"The Church has so many items in her shop window that the cross is no longer noticed. I have been praying for years that the Church would restore the cross to its rightful place. It is time the Church put the cross back in the center of her shop window." (Derek Prince)Cross at the center = true and lasting revival?What say ye?
_________________David Winter
Dear brother,This is an excellent quote and subject to be discussed and considered. I am under the conviction that the modern evangelical church has put the cross away from the center and this is the cause of a lack of reality and contact with God in the Churches. The early Christians (the first 300 years) put the cross as the center and symbol of their worship. It spoke of the sacrifice of Christ and his resurrection over death. In older historic churches the central place of communion (eucharist) was the way the early Christians kept the death of Christ in view every time they gathered. It is without argument that the birth, death and resurrection of Christ are the most significant events on earth. The Church understood this and made the Church calendar where the year was entered in the practice of the Church on these events. Worship of God not sermons are what we see in heaven. It is time for us to again let worship be the centre-piece of the Church gathering and not the sermon. Man-centered christianity has brought us so far from the original intention of the holy Apostles who followed what Christ showed them. Lasting revival will bring the focus back on worshipping the risen Christ and also proclaim His death until He comes.The featured sermon speaks into this reality:The Holy Spirit and Revival by +Stewart Ruchhttps://www.sermonindex.net/modules/mydownloads/singlefile.php?lid=28194&commentView=itemComments
_________________SI Moderator - Greg Gordon
"When I speak about the cross, I am not referring to a piece of metal or wood that people hang around their necks or put on the wall of a church, although I have nothing against such things. When I refer to the cross, I am talking about the sacrifice that Jesus made there on our behalf. The majority of Christians probably do not fully realize that what took place on the cross was a sacrifice." (Derek Prince)See:Hebrews 7:27Hebrews 9:13-14