It’s a thing of beauty, the cross. It symbolizes our freedom from ourselves. It was a necessary tool used by a skilled Carpenter to build a bridge from us to God.

We see crosses everywhere, especially during Easter. They are decorated, they are displayed, they are worn on our clothes and around our necks.

What do you see when you look at the cross? This thing of beauty is also a terrible thing. Our Savior died a cruel death upon it. The cross wore all of our sin.

There was a moment when God in His holiness could not even look at the cross. “Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?” that is, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?” Matthew 27:6 

God looked at the cross and He saw His Son dying. He saw His Son suffering. But He also saw us. He saw our sin. In the loss, He turned away.

It’s overwhelming to think that because of Jesus and the cross, God no longer sees my sin. When He looks at me, instead of failure, He sees success. Instead of a mean spirit, He sees gentleness. Instead of mistakes, He sees perfection. Because He sees me through the blood of Jesus, the Perfect One.

Hallelujah!

So when I look at the cross, I see Jesus. I feel sadness for what He went through, this precious Jesus. I feel anger at the unfairness of the Pharisees and the crowds who shouted “Crucify Him!” I feel shame as I realize that I put Him there.

But I also feel victory. Because of Him, I have a future. Because of the cross, sin has been defeated! Because He died, I now have life.

I pray that I never focus on the things of this world instead of looking at the cross.

I found this song in an old hymnal a few weeks ago. The lyrics just reached out and grabbed my heart and wrung it out! If you have a moment, study these words and let them speak to you the way that they did to me. What do you see when you look at the cross?

I Saw The Cross of Jesus, Frederick Whitfield (1829-1904): Public Domain                              Music written by: Paige Givens, 2015

1 I saw the cross of Jesus,
When burdened with my sin;
I sought the cross of Jesus,
To give me peace within;
I brought my soul to Jesus,
He cleansed it in His blood;
And in the cross of Jesus
I found my peace with God.

2 I love the cross of Jesus,
It tells me what I am–
A vile and guilty creature,
Saved only through the Lamb;
No righteousness nor merit,
No beauty can I plead;
Yet in the cross I glory,
My title there I read.

3 I trust the cross of Jesus,
In every trying hour,
My sure and certain refuge,
My never-failing tower;
In every fear and conflict,
I more than conqueror am;
Living, I’m safe, or dying,
Through Christ, the risen Lamb.

4 Safe in the cross of Jesus!
There let my weary heart
Still rest in peace unshaken,
Till with Him, ne’er to part;
And then in strains of glory I’ll sing His wondrous power,
Where sin can never enter,
And death is known no more.