Despised
“He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces, He was despised, and we held Him in low esteem.” – Isaiah 53:3
It was a familiar hymn that I had sung many times, but when I sang it recently, it spoke to me in a new way about how it applies to our culture today. “The Old Rugged Cross” is a popular hymn written in 1912 by American evangelist and song-leader George Bennard. Troubled by a contemporary disregard for the Gospel, Bennard said he had a vision where he saw the Christ and the cross as inseparable.
What is the meaning behind “The Old Rugged Cross”? He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by His wounds you have been healed. The lyrics of “The Old Rugged Cross” reflect a life that has been changed by the Gospel truth that we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.
“On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross, the emblem of suffering and shame; and I love that old cross where the dearest and best, for a world of lost sinners was slain. Oh, that old rugged cross, so despised by the world, has a wondrous attraction for me; for the dear Lamb of God left His glory above to bear it to dark Calvary.”
What stood out to me were the words “despised by the world.” How appropriate that is in today’s world. John 15:18-27 predicts that those who follow Christ faithfully will experience hatred and persecution from the world. The intensity of this experience has varied according to time and culture, but the non-believing world is generally hostile to authentic faith, and perhaps today it is more pronounced than ever.
by John Grant
used by permission
John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practicing attorney.
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