The Cross as the Line We Forgot to Cross

The cross is not just about where we go someday.
It is about what we are willing to face now.

At the cross, something shocking happens.

Control is surrendered.
Fear is exposed rather than bypassed.
Violence is absorbed rather than returned.
God meets us in helplessness rather than rescuing us from it.

The cross is not God overpowering enemies.
It is God refusing to become what he opposes.

Why Power Based Faith Feels Biblical but Is Not Christlike

Many Christians have been discipled to read Scripture through the lens of power, order, and control. That kind of reading feels biblical because it quotes verses, names laws, and appeals to authority. (Next week, I’ll share an example of someone doing this)

Many churches and Christians quietly skip the cross.

Any reading of Scripture that does not pass through the cross will eventually baptize power. When the cross is sidelined, control becomes the savior. Certainty replaces trust. Fear masquerades as faithfulness.

Jesus did not come to perfect systems of control.
He came to expose their limits.

He healed first and dealt with law second.
He crossed boundaries instead of defending them.
He centered the vulnerable rather than securing power.

The New Testament does not offer better laws.
It offers a completely different operating system.

The Psychological Depth of the Cross

The cross invites us to bring all of who we are into the presence of Christ.

Fear.
Rage.
Shame.
Grief.
The part of us that never felt safe.

That is terrifying.
And it is healing.

But no one goes into those depths alone and comes out whole.

This kind of interior work requires companions. Counselors, psychologists, spiritual directors, chaplains. People trained to sit with fear and pain without trying to fix, rush, or spiritualize it away. (Karrie shared some important thoughts on this and I’ll share these in a post next Thursday/Friday.)

Healing does not happen through insight alone.
It happens through presence.

If we want to follow Jesus beyond progressive and conservative lenses, the cross has to be more than a symbol. It has to become a way of being human.