Playlist: stauros (topic)
The Origin of the Christian Cross
Commentary by Martin G. CollinsThe Greek word stauros , rendered "cross" in English Bibles, comes from the root sta ("to stand") and carries no inherent idea of a cross-piece. W.E. Vine's dictionary defines it as simply an upright stake, distinct from the ecclesiastical two-beamed cross. That form originated in ancient Chaldea as the symbol of Tammuz, shaped …
Syncretic Use of the Cross
Sermonette by Martin G. CollinsThe Greek word translated "cross" ( stauroo in the source's usage) means primarily an upright stake or beam, and secondarily a stake used for punishment and execution. Word origins confirm it is a stake or pole, and the meaning cannot be changed to anything else. The word was used for pieces of wood of various shapes, and no one …
Is the Cross an Acceptable Symbol?
Sermonette by Mike FordThe Greek word stauros , used 28 times in the New Testament, originally means an upright pole or stake on which malefactors were fastened, and it is distinct from the two-beamed ecclesiastical cross. Vine's Expository Dictionary is cited to show that the cross shape came from ancient Chaldea, where it was the mystic tau , the …
What Does it Mean to Take Up the Cross?
Sermonette by David C. GrabbeBearing our cross means our time on this earth is virtually finished, that we are willing to give up our lives, emulating the life of our Savior.
Eden, The Garden, and The Two Trees (Part Three)
Feast of Tabernacles Sermon by John W. RitenbaughThe Greek word stauros can indicate an upright wooden pole, but it can also mean the timber forming the cross-piece of a crucifixion. The Romans called that cross-piece the patibulum , and the Greeks would simply have used stauros for the same thing, meaning a pole or cross-piece. A patibulum typically weighed about 100 pounds, …