Crucifixion, or being put to death on two beams that formed a cross, was the ultimate punishment in Roman days. Being crucified hurt a lot, and the pain went on for a very long time.
A person who was executed on a cross was usually paying the price for a capital crime or committing a serious offense, and it was the greatest penalty a person could receive. It is thus important to remember the picture that a cross would convey – a picture of ultimate pain and suffering on earth.
Even in today’s terms, crucifixion still stands out as unusually cruel. There are many current news reports of people being tortured or subject to severe interrogation techniques, but few of these reports equate to the pain and suffering one would experience on the cross.
Stripped, suffering wounds from beatings, nailed to coarse wood with arms and legs mutilated, exposed to elements and creatures, and hanging for hours or even days until your life slowly left you is an image that haunts the imagination in any time or society. Such punishment is or should be reserved for a person full of evil, a person who has defiled and mutilated humankind without remorse. In other words, a person who has forfeited their role as part of the human family.
In contrast, punishing an innocent person, someone who helped and guided people, someone who showed love to everyone, would be the ultimate injustice carried out, and a seeming triumph of evil. The victory of the cross is easy to miss.
Yet it is not just the victory over evil that Christians celebrate on the cross, but the great gift of a loving father, our father. He who desired to show his love for us, to forgive us for all our transgressions, sacrificed his blameless son so that one day we could all know of his love and draw closer to him.
The cross was also a reminder for all Romans, a very severe warning, to not make the same mistakes or they also would face the same sentence. Putting the cross on view in public was a deterrent against future crime or at least it was supposed to be. Instead, it ended up being quite a motivator for all those affiliated with the church to take up their own crosses and share the message of this wrong committed against God’s only son.
What Christians must remember is that wearing a crucifix does not make one holy or protect that person from evil. The purpose of the crucifix is to serve as a personal reminder. It is a reminder of God’s love for all and his greatest sacrifice. It also reminds us of the evil within us that, if unchecked, could go on a rampage and destroy everything innocent in its path.
For Christians, the cross is reminder of the value of life and the boundless reaches of love.
Anton Petrov is a published writer focusing on subjects related to teaching, religion and Christianity. For the latest Christian news, views and events, visit http://www.FreeChristianPress.com.
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