Why do people flaunt the cross without any conviction?

on Sep 10, 2025

From the writings of the Rev. Billy Graham

Q: I was a chaperone for spring break and was appalled at the teenage girls who wore skimpy bathing suits with their crosses hanging from long chains. I’m hardly a prude, but I didn’t miss the opportunity to ask why they wear a cross and what it means. They said the cross was a symbol of freedom. I couldn’t quite argue the point, though I think they missed it! Why do people flaunt the cross without any conviction? – S.C.

A: People have a fascination with this iconic symbol. If people were stopped on the street and asked to explain the meaning of the cross, some would answer that it is the of Christianity. Others might say it is a religious myth. History majors may describe it as an example of Roman justice. In jewelry stores from Fifth Avenue to the airport in Rome, one piece of jewelry is universally displayed – the cross. People often wear them and never remove them.

Before the teaching in the Bible about the cross can mean anything to us, the Spirit of God must open our minds. To the “outsider,” the cross must appear to be an adornment; to others, ridiculous. But to those who have experienced its transforming power, it has become the symbol for the only remedy for the ills of each person and of the world.

The message of the cross is this: that upon it Jesus was crucified. He died for our sins that we might have life everlasting. God designed the cross to defeat Satan, the deceiver, and Satan’s power was broken at the cross. “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8, ESV). Through the cross, God not only overpowered Satan but brought Himself and man together. But we must always remember that the cross is not the object of worship; it is what Jesus Christ did on the cross that will change the hearts of mankind.

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(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)