The Hanging

Recently in church, my eyes were drawn to a wall hanging about Christ's crucifixion, made by some of the talented quilters in our congregation. The ladies tell me that they were not aware of the symbolism while it was in production, but it is visible now.

In the centre is a black cross. It does not go all the way to the top, but it reaches all the way down. The idea is that Christ descended into hades. Below the junction of the crosspieces is a block of red signifying our Saviour's blood, shed there for our sins.

The upper left has dark blues representing the darkness of the sky and the mood on crucifixion day. Below is a mound of fall colours on one side of the hill, suggesting the end of Christ's life.

To the right at the top is the bright sky, reminding us that the darkness was temporary, since Christ arose, victorious over death. Below is the other side of the hill in bright greens and spring colours representing resurrection life, and leaving us feeling elated because the darkness is gone. Our Saviour lives!

Without saying a word, that hanging preached a little sermon to me. Aren't we to be like that wall hanging? Our actions should do likewise. Many of us are not good at speaking out as witnesses for Christ, but our hanging around in the neighbourhood, social groups, or church should tell people where we stand and symbolize the better way — following our Saviour — in other words, our own silent sermon. When our mouths are closed, do we mirror the way of the cross and salvation like that wall hanging? My dad used to say, "What you do is so loud, I can't hear what you are saying."

2 Corinthians 3:2-3 – You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. (NIV)

Prayer: Dear Father in heaven, we are so grateful for the message of hope pictured for us by the wall hanging. Help us to be mindful of the picture we leave behind us. Amen.