The Cross And The Crown

God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Galatians 6:14

George Bennard was born into a poor family in Ohio and came to Christ as a youth. He wanted to go to theological school, but family concerns kept him from the education he desired. In time, he became a traveling evangelist, diligently studying his Bible and reading all the theology books he could find. During one period of his ministry, he carefully studied the subject of the cross of Christ, praying for a deeper understanding of its meaning and power. As he preached from town to town, the words of a hymn began formulating in his mind. He sang portions of it at his meetings. Finally he finished his hymn and sang the completed version to friends, asking them, “Will it do?”

It has, in fact, done very well. The hymn Bennard wrote was “The Old Rugged Cross.”

One of the hymn’s central ideas is that our trophies in this world are temporary and cannot compare to the power of the cross or to the crown to be awarded us when we stand before Jesus, “where His glory forever I’ll share.”

In an age of awards and trophies, let’s keep our eyes on the cross and the crown.

So I’ll cherish the old rugged cross, ’til my trophies at last I lay down; I will cling to the old rugged cross, and exchange it someday for a crown.

GEORGE BENNARD