The Power of the Cross

Song: Near The Cross

Scripture: 1 Peter 1:1-21

Peter addresses his first epistle to a people without a country, at least presently. They have an inheritance that is otherworldly, “reserved in heaven.” It is the cross that makes this alienation bearable. It is the cross that makes the difference for the Christian and in the Christian’s conduct.

Christianity changes everything. Your behavior toward your neighbor, your government, your spouse, your employer is governed by a new standard, a higher standard, the standard of the cross. Since Jesus Christ suffered in the flesh, “arm yourselves with this same purpose,” Peter writes (4:1). The Christian is the representative of a higher standard of conduct that will not shame the Master.

Unconditional love is the greatest power of which freewill agents are possessed. The power of the gospel is the change wrought in stubborn, selfish sinners by the spectacle of God’s Son nailed to a tree. God would necessarily use the wisest, most effective tool in His campaign to save the world. He chose the cross. What better tool is there for the Christian to employ in making a difference? “Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps” (2:21).

Don’t cheapen the cross. The cross ought not to be regarded as a sort of Aladdin’s lamp that one rubs whenever he sins with abandon. An attitude of “I’ll sin now, and repent later,” is not hidden from God. “You were not redeemed with perishable things… but with precious blood,” Peter says.

The cross is both the motive for change and the power for living in the life of the believer. That’s Peter’s lesson for the Christian pilgrim.

Jason Moore