“Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
The cross is an ugly sight. Imagine Jesus, bloody, torn, bruised, hanging from wood. He’s beaten, He’s struggling just to breathe. Everyone gathers around, watching, as this man is mocked and ridiculed. What does He do? He just takes it. He’s defenseless. It’s a morbid, depressing thing to take in. All you can do is just stand there, watching Him die a horrific, painful death.
Fast forward to today and look at Christians wearing crosses in memory of that day. Even Jonny Diaz’s song talks about the “beauty” of the cross. If it is such a horrible sight, how can we find any beauty there? Isn’t that a bit twisted?
When we look at what happened afterward, we find the answer. While it looked like Jesus died in shame, not as powerful as He claimed, when we listen to the rest of the story we see just how contrary to the truth that notion is. Jesus rose from the dead three days later, conquering the grave and paying the price for our sins. He overcame the world, giving us the opportunity to live again with Him. When we look at the cross this way, as the tool He used to conquer sin, it suddenly strikes us as something different entirely. Jesus, fully man and fully God, is the only existing being who was capable of overcoming death. Without Him, we would have no hope. “The beauty of the cross is that there’s One who has redeemed my soul. The beauty of the cross is that I’m finally free and letting go. The beauty of the cross is that Your grace has found me just as I am.” Because of the cross, we are able to enter into eternity with God. When we realize what this means for us, we are left with no other image but just how beautiful the cross is.
Scroll down for a video background of the song and the lyrics. If you want to buy the song check it out here. Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to leave your comments!
Lyrics:
At the cross I find the beauty of Your matchless grace
At the cross I see a King who died to take my place
It’s the moment that you made me clean and pardoned my soul
Amazing grace that I would be allowed unto Your throne
Not by my own will but solely by Your will alone
I’m unworthy of this love You ‘re showing to me
I see my desperate need
CHORUS:
The beauty of the cross is that there’s One who has redeemed my soul
The beauty of the cross is that I’m finally free and letting go
The beauty of the cross is that Your grace has found me just as I am
Not by my own works that I may boast or I may come
Simply through your Son the sinless and Exalted One
Only through the cross that I’m made clean to draw near to you
Saved so that You would receive all glory due Your name
Everlasting God from age to age you never change
A true love story remains for all eternity
That all the world would see
CHORUS
My sinful soul could only be
Redeemed by the blood of a sinless King
So you came to the world that You had made
Conquered sin on the cross and You rose from the grave
CHORUS
jesus wasnt even recognizable as a man, his bones were broken or dislocated. think of the scariest bloodiest movie youve ever seen, compared to the cross you might as well be watching barney the dinosuar. but the cross is so beautiful because of the love, the pure unselfishness, that it symbolizes today. Thank you for writing these devotionals!!!!:)