direct connection is this: The triple play
of weakness, great fear, and trembling is a
demonstration of the Spirit’s power.
The Spirit was no more powerful upon
Jesus than when He prayed and trembled
in the garden of Gethsemane submitting
to the Father’s will. Dying to self —
which is the very essence of holiness —is
a demonstration of the Spirit’s power.
This is why Paul could say, “I resolved
to know nothing … except Jesus Christ
and him crucified.” Paul’s “knowing”
was experiential, not informational. The
same cross embedded in Jesus from the
foundation of the world was embedded
in Paul. Paul decided to carry the cross
as Jesus invited him to, and we need this
today! To decide to carry the cross of
Christ is to have it embedded in your life
in a way that transforms every behavior,
every decision, every action, every word,
every emotion, and every action that
comes from our lives.
Is the cross embedded in you? Is it
informing your life this Christmas? Are
you trying to escape COVID — refusing
to embrace the difficulties it has brought
to us, or embrace the cross? Embracing
the cross is the very power of God to
those of us who are being saved. To be
humble, weak, with fear and trembling is
a demonstration of the Spirit’s power. So
what steps can we take to focus on the
cross this Advent?
pg. 16 — lightandlifemagazine.com
Three Ways to Focus on
the Cross This Advent
Embrace the message of the
cross.
For Paul, embracing the cross came on
the road to Damascus. In the blinding
light of Jesus’ appearance, Paul is
confronted and called. We can invite such
a confrontation and calling if we choose.
We can pray, “Jesus, what in me needs
to be confronted and dealt with? What
emotions, stubbornness, selfishness or
angst is not nailed to Your cross?”
The priorities of our lives are dictated
by those things we embrace. Everything
in our life trails behind our deepest
“loves.” Our money, our time and our
intentionality all follow the objects of our
deepest desires. To embrace the cross is a
desire, not a hardship. It’s a benefit, not a
scourge. It’s an act of love, not duty.
At Christmas we all want to embrace
the baby, but will we choose to embrace
the cross that was determined before the
beginning of time — that was embedded
in the very life of the infant Jesus?
Embed the message of the
cross.
Like tire tracks left by a heavy truck
in muddy ground, or the imprint of an
ancient leaf in a fossil, the message of the
cross was intended to be embedded in our
lives. It’s one thing to embrace the message,
but another to embed the message.
“Advent will be
transformed
into an entirely
different kind
of celebration
for us as we
rightfully place
the cross at its
center.”
/lightandlifemagazine.com