Under an Endless Sky

We had a great church service yesterday! The message was on the meaning of the cross by one of our congregation. He said the cross was a mirror to our souls. Scripture says that Jesus was disfigured so much that he barely resembled a human being.

And that is a picture of our own depravity. And it's when we acknowledge that truth that we can humble ourselves to receive the remedy...at the cross. But that's why the message of the cross is hard. We don't want to consider ourselves depraved - it's counter culture and cannot exist with pride which roots itself so deeply in our hearts.

Some might think that admitting our depravity means we are of no worth and valueless. But just the opposite is true. The suffering of Jesus on our behalf gives us our worth. What are we worth to Him? His life.

Crucified, laid behind the stone
You lived to die, rejected and alone
Like a rose, trampled on the ground
You took the fall
And thought of me
Above all

Our Creator loves and values us and was willing to pay the highest price He could pay. The question is what will we do with the cross?

The other blessing I received was being part of our worship team. It was amazing how the music worked so well with the message. Just before the message we sang Lenny LeBlanc and Paul Baloche's song "Above All" (quoted above) and as a response we sang "My Jesus I Love Thee".

I love thee because thou hast first loved me

And purchased my pardon on Calvary's tree

I love Thee for wearing the thorns on thy brow

If ever I loved thee, My Jesus, 'tis now

Here's the interesting irony.

Christians believe that we are depraved but that our lives are valued as incredibly precious.

Secular humanists believe that we are basically good (with the possiblity of evolving into better) but that our lives are without intrinsic value - our value depends on what you can contribute to society - no contribution equals no value.