The Cross as the Supreme Display of Divine Love and the Cross as the Exclusive Ground of Justification

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Paul’s understanding of the cross is inseparably linked to the love of Jehovah for mankind. The cross stands as the clearest and most powerful demonstration of divine love in the entire history of redemption. While creation reveals the power, wisdom, and majesty of Jehovah (Psalm 19:1; Romans 1:20), the cross alone unveils the depths of His mercy and compassion.

Paul emphasizes this truth in Romans 5:6-8, “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone might even dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” The word “demonstrates” (sunistēmi, συνίστημι) in Greek expresses the idea of setting forth or displaying clearly. The sacrificial death of Christ was not merely a gesture but an open, undeniable act of love, even while humanity remained in rebellion and sin.

The cross represents a love that goes beyond human comprehension. Human love may extend to family, friends, or occasionally to a good person, but the love of Jehovah in the cross is shown toward those who were “enemies” (Romans 5:10), alienated from God by their sins and unworthy of mercy. It is this undeserved, self-giving love that defines the nature of agape love—the love that originates from the will and character of God, not from the worthiness of the recipient.

Paul further testifies to the depth of this love in Galatians 2:20, “the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Paul does not speak of an abstract or distant love. The cross is personal. Christ’s love compelled Him to voluntarily offer His life, bearing the full weight of divine justice so that the penalty of sin might be removed from those who accept Him by faith.

The cross is the ultimate fulfillment of the divine love first promised in the earliest pages of Scripture. From Genesis 3:15, where Jehovah announced the coming of the seed who would crush the serpent, to Isaiah 53, where the suffering servant bears the iniquities of many, the cross is the culmination of the divine intention to save. Paul makes this clear in Romans 8:32, “He who indeed did not spare his own Son, but delivered him over for us all, how will he not also, with him, graciously give us all things?” The willingness of Jehovah to offer His beloved Son is the supreme proof of His enduring love for fallen mankind.

This love is also inseparable from justice. Paul stresses that the cross was not a mere expression of compassion but was required to satisfy the demands of divine righteousness. Romans 3:25-26 explains that Christ was “publicly displayed as a propitiation in his blood through faith, to demonstrate his righteousness… so that he would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” Jehovah’s love does not ignore sin but provides the means by which sinners may be justly forgiven through the atoning work of Christ.

The cross thus defines the nature of love as action, not sentiment. Love, according to Paul, is shown in sacrifice and service for the benefit of others. This divine example becomes the standard for Christian conduct. Ephesians 5:2 commands, “and walk in love, just as Christ also loved us and gave himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.” The believer is called to imitate the love demonstrated at the cross in personal relationships, ministry, and service to others.

Paul’s teaching on love and the cross directly refutes any claim of divine favoritism or arbitrary predestination. The universal offer of salvation, accomplished through the cross, is grounded in Jehovah’s desire that all men be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4). Jehovah’s love is extended freely, yet it does not negate human responsibility. The believer must choose to respond to that love, remain in it, and endure in faithfulness (John 15:9-10; Colossians 1:23).

The cross also stands as a defense against doubt. Paul comforts believers in Romans 8:38-39, “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” No external force can sever the bond of divine love established by the cross. However, as Paul consistently warns, believers retain their free will and must continue steadfastly in the faith lest they forfeit that blessing (Romans 11:22; Hebrews 6:4-6).

The cross, then, is the visible proof of the love of Jehovah for His creation. It demonstrates the immeasurable lengths to which He was willing to go to redeem mankind from the consequences of sin and death. It calls every believer to live in light of that love, to imitate it, and to proclaim it to a lost world.

The Cross as the Exclusive Ground of Justification

Paul teaches that the cross of Christ stands as the only legitimate basis by which a sinner can be declared righteous before Jehovah. The concept of justification, central to Paul’s gospel, is presented as a legal declaration whereby a person who believes in Christ is counted as righteous, not because of any intrinsic merit or works of the law, but solely on the basis of Christ’s atoning sacrifice. This judicial standing is granted in this life as a present reality and points forward to the ultimate verdict at the future judgment.

Paul makes the doctrine clear in Romans 3:23-24: “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by his grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.” The phrase “justified as a gift by his grace” (dikaioumenoi dorean tē autou chariti) establishes that justification is not earned but freely granted by Jehovah’s undeserved kindness. The legal debt owed by sinners is canceled through the blood of Christ (Colossians 2:14).

The cross is where Jehovah satisfied His own righteous requirement. Romans 3:25-26 explains, “whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in his blood through faith, to demonstrate his righteousness… so that he would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” Jehovah’s justice demanded that sin be punished, yet His love provided the substitute. Only at the cross do these two attributes meet perfectly.

Paul completely excludes any human work or ceremonial observance as contributing to justification. In Galatians 2:16 he writes, “yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no flesh will be justified.” The repeated emphasis leaves no room for adding circumcision, temple rituals, Sabbath observance, or any human action as a condition for being declared righteous before Jehovah.

The believer’s response of faith is required, but faith itself is not meritorious. It is simply the means by which the righteousness of Christ is applied to the individual. As Paul explains in Romans 4:5, “But to the one who does not work, but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness.” Faith is not presented as a work; it is trust in the work of another, namely Christ, and specifically in the sufficiency of His sacrifice at the cross.

This doctrine of justification by grace through faith completely dismantles any boasting. Paul writes in Romans 3:27, “Where then is boasting? It has been excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith.” Boasting is incompatible with the gospel of the cross. There is no human contribution that merits justification, for all men stand equally guilty apart from Christ (Romans 3:9-18).

At the same time, Paul’s doctrine does not promote the false notion that justification is an unconditional state that cannot be forfeited. He warns believers against falling away (Hebrews 6:4-6; 2 Peter 2:20-21) and makes clear that continuing in the faith is necessary to remain justified. In Colossians 1:22-23 Paul writes, “yet he has now reconciled you in his fleshly body through death, in order to present you before him holy and blameless and beyond reproach—if indeed you continue in the faith, firmly established and steadfast, and not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you have heard.” The cross provides the legal basis of justification, but it must be accompanied by ongoing faith and obedience to retain that standing.

The exclusiveness of the cross as the ground of justification also means that no other religious system, philosophy, or code can provide what the cross alone secures. Paul warns in Galatians 5:4, “You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.” Any attempt to mix grace and law nullifies the work of the cross and removes the individual from the sphere of divine favor.

Paul presents Abraham as the supreme example of justification by faith before the cross. In Romans 4:2-3 Paul writes, “For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? ‘And Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.’” Abraham’s faith pointed forward to the cross where the full provision for justification would be made through Christ.

For Paul, the cross remains the only legal ground upon which Jehovah can justify the ungodly without compromising His justice. It also stands as the guarantee of ultimate justification at the future judgment for those who endure faithfully to the end. Justification begins the believer’s journey of salvation, which must be followed by sanctification and perseverance in holiness (Philippians 2:12-13).

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About the Author

EDWARD D. ANDREWS (AS in Criminal Justice, BS in Religion, MA in Biblical Studies, and MDiv in Theology) is CEO and President of Christian Publishing House. He has authored over 220+ books. In addition, Andrews is the Chief Translator of the Updated American Standard Version (UASV).