“May I never boast except in the cross of Christ.” So the Apostle Paul says in Gal. 6:14. What does that mean?
The title of this blog is “Living in the Shadow.” Shadow of what? We all know what a shadow is. “A dark area of shape produced by a body coming between rays of light and a surface.” It’s also used in reference to proximity. Think “me and my shadow.” My idea for the title was “what is it like to live in the shadow of the cross?”
Well, for one, we learn who we are. At the foot of the cross there is no rich or poor, black or white, male or female, slave or free (to borrow Paul’s words). Someone has said, “The ground is level at the foot of the cross.” The cross reminds us who we are-sinners in need of God’s grace. There is no need-no, there is no warrant for us to think we don’t need to be there or that we are not as bad off as someone else. At the foot of the cross there is no way we can or should think more highly of ourselves.
As we learn who we are, we also learn who God is. As we become more and more aware of our sinful state, we should also become more and more aware of God’s unrelenting grace. No need for me to clean up first; God does that for me.
“May I never boast except in the cross of Christ” is good advice for all of us. Come to think of it; I have no reason to boast except in the cross. I certainly can’t boast about anything I have done. That is a losing game.
At the foot of the cross is a level playing field, indeed, Bill. We are reminded that all have sinned, us included, and we are in such dire need of God’s grace.
Blessings!
You get the point perfectly Martha!
The pendulum of pride and humility…
Of Boasting and minimizing…
No doubt the world could use far less of people thinking more highly of themselves than they should.
As stated, when it comes to the end of this life here on earth, no amount of accomplishment and no amount of gain will put anyone in the express line to heaven.
Nobody gets a “pass” based on our own merits or achievements. I don’t earn the Fast Pass.
The cross strips us of ourselves and makes us a new creation… equal in every way.
Well said Ryan, especially that last line. “Equal in every way.”