Originally Posted by
GroganShire
You seem to be hung up on symbolism. The Bible tells us that Jesus took upon Himself the punishment for sin, breaking God's law. It is God satisfying His own justice on behalf of sinners. It was the death of Christ, and the blood that was shed at the cross (we agree, not in the garden) for the forgiveness of sins, not the instrument which brought about the death.The animal sacrifices required under the Old Covenant were not nailed on a cross. Once the sins were symbolically placed on the animal, more than likely the High Priest slit the throat of the animal and the blood collected in a bowl. The blood was brought into the Holy of Holies and applied to the mercy seat of the Arch of the Covenant. It was the death of the animal and the blood that was applied, not the instrument used to kill the animal placed upon the Mercy Seat that allowed God to pass over the transgressions of the people. It was the death of a lamb and the blood placed upon the door posts that allowed the angel of death to pass over its occupants, not the door posts themselves. These things were all shadows of the things that would be fulfilled upon the death of the Savior. A sinner is not saved or damned because they have a erroneous view of Crucifixion or whether or not they wear a cross, it's because they don't have the Biblical Gospel.
The Apostle Paul wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith (Romans 1:16-17)."
You can make up all kinds of personal symbollic applications about the Cross that you want but a sinner dies to the "old man" through the regeneration by the Holy Spirit, not the cross.
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