THE PARADIGMS OF THE CROSS
1) The cross is viewed from many paradigms and different viewpoints by people.
The preaching of the cross is foolishness to them that perish .But it is the power of God unto Salvation to those who are saved.
I Corinthians 1 : 18
18 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.
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2) The cross remains a puzzle and a mystery to many.
Many today fail to understand the significance of the cross .
They are blinded to the great salvation provided through the cross of Jesus Christ.
They are bound to their religious traditions and human intellectualism and the cross remains a puzzle to them.
I Corinthians 1 : 18 - 21
18 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.
19 For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”
20 Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.
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3) The Apostle Paul said that the cross was a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Greeks.
Even today the world holds many different views on the cross. People of different religious beliefs react differently to the message of the cross.
May God grant that the glorious light of the gospel of Jesus would shine in the hearts of those who find the cross of Jesus a puzzle and bring them to the knowledge of the truth .
I Corinthians 1 : 22 - 25
22 For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom;
23 but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness,
24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
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4) The Apostle preached only Christ and Him crucified.
Our faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God
1 Corinthians 2 : 1-5
1 And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God.
2 For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
3 I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling.
4 And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
5 that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
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5) The rulers of this world did not know the hidden wisdom of God.
If they had known it , they would not have crucified the Lord Jesus Christ
1 Corinthians 2 : 6-8
6 However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.
7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory,
8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
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6) Even the Angels are eagerly looking into the cross with amazement at the love of God towards mankind .
I Peter 1 : 10-12
10 Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you,
11 searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
12 To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which angels desire to look into.
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7) When Jesus was hanging on the cross there were different kinds of reactions from people.
Some mocked him saying ‘If He is the Son of God let Him come down from the cross ‘
Matthew 27 : 39-40
39 And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads
40 and saying, “You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.”
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8) The chief priests and Pharisees mocked Him saying ‘He saved others ,but He is not able to save Himself ‘.
Matthew 27 : 41-43
41 Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said,
42 “He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.
43 He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ”
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9) Some mocked him saying ‘Let us see if Elijah will and save him' ‘
Matthew 27 : 45-49
45 Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land.
46 And 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?”
47 Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, “This Man is calling for Elijah!”
48 Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink.
49 The rest said, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.”
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10) The centurion declared that Jesus was indeed the Son of God when he saw the earthquake after the death of Jesus.
Matthew 27 : 50-54
50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.
51 Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split,
52 and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised;
53 and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.
54 So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, “Truly this was the Son of God!”
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11) One of the thieves crucified along with Jesus also mocked Him saying ‘why don’t save yourself and us ‘ .
Luke 23 : 39-43
39 Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.”
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12) The other thief approached Jesus with humility saying’ Lord remember me when you come into your kingdom ‘. Jesus promised him that he would be with Him in paradise.
Luke 23 : 40-43
40 But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation?
41 And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.”
42 Then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.”
43 And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”
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13) The children of God who have experienced the power of the cross , boast and glory in the cross of Jesus which has transformed them.
Galatians 6 : 14
14 But 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.
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14) We must have total faith and confidence in the power of the blood of Jesus to wash away all our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness . When we repent of our sins and confess them the Lord is faithful to forgive us.
ISAIAH 53:5
" But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. "
I JOHN 1:7-9
" But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."
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15) We must have total faith and confidence in the stripes that Jesus endured to heal our sicknessess.When we beleive with all our heart that Jesus carried our infirmities and diseases we would be able to offer the prayer of faith that would heal the sick.
MATTHEW 8:16-17
" When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick.
This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: "He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases."
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16) We must have total faith that Jesus took the scourge of curses of mankind upon himself and became a curse for us.Therefore we can be absolutely sure that it is the will of God that all who accept Christ in their hearts live under His blessings.
GALATIANS 3:13-14
" Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree."
He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit."
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17) We must have total faith that Jesus carried our sorrows and our griefs. When we are in sorrow we can come to the cross and receive comfort and healing for our broken hearts.
ISAIAH 53:4
" Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. "
2 CORINTHIANS 1:3-4
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,
who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.
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18) We must have total faith and confidence in the victory of Christ over satan on the cross when we face the attacks of the enemy. We should not allow fear and anxiety to overwhelm us in times of battle. With the shield of faith we can extinguish all the arrows of the evil one.
COLOSSIANS 2:15
" And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross."
REVELATION 12:11
" They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. "
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19) We must have total faith that Jesus will deliver us from shame and humiliation before others. Jesus suffered humiliation during the cross .He was mocked and ridiculed that he saved others but could not save himself. But God has highly exalted Christ above everyone else.
Isaiah 53:3
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Philippians 2:5-11
In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death-- even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
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20) We must have total faith that Jesus will deliver us from scarcity and lack . The Lord who was willing to give His Son for us will surely give us everything else that we need.
Romans 8:32
He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
2 Corinthians 8:9
" For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich. "
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21) We must discern the Lord’s body when we take part in the Holy Communion. We must understand the significance of the death of Christ on the cross and beleive in the blessings that He has provided for us through His sacrificial death. Then we can experience the power of God when we take part in the Holy Communion.
MATTHEW 26:26-28
" While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body."
Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you.
This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. "
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