THE OLD RUGGED CROSS: A reflection on Good Friday

"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God." – 1 Corinthians 1:18

“On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,

The emblem of suffering and shame;

And I love that old cross

Where the dearest and best

For a world of lost sinners was slain.”

(George Bennard 1873-1958)

Today, on Good Friday–the day Jesus was crucified, we pause to remember the cross not as a symbol of defeat, but as the ultimate demonstration of God’s love and victory. The old rugged cross was an instrument of torture, battering and humiliation–Jesus was stripped naked, yet Jesus transformed it into a gateway of redemption and a beacon of hope. It is on the cross that He carried our sins, our shame, and our sorrows so that we that are dead in trespasses might be called children of God and might have eternal life.

As we meditate on the cross, let us ask ourselves: 

• What does the cross mean to me personally? Do I truly grasp the depth of Christ’s sacrifice, or have I grown insensitive to its wonder?

• Am I willing to take up my own cross and follow Christ? (Luke 9:23) 

• How does Jesus’ sacrifice change the way I live, love, and forgive?

Good Friday is not a funeral for a dead Saviour; the cross reminds us that love costs everything. It is the sacred pause before resurrection dawn. Sunday’s resurrection was coming, but today, we sit in the shadow of the cross, letting its weight press upon the soul of each and every one of us, pondering and reminding us that though the love that Christ has for us is measured in blood and nails, we can today sit in the solemn beauty of His sacrifice. 

The cross is not just where Jesus died for us, it’s where we are called to die with Him (Galatians 2:20). The world offers crowns of temporary glory, but the cross leads to eternal victory. So let us cherish and cling to the cross. Let us preach it by the way we conduct our lives.

For a surety, we know that one day, faith will become sight, and the old rugged cross we cherish now will be exchanged for a crown (Revelation 2:10). But until then, may we never lose our love, our awe, our gratitude, or our willingness to follow Jesus no matter the cost. 

"So I’ll cherish the old rugged cross, till my trophies at last I lay down; I will cling to the old rugged cross, and exchange it someday for a crown."

Personal Prayer:

Father, I pray that as I stand beneath the old rugged cross today, that You will let me see my sin and trespasses in the wounds of Jesus, and let me see Your mercy in His outstretched arms. Teach me to live a life devoid of pride, greed and selfishness, so that Your life may flow through me. Thank you for dying for me in Jesus name. Amen.

Stay blessed,

Pastor Ranti Orioke