Celtic Cross
TThe Celtic Cross symbolizes eternity.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,
that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16

What is God’s sphere of influence? What is ours? What kind of influence are we to have in it? Today’s Chrismon ornament is a Celtic cross, which is a type of ringed cross with a circle in the center. One of the ways this circle has been understood historically is as a symbol of the universe.


As we look at the Celtic cross, we are reminded that God’s “sphere of influence” is the whole world. The cross and John 3:16 both indicate what kind of influence God has: the way God extends his loving influence in the world is by giving us Jesus. By believing in Jesus we are forgiven of our sins and experience life characterized by God’s own life, lives full of kindness, wisdom, and worth. Being forgiven and experiencing God’s life in our own is what “eternal life” means; not being forgiven and not experiencing God’s life is what John 3:16 means by “perish.” That God gave us Jesus, and that Jesus died for our sake, means that God loves us even at great cost to himself.


We, too, also have “spheres of influence,” especially the people we see regularly. Who are these people in your life? God desires that they receive forgiveness and have lives full of kindness, wisdom, and worth, all through believing in Jesus. What is one way we can also make it a priority—perhaps at the expense of our own interests—to help those in our “spheres of influence” experience eternal life?

Matthew Moravic