“If Jesus comes back, do you really think he wants to see a cross again?”

Have you ever heard a comment that seemed to be insightful yet after careful reflection you sensed there was something “off” about the comment? Recently a comment like this has resurfaced in a number of my conversations and readings. It goes something like this, “If Jesus comes back, do you really think he wants to see a cross again? – Why then do you wear it around your neck or put it on your church buildings?” Such comments are said by those that feel like they have somehow put Christianity in its place. It is an intellectual trump card they have discovered that nullifies the Christian movement who for thousands of years have celebrated the cross. I have heard such statements from Christians too, in an attempt to somehow purify the church of some perceived shortfall or worse, take all crosses out of the church.

Yet, I can’t help but think such comments come from a naivety and a lack of understanding of the scriptures. For even a light reading of the New Testament reveals how central the cross is to the Christian faith. Did Jesus really want us to ignore it? In fact, Jesus shows us that it is the point in history which all of mankind must look to if they want salvation. It is the point at which God and mankind meet, the place that bridges the gap between the divine and all of humanity. At the last Supper he even instituted an ordinance that Christians have celebrated for years. The bread which represents his crushed body and the wine which represents his spilled blood both put the cross central to the gospel. One has to wonder, if Christ never wanted to remember the cross, why such a ritual was commanded by our Lord. Think of the billions of Christians that over the years have taken part in Communion, bowing their head and thanking Jesus for the cross. Is Jesus repulsed in horror every time they come to the Lord’s Table?


Perhaps such comments are rooted in a choice to refuse the gospel.  For Paul himself said that the cross is a “stumbling block for the Jews and foolishness to the Gentiles.“(1Cor.1:23) In fact, to say Jesus doesn’t want to see a cross again, highlights Jesus humanity over his divinity. In laymen’s terms that means Jesus’ human feelings supersede and overshadow the fact that He was also God. From a human standpoint the cross is unwanted and horrific. From God’s standpoint it is the only means by which mankind can approach him.


Did you know that the planet of Jupiter acts as is a cosmic vacuum in our solar system? The gravitational pull of this planet is so strong that it sucks in most of the meteors and space debris in our small corner of the universe. Estimates are that between 50,000-90,000 tons of meteors hit the earth every day! And, if Jupiter did not exist, the amount of meteors hitting the earth would increase exponentially! A few years ago something hit Jupiter really hard and prominent scars from this impact were visible on the planet for months. They called it “Comet-Shoemaker Levy” and it was something bigger than the size of planet earth! Do you feel helpless? Such a reality not only highlights the fact that God is sovereignly sustaining our life on planet earth but also illustrates that God could crush us if he wanted to. Our sin is what appals him and because of it we should be destroyed. Yet, instead of crushing us, God crushed his son on the cross. (Isa.53:10)

To ask the question, if Jesus still likes the cross, misses the point entirely. It sidetracks the conversation appealing to human emotion and neglects the most important issue. We need not worry if Jesus has any negative emotional connection to the cross because He has told us it is our only hope and means to salvation. The most important issue is that you confess Jesus as Lord and come to him on his terms. (Rm.10:9) Those terms are outlined pretty clearly when he tells us what it must take if we want to follow him - “take up your cross and follow me”(Lk.9:23) Perhaps the contention that most people have with the cross is a smokescreen for the real issue because the cross means I need to come to Jesus and die to myself. (Rm.6:1-4) I think the real issue is not that Jesus doesn’t like the cross, but that sometimes we don’t.