THE CRUCIFORM CHURCH

          “The most pressing question facing the churches of Christ today is the question, can we recover the ‘word of the cross’ in its biblical fullness?  No other question comes close to this one.”  These words are penned by a brother in Christ, C. Leonard Allen, in his thought-provoking book, The Cruciform Church:  Becoming A Cross-Shaped People In A Secular World.  Could it be that he is correct?

Have we inadvertently minimized the centrality of the cross?  The apostle Paul unashamedly proclaimed, I determined to know no- thing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified (1Cor.2:2).  Have we allowed that which was the very centerpiece of apostolic preaching to become marginalized?  Is it not still true, as Martin Luther astutely observed, “The cross puts everything to the test.”             

          It is the faithful and steadfast proclamation of the word of the cross (1Cor.1:18) that keeps our focus where it ought to be.  First of all, the cross is our sole basis of boasting (Gal.6:14a).  It is only by the precious blood of Christ poured forth in the cross event that we are saved (cf. 1Pet.1:19 and Heb.9:12).  It is only IN HIM and BY HIS BLOOD that we obtain propitiation, justification and redemp-tion (cf. Rom.2:25 & 5:9 and Eph.1:7 & Col.1:14).  Yet the application of the word of the cross requires more than just a ready recol-lection of history and the telling of His story (i.e., the story of Jesus), it also requires of us that we follow in His steps (1Pet.2:21) and that we walk in the same manner as He walked (1Jn.1:6).  Our Lord presented it this way:  If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily, and follow Me (Lk.9:23).  The cross is not a path The Father chose JUST FOR JESUS, it is the path that we, too, must trod.  Paul understood this clearly - - I have been crucified with Christ (Gal.2:20).  As Paul further noted, the cross is the template that brings life from death - - through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world (Gal.6:14b). 

          By means of the cross Jesus e-m-p-t-i-e-d Himself (Philp.2:7).  We’re called upon to have this same attitude in ourselves which was also in Christ Jesus (Philp.2:5).  Herein lies the key to becoming a cruciform church.  Our secular world notwithstanding, we must determine to be people who are shaped by the cross.  Our calling card is not simply that we have been purchased by the cross (Acts 20:28), but that the cross has also become a way of life for us.  It’s high time we get serious about traveling the way of the cross.        

                                                                                              Terry Siverd / Cortland Church of Christ