Whatever the world sees when it looks at the cross, that is what the eye of faith sees. Christ sloughed off the forces of evil, triumphing over them on the cross. There’s the thought of victory.

Categories of the Cross

Jesus Christ is, in fact, an expression of the temper of the whole New Testament. For explaining the cross, the New Testament uses many images, many categories, many modes of thought blended together. These various categories and modes of thought serve to enrich our understanding of the cross and its meaning.

1. Sacrifice

The cross is represented for instance as sacrifice, as we’re going to see more fully in a moment, whenever we hear of the blood of Christ. In speaking of the blood of his cross, sacrificial ideas are being invoked.

2. Ransom

Similarly, the cross is represented as a ransom, not only a sacrifice for sins, but a purchase delivering us from captivity and jeopardy as the payment of a ransom does. Again, the cross is represented in the New Testament as victory, triumph over the devil and demonic forces. “Through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil”—Christ broke his power—in order to “deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery” (Heb. 2:14–15).

Colossians 2:15 agrees: “He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.” To the eye of faith, at least, it’s plain that Christ on the cross triumphed over demonic hosts and led them in his train as their conqueror. Whatever the world sees when it looks at the cross, that is what the eye of faith sees. Christ sloughed off the forces of evil, triumphing over them on the cross. There’s the thought of victory.

3. Redemption

Again, the cross of Christ is represented in the New Testament in terms of redemption, a price paid for the freedom of a slave. We’ve already noted Paul using the category of reconciliation, the word that speaks of the mending of our broken relationship and the establishing of peace where previously there was alienation.

4. Propitiation

There is also in the New Testament that term propitiation, which the Revised Standard Version translates expiation, presumably under the influence of professor C. H. Dodd, who argued very influentially from 1930 onward that this word hilastērion in the Greek (and hilasmós) signifies only the putting away of sin from God’s sight, but not the quenching of his wrath, because, said Professor Dodd, there is no personal wrath of God against sinners to be reckoned with. Suffice it to say that I believe Professor Dodd misconstrued the New Testament at that point.

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