Pastor's Blog

“The Cross is Central”

Phoenix is hot this time of year. My parents recently moved to “The Valley” to spend their retirement years in a place that has benefits for my mother’s COPD. She recently told me in an excited voice “there have only been 18 days over 110 so far this year.” Sounds like 18 reasons to cross that off my summer vacation list.

A couple of weeks ago, a major Christian group had their annual meeting in Phoenix and the heat was generated from a different place. This group was wrestling with a recommendation that would publicly define the centrality of the cross in their theology. Some of the delegates were advocating a more nuanced perspective, but the referendum from the floor received the backing needed to become an actual resolution.

It’s interesting that a major Christian group has to wrestle with what place the cross occupies in it’s doctrine. But before we begin to cast stones, ask “what place does the cross occupy in our personal theology?” While it’s easy to see the shortcomings of others, don’t let a blind spot prohibit an honest self-evaluation. In Galatians 6:14, Paul records for us the priority of the cross. It must be the lens of how we see ourselves, how we see God’s Work, and ultimately how we see our mission. Without the cross, nothing we do matters.

This cross is also the only thing Paul has to boast about. He knew that what he had accomplished stood in the shadow of the cross. I pray each of us has the same conviction in our life. Is the cross the only thing you have to boast in? I am sure that you’ve accomplished a lot, but remember that the cross is a part of all we do as Christ Followers. Commit to making the cross central in your life. When you do, you’ll never regret it.

Pastor Dave

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