Why is the cross the beginning and end of everything for us today?
The cross is the beginning and end for us today because it is where everything has been satisfied. Bypassing the cross leaves us hopeless, as the Jews in Egypt were. When tribulations, disappointments, and sorrows come, we should race to the foot of the cross, where the bitter is made sweet.
Les explains that the cross is where everything begins and ends for us today. If we try to bypass the cross, we are just as hopeless as the Jews were in Egypt. It has to be the work of the cross. He points to the tree being cast into the waters, and as soon as it was cast, the waters were made sweet. In our experience, when tribulations, disappointments, and sorrows come, we should race to the foot of the cross, because that is where everything has been satisfied. After that bitter experience was made sweet, Moses again led them, and Jehovah brought them to an oasis—a place of rest, relaxation, and the satisfaction of their thirst.