What does the cross represent?

Luke 23:32Two others, both criminals, were led out to be executed with him.

Galatians 3:13Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”

Philippians 2:8He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

The cross was a Roman instrument of capital punishment, an excruciating form of execution reserved for the worst criminals. It was the most shameful death imaginable. This was what Jesus endured on your behalf.

John 3:16For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

Romans 5:17-18The sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone.

1 Peter 1:18-19You know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.

The cross is a symbol of the price that Christ paid to ransom you from sin and death, and the victorious triumph that resulted. Sin entered the world through Adam, leading all humanity into sin. Sin leads to punishment and separation from the holy God. Because God loves people, he sent his Son to pay the price for the sins of the world. The price was paid not with silver or gold, but by his own blood. The sinless Christ died for you, a sinner, to save you.

Mark 8:34-35“If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it.”

Philippians 1:27-29Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven, conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ. . . . Don’t be intimidated in any way by your enemies. This will be a sign to them that they are going to be destroyed, but that you are going to be saved, even by God himself. For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him.

Christ used the cross as a picture of the kind of commitment that he expects from his followers—a commitment that makes you willing to suffer anything, including torture, ridicule, shame, and death for the sake of Christ.

John 15:12-13“This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

1 John 3:16We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters.

Because of the extreme sacrifice involved in Christ’s willingness to die on a cross, the cross represents the kind of love that you are called to have for your Christian brothers and sisters.