The Cross as the Primary Symbol of Christianity - Book Report/Review Example

True Story of the Cross The cross has been the primary symbol of Christianity. The core of the gospel is the death of Jesus for the sins of humankind. However, this is not good news to the rest of culture (Keller, 194). There lacks an understanding by such cultures as to why Jesus had to die on the cross so that the sins of man could be forgiven. They consider that if God does exist and is all-powerful, then he ought to have forgiven such sins, without having his son die. More to this is the argument by some liberal Protestants theologians that there is no significance of the cross in Christianity. The reason for Jesus death on the cross however, is the fact that the sins of humanity had to be borne by someone, since they could not just vanish in the air. Jesus played this role; He paid up for the sins of man in a costly manner, his life (Keller, 195). Once a wrong is done to anyone, there are two options open, avenging for oneself, or forgiving the wrong doer. However, of the two options, forgiveness is costly since it means that a person bears the effects of the wrong doings alone, as opposed to when they would have made the other person pay up for the same. Such is the costly path that Jesus took, a costly path to the point of death, so that man could not pay up for his sins, but would be set free. The forgiveness of God occurred for various reasons. It took such a fashion because, if the evil committed towards oneself is serious, then just forgiving is not an option. Since forgiving means that, a person has to absorb the sins by themselves, then God himself chose to suffer by going to the cross himself and die, so that man would be set free of sins. The difference between the biblical God and the other deities is that while God freely forgives the sins of man so they can make up with him, the other deities demand for the payment of sins committed by man through his own blood (Keller, 200). Therefore, the cross is not just an example of a lovely sacrifice that Jesus offered but a true indication of God paying up the debts of sins and bearing the penalty himself other than pass it on to man. The second reason why the forgiveness of God occurred through death on the cross is that it is not possible to love a person who has a problem without sharing the problem with them or even exchanging their position, so one can undergo exactly what they are experiencing. Therefore, all life changing love needs one to substitute the other and suffer on their behalf. Such is the love that God has for man that made him substitute man, so He could suffer himself on the cross (Keller, 203). This way, God put himself in the place we deserved to be, so that we could fit in the place He deserves to be, an eternal life full of happiness and no sins (Muggeridge, 21). The significance of the cross is that Jesus did not just suffer for us, but also with us. This is a reversal of the values, where those in suitable positions takes the positions of the ones suffering and allows those suffering to take their place of comfort (Keller, 207). While reversed roles are the main themes of films and tales, it is different in Christianity, in that it is a story about us and not other characters out there. The reality of the resurrection of Jesus is that anything he said would happen, be a part of Christian life, by believing that even if it seems that it cannot happen in the real sense, it is still a possibility. Though the resurrection of Jesus is disputed by some people, there is enough evidence to show that it really occurred (Tolstoy, 74). The skeptics have put forward arguments that try to show that Jesus did not resurrect. While some argue that the followers of Jesus had dreams of Him appearing to them after resurrection, others put it that the disciples of Jesus stole the body from the tomb and later convinced people that Jesus had risen (Keller, 216). Since the resurrection of Jesus is a historical occurrence that cannot be proved like an experiment in a laboratory, it is the duty of modern day Christian to believe on the death and resurrection of Jesus, and its significance in their lives (220). The resurrection of Jesus is considered one of the greatest historical problems, since many modern historians do believe that miracles can simply not occur. However, since the resurrection of Jesus is the core of the origin of the church, then disputing that Jesus resurrected is putting a doubt on the origin of the church (Muggeridge, 20). It is difficult to proof both sides of the argument. For those who believe that Jesus did not resurrect, it is not easy for them to prove this, since the origin of the church is based on His resurrection. For those who believe that Jesus resurrected, it is difficult to prove this since it occurred miraculously and defied all the scientific norms, that there is a possibility of coming back to life after a true death. However, there is enough evidence in the bible to show that the account of Jesus’ resurrection was not a fabrication. Having the first witnesses of the resurrection of Jesus as women, considering that the low social status of women during those times meant their testimony was not admissible in the courts, then it must have been proven that the resurrection had actually occurred, before the women were credited with the witness (Tolstoy, 52). The other reason to prove that the resurrection did occur, is the fact that the tomb was empty and then there were sightings for the women and the disciples that followed. If only an empty tomb was seen, then it could have been possible to argue that the body was stolen. Works Cited Keller, Timothy. Reason for God. New York: Dutton, 2008. 192-221. Print. Tolstoy, Leo. A confession. Aegypan Paperback publishers, 2006. 1-108. Print. Muggeridge, Malcolm. Jesus Rediscovered. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1977. 20-21. Print. Read More