Living the Cross Centered Life: Part Three

Living the Cross Centered Life

Chapter Three
Searching the Mystery: A Captivating Picture of His Love

“Lest I forget Gethsemane
Lest I forget Thine agony;
Lest I forget Thy love for me,
Lead me to Calvary.”

-Jennie Hussey

·
Do I adequately understand the deepest reasons behind the cross?
·
How can I grasp the depth of the meaning of the cross in order to be more compelled
to share its good news of grace with others and to more fully and personally
experience its “unsearchable riches”?
·
What do I need to remove from my life that may be hindering me from clearly seeing
the cross? Am I willing to surrender those things in order to be radically and
recklessly abandoned to Jesus Christ?
·
Am I burdened to “search the mystery of His wounds”? Do I want to know why He died
and what that death accomplished for all who have repented of their sin and put
their trust in Him?
·
Question:
Why did Jesus Have to Die? Answer: Isaiah 53
Vs 4 He bore Our grief’s
He carried Our sorrows
Vs 5 He was pierced For our transgressions
He was crushed For our iniquities
He was chastened For our well-being

Vs 6 Our iniquity fell on Him
Vs 7 He was oppressed and afflicted
He was led away like a lamb to the slaughter
Though perfectly
innocent, He did not protest, but submitted Himself to cruelty and false
accusation
Vs 8 He was oppressed and judged He was cut off for the transgression of those who deserved the punishment
Vs 10 “The Lord was pleased to crush Him, putting Him to grief.”
Vs 12 “He poured out Himself to death”
“(He) was numbered with the transgressors”

“He Himself bore the sin of many and interceded for the transgressors.”

“His appearance was marred more than any man and His form more than the sons of
men.” Isaiah 53:14

“When we behold the disfigurement of the Son of God, when we find ourselves appalled by
His marred appearance, we need to reckon afresh that it is upon ourselves we
gaze, for He stood in our place.” – John Calvin

·
We face the righteous threat of furious wrath from a holy God. We are indeed
guilty of sin and deserving punishment. But the innocent One, the holy One –
God the Son – stepped forward to die for the rest of us. On that cross the
Servant suffered FOR sinners like you and me, BECAUSE of sinners like you and
me – and as the SUBSTITUE for sinners like you and me.
·
Those who have been granted new eyes perceive that He was indeed smitten by God and
afflicted – not for His sin, but for ours.

“Jesus the Nazarene...this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and
foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and
put Him to death.” Acts 2:23

“For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant
Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the
Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever Your hand and Your
purpose predestined to occur.”
Acts 4:27-28
“The Lord was pleased to crush Him, putting Him to grief.” (Isaiah 53:10) – The death of the Servant was not the fruit of human initiative and design; it was God’s plan, God’s purpose,
God’s will.
·
“When you are tempted to doubt God’s love for
you, stand before the cross and look at the wounded, dying, disfigured Savior,
and realize why He is there. I believe His Father would whisper to us, ‘Isn’t
that sufficient? I haven’t spared My own Son; I deformed and disfigured and
crushed Him – for you. What more could I do to persuade you that I love you?’”
·
“The Cross is the heart of the Gospel; it makes the Gospel good news. Christ died
for us; He has stood in our place before God’s judgment seat; He has borne our
sins. God has done something on the cross which we could never do for
ourselves. But God does something to
us as well as for us through the
cross. He persuades us that He loves us.”
·
Are you persuaded? If not, what more could God possibly do to persuade you?


“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” – John 3:16

Don’t let these words be so familiar to you. Let their meaning pierce your heart and
life and cause you to rejoice in the forgiveness and hope that we have in Jesus
Christ, our great God and Savior.

“The mystery of the cross I cannot comprehend, the agonies of
Calvary
You the perfect Holy One, crushed Your Son,
who drank the bitter cup reserved for me
Your blood has washed away my sin, Jesus, thank You
The Father’s wrath completely satisfied, Jesus, thank You
Once Your enemy, now seated at Your table, Jesus, thank You
By Your perfect sacrifice I’ve been brought near, Your enemy
You’ve made Your friend
Pouring out the riches of Your glorious grace, Your mercy and Your kindness
know no end
Lover of my soul, I want to live for You”
© 2003 Integrity's Hosanna! Music (ASCAP)/Sovereign Grace Worship
(ASCAP).

Living the Cross Centered Life: Part Two

Living the Cross Centered Life

Chapter 2
The Divine Order: What You Feel vs. What is Real

“Oh, the havoc that is wrought, and the tragedy, the misery, and the
wretchedness that are to be found in the world, simply because people do not
know how to handle their own feelings!” – D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones


Do we live by “good” or
“bad” feelings?
Do I live by truth?
Do I determine where I stand
before God based on my emotions or based on Scriptural truth?
Do I realize that living by
my feelings and not by God’s Word is pride, a sin God is fiercely opposed
to? (James 4:6 says, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the
humble.”)
Living by our feelings makes
us miserable.
When we focus on truth, our
feelings follow, and those feelings can be real, deep, and profound
because they are the effect of Scripture rightly understood and believed.
When you are tempted to
listen to yourself:

Stop!
Ask God for help
Invite another godly person
into the situation
Ask the other person to
help you see the sin that is distracting you
Review the Gospel

Don’t focus on the inward
and the subjective; focus on the outward, the upward, and the objective!
The Gospel is objective truth; it never changes!
Where do you consistently
direct your faith? What does it rest on? Is it your emotional state...or
the objective realities that the Word of God and the Spirit of God have
revealed?
When you read or hear
biblical truth proclaimed, what internal conversation takes place in your
soul? Is your first reaction, ‘What
do I feel about this?’ If so, do you plan to continue submitting
everything ultimately to your feelings? Or will you instead trust in God’s
testimony, so that whenever you encounter biblical truth, your initial
question will always be, ‘Do I
believe it?’

Many, in waiting upon the Lord, find immediate
answers, but this is not the case with all. Some are turned from darkness into
light in a moment, but others are plants of slower growth. A deeper sense of
sin may be given to you instead of a sense of pardon, and in such a case you
will need patience to bear the heavy blow. Though you may be beaten and
bruised, trust God. Though He gives you an angry word, believe in the love of
His heart. Do not give up seeking or trusting the Master because you have not
yet obtained the blessed joy you long for. Cast yourself on Him, and
perseveringly depend even when you cannot enjoy hope. -C.H. Spurgeon

Living the Cross Centered Life: Part One

I have been reading through a wonderfully simple yet profound book with some friends called "Living the Cross Centered Life" by C.J. Mahaney. God has used this little book to encourage me, strengthen my faith, and ultimately draw me closer to Jesus Christ. I have grown in my love for Him through each chapter simply because Mr. Mahaney constantly and faithfully points me back to Scriptural truth.

I have gathered together favorite verses, quotations, and profound realities that have impacted me through this study in a basic summary of each chapter, and I wanted to share them with you.

I would highly recommend this book. Consider purchasing it online or from your local Christian bookstore. I know it will encourage you and exhort you to live a Cross Centered life for the glory of Christ!


Living the Cross Centered Life

Introduction
At the Core: Life’s Most Important Truth Can Be the Easiest to Forget

“The Cross is the blazing fire at which the flame of our love is kindled, but we have to get near enough for its sparks to fall on us.” – John Stott

• What is your life centered on? What are you most passionate about? What defines you?
• 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” This is the one transcendent truth that should define our lives. It should “motivate all our work and affect every part of who we are.”
• Nothing is greater or more important than the fact that “God sent His Son to the Cross to bear His wrath for sinners like you and me.”
• “The gospel is not only the most important message in all of history; it is the only essential message in all of history. Yet we allow thousands of professing Christians to live their entire lives without clearly understanding it and experiencing the joy of living by it.” –Jerry Bridges
• The Cross must remain our MAIN focus.
• Things that cloud out our focus on the Cross:
1. Subjectivism – basing our view of God on our changing feelings and emotions
2. Legalism – basing our relationship with God on our own performance
3. Condemnation – being more focused on our sin than on God’s grace
• If the Gospel is not the main thing in my life, am I willing to repent to God and reorder my life with His help?
• We never get over the Cross!
• Grace is more amazing when we look intently at the Cross


Chapter One
The Climax and the Key: Why the Cross Should Define Our Lives

“The Gospel cannot be preached and heard enough, for it cannot be grasped well enough...Moreover, our greatest task is to keep you faithful to this article and to bequeath this treasure to you when we die.” – Martin Luther

• Am I held captive by the Gospel?
• In order to live a cross centered life, I must have a life that is saved and transformed by the Cross
• Do I minimize the seriousness of sin?
• Do I understand that God is fiercely opposed to sin and that He must punish it?
• Aware of God’s wrath – amazed at God’s grace!
• The Gospel is the key to joy, growth, and passion!



“There has never been one moment in your life that has not been tainted by sin, and there was never one moment in the life of Jesus Christ that had been tainted by sin.” –Paul Washer

“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” 2 Corinthians 5:21

A.W. Pink (The Sovereignty of God)

The new birth is very, very much more than simply shedding a few tears due to a temporary remorse over sin. It is far more than changing our course of life, the leaving off of bad habits and the substituting of good ones. It is something different from the mere cherishing and practising of noble ideals. It goes infinitely deeper than coming forward to take some popular evangelist by the hand, signing a pledge-card, or “joining the church.” The new birth is no mere turning over a new leaf but is the inception and reception of a new life. It is no mere reformation but a complete transformation. In short, the new birth is a miracle, the result of the supernatural operation of God. It is radical, revolutionary, lasting.

Here then is the first thing, in time, which God does in His own elect. He lays hold of those who are spiritually dead and quickens them into newness of life. He takes up one who was shapen in iniquity and conceived in sin, and conforms him to the image of His Son. He seizes a captive of the Devil and makes him a member of the household of faith. He picks up a beggar and makes him joint-heir with Christ. He comes to one who is full of enmity against Him and gives him a new heart that is full of love for Him. He stoops to one who by nature is a rebel and works in him both to will and to do of His own good pleasure. By His irresistible power He transforms a sinner into a saint, an enemy into a friend, a slave of the Devil into a child of God.

No Victory - No Crown!

Men and women who hear the Gospel regularly, I often fear much for you. I fear lest you become so familiar with the sounds of its doctrines, that insensibly you become dead to its power. I fear lest your religion should sink down into a little vague talk about your own weakness and corruption, and a few sentimental expressions about Christ, while real practical fighting on Christ’s side is altogether neglected. Oh, beware of this state of mind! Be doers of the Word, and not hearers only. No victory—no crown! Fight and overcome!

~ J.C. Ryle

IndoctriNation Trailer

I just wanted to preface why I shared this trailer:
These days are perilous days. I think we can all agree with the words of Judges 21:25, “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” We are now living in a Christ-hating, God-denying, self-centered world where even the idea of “intelligent design” is being viciously attacked. Something must be done. Christians everywhere must take a stand for what honours Jesus Christ in everything. Christ must have preeminence!
Our family watched this documentary, “IndoctriNation” last night. We were deeply moved and urged to examine, with wisdom and humility, the history of the modern public educational system along with its affect upon society and its ultimate agenda for our children, the next generation. This is not an attack on any parent, child, student, or teacher. Pride attacks people; humility attacks problems. We must all take a hard, humble, and honest look at what is going on around us. We must seek to honour Christ, even if it means taking radical action. We must not judge or criticise others, but with gentleness and love test all things that Jesus Christ, our Savior who was crushed for our sins, may receive the glory, power, honor, dominion, and authority that He deserves in EVERY area of our lives!

God's Presence in Our Suffering...

"The God on whom we rely knows what suffering is all about-
Not merely in the way that God knows everything, but by experience."

D.A. Carson

"Years ago, I was with a pastor who told me of a man in his church who one day was cleaning his gun with his son. The unthinkable happened - the gun went off, and the little boy was accidentally killed.

This pastor prayed in desperation as he sat with the distraught father, for he was at a loss to know any comfort he could bring. Then he sensed the Lord saying this to him:

'Tell him I understand. Tell him I killed My Son - except it wasn't an accident.'

Our heavenly Father always understands our suffering, for at Calvary, He knew suffering that infinitely exceeds anything we'll ever encounter...Our suffering does not truly compare to His.

Occasionally people speak of their 'Gethsemane experience.' But you and I will never go through anything like what Jesus did at Gethsemane, and we're respectful and wise never to refer to our experiences in those terms. You and I will never be given this cup to drink.

Moreover, you and I have never been, and will never be, abandoned by God. I know sometimes it feels that He's abandoned us; I've felt that way. But those are deceptive feelings, because the One who drank this cup says to you and me, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.' We may occasionally feel alone, but we never truly are alone."

- C.J. Mahaney, "Living the Cross-Centered Life"

"We little know what we owe to our Saviour's prayers. When we reach the hilltops of heaven, and look back upon all the way whereby the Lord our God hath led us, how we shall praise Him who, before the eternal throne, undid the mischief which Satan was doing upon earth. How we shall thank Him because He never held His peace, but day and night pointed to the wounds upon His hands, and carried our names upon His breastplate!"

- C.H. Spurgeon

"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." 2 Corinthians 5:21