There’s a lot of noise these days about symbols, idols, and what Christians should or shouldn’t display. One symbol that always gets dragged into the conversation is the cross. Some argue that if we’re going to speak out against idolatry, we shouldn’t be displaying a cross at all. But that isn’t a biblical argument—it’s a reaction. And reactions without Scripture always lead to confusion.

The Bible never condemns the use of symbols. It condemns the worship of them. In the Ten Commandments, God said plainly, “You shall not make for yourself a carved image… You shall not bow down to them or serve them” (Exodus 20:4–5). The issue isn’t the object—it’s the elevation of the object in the heart.

God Himself instructed Moses to make a bronze serpent and lift it up so the people could be healed. That was a symbol. Later, when the people began burning incense to it, it had to be destroyed. The object didn’t change—the hearts of the people did. The moment reverence was transferred from God to the symbol, it became an idol.

That’s the line and that’s the difference.

The cross is not an idol unless it is worshiped—and no faithful believer is doing that. The cross is a reminder. A declaration of where our Savior died, where sin was defeated, and where wrath was satisfied. Paul said in Galatians 6:14, “But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul wasn’t boasting in wood—he was boasting in what took place on it.

Let’s be honest. If the presence of a cross on a wall is idolatry, then so is standing in awe of a sunset. So is admiring mountains, oceans, or stars. So is displaying Scripture on your wall. Yet Scripture says the heavens declare the glory of God (Psalm 19:1). Creation isn’t idolatry unless the heart worships it instead of the Creator. The same is true of the cross.

We don’t bow to it. We don’t pray to it. We don’t worship it. We display it because it reminds us of the moment that changed everything. It’s not the symbol we love—it’s the Savior who bled on it. The cross isn’t decoration. It’s declaration.

Some people overcorrect and end up sounding more spiritual than Scripture itself. But we aren’t called to live in reaction. We’re called to live in truth. Symbols are not sinful. Misplaced worship is. And when someone condemns the cross as idolatry, they aren’t exposing sin—they’re exposing a misunderstanding of Scripture.

We are not ashamed of the cross. We don’t hide it. We proclaim it. Because while the world may see it as foolishness, we know it is the power of God.

“For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” —1 Corinthians 1:18