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The Old Rugged Cross
On a hill far away stood
an old rugged
cross,
The emblem of suffering and shame;
And I love that old
cross where the dearest and best
For a world of lost sinners was
slain. |
By Andy and Berit Kjos
|
| Resources to aid your Understanding |
| |
"...the message of the cross is foolishness to those
who are perishing, but to us who are saved it is the power of God." 1
Corinthians 1:18
“O most
merciful Christ,” wrote the faithful reformer John Hus, as he waited for his
execution in 1415 AD, “give us a courageous spirit, so that it may be ready.
And if the flesh is weak, may your grace go before it, for without you we can
do nothing.”
In the
eyes of the Catholic church establishment, Hus had committed heresy. He
believed that everyone should be allowed to read the Bible in their own
language -- an unthinkable notion in a culture that reserved God's Word for
elite students of Latin. He also opposed the pope's money-raising efforts to
sell indulgences (the false assurance that people could buy pardon for
sin instead of trusting in Christ's redemption through the cross).
Hus was
"tried" and found guilty. When asked to recant, he refused. Instead he knelt
and prayed that God would forgive his enemies. Mocked and humiliated, he was
led naked to the stake, where executioners covered him with wood and straw for
the killing fire.
Given a
last chance to recant, he answered,
"In the truth of the Gospel which I have written, taught,
and preached I will die today with gladness." Then the fire was lit using
pages from the forbidden Bible printed by John Wycliffe as kindling. Enveloped
in flames, Hus kept singing an old hymn, "Christ, thou Son of the living God,
have mercy upon me." He died praising the Lord He loved!
O that old rugged cross, so
despised by the world,
Has a wondrous attraction for me;
For the dear
Lamb of God left His glory above
To bear it to dark
Calvary.
[2]
Despising the Cross
To a world bent on social unity and moral laxity,
the cross stands as a divisive and humiliating obstacle. Attempts to minimize
its offense through laws and intimidation have bullied both secular and church
leaders into continual compromise. Public crosses are demolished or hidden.
Bibles are forbidden in schools, the traditional days for celebrating the
resurrection have been renamed "spring break," and countless corporations and
government agencies ban cross-shaped pins or jewelry.
Results-driven churches and Christian colleges are
marketing a new, more inclusive form of Christianity. Afraid to offend
unbelievers, they present a watered-down version of the gospel that veils the
significance of the cross. Trained to pursue self-esteem rather than
self-surrender, few share Paul's delight in the source of our salvation:
"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
Back in 1963, that Bible verse was the focus of a
series of sermons preached by Martyn
LLoyd-Jones, then pastor of London's Westminster Chapel. Reminding us that
human nature hasn't changed in the last forty years, he asked some probing
questions:
"There are contradictory voices going out in the name of the
Christian church.... So the first thing we have to do is to discover
which is the true message.... What is the Christian gospel? What does
it proclaim? What [must I do] which --
-
will render me immune to what may happen round and about
me...
-
would enable me to smile in the face of death...
-
assures me that I have nothing to fear when I come to the judgment
of God...
-
guarantees me everlasting and eternal bliss in the glory
indescribable? ...
"The central thing, the thing that matters above everything else...
is the cross -- the death on the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.... This is
what they preached.... The preaching of the cross has never been
popular...."[3]
It's
true. That's why Jesus warned us long ago that
"they will deliver you up to tribulation and
kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then
many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.
Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because
lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow
cold."
Matthew 24:9-12
The heart of the Gospel
Some
years ago, Graham and Gladys Staines left the comforts of Australia to serve
poor lepers in India. Because of their loving encouragement, many Hindus
believed in Jesus and burned their idols. One day, Graham and their two young
sons traveled to a distant church to share God's encouraging message. While
they slept in their car, a large group of angry Hindus armed with bows and
arrows surrounded the car, doused it with gasoline and set it aflame.
Imprisoned inside, the father and two children were burned alive. At their
memorial service, the grieving mother and daughter (who would stay in India
and continue their ministry) sang these words:
Because he lives, I can face tomorrow,
Because he lives, all fear
is gone,
Because I know he holds the future,
And life is worth the
living just because he lives.
Why is
this wonderful old Gospel so offensive to the world? Why does it stir such
murderous responses? Or more important, what is it? The apostle Paul
summarized it for us almost 2000 years ago:
"I declare to you the gospel
which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by
which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you
-- unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all
that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according
to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose
again the third day.... He was seen by over five hundred brethren at
once...." 1
Corinthians 15:1-10
In
short, the gospel is the "good news" of the historical event of
Christ's death, burial, and resurrection -- all for our
salvation. But in today's market-driven churches, this gospel is overshadowed
by an enticing counterfeit gospel. In the place of the cross, many of today's
most popular churches are celebrating their visible "good deeds" -- the kind
of "works" and ethical living that draw man's applause, not God's approval. As
in the days of John Hus, people are fooled into thinking they can earn their
pardon from sin and their place in heaven. Rick Warren summarized it
well:
"The first Reformation was about
belief; this
one's going to be about behavior....
The first one was about creeds; this one's going to be
about our deeds. The first one divided the church;
this time it will unify the church."[4]
This
new "reformation" focuses on human goodness and ignores human depravity. It
leads to pride and blindness, not humility and repentance. It assures sinners
that their good deeds merit God's approving smile, while it hides their actual
need for the cross.
Such
self-justification sounds good to the masses. When led by our human nature, we
all would "desire to make a good showing in the flesh," not "suffer
persecution for the cross of Christ." [Galatians
6:14] So, to maintain a Christian identity while avoiding "the
offence of the cross," many adapt their message to politically correct
standards for tolerance. Thus they please the world, but not God.
None
of the Bible's ethical lessons can make us holy or acceptable to Him. Neither
the Ten Commandments nor the Sermon on the Mount can save us from our sin and
prepare us to follow our Lord. They were given to show us God's high and holy
standard (a criterion we can't possibly reach by human will or strength)
and then to draw us to the cross.
I'm
not saying God doesn't value "good works" and intentions. But until He changes
our hearts, they are worthless as a means to salvation or righteousness.
However, when we are "born again" everything changes. The result
of the cross in our lives will be love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
faithfulness... -- manifestations of the good "fruit" of His Spirit at
work in our hearts. (Galatians 5:22) But such "good
work" can neither replace nor precede the cross. The fruit can only come
after our hearts are rooted in Himself.
In other words, our primary need is for a new life through the
death and resurrection of Jesus. Having "put to death" our old sinful nature
on the cross, Christ fills us with His own victorious
Life! "He made Him who knew no sin
to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."
2 Corinthians 5:21
This
wonderful "exchanged life" was prophesied and promised centuries before the
cross became a physical reality for us:
"He has borne our griefs and carried our
sorrows...
He was wounded for our transgressions, He was
bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon
Him,
And by His stripes we are healed." Isaiah
53:4-6
When we, by His
grace, truly believe what Christ accomplished for us through the cross, we may
share in His death and resurrection on our behalf. Filled with His Spirit, we
are enabled "to work out" the salvation we have in Christ through the cross.
For "it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure."
[Philippians 2:12-13]
All is from Him, through the cross, and
by His Spirit: our salvation, our new Life, our changed hearts, and our
Spirit-led service and sharing. And all bear witness to His sovereign love and
grace.
Spiritual battles ahead
But such a distinctly Christian witness may soon be
banned. Spirit-led kindness and service will continue to offend the world as
long as we keep sharing the cross of Christ. Since the world's religious
leaders have little appreciation for that divisive message, they have been
negotiating an "international code of conduct" with regard to conversions -- a
code that would place the world's authorities above God's
commands.
Back in 2000 AD, the United
Nations provided a platform where religious leaders from around the world
could express their intolerance for cross-centered missions. Meeting in the UN General Assembly Hall, the
Millennium World Peace Summit of Religious and Spiritual
Leaders discussed the problem of unwanted conversions. In his article,
"U.N. religious summit speakers decry efforts at
conversion," Tom
Strode explained that the Peace Summit --
"...evidenced widespread opposition to efforts at religious
conversion....
"...pronouncements were voiced by speakers from different religious
traditions against attempts to convert people to other religions, and they
met with strong affirmation.... Evangelicals especially would be targets
for such sentiments....
"On numerous occasions, there were 'very negative comments regarding
proselytization'.... Such declarations were met by 'vigorous applause,' said
Richard Cizik. ...the representatives of Christianity were joining that same
call to denounce proselytizing...."[5]
Last year, the World Council of
Churches joined hands with the Vatican "
to seek a common code for religious conversions" and "explore 'the dos and don'ts' of trying to
spread Christianity among other faiths." Notice their hostility
toward Biblical evangelism:
"Religious freedom and missionary outreach by Christian groups
have become increasingly sensitive topics as many Muslims perceive their
faith as under threat by the West and nations such as China struggle to
maintain state
controls on churches.
"'How can we - anxious to maintain, develop
and nurture
good relations with people
of other faiths - deal with this
highly complex issue that sometimes threatens the fiber of living together?' said the Rev. Hans Ucko, head of the
interreligious relations office for the World Council of Churches....
"The biggest
challenges to the project will be highlighted by who will
be absent: Pentecostal and evangelical-style congregations that often lead
the drive for conversions."[6]
Since "living together" has
become a common purpose, this conversion code implies that mission groups from
America will be welcomed as humanitarian
servers, but despised as God's ambassadors.
Lutheran bishop Mark Hanson
exemplified this attitude at an
interfaith meeting in Indonesia. He "assured the Muslim participants that the
Lutheran World Federation did not try to convert disaster victims from
Islam to Christianity in exchange for its help."[7]
Actually, if he had tried to
convert, he would have violated UNESCO's
Declaration on Tolerance. This "soft"
international law tells us that
moral duty, it is also a political and legal requirement."
"Tolerance involves the
rejection of dogmatism and absolutism...."
[especially Biblical
truth]
"Tolerance... means that one's views are
not to be imposed on
others."
[Especially religious
views]
"Intolerance... is a global threat."
But Jesus told His followers
that
"repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name 'to
all nations'" (Luke
24:47) Are we ready to "obey God rather than
man"? Acts
5:29
Only because He took my sins
to the cross and joined me to Himself could I ever be such a witness. Only
because my life is forever "hidden in Him" can I face each future challenge
with confidence in His triumph! For -
"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
2:20
To the old rugged
cross I will ever be true;
Its shame and reproach gladly bear;
Then
He’ll call me some day to my home far away,
Where His glory forever I’ll
share.
So I’ll cherish the old rugged
cross,
Till my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old
rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a
crown.
Topical Index of Scriptures: T
he Cross
and
The Holiness of
God
The
Old Cross and The New (Tozer) | Crucifixion by consensus
Excerpts
from The Cross |
The Lamb of God | Ban truth - Reap
Tyranny
Endnotes:
1.
Notes from http://www.greatsite.com/timeline-english-bible-history/john-hus.html,
http://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/LVarticles/JohnHusThePreReformer.htm
and Extreme Devotion, an email from Voice of the Martyrs, February 16, 2007.
2. Hear the melody at http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/o/r/oruggedc.htm
3. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, The Cross (Good News Publishers,
1986), pages 18, 20
4. Ken Camp, "Second
Reformation' will unify church, Warren tells Dallas GDOP," 2005, at http://www.pastors.com/article.asp?ArtID=8280
5. Tom Strode, "U.N. religious summit speakers decry efforts at
conversion," Baptist Press, September 2000. http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/62.htm
6. Brian Murphy, "Vatican, Churches
Work on Conversion Plan," AP, May 11, 2006. http://www.wwrn.org/article.php?idd=21482&sec=56&con=56
7.
Religious Conversion Ecumenical efforts toward
an interreligious issue: from controversy to a shared code of conduct on
religious conversion
Provided
by Berit Kjos
See
our selection of wonderful
books by Berit Kjos
If
you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, but have been very
lukewarm in your spiritual walk with Him, you need to immediately ask Him
for forgiveness and for renewal. He will instantly forgive you, and fill
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walk of prayer and personal Bible Study.
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