In 1971, Carolyn Davidson was a graphic design student at Portland State University. She was doing some freelance work for a small athletic apparel company called Blue Ribbon Sports. She drew a simple logo, intended to represent the wing on a statue of the Greek goddess of victory, whose name is Nike. That “swoosh” and the brand it represents, Nike, are now a part of marketing history.
If the church has a logo, it is the cross. It adorns steeples, overlooks baptisteries, and dangles from the necks of church members (not to mention award-winning, gangster rappers). The Word of God teaches that the cross is so much more than just a logo or a symbol. The cross is a principle that is absolutely central to what a Christian believes.
D.A. Carson, in his book The Cross and Christian Ministry, makes a critical point about our day. He says:
“Ever so subtly, we start to think that success more critically depends on thoughtful sociological analysis than on the gospel; Barna becomes more important than the Bible. We depend on plans, programs, vision statements – but somewhere along the way we have succumbed to the temptation to displace the foolishness of the cross with the wisdom of strategic planning.”
Just after this paragraph, Carson makes an arresting statement. I read it over and over again. He writes:
“…I fear that the cross, without ever being disowned, is constantly in danger of being dismissed from the central place it must enjoy…”
Wow! In many churches today, the cross is nothing more than a logo for the therapeutic ministry of Jesus. He is the great marriage fixer, children raiser, financial advisor, self-help guru…His business cards have a cross on them, and He is somehow connected to it, but most religious consumers are not really sure how.
The truth is, however, the cross is not simply a logo for Jesus’ religious services. The cross was the instrument of his death, and is the place where man’s sin was dealt with by God. The cross is the only hope for redemption, and the only message that can really make a difference in the lives of people, for it is the power of God. If we set it aside, “dismiss” it from its central place, we do so to the detriment of our churches and the damnation of our people.
If the church has a logo, it is the cross. It adorns steeples, overlooks baptisteries, and dangles from the necks of church members (not to mention award-winning, gangster rappers). The Word of God teaches that the cross is so much more than just a logo or a symbol. The cross is a principle that is absolutely central to what a Christian believes.
D.A. Carson, in his book The Cross and Christian Ministry, makes a critical point about our day. He says:
“Ever so subtly, we start to think that success more critically depends on thoughtful sociological analysis than on the gospel; Barna becomes more important than the Bible. We depend on plans, programs, vision statements – but somewhere along the way we have succumbed to the temptation to displace the foolishness of the cross with the wisdom of strategic planning.”
Just after this paragraph, Carson makes an arresting statement. I read it over and over again. He writes:
“…I fear that the cross, without ever being disowned, is constantly in danger of being dismissed from the central place it must enjoy…”
Wow! In many churches today, the cross is nothing more than a logo for the therapeutic ministry of Jesus. He is the great marriage fixer, children raiser, financial advisor, self-help guru…His business cards have a cross on them, and He is somehow connected to it, but most religious consumers are not really sure how.
The truth is, however, the cross is not simply a logo for Jesus’ religious services. The cross was the instrument of his death, and is the place where man’s sin was dealt with by God. The cross is the only hope for redemption, and the only message that can really make a difference in the lives of people, for it is the power of God. If we set it aside, “dismiss” it from its central place, we do so to the detriment of our churches and the damnation of our people.
“For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.” I Corinthians 1:18
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