The Image of Christ's Cross

A word on the crucifix from Luther on this Holy Cross Day:

I know for certain that God desires that one should hear and read his work, and especially the Passion of Christ. but if I am to hear or think, then it is impossible for me not to make images of this within my heart, for whether I want to or not, when I hear the word Christ, there delineates itself in my heart a picture of a man who hangs on the cross, just as my face naturally delineates itself on the water, when I look into it. If it is not a sin, but a good thing, that I have Christ’s image in my heart, why then should it be sinful to have it before my eyes?

Quoted in Bridget Heal’s A Magnificent Faith: Art and Identity in Lutheran Germany, 20-21.