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"The Empty Cross"
Introduction: A church marquee read, “Easter and the resurrection is the rest of the story of Christmas” This time of the year more than any other, the cross takes center stage. In the Gospel of John 19:17-25 we read,
“And he bearing his CROSS went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha: (18) Where they crucified him, and two other with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst. (19) And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the CROSS. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS. (20) This title then read many of the Jews: for the place where Jesus was crucified was nigh to the city: and it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin. (21) Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write not, The King of the Jews; but that he said, I am King of the Jews. (22) Pilate answered, What I have written I have written. (23) Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. (24) They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did. (25) Now there stood by the CROSS of Jesus his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.”
Visitors who descend into sprawling catacombs in ancient Rome
can detect the earliest symbols of Christianity engraved on the tombs.
can detect the earliest symbols of Christianity engraved on the tombs.
One of the most popular emblems is an anchor, signifying the fact that in Christ according to Hebrews 6:19, “we have an anchor for the soul, both sure and steadfast…” But look carefully at that anchor and you'll see that it's really a cross in disguise.
Nearby you might see another symbol, the Greek letter Chi; but that, too, is a cross – like our letter "X." Chi is the first letter of the name of Christ.
Occasionally among the tombs you'll also spot an engraving of the mast of a ship. Look closely and there's another cross. Even in times of intimidation and persecution, the early Christians found ways of making the cross their symbol.
Now head northwest from Rome to France and fast-forward across the centuries. Join the crowds each year who tour the American Cemetery at Normandy. Walking among the thousands of plain white marble crosses, you'll feel you're treading sacred ground. The silent crosses are perfectly aligned in haunting, endless rows, signifying the brave troops of D-Day who gave their lives to liberate Europe. Among the graves are 33 pairs of brothers who died side by side in World War II.
At one end of the cemetery is a circular white limestone colonnade and military chapel, and inscribed on the altar are the words of Christ: "I Give Unto Them Eternal Life and They Shall Never Perish."
Throughout the centuries, the cross has been the greatest symbol of death and of life the world has ever known. The apostle Paul, referring to the Gospel and to Christianity, called it "the message of the cross."
The cross, he said in I Corinthians 1:17-18, “For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. (18) For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.”
He told the Galatians in Galatians 6:14, “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.”
In Philippians 2:8-9 Paul wrote concerning Christ, “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (9) Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:”
To the Colossians in Colossians 1:20 he wrote, “And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself…”
In Hebrews 12:2 Paul wrote, “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
For two-thousand-years the cross, has been the most ubiquitous symbol in Christendom in memory of the Savior who died on Golgotha's cross in Jerusalem.
As an image, the cross was in use long before the time of Christ. But following His crucifixion, the image of the cross was multiplied among cultures. Wherever the Gospel went – so went the sign of the cross.
The cross appeared on staffs, was embroidered into garments, and was painted and sewn onto Crusader's shields and robes.
During the Middle Ages those who looked after the sick, incorporated the cross much as the Red Cross does today.
Then as today, the cross was not always used in a pure biblical sense – in memory of Christ who died a horrific death on a cross. But as a result of the passage of time, the Christian cross has to be the most universally recognized symbol in the modern world.
We do not want to be guilty, however, of allowing the Christian cross to become a cultural cross devoid of its message of salvation through Christ Jesus. If we are going to be followers of Christ, then we must become people of the CROSS – those who have heard and embraced Christ's words in Luke 14:27, "And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.”
The cross of Jesus is not a sentimental symbol. It is a cruel instrument of death upon which Jesus of Nazareth was brutally killed. It is also the focal point of all human history at which point all of life finally makes sense.
No matter how you look at the cross, it is the crossroads where the best of heaven and the best of earth met in the person of Jesus Christ, who laid down His life for us.
Sometimes we think of the cross as a symbol of death. But it's also a symbol of life, because of one obvious fact – it is empty! We visualize the empty tomb at Easter, but let's not forget the empty cross.
Because of Christ’s obedience to God, a number of things were found to be empty:
First: There is the Empty Cross. Who removed the body of Jesus from the wooden beams of the cross? Who detached the hands and feet from their bloody nails? That duty belonged to a mysterious man of wealth and power named Joseph of Arimathaea. We've been led to believe that Romans treated the bodies of crucifixion victims as if they were the carcasses of dogs; but Matthew 27:57-60 tells us,
“When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathaea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus' disciple: (58) He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered. (59) And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, (60) And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed.”
We know nothing about Joseph of Arimathaea except what we read in the four Gospel accounts of the death of Christ.
Mark 15:43 tells us that Joseph was a prominent member of the Council who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God. According to Mark, his approach to Pilate was an act of boldness.
Luke 23:50-52 adds that he was a good and upright man who had disagreed with the Sanhedrin's decision to seek the Lord's death.
John adds this about Joseph and his helper in John 19:38-39, “And after this Joseph of Arimathaea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, besought Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus: and Pilate gave him leave. He came therefore, and took the body of Jesus. (39) And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight.”
My mind's eye can scarcely imagine the scene.
The sun was low in the sky.
The temperatures were dropping.
The area around Calvary was buzzing with soldiers and citizens, though perhaps the crowd was thinning now that the victims were dead.
These two powerful, wealthy men took charge of the remains of Jesus, treating the body as tenderly as possible.
Extricating the body from the cross was no easy task. It was grim and repulsive work. Not only did they have to pull the nails from his feet and hands and remove the crown of thorns but they had to clean up his blood soaked body.
Did they have servants who aided? Was there a sympathetic soldier who helped? Were the women, who had stood vigil through the day, nearby?
These scenes are shrouded in the discretion of the Divine.
It's enough for us to know that two influential men, secret disciples, came to the forefront and demanded that the body of our Lord be treated with reverence, even if they had to do it themselves.
It's enough for us to remember that our Lord's body wasn't left on the cross to decay, as was often the practice. It wasn't tossed into the trash heaps in the Valley of Gehenna. It was tenderly removed from the rugged cross, anointed with appropriate spices, wrapped in white linen, and buried before sundown in a nearby tomb.
So today, we celebrate an empty cross, and we worship the One who died there and was buried and rose again for us.
Second: There is the Empty Tomb. Our Lord remained six hours on the cross and three days in the tomb, but He left both of them as empty as He'd found them.
Philosopher Stephen T. Davis, in his book, Risen Indeed, disputes the opinion that the meaning of the resurrection is more important than its actual occurrence.
Some people say, "Well, the main thing isn't whether Jesus actually rose bodily from the tomb, but what it means to us. What really counts is the significance of the resurrection message."
Davis counters by saying, "I am convinced that the resurrection means little unless it really happened. If the resurrection of Jesus turns out to have been a fraud or a pious myth or even somehow an honest mistake, then there is little reason to think about it or see meaning in it."'
The apostle Paul agreed in I Corinthians 15:14, “And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.” And in verse 20 we read, “But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.” An empty tomb means a fulfilled faith. A filled tomb means an empty faith. We have an empty cross and an empty tomb, so that means that death itself is an empty threat.
Third: There is the Empty Threat. The threat is “No hope – death ends it all.” However, in that great resurrection chapter of I Corinthians 15:54 we read, “So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.”
The writer of Hebrews said in Hebrews 2:14-15, "Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; (15) And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” Jesus gave us the Easter message in one sentence found in John 14:19, "Because I live, you will live also."
Several years ago, a terrible fire broke out at Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee.
The sanctuary was gutted in a massive inferno, and the east wing of the church also perished.
Flames engulfed the building, sending black smoke into the East Tennessee skies. When church members gathered for the first time on a Sunday after the fire, they entered a local school auditorium to see a huge cross standing on the stage near the pulpit. It was the cross that had topped the steeple.
Somehow that cross had survived the fire. Not only had it survived, it had never fallen. It became a symbol of victory and hope and power.
It reminds me of the great hymn that says, "In the cross of Christ I glory, towering o'er the wrecks of time."
The church father Tertullian said, "The resurrection of the dead constitutes the confidence of Christians. By believing it, we are what we claim to be."
We have an empty cross and an empty tomb. The devil is left with an empty threat. And that frees us from living empty lives. Again, I challenge you to take a fresh look at Calvary and see the everlasting love of God. Remember, we who visualize the empty tomb at Easter must not forget the empty cross.
Perhaps you are here this Palm Sunday and you have heard the Gospel story over and over again. Yet, over and over again you have rejected the Savior's "So Great SALVATION." Reject the Savior today, and tomorrow it will be too late. Today in Jesus’ name, we beg you to cry unto God, "Be merciful to me a sinner and save me for Jesus sake." For in Romans 10:9 we read, "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."
Now once again survey the wondrous EMPTY cross and hear Jesus cry, "It is Finished" as you reflect on the words of the George Bennard hymn "The Old Rugged Cross"
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.
Oh, that old rugged cross so despised by the world,
Has a wondrous attraction for me;
For the dear Lamb of God left His glory above,
To bear it to dark Calvary.
In the old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine,
A wondrous beauty I see;
For 'twas on that old cross
Jesus suffered and died,
To pardon and sanctify me.
To the old rugged cross I will ever be true,
Its shame and reproach gladly bear.
Then he’ll call me some-day to my home far away,
Where His glory forever I’ll share.
So I'll cherish the old rugged cross,
Til my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it someday for a crown.
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If God has spoken to your heart after reading the sermon, "The Empty Cross" then right now talk to God about what He has spoken to you.
Do you have the assurance that one day you will go to heaven? If you have no assurance that you know Jesus Christ, then I trust you will decide to accept Him as your personal Savior. The Bible tells us in
Acts 16:31, “…Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…”
Romans 10:13, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
This prayer is here for those who need to ask Jesus to be their personal Savior: “I do want to go to Heaven. I know I am a sinner, and I do believe Jesus Christ died for me. I realize I cannot buy this great salvation, nor can I earn it. Knowing Jesus died on the cross and arose from the grave to pay my sin debt and to purchase my salvation, I do now trust Him as my Savior, and from this moment on I am completely depending on Him for my salvation.”
If you made the decision to accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior let me know. Please send an e-mail to, pdmikBBM@aol.com and I will send you some literature that will help you in your Christian life.
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In His Amazing Grace,
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