Why is the cross the symbol of Christianity. Why not the empty tomb?
One simple reason might be that a cross is easier to draw than an empty tomb.
I think there is a more significant reason. I may have written this before. I know I have thought about it frequently. The cross is a symbol of love, the empty tomb is power.
The cross we are talking about is, of course, the one on which Jesus was crucified. He sacrificed His life so that mankind could know forgiveness for sin. He did so willingly even though He asked to be excused if possible. It was not possible. He allowed them to arrest, scourge and execute Him.
Why?
God is just. One of the principles of justice is that wrong must be righted. Evil must be destroyed. Sin must be punished. It is demanded. What do you do when this means that sinners must die to pay for their sin? That seems like a no-win. In the Old Testament God substituted animals as a temporary means of accessing what was to come. At Calvary God offered His Son, the Perfect Lamb, as a sacrifice for the sins of anyone who would trust in that sacrifice. The Perfect Lamb was so holy that His blood was able to wipe out all of mankind’s sin. Jesus was willing to go through that because of love.
(Joh 3:16 KJV) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.The empty tomb? That was a demonstration of God’s power over the ultimate fear that humans have: death. The reason Easter Sunday is such a joyful day is because we are reminded of the fact that we really don’t need to fear. All we must do is trust in the blood of Jesus to wash away our sins and the power of His resurrection to be realized in our lives and, as they say, “What can they do to me?”
Would I be smug, or should I say will I be smug, when the New Federal Reeducation Police pull up to my door? Probably not, but I would still live in the hope, because,
He is risen.
He is risen, indeed.
homo unius libri
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