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There is not a word in the bible which is extra cruem, which can be understood without reference to the cross. ~Martin Luther 

I wanted to come up with a name that meant something instead of something trendy and flashy.  Essentially, ”nullus extra cruem” means without the brutality that Jesus suffered at the hands of his executioners, his subsequent death, his glorious resurrection and ascension—we’d be toast. Any religion devoid of Jesus Christ and his self-sacrificial love and atoning work on behalf of undeserving sinners is nothing but vain excercise and empty hope.

Christianity hinges on the blood spilled at the cross. History’s intersection meets at the foot of the cross. Time as we know it and all of eternity is cast in the shadow of the cross. The cross gives meaning to pain, makes sense of suffering and gives insurmountable hope in the face of despair. The cross erases sin. It’s the cross which makes the impossible possible—dead souls resurrected in new life.

For the follower of Jesus, Easter isn’t a once a year holiday. As A.W. Tozer said, “I like Easter. But let’s remember that Christ’s resurrection is not truer at Easter than at any other time of the year.” It’s the cross we look to constantly as the centerpiece of our faith, it’s more than a mere symbol to drape around our necks or tattoo on our biceps.

The cross announces justification and pardon for the ungodly, shapes our lives as radical disciples, defines our mission in this world and differentiates what separates authentic Christianity from vague spirituality. The cross separates consumeristic flavor-of-the-week religion from the genuine article and demolishes a self-help gospel steeped in pop psychology and therapeutic approaches to the gospel of grace.

The cross changes everything.