The Cross is Everywhere

With Christ as my witness, I speak with utter truthfulness. My conscience and the Holy Spirit confirm it. My heart is filled with bitter sorrow and unending grief for my people, my Jewish brothers and sisters. I would be willing to be forever cursed—cut off from Christ!—if that would save them. Romans 9:1–3 NLT

Recently, the Lord shocked me and forever changed my heart by changing the way I saw the world I live in. He showed me how He sees the world.

I was driving through Mayfaire shopping center one afternoon. The Lord spoke to my heart, “What do you see?”

“I see lots of people busy shopping and headed toward the movies Lord,” I whispered back. I felt Him nudge me to pull over and stop the car. I pulled into the nearest parking space.

“Look closer,” He said to my heart. “I have created and specially designed every person that you see. I know everything about every one of them because I love them. I want you to see people this way.”

I sat there in silence and stared at individuals as they walked by me. The Holy Spirit was telling me in an unexplainable way. “I created them. I know them. I love them.” God did this over and over for every person that walked by. Whenever I looked at someone this hit my heart. It became overwhelming since there were so many people. Then suddenly the Lord showed me the next level and it blew my mind.

“I died for every person that you see. I love them so much I died for them on the cross. I want you to see the cross every time you see a person. Let this remind you of my love. I desperately want them to know me,” He said to my heart. It wasn’t an audible voice but a soft quiet voice inside my heart that I somehow intrinsically knew it was God.  I was overwhelmed and felt the sadness of the Father seeking His lost children. Everyone was busy shopping and going about their business while the Lord was seeking their souls. It was a sad, shocking, and strange contrast between God’s perspective and ours. I realized that I had never seen the world this way.

“Wow Lord,” was all I could muster up to say. I just kept staring at all the people as the Lord impressed upon my heart that the cross is everywhere and all around me; that whenever I see another person I should see His love and desperate desire to save us and know us. Thus the more people I see in this light, the more I appreciate and understand the awesome depth of His love. The unsearchable depth of God’s love can be seen in every person I see.

“Lord why do I see people as just people? Why do I take them for granted? Why don’t I see them as your special creation that you died for?” I asked. I waited and waited but He didn’t answer back. I think He wanted me to ponder these questions. I learned that seeing things as they really are in their true eternal and spiritual sense is the key. A healthy heart has a heart for the lost. A healthy heart has God’s heart for the lost. A healthy heart sees that The Cross Is Everywhere.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. John 3:16–17

GregV TheWord MD, Spiritual Doctor