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How Christ Transformed The Meaning Of The Cross

How Christ Transformed The Meaning Of The Cross

Last updated on: September 13, 2026 at 1:12 am by Henry Karlson

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How Christ Transformed The Meaning Of The Cross 2026-09-13T01:12:35-05:00 Henry Karlson

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Jolanta Dyr: Exaltation of the Holy Cross church in Brzeziny / Wikimedia Commons

The cross represents many things at once. It shows us the cruelty of humanity, and the ways humans try to demonstrate their power by contriving ways not only to kill, but to torture each other. It also shows us how many of us seek ways to humiliate each other as a way to compensate for some lack in our lives, even though what we get from humiliating others never satisfies. During crucifixions, the one who is crucified is shamed, stripped of their clothing, and made to suffer, both in mind and in body. Eventually, death will bring an end to their suffering. In this way, when they die, they will find themselves no longer under the power of any worldly authority, because they only have power over the living and the material world around them. Thus, we find with the cross, not only a sign of human cruelty and death, we are also shown that human cruelty has an end, it is limited and cannot last forever. Before Jesus, the cross was a sign of both human power and of death, and the ways they worked together. However, it also indicated the way death is greater than human power, that death limits it and brings it to an end. This is what Christ took up upon himself when he accepted the way of the cross; he accepted both of these signs and used them to transform them from within and make something new out of them.

Christ allowed humanity to show the extent of its power, its cruelty, when he accepted the crucifixion. He could have resisted it and not allowed himself to be taken in, but that would have gone against his mission in the world. He allowed death its due; he died, giving up his spirit on the cross. By allowing himself to be taken in by Roman authorities, but allow the crucifixion to take place, he took on the cross and what it represented, but he did so in order to show us that just has human power and authority ended with death, death itself was limited and had its own end. That is what is shown to us in his resurrection from the dead. By embracing death on the cross, he makes the cross into something new, as it becomes an instrument of his victory over death. Now, it is no longer a sign of the victory of death over life, but rather, a sign of the victory of life over death. As the author of life, he shows us that there is a power greater than death, that death itself has an end, and that is the power of the creator of life. By death he conquered death, for death gives way to life. This one of the ways Christ changed the meaning of the cross; what was once a tool for death, a sign of power and destruction, can now be seen to represent the victory of life over death itself. The one who accepted the wounds of human hatred and sin conquered them both by his love, by his willingness to let them do as they will to him, showing that what they can and will do has a limit, and once that limit has been met, their power expires. What was meant to be an instrument of torture, of cruelty, of oppression, and still can be in history, is transformed by Jesus into an instrument of his victory, and it is as an instrument of victory, as the sign of life, we sing::

Thy precious Cross rises like the sun and mystically makes all pure and holy. Let us prepare to welcome it with faith (Kontakion for the Forefeast of the Elevation or Exaltation of the Holy Cross)

By way of the cross, Christ has made all things new. He has gone to the edge of the abyss, making a journey throughout all creation so that he can take all things upon himself and have them be raised up in and through him in his resurrection from the dead. All things can be transformed, and taken with him into eternity, where they will share with each other the glory God, the glory which has no end. Thus, the victory of Christ is one which touches history, giving everything in history a new potential which full be realized in eternity. It is real, it is already realized with us, even as our experience of it has not yet been of its fullness – we still see the pain and sorrow which sin brought into the world affecting us all, some more than others, indeed, some in ways which, like with Job, might even raise questions about what is happening in the world. But, by the death and resurrection of Christ, grace has been unleashed upon all human history, grace which grants us various new levels of freedom (based upon how we cooperate with it), grace which even has shown up in the way people come together to improve society as a whole. History is not just a downward spiral of pain and sorrow; there is good in the world, there is joy, and all of these are glimpses of the kingdom of God, showing us that the kingdom is at work in and with us and all humanity. Now, when we see sign of the cross, we are led to look to Jesus, the one who shares grace to the world: “No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of man” (Jn. 3:13 RSV).

Jesus ascended into heaven, only after his descent into hell. He was glorified in his defeat. What we would take as proof of his ultimate failure became the means by which we see God’s ultimate victory in the world. He was lifted up on the cross, so that like Moses with the serpent staff, he could overcome the sting of death, the poison of sin: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (Jn. 3:14-15 RSV). What does it mean to believe in him? Does it mean we merely believe various doctrines we are told about him, and that will save us? No, it is about putting our complete faith and trust in him, picking up the cross for ourselves and letting it transform us, even as it was transformed by Christ. “For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him” (Jn. 3:17 RSV). The world in its defiled, sad shape, was not condemned, but purified and saved by Christ. His victory over death, over sin, happened within history, and so he ushered the kingdom of God into history, giving history the grace it needs to play out so that the victory achieved on the cross can be fully revealed at the end of time. Jesus is the firstborn of the dead; he was glorified in his resurrection from the dead. Now, we have the ability to join ourselves with him and find true glory, not in the world and its illusions, but in Christ and the cross, like Paul, who said:

But far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. Peace and mercy be upon all who walk by this rule, upon the Israel of God. Henceforth let no man trouble me; for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus (Gal. 6:14-17 RSV).

When he stopped pursuing honors and glory for himself, Paul found he no longer was concerned with what others thought of him; he learned that it didn’t really matter. He saw what truly mattered was what Christ made of him. Paul saw that he had to join himself to Christ, and accept the way of the cross for himself. He found himself receiving the “marks of Christ” as the result of various trials and tribulations, including torture, he went through to preach the Gospel. He didn’t see shame in them, but rather, he saw them as another sign of the way God was at work in him, making him better. He truly saw how Christ worked in and through him to make him a new creation. He knew that it was because of what Christ did on the cross that he received the grace he needed to be made anew. And this is possible not only for Paul, not only for us, but for everyone. For so long as there is life, there is hope, and in his resurrection, Christ shows us that there will always be life, so we should always have hope, hope for us, but also hope for everyone else.

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N.B.: While I read comments to moderate them, I rarely respond to them. If I don’t respond to your comment directly, don’t assume I am unthankful for it. I appreciate it. But I want readers to feel free to ask questions, and hopefully, dialogue with each other. I have shared what I wanted to say, though some responses will get a brief reply by me, or, if I find it interesting and something I can engage fully, as the foundation for another post. I have had many posts inspired or improved upon thanks to my readers.

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