JESUS, KEEP ME NEAR THE CROSS!

How many of us can sing by heart the words of the song that starts “Jesus, keep me near the cross”? Can you recall the next few lines? Easy, right?

More than just a song, it’s a much-needed prayer for Christians. Far too many of us have a woefully inadequate understanding of what happened when Jesus willingly embraced the cross and died upon it. We tend to think of the cross as a way for us to get more of God’s goodies, the ticket, as it were, to our best life now.

Of course, there is a modicum of truth in that notion: without the death of God’s Son, you and I would still be in our sins, and therefore rightfully under God’s wrath. But there’s more, so much more to it. As John Piper points out, when Jesus died on the cross, He was not simply dying in our place, but He was also establishing a pattern for our lives.

Christ called us to follow Him in cross-bearing, in dying to ourselves, and in pursuing sacrifice as a strategic part of living out the gospel. We can’t do God’s will if we still want our will. We can’t pray, “Thy kingdom come” without also saying “And my kingdom go.”

And so, we ought to pray to be kept near the cross, saying “O Lamb of God, bring its scenes before” us, to correct our vision of all else that we see, lest spiritual myopia or the dazzle of other things distract us or cause us to stumble from God’s call. Until we see the cross (and see it again), we never rightly comprehend God’s righteousness. At the cross, where the Son of God was broken under the weight of the Father’s wrath, we see that the holiness of God exceeds all our imaginations. He is holy indeed.

Until and unless we see the cross, we can’t accurately understand our sin. The incomprehensible suffering of Christ reveals sin as no mere trifle. Look at the cross and see to what lengths the Son of God went to solve our sin problem! He took sin seriously, and so must we.

Until we see the cross more clearly, we will never appreciate Christ’s love. No sentimentalism here, no sappy “anything goes” tolerance is visible at the cross. Consider the awesome omnipotence of His love, not that He overlooks sin, but that on the cross He dies for it. He was under no obligation to do so; and yet, He died, horribly, all for love’s sake. This, this cross, this death of God’s Son – this is how much God loves sinners.

Finally, until we steadfastly look upon the cross in all its gory magnificence, it will be impossible to realize God’s call upon our lives. Jesus said you can’t follow Him without a cross. The road to the empty tomb still leads squarely over Calvary: you will never experience the power of the resurrection if you reject the pain of the cross.

In what area of your life is Christ calling you to die today? Are you willing for Him to keep you near His cross?