Pastor Jerry McGhee
I’m a people watcher at airports and shopping malls while my wife shops. It’s cheap entertainment, and it is entertaining. Sometime ago as I was watching people pass by, I noticed several, mostly women, wearing a cross on a chain around their necks.
One woman was wearing a large cross, very artistic in design, and I could not help but think of the irony that people would wear such an instrument of torture and death. Whether they wore the cross as jewelry or as a testimony to their faith in Jesus Christ, the symbol is stark.
Most of us are familiar with the details of Christ’s crucifixion. We can recite the events beginning with His arrest in the garden to His burial in a borrowed tomb. We are generally familiar with the witnesses at His execution, but the specific interests and groups represented are less known to us. The who, why and how the individuals ended up watching are clouded by time and tradition.
The ultimate authority covering the brutal acts was the Roman military. They were militant, brutal and very efficient. Their goal was submission and order at all cost.
The common residents of Jerusalem were, I believe, victims in this travesty – false witnesses and the Sanhedrin court manipulated them into crying out for Christ’s death.
Israel’s religious leaders were there to make sure their power and positions were no longer threatened. Two thieves, probably deserving the punishment being administered, were there. One of the thieves seemed to understand that Jesus did not deserve to die.
Most of Jesus’ followers fled in fear, but His mother and a few grieving women were there out of love and loyalty. The Scriptures tell us that the sun went dark and the earth shook as Jesus cried out – “It is finished!”
Whether you wear a cross or not, the question that needs to be asked and answered is, what is your response to the Cross? Do you wear it as jewelry, or have you bowed your knee and asked for forgiveness from the One who alone can forgive? Jesus died for the sin of the whole world. He died to pay the penalty of your sin and mine.
Sun Lakes Community Church is an Interdenominational Church. Our worship service is at 9:30 a.m. each Sunday morning at the Sun Lakes Chapel, 9240 E. Sun Lakes Blvd. N. – across the street from the Sun Lakes Country Club building. For more information, call our office at 480-895-9147 or visit our website at www.sunlakescommunity church.org.
All are welcome!