The Two Aspects of the Cross
The cross of Christ presents two aspects: Christ bearing our sins and our participation in His death to sin and new life in righteousness.
Andrew Murray emphasizes the dual aspects of the cross in his sermon, highlighting Christ's role as our substitute who bore our sins and fulfilled the law on our behalf. He explains that while many focus on the forgiveness of sins through Christ's sacrifice, the deeper truth is that His death enables us to die to sin and live righteously. This transformative aspect of the cross invites believers to share in Christ's new life, moving beyond mere pardon to a life empowered by righteousness.
Text
In the teaching of Scripture the cross is presented under two different aspects. In the words of Peter (I Peter 2:24), we have them both. "Christ his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree." He did what we ought to have done, to bear the punishment and the curse of our sins. ... He died in our stead, and as our substitute, actually standing in our place, fulfilling for us every obligation to the law under which we were, and forever freeing us from it. The cross preached the blessed truth of substitution -- the Savior taking the sinner's place, that now the sinner may share in the Savior's place. ... What is to be the result or fruit of Christ thus bearing our sins?
"The ordinary answer is, that we may now have our sins pardoned. This answer is according to Scripture. But it is only a part of scriptural truth. The answer Peter gives is: "That we, being dead to sins, should live to righteousness." The death of Christ is not only a death for us, a curse bearing on the tree in which we can have no share, but equally a death in which we have an actual part, a death through which we die unto sin and enter a new life; all as really and truly as Christ did.
(Excerpted from The Cross of Christ, by Andrew Murray, pg. 108-109)
Sermon Outline
- The Two Aspects of the Cross
- The Result of Christ Bearing Our Sins
- Pardon of sins
- Death to sin and new life in righteousness
Key Quotes
“Christ his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree.” — Andrew Murray
“That we, being dead to sins, should live to righteousness.” — Andrew Murray
Application Points
- We must recognize the substitutionary work of Christ on the cross and its impact on our lives.
- We must die unto sin and enter a new life in righteousness through the death of Christ.
- We must understand the full scope of Christ's sacrifice and its implications for our daily lives.