The Four Sides of the Cross

            The hours Jesus spent on the cross were the most significant six hours in human history. Consider with me, a 360 degree view of the cross. The perspective is different depending on where you stand. We are always looking at the front view. This is the viewpoint shown on paintings and in movies. We’re so captured by the horror of the crucifixion of the Son of God that we stop there. We see the nails, the blood, the crown of thorns, and the sign over Jesus’ head reading “The King of the Jews.” But look with me from the other perspectives.

 Restoration:

           

            If you look at the backside of anything, you usually miss the main point. Consider the back of an oil painting or tapestry. Not much to see…not much makes sense…but not so with the cross. Each side is significant. Each side holds deep meaning for us. From this view we see the bloodied back of Jesus, where time and time again, the Romans’ cruel whip laid open the flesh on His back. In failing to see from this angle, we have missed the significance of the stripes on Jesus’ back. Yes, we know Jesus was scourged. A torture so terrible that at times those being punished died from the severity of the beatings. This was part of the punishment Jesus bore on our behalf. Listen to the passage on the Messiah as the suffering Servant in Isaiah 53.

           

Surely He has borne our griefs
And carried our sorrows;
Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed. Is. 53:4-5 NKJV

                                               

            Peter echoes the reality of this restoration of the cross in 1 Pet. 2:24 . . . who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness--by whose stripes you were healed. NKJV

            In both these passages, Old Testament and New Testament, we see that the provision for both our forgiveness and healing is visible from the backside of the cross. Jesus bore our sins in His body, and . . . His stripes have healed us.

Relationship:

            Jesus was on the cross because of relationship. The relationship He had with His Father was one of love and obedience. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death– even death on a cross! Phil 2:8 NIV

            But we also see His relationship with His mother. Almost all the others had forsaken Him. . . but not His mother. . . not Mary. The prophecy of Luke 2:35 is coming to pass... “...and a sword will pierce your own soul too.” Can you feel the anguish in the heart of a mother who is watching her son die in terrible pain? Her grief is so deep that there is not a word recorded in any of the gospels that was spoken by her at the cross.

            On the cross, Jesus’ relationship with His mother changed. He is moving from being her son, to being Her Savior, her Sacrifice, her Redeemer. Yes, Mary was a great woman of faith. We’ve seen it in the account of the wedding at Cana. She turned to Jesus with the problem, and in faith told the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.” Mary was blessed among women, but she was still a sinner . . . in need of a Savior.

            Jesus was the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world, but still, as Jesus hung dying on the cross, He didn’t forget His relationship with His mother. He passed her care on to John, His beloved disciple.

            ...“Woman, behold your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!...” John 19:26-27 NJKV

            The fifth commandment is to honor your father and your mother, and in death, as in life, Jesus did not come to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it.

Rejection:

           

            From still another side of the cross, we see Jesus rejected by the thief. He was used to rejection. Even His miracles would not convince the religious leaders that He was sent from God and they rejected Him as the Messiah. These men were in ‘church’ every Sabbath and they could quote the scriptures from memory, yet they were unchanged by their dead works and dead religion.

            The crowd also rejected Jesus that day. And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads... Matthew 27:39  Already their shouts of, “Crucify Him!” Had led unjustly to His death sentence. Now they were witnessing the execution of the Creator, shouting blasphemies and ridicule.

But there’s one more side to the story.

Rescue:

             From the fourth and final side of the cross, we see rescue. The thief crucified on the other side of Jesus rebuked the criminal who was mocking and rejecting Him.

“Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.” 42 Then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” 3 And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” Luke 23:43 NKJV

            Listen carefully to what this thief is saying. He acknowledged his sin, admitting that he deserved to die. He testified to Jesus’ sinlessness and expressed his belief that Jesus was going to come into His kingdom. This is one of the greatest statements of faith ever uttered. He put his faith in, and trusted his eternity to a man about to die on a cross. Jesus told the repentant criminal that he would be with Him in paradise…today.

The Four Sides of the Cross: 

            The soldier at the foot of the cross saw the complete picture. He saw the sacrifice of Jesus from all angles, and the response even from this Roman executioner was. “Surely this man was the Son of God.”

What is your response?