On this Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, we recount the first time that the image of the cross was raised and brought salvation to all who raised their eyes to it. After the Israelites had grown tired of eating quail and manna, they complained bitterly against God and Moses for bringing them into the wilderness, instead of leaving them in Egypt. Although bound in slavery, at least there, as they remembered, they had food and water. In punishment, God sent seraph serpents, a highly venomous snake, such that anyone who was bitten died. Moses, by the command of God, placed a bronze serpent on a pole and raised it before the people, that anyone who looked upon it was saved from their sins and would live. The seraph, placed on the pole, made the literal shape of a cross.
Moses pre-figured for us that the cross conquers death, delivers people from slavery to sin, it is the enemy of Satan, himself being a Seraphim (the highest rank of angels), and is a sign of God’s great mercy for His people. But this day is not simply named the Feast of the Holy Cross. It is exalted.
The cross that our Lord Jesus Christ fully revealed to us is not simply an image that is looked upon. It does not carry magical properties because of its shape. The Cross comes as an invitation from our Lord. It is an act of suffering and sacrifice that is freely accepted, received and endured for the salvation of others. Through the cross, people are delivered from the slavery of sin, the work and death caused by temptation is overcome and the way to paradise is restored; without the gift of the cross, the people of Israel would have all perished long before entering the promised land.
There is not other path to salvation or victory over death and it is to be exalted.
It seems to me, that while we recognize and honor the cross within our churches and families, we do not exalt it. At best, we may exalt in terms of honor and giving it a place of highest dignity. We recognize that the Cross is the source and sign of victory over death. But we do not exalt it, that is, we do not raise it up for the eyes of others.
To exalt is to proclaim to people that the way to life, the way to prosperity, the way to salvation and redemption in this life (as well as the next) is through the cross. It does not come through force of power, through the accumulation of wealth or great abilities. To exalt the Cross is to speak of its greatness, the goodness of the sacrifice and humility that it represents; it is to recognize that it was the source of victory for the Israelites, not the wars that they fought. To exalt the Cross is not to be like Simon Peter who tried to prevent Christ from accepting the Cross, but to be like John, who stood at the foot and gave comfort. The way to life and salvation of the world is not in force, power or war. The Cross is the way.