The Magnificence of the Cross: The Reconciliation of All Things

Elevation of the Holy Cross, Iryna Solonynka, 2023. Egg tempera and gilding on gessoed wood panel. Private Collection.

“Calvary Medley” from The Easter Project, Calvary. Traditional African-American spiritual performed by The Spirituals featuring Jason Nicholson-Porter (vocalist).

Poetry:

“Prayers for the Protection and Opening of the Heart”
by Ya’akov Hakohen trans. by Peter Cole

I

May the Name send its hidden radiance
to open the gates of deliverance
to His servants—and shine in their hearts,
which now are shut in silent darkness.
May the great King be moved
to act in perfection and righteousness—
to open the gates of wisdom for us
and waken the love of old, the love of ancient days.

ii

By the power of the hidden NameI-am-that-I-am,
and by the dew of Desire and Blessing, the dead will live again...

iii

I-amis the power of your Name in concealment,
and one who knows its mystery dwells in eternity’s instant.
Over the world, it pours forth abundance and favor,
and on it all worlds hang, like grapes in a cluster.

Send the dew of blessing, the dew of grace;
renew my dispensation, and grant me length of days.

Bring light to my eyes with your teaching, and let not the husks
that surround your hosts obstruct me.
May Heaven and Adam’s children judge me with mercy.

Sustain me with their strength and fortune—
but do not leave me in need of the gifts of men.

THE MAGNIFICENCE OF THE CROSS: THE RECONCILIATION OF ALL THINGS

This may sound like the start of a ridiculously bad joke – the kind that ends with a groan worthy pun: what does a 1st Century tentmaker who studied under Gamaliel (a well- known Jewish law teacher), a 13th Century Jewish mystic, an early 20th Century preacher in Michigan, and a contemporary Ukrainian iconographer all have in common? While the setup prepares one to groan, the punch line is truly sublime: They all saw and expressed in their own way the profound need for reconciliation between the Creator and His creation.

The 13th Century Jewish mystic, Ya-Akov Hakohen, prayed that such a reconciliation would be initiated by the Great I AM. The 1st Century tentmaker, Paul, identified how the Great I AM did so: Christ’s blood on the cross. The utter magnificence of the cross in reconciling Creator to creation is illustrated visually by Icon artist Iryna Solonynka, and musically by hymn writer George Bennard.

Perhaps the greatest truths are the simplest put. To quote the most memorable and shortest homily I’ve ever heard at a Good Friday Service: “The cross changed everything (pause for quiet reflection)...The cross changed everything (pause for quiet reflection)...The cross changed everything.” And really, what more needs to be said? With His blood on the cross Christ changed everything as He reconciled all things to Himself–––things on heaven and things on earth–––everything. The Great I AM both initiated and accomplished reconciliation.

Reconciliation –– perhaps one of the sweetest words in the English language. We were created for relationship, and much of our distress is when we have relational schisms with family members, friends, even with ourselves, and most importantly with God. With Christ’s blood on the cross–––He reconciled all things–––including that which causes us the deepest, most personal relational grief.

A prominent image of my childhood in northern rural Michigan was a large white cross on the road to our nearest interstate highway. Emblazoned on that 12-foot-high cross were the words “The Old Rugged Cross, Home of George Bennard, Composer of This Beloved Hymn.” As a child and adolescent, I wasn’t much impressed by the hymn tune, but then again, before writing this devotional, I had never heard it sung like it was as part of The Easter Project––The Spirituals (today’s music). Now that I have heard it sung this way, my heart cries even more to…

1. Cherish it: Christ’s blood on it made our reconciliation possible.

2. Cling to it: Christ’s blood on it makes our sanctification possible.

3. Exchange it one day for a crown: Christ’s blood on it gives us hope for a future, one reconciled with Him who made us and
in whom we have our being (Hebrews 2:10).

The cross changed everything. It is magnificent.

Prayer:
Grant, O Lord, that in your wounds I may find my safety, in your stripes my cure, in your pain my peace, in your Cross my victory, in your Resurrection my triumph, and a crown of righteousness in the glories of your eternal kingdom.
–––Jeremy Taylor (1613-1667) English writer and Anglican bishop

Dr. Nancy Crawford
Associate Professor of Psychology
Director of Clinical Training
Rosemead School of Psychology
Biola University