Why True Christians Do Not Use the Cross in Worship
The cross is loved and respected by millions of people. The Encyclopedia
Britannica calls the cross “the
principal symbol of the Christian religion.”
Nevertheless, true Christians do not use the cross in worship. Why not?
An important reason is that Jesus Christ did not die on a
cross. The Greek word generally translated “cross” is stau-ros’. It basically means “an upright pale or stake.” The Companion Bible points
out: “[Stau-ros’] never means two pieces of
timber placed across one another at any angle . . . there is nothing in the Greek
of the [New Testament] even to imply two pieces of timber.”
In several texts, Bible writers use another word for the
instrument of Jesus’ death. It is
the Greek word sy’lon. (Acts
5:30; 10:39; 13:29; Galatians 3:13; 1 Peter 2:24) This word simply means “timber” or “a
stick, club, or tree.”
Explaining why a simple stake often used for executions, the
book Das Kreuz und the Kreuzigung (The Cross and the Crucifixion), by Hermann
Fuida, states: “Trees were
not everywhere available at the places chosen for public execution. So a simple
beam was sunk into the ground. On this the outlaws, with hands raised upward
and often also with their feet were bound or nailed.”
The most convincing proof of all, however, comes from God’s Word. The apostle Paul says: “Christ purchased us, releasing
us from the curse of the Law by becoming a curse instead of us, because it is
written: ‘Accursed is
every man hung upon a stake, [“a
tree,” King James version],’” (Galatians 3:13) Here Paul
quotes Deuteronomy 21:23, 23, which clearly refers to a stake, not a cross.
Since such a means of execution made the person “a
curse,” it would not be proper for
Christians to decorate their homes with images of Christ on a cross.
There is no evidence that for the first 300 years after Christ’s death, those claiming to be
Christians used the cross in worship. In the fourth century, however, pagan
Emperor Constantine became a convert to apostate Christianity and promoted the
cross as its symbol. Whatever Constantine’s
motives, the cross had nothing to do with Jesus Christ. The cross is, in fact,
pagan in origin. The New Catholic Encyclopedia admits: “The cross is found in both pre-Christian and
non-Christian cultures.”
Various other authorities have linked the cross with nature worship and pagan
ex rites.
Why, then, was this symbol
promoted? Apparently, to make it easier for pagans to accept “Christianity.” Nevertheless, devotion to any
pagan symbol is clearly condemned by the Bible. (2 Corinthians 6:14-18) The
Scriptures also forbid all forms of idolatry. (Exodus 20:4-5; 1 Corinthians 10:14)
With very good reason, therefore, true Christians do not use the cross in
worship.”
·
For a more
detailed discussion of the cross, see pages 80-93 of the book Reasoning From
the Scriptures, published by the Jehovah’s
Witnesses.
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