“Is the Cross Important to Remember” by Dennis, McCleod CFI-NZ

Blessings to All.

I have been extremely busy over the last few weeks, speaking engagements, organising and travel, hence the lack of communications.

Yesterday, I was on a Forum discussing revival in New Zealand on a live TV out of Houston, and yes, there were a couple of problems with some of the connections. However, it went well at my end, and the message I spoke on was the need to get back to the basics. What I mentioned was based on the message I am sending out today. 

We, Christian Friends of Israel, NZ, have just sent $6500NZ to our Jerusalem office. I thank you dearly for your support of the work of the ministry, and what we are blessed to be able to do for the Jewish people, be blessed.

In the Name of the Lord,

Dennis and team.

Is the Cross Important to Remember

 

What was the greatest message ever delivered by Jesus? Surely it was the message given at and through the Cross! I was told a short time ago that Jesus was NOT the ultimate demonstration of God’s love.

Then what was, and what does the Bible say, 1 John 4:9? How God showed His love to us by sending Jesus so we might have life. The cross is our greatest weapon against all evil because that is where Jesus bled; we are saved by the blood of the lamb. Revelation 12:11. We are redeemed, sanctified, and given new life only by the blood to where the life is found. Leviticus 17:11

 

Our first step to salvation is the message of the Cross, so why is it ignored in our services? Without the knowledge of the cross, the Bible could become just another storybook. The weapon of our warfare is the fact Jesus was crucified on the Cross. We need to get back to this fact; we need to return to the basic message of salvation.

Without the Cross, are we not but a sounding gong? 1 Corinthians 13:1 that Paul speaks of, are we not leaving out the greatest story of love that ever took place? What message do we have to give to the world? Without the cross, we have no message to give. It is the cross that disarmed all powers, Colossians 2:14-15. Our value, our worth, is found in the cross; it is the actions of Jesus’ suffering that shows the price God was willing to pay for us. Acts 20:28

 

How wide is the door to the world to come? How wide is the narrow way to salvation, the only way to salvation? It is only as wide as two outstretched arms, held in place by two Roman nails. It is the cross we can hold on to, so we don’t stumble while walking the narrow path, which can become very slippery at times when the storms of life occur.

The Cross is the door that all must pass through to reach our ultimate destination, the room the Father has waiting for us when our journey is ended. John 14:2-6

 

We all most likely know the story of the Pearl of great price, the story of a man selling everything. Again, our worth is shown within the price God was willing to pay for our redemption. Jesus came, He wept, bowed before the Father, pleading, do I really have to do this? The Father answered with the cross, and the Son agreed. Luke 22:42-44

 

Let us look at this in the opposite direction. What would we be willing to give up to obtain the prize of a great pearl, that is to be with the Lord, to enter into the gates of Pearls? Revelation 21:21

Are we willing to give up all we have because of His cross? Are we willing to obey the words; Give up all and follow me? Or, take up your cross and follow Me! I have heard many teachings on these two verses over the years. I am yet to see many put this actually into action. As leaders, we have to be prepared to lead with our own actions before we can expect others to follow.

 

Without the cross as the central aspect in our lives, have we fully surrendered to the message of the Lord? The message we understand and partake in, which is lived out when we kneel before the Lord and receive communion. All while remembering the words of our Lord, do this as often as you do to remember my death, until I come again. And yet, communion is very seldom taken in most churches. Or, it is relegated to a few minutes in the middle of the service. 

 

Yet to me, it is the most important part of our worship before the Lord. It is bringing the message of the cross into focus before the non-believer who is visiting the building for the first time. It reminds the Believer sitting there on Sunday morning, who has just lost a loved one, what the love of God means to them at this time.

A picture of more than a thousand words could ever do on a dozen Sundays. The act of taking communion has saved many people, raised people from their deathbeds, and healed the sick. But by relegating it to only a small part of the service, are we not relegating it to a could know instead of the must know, to quote a teaching term.

 

We pray to God for revival and leave the cross, the starting point for the salvation of the world, on some dusty corner shelf. We ask the question, How can we get revival, then remove the answer from the service before the question is spoken. We have painted the walls black in the church, lit by flashing lights to attract people to the building, but what message do we have if we ignore the cross to bring the people into the Kingdom?

 

It is often said, let us put Jesus back into Christmas; surely, we should be saying, let us put the words of Jesus in His reference to the cup of redemption with His words; This is the Cup of the New Covenant, take drink as often as you do to remember My death until I come again. 1 Corinthians 11:25-26.

Jesus conquered death by His own death, so is it not logical to remember this each time we meet? 1 Corinthians 15:26-27 We would still be in our sins if it were not for what Jesus did for us on the cross. 1 Corinthians 15:12-18.

Worth commemorating, yes?