The cross of Christ is still the central
object of attraction to the Christian!
A countless throng of Christ believing,
Christ loving souls gather around it,
finding cleansing in its blood,
extracting joy from its sorrow,
deriving life from its death, and
beholding the brightness of glory
blended with the darkness of shame.
But is this the true spiritual position and
posture of every believer in Jesus? Are all
the professed disciples of the Savior seeking
and cultivating the religion that is drawn
only from, and is cherished only by, close
communion with the cross of Christ?
Are we walking with God in a sense....
of pardoned sin,
of personal acceptance,
of filial communion,
of holy obedience,
of unreserved consecration beneath the cross?
Do we delight to be here?
Do we resort there....
that grace might be replenished,
that the fruits of the Spirit might be nourished,
that backslidings might be healed,
that the conscience might be cleansed?
Is the cross of Jesus....
our confessional,
our laver,
our crucifixion, and
our boast?
These are searching, solemn questions!
We are persuaded that the foot of the cross
is the nearest spot to Heaven; that Heaven's
choicest blessings are found only there; that
beneath its warm sunshine the holy fruit of the
Spirit ripens, and that under its sacred shade
the sweetest repose is found; that, never is the
believing soul so near to God, in such intimate
fellowship with Christ, more really under the direct
teaching of the Holy Spirit, as when under the
cross of Christ.
When you are in believing, loving adoration at
the foot of Christ's cross, you are at the focus
of all divine glory, and at the confluence of all
spiritual blessing.
- Octavius Winslow's, "Nearness to the Cross"