Today on this feast of the Holy Cross, I want to think with you all on the very center of our faith – the crucifixion of our Lord. The cross. Not just WHAT IT is. Or THAT IT IS. But WHAT IT DOES. This idea. WHAT IT DOES. This we ask this morning.
See, in the eyes of the world, the cross of Christ looks a lot like a failure. It looks a lot like senseless murder. It looks horrifying. But what it does NOT look like, is something that has power, or effect, or purpose.
And this isn’t just so with Christ’s own death, but with all death. See, to the eyes of the world, it all looks the same. Whether one views Christ death as justified (as valid legal punishment for blasphemy or political revolution) , OR for a bad reason (as a victim of oppression or assassination), it looks no different in itself than all other deaths do. Just this past week, Nigerian martyrdoms in 2025 alone reached the mark of 7000. just in the last week we’ve seen multiple school shootings, multiple martyrdoms, multiple church attacks, we’ve seen innocent women stabbed to death in america, girls pushed in front of trains in Germany, a Christian stabbed to death in Paris for evangelizing, the rape and strangling of a toddler and the slaughter of a father in Ontario. The assassination of one of the loudest pro-life Christian speakers in the world. All of it senseless. All of it meaningless. All of it is pure loss. And without purpose.
But the question for us today, is – what distinguishes THAT, from the death of Christ? This question was no less difficult for people in Chirst’s day than it is for us now. For in His time, – in the time of the Roman empire, Crucifixion was common. Execution by the state was common place. Seeing criminals nailed to crosses was normal. It was sad, it was disgusting. It was gross. It was horrifying. – But, (just like the mass amounts of death we see today) – it was normal. And to the eyes of the world that beheld it – it didn’t look, in the moment of it’s happening, like anything special. And lets not forget, that He did not die alone. For both at His right, and at His left, He was nailed there, dying, between two criminals. Or as the world saw It, – two OTHER criminals. 3 men condemned to die. 3 men crucified. But the death of only ONE OF THEM, for the whole world, – meant LIFE. And my question for you today, is this: – WHY? When we see all these deaths, and call all of them meaningless. All of them senseless. All of them powerless. – why do we uphold THIS ONE – as life giving? This one – as soul saving?
See, if we imagine that Jesus came merely to teach us to be better people. Or to teach us the way to love. Or to teach us how to save ourselves, or become morally pure, then the cross truly WAS a failure. It showed that His message was rejected. It showed that His message had no effect. It showed that His preaching was itself powerless to transform people, and it showed that no matter how much you direct people toward the right, they will always inevitably do what is wrong, given enough time, and given the chance.
But if we see rightly Christ’s mission. His purpose here. Then we see here in the cross, not an accident. Not God slipping and falling onto the wood, nor being captured by villains and nailed to it as a political victim or a religious martyr – no, not that, – but we see in the cross the purpose, the end, the telos, – of His coming into this world. Then we see here not a loss but a gain. Not a murder, but our redemption. Not meaningless slaughter, but Divine Sacrifice.
See this is what St. Paul speaks to us this morning. He says to us, (1 Cor 1:18) – the message of the cross, to those who are perishing, indeed to the eyes of the world, looks like foolishnes. Beyond foolishness. It looks like loss. It is a powerless,s weak picture of senseless death and rejection. And the IDEA , that we, the Christians – the cross bearers, would lift it up before the world as the center of all meaning, and the climactic moment of cosmic re-order, is backwards and insane. BUT, to those who are being saved, it is the POWER OF GOD. The question we ask this morning, is HOW CAN THAT BE? Friends, something happened at the cross. The question is – WHAT WAS IT?
To understand this, we need to first understand what the problem of humanity actually is. See, a lot of people think that all that humanity needed was a little bit of education. They were going astray ebcuase they didn’t know. They were worshiping idols out of ignorance., they were sinning because they hadnt been shown true love. But the reality is that humanities problem is that humans are awful, evil, sinful, broken creatures. Like the people in our old testament text. We have been bitten by a serpent. Satan. Like the people in our OT reading. We have been infected with a venom. Sin. Each and every one of us. We confess, we are broken. Not just by the circumstances of life pressing upon us. But broken in our default factory settings. Deep down in our heart we are sick. We are formed in the womb as sinners. As Psalm 51:5 says, are born in iniquity, and we are conceived as sinners from the moment of our conception when life begins. Our problem goes beyond a lack of understanding. Our problem goes beyond not knowing what to do. And our problem goes beyond the fact that we do not worship rightly, live rightly, or love rightly. Our problem is that we cannot and could not, and that even if we knew how, we would not.
For no matter how many sermons and lessons and lectures the Lord Christ gave to the masses of people around Him, they could not, and would not, and did not do them. And He knew this would be the case. Because the human problem was not one of a lack of education. And so Christ did not come to teach. The problem of humanity was that we sin – in that we are sinners. We are born with death in our bones. And hate for God and neighbor knitted into the fabric of our hearts. And so, Christ did not come to teach. For a lesson could not help us. In fact, Christ did not come to help, because we were beyond helping. Why then did Christ come? He came to save. To save us from sin. To save us from ourselves.
He came to take upon our human nature, to take our sin upon and into Himself, and to bear it onto the cross for all of us, that there, with that sin, and in that nature, He might die, for every single one of us, that in Him, every single one of us, together with all of our sins, together with all of our death, together with all of our condemnation under the Law, might die there through His flesh on the cross. As Peter 2:24 says: He has borne our sins in His body on the tree that we might, through the death of His flesh, die to sin. This is the key.
Just as St. John the Baptist proclaimed at Christ’s coming, – HERE in Christ is the Lamb of God, – come to be slain for the sins of the world, and come to die the death of all. And as St. Paul in Hebrews had said also, – here in Christ, is the one, singular, once for all sacrificed Lamb of God – died, and poured out His blood to atone for the sins of the whole world. That we might be made clean.
What are these texts saying? This death is different. And this life is not TAKEN. But it is laid down. As Christ says, nobody takes my life from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. Not as a victim, but as a cosmic VICTOR, and as salvific gift giver. And this is why Christ has come into the world. To take the sin of the world. To die the death of the world. And to give life to the world, at the cost of His own blood. As He says in our Gospel reading, and what shall I say at this moment? Father take this cup of wrath away from me? It is for this very purpose that I have come into world. To die for the world. That in dying, I might produce life a hundred, a thousandfold FOR the world.
As Hebrews 10 says, – quoting our Psalm of the Day (for this reason Christ has come into the world), for – it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins/. Therefore, when He came into the world, He said: “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, But a body You have prepared for Me.In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you had no pleasure.Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Having offered a sacrifice for sins forever, and by this offering of His blood , making PERFECT, those who are being sanctified. Enabling us to enter into the holy of holies through the torn veil that is His flesh, and cleansing our evil consciences by the sprinkling of His blood, and purifying us by the baptismal washing of PURE WATER.
What is this? This is the solution to our ancient problem. This is the remedy for the brokenness of fallen humanity. Our sin taken by another. Our death died by another. The wrath that was due unto us, poured out upon Himself. The full obedience of the Law, lived out under the Law by Christ Himself. The Totality of His righteousness, given freely unto us. So St. Paul says, – here at this cross, Jesus Christ, the one who knew no sin, became sin for us, that in His death, all sin might, die. That we in turn might become (through Him) the very righteousness of God.
And so the Psalmist has said sacrifices and burnt offerings (of animals) you did not desire, – BUT A BODY, you have prepared for me. Behold I have come to do your will. What is this? This is the true sacrifice. What is this to say? The Law you did not desire, but a body – given. And blood, to be shed. And sin to be borne. And death to be died. Not BY sinners who transgressed the Law against God, but by God Himself, FOR SINNERS.
Friends why is this death different? Its not different because Jesus was innocent. Lots of people die who don’t deserve to. Its not different because it was died for God. People die for their faith every day. It is different because it is a death died FOR YOU. It is a death offered FOR YOU. It is blood shed FOR YOU. In your stead. And in your place. And it is different because it WORKED. And because it DID SOMETHING. Because there on that cross was every sin you have ever committed, and will ever commit. Nailed and pinned to that blood stained wood through the broken and bleeding flesh of Christ – THE BODY, that God willed to give you. Friends He gives you this body again today in the Holy Eucharist. For the animal Sacrifices of the Law God did not desire. Your attempts to be good enough God did not desire. Endless behavioral lectures God did not desire. Having priests constantly tell you to do better, God did not desire. Why? Because none of it could save you. But a body. But – a body. Christ’s body – He has given. Christ’s flesh – He has given. This one act of obedience, unto death, even death on a cross, even the death of God, given for you , died for you, borne for you, offered for you, undergone for you, a God entirely crucified for you – HE HAS GIVEN. Because here, – and only here, and in this, and only in this – COULD Y0OU EVER HAVE BEEN SAVED.
3 men were crucified that day. 2 of them died because they were condemned for the crimes they committed in their life. But the third, this man Jesus, the very God of the universe, – died to wipe their condemnation away. We see death everywhere. But on the cross, we see all death DIE forever.
Christ died for you, so that in Him, you might finally begin to live.
To the world, – this cross looks like nothing. Less than nothing. But to those who see it for what it is – it is the POWER OF GOD, to save sinners form the death they have plunged themselves into by sin. For as Paul says in 2 Cor 5:19 – in Christ, God was reconciling the whole world to Himself. And By this one death – all those who are dead and dying, find themselves raised to eternal life. For Christ has died for the whole world. That all those who have died, in Him, might rise to eternal life. As Rom 5:18 says: Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so this one act of righteousness (the death of Christ on the cross) leads to justification and life for all men
For animal sacrifices and burnt offerings God did not desire. Endless lectures and behavioral modification God did not desire. Constant encouragement to do better God did not desire. But a body. –
Christs body – given for you, and His blood, shed for you, – this , He has given. For this reason Christ has come into the world. To die for you. To give His flesh for you. To give up His life for you. To gift His righteousness to you. To pour out His blood for you.
He gives this to you this day. For He says today. This is my body. This is my blood. Given for you. Shed for you. For the forgiveness of your sins. For the salvation of your souls. Eat this. Believe this. Receive this. Enter into this. This is salvation. This is your life.
For Christ has died, – THAT YOU MIGHT LIVE.
This is the cross. This is the Gospel. And there is no other. For we preach Christ crucified. And we know no other message. There is no other message. This is the Gospel. And there Is no other.
Thanks be to God. For He has died for us.
