THE CROSS: A SYMBOL OF DOMINION OVER THE FLESH I

Without a thorough understanding of the cross, you cannot be a disciple. This is because Jesus’ prescription for discipleship is the cross. If you take away the cross from Christianity, there is nothing left. The cross is God’s own special prescription for all the maladies that came as a result of the fall of man. This is why it is so fundamental for you to understand it. Jesus said if you wish to be my disciple, take up the cross and follow me. You can drop the cross and still follow Christ but you will definitely not become a disciple. That is exactly what has been happening for a long time now. The message of the cross has been relegated to the background. This is one of the reasons why it is difficult to go into business relationship with a professing Christian without a hitch regardless of the position occupied by such a Christian in the Church.

A popular bishop brought out a large sum of money which was invested in the capital market sometime ago through private placement. Because of the reputation of the bishop, I decided to invest in the business through the capital market. To my surprise, the deal ended up in court. The ‘deacon’ who was entrusted with the business by the bishop eventually took the bishop to court. It was so scandalous. Of course, all the monies involved disappeared into the thin air. I was so troubled and decided out of concern to do a study on the root cause of the problem. Back in the days, you could completely trust a child of God. Something went wrong and this began to agitate genuine men of God.

The first thing God drew my attention to are some of the symbols that are being used in the Church today to depict dominion. Churches are busy raising lions and eagles; a lion must kill. A lion does not follow the rule of the game, it wants to dominate. When I looked critically at the issue, I discovered that the devil has brought in other gospels by removing the cross from the pulpit. Many times, as earlier emphasized, error is not in lack of substance but in emphasis. When you emphasize an aspect of a thing, teach it as the whole and then make it a doctrine, it becomes a problem. The Bible says by their fruits you shall know them.

If you really want to walk with God, you cannot abandon the cross not even for a day. But the Church has left the cross and reserved it only for Good Friday. Where is the cross? To miss the cross is to miss the way. To reject the cross is to reject the greatest display of God’s love. Anyone who preaches grace at the expense of the cross does not really understand the meaning of grace because the cross is the greatest display of the grace of God. That is why we must return to the message of the cross. There is a serious departure from the truth; if you miss the cross, you miss truth. The cross is a symbol of truth. Why? It is at the cross that the truth meets with mercy. The truth side of God and the mercy side of God. The cross is the meeting point between divinity and humanity. It is at the cross that the will of God meets with the will of man. Take note that the greatest problem of man was the will that was yielded to the serpent.

The universal sin of man is rebellion; rebellion is – I will not do the will of God, I can do it my own way, I have the right to exercise my own will. That is the prescription for anarchy. It is the prescription for disaster. It is the basis of every evil that has befallen man. God’s remedy for this is the cross. Without the shedding of blood is no remission for sin Heb 9:22.

TO BE CONTINUED………