What glory is there in the cross? It was an instrument of torture and shame. Why did Paul glory in it? He gloried in it because the most selfless act ever performed by men or angels took place upon it. He saw-emanating from that rough, unartistic beam upon which the Son of God had been crucified-the radiant hope of the world, the end of the believer’s bondage to sin, and the love of God shed abroad in the hearts of men. A lone man dying on a cross did more to restore man’s lost harmony with God, his fellowman, and himself, than the combined genius and power of earth’s mighty. With my finite limitations, I cannot fully comprehend the mystery of Christ’s atonement. I only know that all who come to the cross in simple, trusting faith lose all their guilty stains and find peace with God.

Prayer for the day

Like the Apostle Paul, Father, help me to glory in the cross of Jesus and more fully understand the tremendous meaning it has for me as a believer and for all who would come to its foot and kneel.