Journey to the Cross: A 7-Day Lenten Devotional With Paul David TrippSample

When the shadow of the cross hangs over us, we are not surprised by sin, and we are not afraid to look at what has already been forgiven.

My sin seemed to sneak up on me again, like a stalker jumping out from behind the bushes. I was unprepared, but why? I was surprised, but shouldn’t have been. The instant change in my thinking, desires, and emotions was shocking. I got angry in a situation where my anger was unexpected. Instead of wanting to serve, I suddenly wanted to win, to be affirmed as right. My voice got louder, my tone got sharper, and my face reddened. My ability to communicate turned from a tool of help to a weapon of offense. I said unkind things and other things in an unkind way. At that moment, I was a self-appointed king, the universe shrunk to the size of my desires, and all I wanted was for my will to be done. And as I was sinning, I was already erecting self-atoning arguments that would make my sin acceptable to my conscience. But it wasn’t long before remorse came, and by God’s grace confession followed.

Open your heart to what I am about to say next. My story is your story too. Whether you’re standing in your teenager’s bedroom, sitting with your computer on your lap, plodding through work, or rushing through the grocery store, sin creeps up on you and seizes you. Before you know it, you’re in its hold. Later you look back with regret. You tell yourself that you’ll do better next time, only to get kidnapped again a little further down the road. This is the sadly repeating drama of all of us living between the “already” and the “not yet.”

This is why it is important to dedicate a season of every year to sit under the shadow of the cross of Jesus Christ once again. Under the shadow of the cross, sin doesn’t surprise us anymore, doesn’t depress us anymore, and doesn’t move us to deny or defend. Under the shadow of the cross, we remember who we are and what it is that we are dealing with. Under the shadow of the cross, we are required to admit that the greatest enemy we face is not difficulty or maltreatment from without, but the enemy of sin within. Under the shadow of the cross, we quit pointing fingers and begin crying out for help. Under the shadow of the cross, we are reminded that we are not in this battle alone; in fact, there we admit that we have no power whatsoever to battle on our own. Under the shadow of the cross, we get our sanity back, admitting who we are and what it is that we so desperately need. The shadow of the cross is a place of peace and protection that can be found nowhere else. Let the shadow of the cross be your teacher.

1. The shadow of the cross teaches us who we are. We all need to stop again and again and let the cross remind us of who we are, and in reminding us, to humble us anew. We do tend to think of ourselves more highly than we ought. Here’s what happens to many of us. When we first come to Christ, we are very aware of our sin, and therefore we carry with us a constant desire for God’s help. But as saving grace gets our lives into order and we are following, fellowshiping, and obeying, we begin to let go of that sense of need. We begin to think of ourselves as okay—and in one sense we are, because our salvation is sealed once and for all. On the other hand, as long as sin still lurks inside us, we are not okay and are still in constant need of redeeming grace. Sitting under the shadow of the cross shatters the delusion that we are free of the need of what originally brought us to Jesus: divine grace.

2. The shadow of the cross teaches what we need. The cross powerfully reminds me that I need much more than situational, relational, financial, or physical change. The cross is the ultimate diagnostic. It accurately puts its finger on the ultimate disease, and then offers the only reliable cure. Accurate diagnosis is always necessary for there to be a real, lasting cure. Bad diagnosis will prevent cure from happening. Your inner lawyer, your friends, and your culture may tell you that your biggest problem is not you, and they may tell you that all you need to do is move, quit, find new friends, get a new job, or make more money; but each one of those is a misdiagnosis. These things will not treat the disease that has you in its grip. Only grace can do that. The cross preaches that sin is our problem and that rescuing, forgiving, transforming, and delivering grace is the only medicine that will provide the cure we all need.

3. The shadow of the cross teaches us who God is. The cross tells us that God is unrelentingly merciful. It is amazing to think that he would control all the things that he needed to control so that Jesus would arrive on that awful cross as an acceptable sacrifice for our redemption! The cross preaches God’s saving zeal, his boundless love, and his willingness to unleash his almighty power and unlimited sovereignty to draw rebels to himself. The cross teaches us that God doesn’t look at sinners with disdain or disgust, but with generous and tender love. The cross teaches us that we do not have to clean ourselves up to come to God; we only need to come in humble confession. The cross teaches us that when we sin, God doesn’t greet us with a sentence of condemnation, but with a reminder once again of the completeness of his pardon. The cross allows unholy people to look in the face of a holy God and have hope.

4. The shadow of the cross teaches us what God offers us. The cross teaches us that God offers us the one thing that no other person or thing can. He offers us the grace of forgiveness. He offers us the grace of welcome into relationship with him. He offers us the grace of personal transformation. He offers us the grace of a new identity and new potential. He offers us the grace of a glorious and fully secured destiny. Yes, it is true, he offers us grace upon grace!

5. The shadow of the cross teaches us how we should live. The cross teaches us that we should live humbly wise. It’s foolish and prideful to be unprepared for the battle with sin. Unpreparedness denies all that the cross teaches us about who we are and what we need. The cross teaches us that we need to pray for eyes to see and hearts that are attentive to the enemy’s temptations and sin’s lies. The cross teaches us to be humbly ready and to start every day with cries for divine rescue and strength.

6. The shadow of the cross gives us hope and courage. The cross teaches us to be unafraid to admit and confess sin, not because we are powerful or capable, but because Jesus is the victor, and there is nothing that we will ever face inside or outside us that exists outside the circle of the completed victory of the cross. I can face my sin without depression or panic because he battled for me and won and continues to do so.

It really is a good thing to sit under the shadow of the cross for a season, to consider, confess, and rest once again.

Reflection

1. What do you think it means to live under the shadow of the cross? What are some practical ways to get yourself there?

2. Do you agree that your greatest problem is your sin? What attitudes or actions in your life suggest that maybe you don’t truly believe that?

3. Think of some of the things you need right now, either materially or spiritually. How might placing yourself in the shadow of the cross inform or enhance your perspective on those needs?

Read Psalm 130, and note what the psalmist says about who we are and who God is. Use this psalm to guide your prayer time today.