Man’s true nature and true life do not emanate from earthly data, but from the Triune God Himself, because man is the image of God. If we want to seek man’s true life, we must draw near to God and savor His life. Only life close to God is “natural,” that is, life that corresponds to man’s true nature. As for distance from God, it is “unnatural.”

It is clear that the Old Testament foreshadowings point not only to the event of Christ’s crucifixion, but also to the sign of the cross itself, the “sign of the Son of Man,” which will be the banner of victory at the Lord’s triumphant coming. The cross of the Lord is an expression of God’s infinite love and of man’s infinite value. There is no greater expression of God’s love than the cross, and there is no greater elevation of man than his elevation to the reality of the cross.