faith is based on.  It's not about reading our Bibles - though this pleases our Lord.  It isn't about going to church - though we all need the sweet fellowship and the study God's word.  It isn't about serving others - though we are called to have the servant heart of Christ.  Our faith is based solely on the cross.  "God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world."  Galatians 6:14  "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." 1 Corinthians 1:18  "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me:  and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." Galatians 2:30

We must focus on the cross!  Christ came to earth to die for us.  He was the sacrifice for our sins.  God loves us but He is a righteous and holy God.  He can't be around sin.  Christ came to take our place so we could have a relationship with God.  We are made righteous through His sacrifice and His blood and therefore we can come before a Holy God who loves us!  When you admit to being a sinner, believe Christ died on the cross for your sin and acknowledge Him as your personal Savior, it is then God looks at you through the righteousness of Christ.  "Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God.  For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."  2 Corinthians 5:20-21  "And you, being dead in your trespasses and the un-circumcision of your flesh (a sinner), He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it." Colossians 2:13-15  "...having made peace through the blood of His cross." Colossians 1:20

What does the cross mean to us?  The cross is our everything...it's our yesterday, today, tomorrow &  eternity.  It covers our sins of yesterday, gives us peace for today, confidence and faith in our tomorrows and a life everlasting in heaven.  How does this happen?  For our yesterday - we bury our sins and put to death our old sinful nature.  "But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:7-9  For our today - we are to rise up and represent the glory of God in all we do.  For our tomorrow, we are set free from worry because we place our hope in our heavenly Father. For our eternity...we will be resurrected in a new body when we take our last breath here on earth.  "We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his.    For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin —  because anyone who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.  For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.  In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus."  Romans 6:4-11

Thank you God for answered prayers, peace, direction and the constant beauty of your touch in our lives.  But more importantly, thank you for the cross.  "To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever Amen."  Revelation 1:5-6