Romans 15:4 "For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope."
25 But Paul replied, “I am not out of my mind, most excellent and noble Festus, but [with a sound mind] I am uttering rational words of truth and reason. 26 For [your majesty] the king understands these things, and [therefore] I am also speaking to him with confidence and boldness, since I am convinced that none of these things escape his notice; for this has not been done in a corner [hidden from view, in secret]. 27 King Agrippa, do you believe the [writings of the] Prophets [their messages and words]? I know that you do.” 28 Then Agrippa said to Paul, “In a short time [and with so little effort] you [almost] persuade me to become a Christian.” 29 And Paul replied, “Whether in a short time or long, I wish to God that not only you, but also all who hear me today, might become such as I am, except for these chains.”
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Amen.
A Theology, A Witness, A Testimony: Christ-Like Life
A lifetime faithfully lived believing in God, Paul was convinced that both his short-term future and his eternal future were securely in the hands of Jesus.
Because of this lifetime of belief, faith, Paul — a prisoner facing a potential death sentence — could pray for his rich, powerful, and influential captors to become like him, staunch believers, except for his difficult circumstances.
Acts 26:29 Amplified Bible
29 And Paul replied, “Whether in a short time or long, I wish to God that not only you, but also all who hear me today, might become such as I am, except for these chains.”
These powerful closing words of verse 29 were Paul’s bold invitation for King Agrippa and the Roman governor, Festus, all of the other Romans present to come to believe and become faithful, faith-filled followers of Jesus Christ.
What else did he have to lose except his very life which was going to happen anyway at any time the Romans decided they had enough of Paul’s mouth.
Paul’s beliefs were forged in the furnace of life.
What had not happen to Paul during His life which did not serve to challenge his self professed beliefs in himself, in his fellow man, in his God and in his Savior?
From witnessing Stephen’s incomparable defense of God and Jesus before he was stoned to death.
Finding his staunch faith in God challenged to the extreme by this man Jesus, he went on to become a hyper zealous much feared persecutor of the followers.
Until his hard experience on the Damascus Road when the Resurrected Jesus appeared directly in his path, stopped him cold and took his sight from him.
Three days blind, Paul found himself completely helpless until his sight was miraculously restored by Ananias – told then what his new life’s mission was.
Along this new way, what had he not experienced but plots against his life, an array of severe beatings, shipwrecks, bitten by poisonous snake, imprisonment on several occasions, betrayals, long journey’s across the globe, # of illnesses.
When his legs were virtually cut out from underneath him, he learned all the more that he had no control over what happened to him – God is in control.
It was during Paul’s two-year imprisonment in Rome that he wrote letters to the Ephesian, Philippian, and Colossian churches and to his friend Philemon.
It was during this season of suffering that God mightily inspired, encouraged him, to write of Savior Jesus, “In him all things hold together”(Colossians 1:17).
When he wrote to the Ephesian followers, he urged them to see that God, who is sovereign over all, has put all things under Savior Jesus’ feet (Ephesians 1:22).
Ephesians 1:20-23 The Message
20-23 All this energy issues from Christ: God raised him from death and set him on a throne in deep heaven, in charge of running the universe, everything from galaxies to governments, no name and no power exempt from his rule. And not just for the time being, but forever. He is in charge of it all, has the final word on everything. At the center of all this, Christ rules the church. The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ’s body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence.
These truths were not just rhetorical.
These truths were not just theoretical.
Paul heavily relied upon them during the most difficult seasons of his life.
Paul’s experiences doubtless helped him to understand more deeply that he continuously needed all of the gospel not just for salvation but for all of life.
We, too, when confronted by the faults, failings and sinfulness of the world which distract and tempt us daily, absolutely need the maximum gospel daily—the good news that for love alone, Jesus died in the place of sinners, He was raised for our justification, that He sent the Spirit to sanctify us and to fill us.
The gospel creates within us a confident anticipation, confident expectation of the return of Jesus -it causes us to view the world from a heavenly perspective.
Reverend Dr. John Stott, who was unparalleled in his ability to synthesize and succinctly condense vast amounts of material, summarized the impact of Paul’s imprisonment upon his theology in this way:
“Paul’s perspective was adjusted, his horizon extended, his vision clarified and his witness enriched.”
His chains did not become an occasion for disappointment or regret. Rather, his trials, which kept him in a state of weakness and dependency upon God, altered his perspective and shed light on the horizon.
He was able to stand before a Roman governor, a king, and a queen, and say, What you have you cannot keep. What I have I cannot lose. I wish you could become like me—a sinner saved by grace, an heir to eternal life. I would not like for you to share my chains, but I would just love for you to share my faith in my Savior.
Paul experienced the very truth that he had written to the Romans years earlier:
“We know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).
This was so not only true for Paul but is also true for all who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ.
Are you blinded by life?
Are you challenged by life?
Are you confronted by life?
Are you confused by life?
Are you facing a discouraging trial?
Did life just “blindside” you right across your jaw?
Did life just slug you in your solar plexus?
Ask as many questions about living life as you can dare to contrive.
Take courage!
God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are 100% here.
God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are 100% alive.
You have all you truly need, no matter what, you can’t be separated from them.
Romans 8:31-39 The Message
31-39 So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture:
They kill us in cold blood because they hate you. We’re sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one.
None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.
All the riches and comfort that this world can offer do not compare to what you have in the gospel—“Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27).
Christian theology is not for an ivory tower but for the prison cell, for the trials.
Let those undeniable truths of the gospel strengthen your soul and shape your life’s perspective as you cling to the hope that Christ has purchased for you.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 19:11-14 The Message
11-14 There’s more: God’s Word warns us of danger and directs us to hidden treasure. Otherwise how will we find our way? Or know when we play the fool? Clean the slate, God, so we can start the day fresh! Keep me from stupid sins, from thinking I can take over your work; Then I can start this day sun-washed, scrubbed clean of the grime of sin. These are the words in my mouth; these are what I chew on and pray. Accept them when I place them on the morning altar, O God, my Altar-Rock, God, Priest-of-My-Altar.
Dear ABBA Father, as your children, may we have a bold faith like Paul’s. Help us when our faith wavers because of our circumstances. May we be strong in our trust, whether times are great or hard. Thank you for giving us reasons to believe and such a glorious hope in our future because of Jesus, in whose name I pray. Amen.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Amen.
As Paul took his leave of the Ephesian elders in Acts 20, the Apostle felt an urgent compulsion from the Holy Spirit to go back to the city of Jerusalem.
He declared to all present he had no idea what would happen to him when he got there, but he had a clear sense hard times and imprisonment awaited him.
Then he made this incredibly valuable and impossibly staggering statement:
“I do not account my life of any value.”
Acts 20:22-24 The Message
22-24 “But there is another urgency before me now. I feel compelled to go to Jerusalem. I’m completely in the dark about what will happen when I get there. I do know that it won’t be any picnic, for the Holy Spirit has let me know repeatedly and clearly that there are hard times and imprisonment ahead. But that matters little. What matters most to me is to finish what God started: the job the Master Jesus gave me of letting everyone I meet know all about this incredibly extravagant generosity of God.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.
As Paul took his leave of the Ephesian elders in Acts 20, the Apostle felt an urgent compulsion from the Holy Spirit to go back to the city of Jerusalem.
He declared to all present he had no idea what would happen to him when he got there, but he had a clear sense hard times and imprisonment awaited him.
Then he made this incredibly valuable and impossibly staggering statement:
“I do not account my life of any value.”
“I do not account my life of any value.”
What an incredibly shocking statement summarizing Paul’s own deep, abiding passion for the urgent way he personally views the sum total of his valued life.
“If my life isn’t of any value, it’s not precious to me, I got one thing I’m focused on, and that’s the ministry I have received from the Lord Jesus, testifying to the gospel of his grace.”
This was not first century mindset of masochism—some strange utter hatred of personal joy, happiness, self control, peace, or spiritual health, or physical life.
So what, then, did Paul mean by declaring his life completely valueless?
Simply this:
that solely for the sake of His Savior Jesus and the Kingdom of God, he did not regard his own life as so precious a possession as to be held on to at all costs!
What value we assign to our lives is summarized by people often nonchalantly saying, “Well, as long as I have got breath, and health, that’s all that matters!”
“I am happy I am still breathing, my heart is still beating and I am standing!”
Yes!
Absolutely!
Value all of these things and so much more!
Be happy you are still breathing, your heart is beating and you are standing!
But that is not all that is to be valued, all that matters in the Kingdom of God!
Be Comforted but also recall our invaluable bodies are steadily passing away. (Isaiah 40:1-9)
We are crumbling even as we live and breathe.
We may have our health today, but a day will come when we do not.
Unless we are able to say with Paul, “To live is Christ,” we cannot legitimately affirm with him, “and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21).
The only way that death can be a valued gain is if Christ is urgently everything.
And if Savior Christ is valued as urgently everything, as Paul says He is, then we can declare with him, My life is not ultimate. I don’t need to protect it as the most precious thing I have. I want to spend it for the most precious person I’ll ever know.
What mattered most to Paul was that he finished his life trusting Christ and carried out to the best of his abilities the ministry Christ had given him.
He felt a compelling, overwhelming resolve to complete the task of testifying to “the gospel of the grace of God” everywhere he could reach by foot or by boat.
There’s a task!
There’s a purpose, significance, an agenda, a calling!
There is a Christian lifestyle which matters to the Kingdom of God!
There is a Christian lifestyle worthy of being valued!
And this is the task entrusted to all of us—the Great Commission to (Matthew 28:16-20) to let everyone we meet know the good news of God’s amazing grace.
Matthew 28:16-20 English Standard Version
The Great Commission
16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in [a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
“If Only I May Finish My Course …”
Acts 20:22-24 Amplified Bible
22 And now, compelled by the Spirit and obligated by my convictions, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there, 23 except that the Holy Spirit solemnly [and emphatically] affirms to me in city after city that imprisonment and suffering await me. 24 But I do not consider my life as something of value or dear to me, so that I may [with joy] finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify faithfully of the good news of God’s [precious, undeserved] grace [which makes us free of the guilt of sin and grants us eternal life].
From time to time, I will silently pray about each of these verses in Acts 20:22-24 and as I do quietly pray through them I will find myself constantly driven, then more urgently praying for the spread of the gospel through all our lives.
It then feels like every chapter and verse I can recall and prayer that flows from every verse and every chapter has got to help me to faithfully share the gospel.
That’s exactly what Paul is expressing here.
Think about it.
Paul knows he’s on this earth specifically for the spread of the gospel.
He urgently desires, and he says later, “I want to depart and be with Christ, but it’s better that I’m here.
Philippians 1:21-24 Amplified Bible
To Live Is Christ
21 For to me, to live is Christ [He is my source of joy, my reason to live] and to die is gain [for I will be with Him in eternity]. 22 If, however, it is to be life here and I am to go on living, this will mean useful and productive service for me; so I do not know which to choose [if I am given that choice]. 23 But I am hard-pressed between the two. I have the desire to leave [this world] and be with Christ, for that is far, far better; 24 yet to remain in my body is more necessary and essential for your sake.
In God’s wisdom. He’s left me here for the spread of the gospel. This is what I want to do. I want to testify of his grace.”
Acts 20:24 Reminds Us of the Bible’s Teaching
Let’s look at our lives in a similar way.
I’m not saying this is the only thing we do in the world.
This is obviously not what the Bible is teaching, but the Bible is teaching that this is primary.
We are here on this earth for the spread of the gospel of the grace of God.
We are here exclusively to help other people know how good, and great, and gracious, and glorious and invaluable God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are to all.
This is the opportunity God has given us every day and the place where he has put us in the world to make this good news to others.
A billion years from now what’s going to matter most is whether or not we have made this good news known to as many others as is possible in ones lifetime.
Acts 20:24 Leads Us to Have a Right Perspective
God, we ought to be urgently praying:
“Please give us a right perspective on our lives here.”
“God, Help us not to miss this glorious purpose you’ve entrusted to us.”
“We want to be a part of testifying to the gospel of your grace, telling other people about your love in Christ.”
“Lord, we don’t want to get to the end of our lives and look back and not have done this, not have given our whole lives to this, not having spent our lives doing this.”
In all the places I find myself, and I think about my life, my schedule this week.
I think about each person who’s praying this and their lives, their schedule, the different workplaces where they are, the different places where they live, the different people around them who probably don’t know Christ as their Savior.
“Lord, help us all. Help us all, we pray, to be faithful to testify to the gospel of your grace. And, Lord, help us not to neglect this most important ministry.”
This Reminds Us of Our Duty to Proclaim the Gospel
Obviously, we know we are not Paul in the same way that he was an apostle in the New Testament.
But we do know that, like the Apostle Paul, we have been urgently sent out by Christ with an urgent message, a gospel of God’s abundant and eternal life so to proclaim.
“Dear God, Help us urgently, we pray, to do it faithfully.”
“May I say in my own hearts my life I don’t count of any value.”
“Precious unto myself.”
“If only by your grace, I may finish this race and complete this ministry that I have been given from you, this opportunity that you have given to me, to urgently testify to, and witness exclusively unto, the gospel of your exceedingly amazing grace.”
“God, help me to be faithful to run that race today and to do this work today.”
“For the exclusive glory of your name and for the exclusive and urgent spread of your gospel, we pray, in Jesus’ name. Amen.“
Living Out and Into A Lifestyle of Urgency
In these most contemporary of “lets hurry up and wait” how are you and I, like Paul, to live a life of urgency so that you and I might keep going until the end?
You and I must run our race with all our might, with the finish line in view.
Do not look for any opportunity to bow out or slow down before the final lap is over and urgently run with all our strength and running right through the tape, gripped by Christ’s love, energized by God’s Spirit, and guided by God’s Word.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Heavenly God, Author of my life, Perfecter of my faith, be with me as I run the race of becoming more like your son Jesus. I pray God that you remove my selfishness so I follow what’s best for You, not what’s best for me. When I am tired, please give me strength to finish the race with joy. Let my actions, my witness and my testimony show the meaning of the gospel, reveal the invaluable message of Christ my Savior.
19 The Lord said to Moses, 2 Say to the whole community of the Israelites: You must be holy, because I, the Lord your God, am holy. 3 Each of you must respect your mother and father, and you must keep my sabbaths; I am the Lord your God. 4 Do not turn to idols or make gods of cast metal for yourselves; I am the Lord your God.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.
Though it is often ridiculed by those that have not read it, or misunderstood by those who do not have spiritual discernment, the fourth book of the Torah, Leviticus, is a book that directly concentrates its readers upon holiness – the 100% ultimate holiness of God and the need for the nation of Israel to be holy.
“You shall be holy,” God informed His chosen nation through Moses.
“You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy.” Leviticus 19:2
From start to finish, Leviticus is a book that points the faithful to Christ.
He is pictured in the perfect Law of Moses in many ways, and by careful reading and studying its words, He can be identified in the various sacrificial offerings.
The person and work of Christ can also be seen in the holy articles of the Tabernacle, the function of the priesthood, and the feasts of the Lord.
The book of Leviticus points to Christ in many ways – for His “One and Done” atoning sacrifice of his own blood alone forever takes away the sin of the world.
Jesus is the Second Person of the Trinity, Who was fully and finally, ultimately revealed to the world through the birth, life, death, and Resurrection, Ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ.
He is undeniably the eternal Son of God, Who did tabernacle among us, for a time and a season while He walked and talked and who had taught, healed and ministered unto the ancient people of the early first century Israel.
He is the perfect Word of God made flesh, through Whom the world was made and in Whom is life eternal, through which darkness and death have no power.
He is the eternal Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world.
And He is the sinless Son of Man, Who was sent by His Father to live among us, to set the example of life, set aside His heavenly glory to become like one of us.
Jesus is the Second Person of the immortal, invisible, almighty, HOLY God.
He is the only Member of the Holy Trinity Who was clothed in human flesh, so sinful men and women might be saved by grace – through faith in His sacrificial work at Calvary.
Throughout the Hebrew [Old] Testament, God gradually revealed His character, His attributes, His name, His miraculous redemptive plan for mankind, through the writings of specifically anointed holy men of God, many prophetic voices.
But in these last days, God has spoken to us in His Son, Whom He appointed Heir of all things, and through Whom also He made the world.
However, hidden deep within the pages of the Hebrew [Old] Testament, are many concealed references to Christ Jesus.
For those with eyes to see and a teachable spirit, we discover many ‘types’ and pictures of His person, His mission, His atoning work, and His supernatural life.
Numerous prophecies give details of His coming to earth as a newborn babe in a manger in Bethlehem, His ministry on earth, His sacrificial death, His glorious Resurrection, His ultimate victory over sin, over death and ultimately, Satan.
And Scripture records His coming millennial rule as King of kings and Lord of lords, for He is God’s appointed Messiah of Israel, He is the Savior of the world.
Moses was one such prophetic voice in Scripture, and he was inspired by God to write the book of Leviticus.
He was the man that God chose to become the first great leader of His people.
He was God’s anointed mouthpiece unto Pharaoh and the one who finally led millions of God’s redeemed people out of Egypt, on that first Passover night.
It was Moses through whom the Law was first written down and given to God’s chosen nation, and it was Moses who led, guided, directed, and instructed His people how to live as God’s own people, if they were to receive God’s blessings.
It was Moses who warned them what would happen if they disobeyed the Lord’s command and Moses was instructed by God to
“Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy.'”
Israel was to be set apart from the gentile nations.
They were to be a separated nation, a covenanted people, an atypical race that was holy to the Lord.
They were to be God’s unique nation and a people for His own possession.
They were chosen out of all the people groups who live on the face of the earth, to have a holy relationship with the one and only, holy God.
Israel was to be a holy people unto the Lord their God.
They were to be sanctified unto the Lord – a peculiar people unto Himself.
They were to be an example of a nation that was consecrated to God.
Israel was to be God’s earthly light to the pagan nations and an example of a holy community, who honored the Lord.
They had seen God move before them as pillars of fire and smoke and they had witnessed the mighty miracles that decimated their proud Egyptian overlords.
They had made a covenant with the Lord and had promised to do all that the Lord had commanded – which is why God said to Moses,
“speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy.'”
The call to holiness still stands for Christians in this epoch of the grace of God.
Like Israel, we are also instructed to be obedient children who are to be holy unto the Lord.
Like them, we are not to be conformed to the lusts of the flesh and pride of life.
Like Israel we are also instructed to be holy ourselves also in all of our behaviors – because as it was covenanted and written then and is still covenanted, written for us today, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
As God’s “Holy” People in the World Today?
Proverbs 27:17-19 Common English Bible
17 As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens a friend. 18 Those who tend a fig tree will eat its fruit, and those who look after their master will be honored. 19 As water reflects the face, so the heart reflects one person to another.
When God created us, He created us in His image.
Because we are, we should reflect every aspect of who He is because His image in stamped and engraved in us.
In Leviticus 19:2 God instructs Moses to tell the Children of Israel to be holy because God is holy.
That applies to us today as well.
Our words should be holy.
Our actions should be holy.
Our thoughts should be holy.
The way we live should be holy.
Other characteristics of God includes: merciful, forgiving, grace, truthful, keeps his promises, righteous, just, faithful, and unconditional and unfailing love.
As beings created in our Creator’s image, we should reflect these attributes in our everyday lives.
Colossians 3:10 says, “And have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.”
And in Ephesians 4:24, Paul wrote, “And to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”
In Proverbs 27:19, Solomon wrote, “As water reflects the face, so the heart reflects the person.”
Whatever is living in and within our hearts is what is reflected in our lives.
Is our heart reflecting the holiness of God and His attributes/characteristics?
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
God, my Heavenly Father, thank You for the uncountable, invaluable lessons that Your Church can learn through the history of Israel and for the many types and pictures of Jesus that are hidden within the sacred pages of Scripture. Thank You that like Israel, I have also been called to be holy, because You are holy. It is humbling to realize that as part of Christ’s Body, we have also been chosen, in Him, to be kings and priests unto God – to be a chosen people, who tell the world that Jesus died for their sin and rose again, so that by faith in Him we may be holy, as He is holy. Thank You that by faith in Christ, I have been called to be Your very own, and to proclaim the wonderful deeds of Him Who called me out of darkness into His marvelous light. May I live and work from this day forward, to be more like Jesus, and to live a holy life that is separated from this fallen world system. In Jesus’ name I pray, AMEN.
3 Blessed [gratefully praised and adored] be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts and encourages us in every trouble so that we will be able to comfort and encourage those who are in any kind of trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For just as Christ’s sufferings are ours in abundance [as they overflow to His followers], so also our comfort [our reassurance, our encouragement, our consolation] is abundant through Christ [it is truly more than enough to endure what we must]. 6 But if we are troubled and distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted and encouraged, it is for your comfort, which works [in you] when you patiently endure the same sufferings which we [a]experience. 7 And our [b]hope for you [our confident expectation of good for you] is firmly grounded [assured and unshaken], since we know that just as you share as partners in our sufferings, so also you share as partners in our comfort.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.
Come! Listen! Let Me Tell You What My Savior Has Done For Me.
Psalm 66:16-20 The Message
16-20 All believers, come here and listen, let me tell you what God did for me. I called out to him with my mouth, my tongue shaped the sounds of music. If I had been cozy with evil, the Lord would never have listened. But he most surely did listen, he came on the double when he heard my prayer. Blessed be God: he didn’t turn a deaf ear, he stayed with me, loyal in his love.
The writer of Psalm 66 wants to tell us his “GOD story” when he says, “Come and hear, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me.”
The psalmist does not want to talk about his accomplishments or achievements.
The Psalmist wants to talk about what God has done for him throughout his life.
His life had not been easy.
He had been tested and refined like silver.
He had experienced many burdens.
But through it all God had been with him and by listening to his cries for help,
God had led him, guided him, directed him to “a place of abundance.”
Like the Psalmist, each and every one of us has a strikingly similar story to tell.
All of us can bear great witness to the weight of burdens we have had to carry.
All of us can testify to hardships in our lives—but also to the one irrefutable fact that God, and God alone, has always been there and always acted on our behalf.
We must make sure we tell our story.
We must make sure you tell about God’s presence in our life and about his amazing grace in the midst of our much diverse and various degrees of trials.
We must wake sure we tell, re-tell it to our children and our grandchildren.
Someone once said to me,
“If something were to ever happen to you, I am sure I would not know anything about any legitimate kind of relationship to God or His Son or the Holy Spirit.”
Don’t let that happen to you.
Start contemplating your story.
Start writing or telling your story today!
A story which begins with (Song by Bill & Gloria Gaither and Ladye Love Smith)
Days are filled with sorrow Days are filled with sorrow and care Hearts are lonely and drear Burdens are lifted at Calvary Jesus is very near
Troubled soul, the Savior can see Every heartache and tear Burdens are lifted at Calvary Jesus is very near
and ends with ….
A repetition of this guided affirmation of faith in our Savior Jesus Christ ….
Burdens are lifted at Calvary Calvary, Calvary Burdens are lifted at Calvary Jesus is very near
Burdens are lifted at Calvary Calvary, Calvary Burdens are lifted at Calvary Jesus is very near
Burdens are lifted at Calvary Calvary, Calvary Burdens are lifted at Calvary Jesus is very near
Let Us Now Lift Up Our Hearts Unto Calvary Because Jesus is Very Near
I want us to imagine that we are each standing at the end of a long hallway.
The hallway represents the entirety of our life so far on earth.
To begin with, look down to your feet, where you are standing is todays date; all the way down at the far distant other end of the hallway is the day of your birth.
Now, just begin walking – please do not run, skip or jog or sprint or fast walk, Neither get on your skateboards, roller blades or roller skates or your bicycles.
Leave your car keys, your truck keys, your mini-van, your hybrid or EV car keys.
You are not driving anywhere – you are only and just walking with Savior Jesus.
Go outside of self and stretch your legs a bit, start working that heart muscle.
As you begin walking down the hallway heading back in your life, I want you to take notice of all of the notice various and diverse sizes of pictures on the wall.
These pictures are all of the “events” from your life; it’s like a photo album of your entire life which someone has taken the time to paint or print and hang.
Some are large framed pictures; they are the most significant experiences you have had so far.
Some are good; some are bad; some are happy; some are sad.
As you steadily walk down this hallway of your life, I want you to take a long and considered look at the content and context of all of these large pictures.
What significant events from your life do you see that stand out?
Is there a wedding?
The successful purchase of your first home?
The Birth of your first child?
Are there family vacations or sporting events pictured on the walls?
Is there an achievement like a high school or college diploma or an award?
Is there a significant milestone depicted – high professional achievements?
Is there a significant milestone depicted – your long awaited retirement?
Are there spiritual experiences like your coming to faith in Christ or a time God miraculously entered into your sub-conscience, especially touched your life?
Are there significantly painful experiences—a divorce, the death of someone you really loved, a failure, a betrayal, abuse, alcoholism, a difficult to care for child which leads to a hardcore challenging, difficult marriage, a significantly threatening health diagnosis, an over abundance of “no money,” an addiction?
Take some time now to walk beyond all of that, walk all the way to the end of this hallway of your, notice “self-portraits” in all these significant experiences in your life… contemplate, take notice of all the ones named “my aloneness.”
[NOW TAKE SOME QUALITY TIME WITH GOD IN SILENT REFLECTION].
As I pray, for you like the Psalmist did, I plead with you to realize that all these experiences have actually shaped who you are today, whether you like it or not.
I pray for you to realize there is no time for self-blame, or blame God, He didn’t cause all of these hard things to happen, but did allow them to happen to you.
What GOD wants to do with us, within us, is to use all of these experiences–Good and Bad–to grow us spiritually and mold us into the likeness of our Lord and Savior Jesus and to shape us for the unique purposes He has for our lives.
His intent is not to cause us any harm (1 John 4:7-12 The Message)
God Is Love
7-10 My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God.
11-12 My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other. No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us—perfect love!
By the unmeasurable enormity of this love He expressed through Calvary,
He does not intend nor want even one of our life experiences to be wasted.
With a very God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit specific long term intention:
Romans 8:28-30 Amplified Bible
28 And we know [with great confidence] that God [who is deeply concerned about us] causes all things to work together [as a plan] for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to His plan and purpose. 29 For those whom He foreknew [and loved and chose beforehand], He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son [and ultimately share in His complete sanctification], so that He would be the firstborn [the most beloved and honored] among many believers. 30 And those whom He predestined, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified [declared free of the guilt of sin]; and those whom He justified, He also glorified [raising them to a heavenly dignity].
God takes every single one of our life experiences—whether positive or painful, intentional or accidental, known or unknown, avoided or not, caused by you or by someone else, to shape all His Children for His unique calling in their lives.
Romans 8:28-30 may be, for some of us, the most personal verses in the Bible:
We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.
Your life experience and my own are one of the most overlooked ways that God uses to mold, shape, and transform us for the way He wants each of us to serve Him and others in this world, to edify, that is, to build up, His Kingdom alone.
The Bible says that God is working in every experience you have—our mistakes, our decisions, our successes and failures, our education or lack thereof, all of our different jobs, relationships, our lack of relationships, our unemployment, our disabilities, our marriages, our health issues, our finances—you name it.
God is working in every single thing in our lives—even in and through our own continued and continuous bent to our sins–to accomplish His purpose for you.
What Is The “God Specific” Purpose For Which God Is Even Now Working In Every Single Thing In Our life?
He is always working for the good in our lives.
Reverend Rick Warren puts it this way:
God can take the mess in our lives and bring a message out of it.
He can take the tests in our lives and create a testimony out of it.
He can take any crisis and show all of our Savior Jesus Christ through them.
GOD does not, never will, waste any experience any one of His Children have.
Moses murdered a man and had to flee into the wilderness between Egypt and Israel to save his life.
Some 40 years later God came to him in the vision of a burning bush and said, Moses, I have chosen you to go back down to Egypt to set my people free from slavery and guide and lead them through the wilderness to the Promised Land.
Moses knew the wilderness; he had lived there, learned its ways for 40 years.
Likewise, as Moses did, that through God, not our wits, God wants to use the wildernesses of our lives to help guide others, to find God’s way for their lives.
Joseph, his father Jacob’s favorite, was conspired against, thrown down a well and eventually sold to merchants into slavery by his hyper jealous brothers.
He ended up a slave and a prisoner in Egypt, but God gifted him and made a way for him to become the Prime Minister of Egypt and second only to the Pharaoh.
When famine threatened the very existence of God’s people, God used Joseph to plant, grow, harvest, store, manage the supply the grain that His people needed.
And when his brothers came to him starving, Joseph said to them: You intended to harm me, but God long intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the housing, settling and feeding, ultimately the saving of many lives.
But notice carefully God does not just do this for everybody.
God works His good for those who love Him and follow His plan.
The promise of Romans 8:28 is not for everybody.
God does not work His good in our lives when we don’t love Him or we turn our backs on Him.
It’s not that God turns His back on those who don’t follow His plan for their lives – God loves everybody, but He cannot help and use those who close their hearts, souls, minds, strengths and lives to Him and His plan for their lives.
One of the most common ways God uses our life experiences for good is to help others – to empathize, give comfort and encouragement while God works.
God can and does take each and everyone of our experiences, especially the painful ones, and turns them around, transforming them in a positive way.
Who better to help someone who is struggling than another person who has gone through the same struggle?
2 Corinthians 1:4 says, God, through Christ at Calvary, comforts and encourages us in all of our troubles so we can then, in turn, comfort and encourage others.
From Calvary then, when others are troubled, we will be able to reciprocate, to give them the same comfort and encouragement from Calvary God has given us.
Our troubles can become the very ministry God will use to help other people.
That uniquely painful experience in your life that you keep locked in the inner recesses of your soul could become your singularly unique, greatest ministry.
God has used the failures and hurtful experiences of my own life more than anything else to mold, shape and transform me exclusively for His purposes.
Those bad life experiences of my have helped me grow uniquely, spiritually.
Truthfully, in the good and happy times of my life, I have usually just coasted spiritually, taking God’s grace for granted that He will always, forever be there.
I have to see, from the long shadow extending outward from Calvary, and into eternity, God does not want me to allow my experiences to count for nothing.
I have to become the better person, through Christ, God needs me to become.
Now, it is my relationship with God which continues to keep me looking more forward versus more backwards, instead, a day at a time – Sweet Savior Jesus.
He was my Best Forever friend, much better than a brother I never had.
I was so “at ease, more comforted, more encouraged” with my Sweet Savior Jesus, stark comparison to the “disease of sin” I was struggling to recover from.
He truly brought wholeness to my life, an indescribable joy and immeasurable degrees of comfort that will always and forever be etched deep in my memory.
In His time on earth; Jesus had completed God’s mission for His life; and there is no doubt God touched uncountable many lives through him.
Through Calvary, by my walk to Calvary, My Sweet Savior Jesus helped me to see how life is supposed to be lived—in tune with my GOD and the Holy Spirit.
He helped me to find God and my family, the church to which my wife and I go.
On more than one occasion, the Bible says that God chooses to use weaker vessels to do His work so that He may get the glory.
In 2 Corinthians 12:9, God says: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
Paul responds: “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”
God can help people more through their weakness than we can through our strengths.
That’s why we need each other; it’s why we need the supportive fellowship of the church.
You can learn from others who have gone or who are going through the same struggles you are.
Perfection, if we could achieve it, would help nobody.
What experiences have we had to confront in our own lives which GOD could use to help comfort and encourage others?
“I Thirst” and then “It is Finished”
John 19:28-30 Amplified Bible
28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said in fulfillment of the Scripture, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar full of [a]sour wine was placed there; so they put a sponge soaked in the sour wine on [a branch of] hyssop and held it to His mouth. 30 When Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and [voluntarily] [b]gave up His spirit.
At Golgotha, the Place of the Skull, At Calvary, the death of the perfect Son of God was the darkest moment in world history, but look back at the portraits in the length and breadth and width of your hallway at how God used Jesus’ death.
Jesus’ death atoned for every single one our sins and everybody else’s sins and made for each of us an unobstructed way back to God, into heaven when we die.
Out of Christ’s crucifixion, God brought to all mankind the ultimate comfort and encouragement – God brought salvation for all who trust and follow Jesus.
This is our hope in Jesus Christ!
On that first Easter Sunday two millennia ago, God brought life out of death.
Jesus Christ died, three days later he arose from the dead and is now a living presence among us right now— forgiving us, delivering us, shaping us, guiding us, loving us, living in and among us and wanting to use us for His purposes.
God can use all your life experiences, good and bad, to shape you for His unique calling in your life—if forego any resistance to any, all change, if we let Him.
Hebrews 3:12-16 Amplified Bible
The Peril of Unbelief
12 Take care, brothers and sisters, that there not be in any one of you a wicked, unbelieving [a]heart [which refuses to trust and rely on the Lord, a heart] that turns away from the living God. 13 But continually encourage one another every day, as long as it is called “Today” [and there is an opportunity], so that none of you will be hardened [into settled rebellion] by the deceitfulness of sin [its cleverness, delusive glamour, and sophistication]. 14 For we [believers] have become partakers of Christ [sharing in all that the Messiah has for us], if only we hold firm our newborn confidence [which originally led us to Him] until the end,15 while it is said,
“Today [while there is still opportunity] if you hear His voice, Do not harden your heart, as when they provoked Me [in the rebellion in the desert at Meribah].”
16 For who were they who heard and yet provoked Him [with rebellious acts]? Was it not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses?
“Today, while there is still opportunity, if we WILL hear His voice …”
“Do not harden your hearts again and again, with further acts of open rebellion …”
God’s Call and Invitation to each and everyone of us through Mount Calvary:
God has 3 callings in the lives of each and everyone of His Children:
(1) He calls you to salvation and a new life in Jesus Christ;
(2) He calls you to be an active part of His church;
(3) He calls you to serve Him and comfort and encourage others in the unique way He has gifted and shaped you.
Encouraging one another is an important part of our daily walk with Christ.
Comforting one another is an important part of our daily walk with Christ.
We live in a world corrupted by unbelief, sin, and, at times, persecution.
How can we stay firm in our faith?
Scripture gives us this recipe:
Comfort, Love, Encourage, and Daily Pray for one another.
In God’s grace, the Holy Spirit uses these acts of mutual and shared comfort, care and encouragement to guide us, see us, through the most trying of times.
When fellow believers are struggling, be quick to extend your helpful, sharing hand.
Be graceful and be generous.
Be gentle and be merciful as unto the Lord.
Be comforting and be encouraging.
Offer words of comfort and prayer, as well as tangible acts of help, encourage people around you, and be surprised by how much you are encouraged yourself!
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Would you pray this prayer with me?
Almighty God and my Everlasting Father, Lord of my life, I offer back my life to You. Everything I’ve been through, Lord, use it for Your glory. Jesus, I give You my all. In your name I pray and commit myself to Your continuing work in this world. Lead, Guide and Direct my Steps back towards Calvary from whence comes my Savior. That I may be a comfort as I was comforted, I may be an encourager as I was encouraged. For indeed, there is no other name under heaven through which mankind is saved.
24 Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, [a]and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. 2 But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb. 3 Then they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 And it happened, as they were [b]greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments. 5 Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, 7 saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’ ”8 And they remembered His words.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.
There is a new song of Triumph coming forth from the Heavens above.
Psalm 19 The Message
19 1-2 God’s glory is on tour in the skies, God-craft on exhibit across the horizon. Madame Day holds classes every morning, Professor Night lectures each evening.
3-4 Their words aren’t heard, their voices aren’t recorded, But their silence fills the earth: unspoken truth is spoken everywhere.
4-5 God makes a huge dome for the sun—a superdome! The morning sun’s a new husband leaping from his honeymoon bed, The daybreaking sun an athlete racing to the tape.
6 That’s how God’s Word vaults across the skies from sunrise to sunset, Melting ice, scorching deserts, warming hearts to faith.
7-9 The revelation of God is whole and pulls our lives together. The signposts of God are clear and point out the right road. The life-maps of God are right, showing the way to joy. The directions of God are plain and easy on the eyes. God’s reputation is twenty-four-carat gold, with a lifetime guarantee. The decisions of God are accurate down to the nth degree.
10 God’s Word is better than a diamond, better than a diamond set between emeralds. You’ll like it better than strawberries in spring, better than red, ripe strawberries.
11-14 There’s more: God’s Word warns us of danger and directs us to hidden treasure. Otherwise how will we find our way? Or know when we play the fool? Clean the slate, God, so we can start the day fresh! Keep me from stupid sins, from thinking I can take over your work; Then I can start this day sun-washed, scrubbed clean of the grime of sin. These are the words in my mouth; these are what I chew on and pray. Accept them when I place them on the morning altar, O God, my Altar-Rock, God, Priest-of-My-Altar.
Except, who is listening to these raucous words of song and triumph?
The heavens sing their words of the Glory and Triumph of God!
They emanate from the deepest reaches of heaven down to the earth below.
They begin echoing outward unto a sleeping humanity from a place of death.
Hushed and Quiet though they may be in this moment at that place of death, they are none the less quite real and quite audible to those who will come to it.
The song will come unexpectedly to those whose hearts and whose souls were prepared to be curious about it, receive it and see it and then utterly believe it!
In this place of uncleanness and death, there is a sure and certain witness here!
In this place of darkness and stench, there is a sure and certain testimony here!
Let us now lend our eyes and ears to what this witness and testimony might be.
“Welcome to this Happy morning!”
“Welcome all ye curious ones!”
“Welcome all ye despondent ones!”
“Welcome all ye silent and tearful and mournful ones!”
“Welcome all ye defeated, downtrodden and broken ones!”
“Welcome all ye faith-filled and faithful and hope-filled hopeful ones!”
“It is wonderful to gather in our beautiful Kingdom of God to celebrate the glory and triumph of God and the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
Yes! there is, emanating from here a new, fresh song of witness and testimony.
Except, no one in particular is hearing, even listening to the words of welcome.
In fact, if we were to look at this place in that moment, we would see nobody.
Perhaps because the deafening silence of the glorious words “He is not here!” “praise God” are coming from an empty tomb which has been beckoning others where no others are paying attention, in close proximity or listening distance.
The expectancy of the glorious and triumphant message found from within the empty tomb is not one that is even the least bit anticipated, shared nor shouted.
The “Behold, Our God Wins!” witness and the living breathing testimony of the empty tomb sits all alone in a darkened silence in a place of the unclean dead.
Now, finally – a group of women come over the hill and down a path leading to the tomb of the one whom in life had been believed to be their “Messiah King.”
Three days ago, he had been brutally killed, humiliated as the ultimate criminal.
Because of Sabbath rules, he had been hastily buried and sealed behind a rock.
The women came bearing spices which they had prepared to finish preparing the not so pleasant smelling body of their dead best friend and their king.
But instead of finding a sealed tomb they came upon an open one.
Amazingly, unexpectedly, the stone had somehow been rolled off to the side.
Curious and probably just a wee bit afraid of what they would or would not find, they enter the tomb of their Rabbi and find it empty – there was just no corpse.
The women had come to anoint his body for the burial when they suddenly encountered a pair of angels asking this question – “so, why are you here?”
Followed up by the good news, “He is not here; he has risen!”
What a great and wholly unexpected sequence of “GOD” events for their souls.
Such wonderful good news.
The faith-filled faithful of God went to the tomb before all others were awake.
With their whole selves, in the darkness, their eyes beheld an open tomb and a rock much too heavy for them to remove by themselves rolled off to the side.
Instead of running away and screaming into the night to tell somebody else, the curiosity of the words to a new song reached their souls, so they all went inside.
They lingered inside and witnessed to an unanticipated, unexpected, emptiness inside the tomb of their fallen Rabbi they could not understand nor easily grasp.
As they were all greatly perplexed by this sequence of events, they clearly see the two men in shiny garments standing there, they clearly hear their words:
5 Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, 7 saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’ ”
“He is NOT here!”
“But, IS Risen!”
Jesus is alive!
Death is defeated!
Witness to, Testify that, The Stone Was Rolled Away
Luke 24:5-8 The Message
4-8 They were puzzled, wondering what to make of this. Then, out of nowhere it seemed, two men, light cascading over them, stood there. The women were awestruck and bowed down in worship. The men said, “Why are you looking for the Living One in a cemetery? He is not here, but raised up. Remember how he told you when you were still back in Galilee that he had to be handed over to sinners, be killed on a cross, and in three days rise up?” Then they remembered Jesus’ words.
The gospel of Luke opened with angels delivering messages to Zacharias, Mary, some shepherds quietly going about their everyday duties protecting the sheep.
And to the shepherds, it was a melodious message of great joy for all people.
The message delivered here was also a message of great joy to all people.
Death had been conquered.
Jesus had defeated the power of death.
No longer do we have to fear death.
“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (1 Corinthians. 15:55).
Implications: the Witness and Testimony of a Rock Rolled Away
When we consider Jesus as Messiah, most of us think immediately in personal terms: Jesus is my Messiah. He forgives my sins. He lives in me.
All of which, of course, is true.
But 1st-century Jewish expectations concerning the messiahship of Jesus were far broader than that.
If we had talked with a 1st-century Jew about his or her messianic expectations, we would have discovered hopes that were, in a sense far grander in their scope.
The Jews anticipated that their long-awaited Messiah would come to defeat the pagans who held sway over them, to decisively conquer their enemies, then to rebuild the temple, and to once again establish God’s just rule upon the earth.
Theirs was a nationalistic hope—a hope that the Messiah would come and vindicate the nation of Israel.
Jesus’ arrival, together with the miracles He performed, stories He told, and the prophecies He fulfilled, built to a great crescendo of high expectation among His followers, that Jesus was in fact sent of God as their true conquering king.
But just when they began to think that He really would be the one to politically redeem the people of Israel, at Calvary they saw all of their messianic hopes hanging up on a Roman gibbet, a gallows, an ugly instrument of pain and death.
And when Jesus cried out, “It is finished” (John 19:30), many of them must have quite literally agreed – any hope for their future of prosperity – was “finished.”
Now the question beckons us: How, then, did this group of believers, whose messianic hopes had been buried in a Palestinian tomb, not only continue to believe that Jesus was the Messiah but stand in the streets near where He had been executed and make an unashamed declaration of His messiahship?
The answer comes reverberating through the pages of the New Testament is found in the witness of an immovable rock having been summarily removed, somebody physically entering an empty tomb: the bodily resurrection of Jesus!
The angelic announcement to the women who had brought spices to embalm a corpse provoked a radical reassessment of what the believers had witnessed on the past Friday and a complete change in their view of their lives and futures.
When the Messiah reappeared among them, as alive as ever, these previously sad, sorrowful, defeated, brokenhearted disciples were radically transformed into bold, joyful witnesses with the loudest heartfelt songs of God’s triumph.
They now have a sure and certain witness, bearing testimony to the reality of Christ resurrected with a body that could be seen, handled, and touched, and yet also possessing capacities to do what His pre-resurrection body had not done.
His earthly work of salvation was finished;
His life and His reign were most certainly not!
By His Resurrection,
By God’s own Authority and only through God’s power,
His life and His reign were most certainly never going to end
Only in the disciples’ actions that night, seeing the rock moved away, their display of courage and not fear, to physically enter the tomb, enter, witness its emptiness, exit the tomb, hear the words of the two white clad angels, their recognition of His risen presence did Christ’s messiahship finally make sense.
Indeed, what the early Jewish believers discovered when they “found the stone rolled away from the tomb” (Luke 24:2) and saw “Jesus himself stood among them” entering through a locked and sealed door and into the Upper Room (v 36) was that an eternal hope, joy, and triumphant power ignited within their hearts.
And these remain available to all who put their trust in Jesus, the resurrected Messiah.
It is the triumph of the resurrection, and only the triumph of the resurrection, changes our witness of sadness, sorrow, and defeat into hope, joy, and power.
It is the resurrection, and only the resurrection, that declares that our Messiah will defeat His enemies, will restore His people, and will rule from sea to sea.
The Glory of God, The Triumph of God that morning, The resurrection of Jesus our Lord, Savior will change everything about how you go about your day today.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
We Are One with the Risen Christ
Lord of life, we lift our hearts to you. As the dawn breaks, may we carry the unity we share into every moment knowing that we are one with the risen Christ. Lord, we lift our eyes to you. As the sunrises, may this moment stay with us, reminding us to look for the beautiful colors of promise in your word. Lord, we lift our prayers to you. As the dew air falls, may we breathe this morning in and know that like the earth, you sustain us, keep us and work within us always. And so, we lift our voices to you. We celebrate the greatest day in history, when Jesus rose from death, defeated darkness and bathed the world in stunning resurrection light. May we ever live to praise you! Thank you Lord of my my life and my Salvation that, in you, I no longer need to fear death and its great unknown. Instead, I can face it with confidence, knowing that you have truly defeated it. And, that on the other side of death, I will be with you forever.
44 It was now about the sixth hour (noon), and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour (3:00 p.m.), 45 because the sun was [a]obscured; and the veil [of the Holy of Holies] of the temple was [b]torn in two [from top to bottom]. 46 And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit!” Having said this, He breathed His last. 47 Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he began praising and honoring God, saying, “Certainly this Man was innocent.” 48 All the crowds who had gathered for this spectacle, when they saw what had happened, began to return [to their homes], beating their breasts [as a sign of mourning or repentance]. 49 And all His acquaintances and the women who had accompanied Him from Galilee were standing at a distance, watching these things.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.
It was to become the Greatest Injustice in the History of Mankind.
As Prophesied by Jesus Himself three times to His Disciples.
Betrayed, Falsely Accused, a Bevy of False Witness testified against him.
A Kangaroo Court held in the darkest of street corners, behind locked doors.
By His own people who once declared the triumph of his life and ministry.
Pilate Himself declared his innocence, tried everything to release him alive.
But Jesus’ own people would have none of it – Crucify! Crucify! Crucify!
Beaten and Scourged and Humiliated to almost beyond recognition.
Forced to carry his own means of death.
Both Hands and Both Feet Nailed to the Cross in the most painful of ways.
Raised up for all the great gathered crowds to bear their ugliest witness to.
Ceaseless, Unrelenting Mockery and Scorn shouted and heard far and wide.
Finally, more quieted and Hushed Words are uttered and heard but by a few.
“I am Thirsty.”
“Father, Forgive them for they know not what they do.”
“It is Finished.”
“Father, into Your hands I Commend My Spirit.”
And finally, all the words come to their ends, Jesus is dead …
But into this moment when all else is suddenly hushed …
But the hushed flow of words continues from unexpected sources …
Luke 23:47 Amplified Bible
47 Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he began praising and honoring God, saying, “Certainly this Man was innocent.”
Who else had heard these words spoken by the Centurion, the man with the authority to command and lead others to do his bidding, the man under the even greater authority of Pilate, under ultimate authority of his Emperor.
Yes, who else heard these hushed words of the Centurion …
Luke 23:48 Amplified Bible
48 All the crowds who had gathered for this spectacle, when they saw what had happened, began to return [to their homes], beating their breasts [as a sign of mourning or repentance].
The Word of God for His Children was undoubtedly rare and and far rarer still were the Words of God for His Children to remain hush, unspoken in those days.
Now, it is two thousand some odd number of years later and we “hear” again.
Through the Word of God for His Children and Song we remembered the scene.
Good Friday has passed us by, we have returned to the comfort of our homes.
To quietly await the quiet and hushed arrival of the sunrise on Easter Morning.
In that between time, on that day of whatever comes rushing to your mind – perhaps the final rush of housework, shopping and meal preparation for the final assembly of family and friends and perhaps even your neighbors too …
Question: What happens in your heart when you think of Jesus on the cross?
Probably not too much because like most you are waiting for the Preacher to lead the morning worship and Preach their messages on Sunday morning.
A day meant for personal reflection, perhaps family devotionals is what …?
Perhaps, if you are like me and perhaps a few others who went home “beating their breasts in hushed acts of confession and reflection and repentance, it is a time of inviting the Holy Spirit to intercede into your all too hushed moments.
I guess it is too hard to spend any extra time with God (Matthew 6:6-7) to try to imagine the indescribable, immeasurable depths of injustice on Good Friday.
His suffering is especially hard to imagine during this season of the year when we are still perhaps remembering his Advent and thinking about his birth too.
Our hearts are filled with emotion – the joy, and triumph and the Glory of God, the single greatest act of God’s love and God’s Justice of all time. (John 3:16-17)
The hearts of those who witnessed the Lord’s suffering were filled with all sorts of emotions, too.
Like the Centurion’s, Does The Cross Opens Our Eyes?
Luke 23:47 Amplified Bible
47 Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he began praising and honoring God, saying, “Certainly this Man was innocent.”
The seasoned Roman officer handling the execution praised God and knew this man Jesus was not guilty of any crime.
The crowd went home with deep sorrow.
John and Jesus’ mother Mary and a few others stood by the Cross …
John 19:25-27 Amplified Bible
25 So the soldiers did these things.
But standing by the cross of Jesus were His mother, His mother’s sister [[a]Salome], [b]Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 So Jesus, seeing His mother, and the [c]disciple whom He loved (esteemed) standing near, said to His mother, “[Dear] woman, look, [here is] your son!” 27 Then He said to the disciple (John), “Look! [here is] your mother [protect and provide for her]!” From that hour the disciple took her into his own home.
Most of Jesus’ friends went home in repentance or watched from a distance.
We have all of these “reactions from the ground as they look up at the Cross.”
What are we to make of them still today – in these 21st century times, seasons?
We have not understood, indeed we cannot understand the implications of the the harshness, yet also the beauty of cross unless it has changed us personally.
After Jesus “breathed his last” (Luke 23:46), Luke records for us the reactions of those who witnessed the crucifixion.
“All the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle, when they saw what had taken place, returned home beating their breasts”(v 48).
Yes, there was sadness, but once the spectacle was over, they left to get on with their lives.
Verse 49 then informs us “all his acquaintances … stood at a distance watching” —and we can barely even imagine what was running through all of their minds.
But the most striking and the most personal reaction that Luke captures is that of the Roman centurion, who, seeing what had happened, “praised God, saying, ‘Certainly this man was innocent!’”—or, as the NIV renders it, “Surely this was a righteous man.”
Here, amid the darkness of hypocritical religious leaders, cynical rulers, and callous passersby, the hushed whispers of lingerers, is a tiny glimmer of light.
Perhaps the very last person we would expect to see the truth—a man with no previous connection to Jesus, no background in Old Testament studies, and no predisposition to the things of God, just utterly obeying his Roman bosses—not only grasped what he looked at, but he immediately responded personally to it.
He saw
“what had taken place”—the words of Jesus, the darkness overhead, the manner of His death—and realized,
Here is no ordinary man. Here is a man who is different from every other man. Here is a man who is entirely innocent, wholly righteous.
Indeed, the Gospel narrative of Mark adds that the centurion confessed that the man on the cross was undoubtedly none other but “the Son of God” (Mark 15:39).
With his incredible and trained eye for detail, Luke places a clear emphasis on giving his readers a “from the ground up” seeing what took place on the cross.
He probably hoped that some readers would remember that when Jesus had read from the scroll of Isaiah earlier in His ministry, He had said, “The Spirit of the Lord … has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor … to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind” (Luke 4:18).
Indeed, a great theme found throughout the Gospel of Luke is that of darkness being invaded by light—the confusion and hardness of the people’s hearts and their minds being subsequently invaded by the liberating power of God’s truth.
1 Corinthians 1:18-25 Amplified Bible
The Wisdom of God
18 For the message of the cross is foolishness [absurd and illogical] to those who are perishing and spiritually dead [because they reject it], but to us who are being saved [by God’s grace] it is [the manifestation of] the power of God. 19 For it is written and forever remains written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise [the philosophy of the philosophers], And the cleverness of the clever [who do not know Me] I will nullify.”
20 Where is the wise man (philosopher)? Where is the scribe (scholar)? Where is the debater (logician, orator) of this age? Has God not exposed the foolishness of this world’s wisdom? 21 For since the world through all its [earthly] wisdom failed to recognize God, God in His wisdom was well-pleased through the [a] foolishness of the message preached [regarding salvation] to save those who believe [in Christ and welcome Him as Savior]. 22 For Jews demand signs (attesting miracles), and Greeks pursue [worldly] wisdom and philosophy, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, [a message which is] to Jews a stumbling block [that provokes their opposition], and to Gentiles foolishness [just utter nonsense], 24 but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks (Gentiles), Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 [This is] because the foolishness of God [is not foolishness at all and] is wiser than men [far beyond human comprehension], and the weakness of God is stronger than men [far beyond the limits of human effort].
Any attempt to articulate Christianity that denies the absolute centrality of the wisdom of God and the wisdom of the Cross can never lead to saving faith.
And while we do not always understand how the Spirit moves in leading men and women to be born again, our message must always and ever be the same:
“But We Preach Christ crucified”(1 Corinthians 1:23).
It is beholding the cross that brings life for anyone who responds to the man who hung there by confessing who He is and praising God for His saving work.
Unless and until the “goodness” of the cross is personal to us, it is essentially to be considered as utterly useless for us.
So, when was the last time you simply looked UP at your Savior on the cross and just walked away?
Or, when was the last time you looked DOWN at your Savior on the cross and up, just walked away into whatever else is about to rush into your hushed mind?
So, when was the last time you simply looked UP at your Savior on the cross and spent the intervening time waiting for the Easter moment and just praised God?
Which one best describes your reaction?
Don’t you find it even minimally amazing that probably the least commendable, the most hushed, the least exemplary response was that from Jesus’ friends?
In these intervening times and seasons, let’s not be just observers of the cross, but rather a people deeply sorrowed by our sins which took Jesus to OUR cross.
However, in our sorrow, let’s make sure we don’t let grief consume us.
Instead, let’s praise God for his grace and the salvation he has provided for us.
Then, rather than walking away, having been hushed by the moment, going into hiding like the fearful friends of Jesus (John 20:19),
Let’s maybe share the confession of the Centurion, and the grace of God with;
O’ Come All Ye Faithful …
Adeste Fidelis …
O’ Come Let Us Adore Him …
Venite Adoremus …
Joyful and Triumphant …
Laeti Triumphantes,
To the King of the Angels …
Regem Angelorum …
To Christ the Lord!
Dominum!
Amen!
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 24 The Message
24 1-2 God claims Earth and everything in it, God claims World and all who live on it. He built it on Ocean foundations, laid it out on River girders.
3-4 Who can climb Mount God? Who can scale the holy north-face? Only the clean-handed, only the pure-hearted; Men who won’t cheat, women who won’t seduce.
5-6 God is at their side; with God’s help they make it. This, Jacob, is what happens to God-seekers, God-questers.
7 Wake up, you sleepyhead city! Wake up, you sleepyhead people! King-Glory is ready to enter.
8 Who is this King-Glory? God, armed and battle-ready.
9 Wake up, you sleepyhead city! Wake up, you sleepyhead people! King-Glory is ready to enter.
10 Who is this King-Glory? God-of-the-Angel-Armies: he is King-Glory.
Holy and Almighty God, Author of my Life, Perfecter of my Faith, my heart breaks that Jesus had to die as a sacrifice for sin … especially my sin. However, I praise you for your plan of grace, for your desire to provide mercy at the expense of your own heartbreak, and for your overwhelming love for people like me. In Jesus’ name.
53 Who has believed [confidently trusted in, relied on, and adhered to] our message [of salvation]? And to whom [if not us] has the arm and infinite power of the Lord been revealed? 2 For He [the Servant of God] grew up before Him like a tender shoot (plant), And like a root out of dry ground; He has no stately form or majestic splendor That we would look at Him, Nor [handsome] appearance that we would [a]be attracted to Him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and pain and acquainted with grief; And like One from whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we did not appreciate His worth or esteem Him.
4 But [in fact] He has borne our griefs, And He has carried our sorrows and pains; Yet we [ignorantly] assumed that He was stricken, Struck down by God and degraded and humiliated [by Him]. 5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was crushed for our wickedness [our sin, our injustice, our wrongdoing]; The punishment [required] for our well-being fell on Him, And by His stripes (wounds) we are healed. 6 All of us like sheep have gone astray, We have turned, each one, to his own way; But the Lord has caused the wickedness of us all [our sin, our injustice, our wrongdoing] To fall on Him [instead of us].
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.
Someone Familiar With Our Suffering
“You can’t truly know people unless you walk a mile in their shoes,” we sometimes say.
Two thousand ago, a man named Jesus walked into humanity’s full view, in our shoes, and showed that he genuinely knew the full range of human experience.
The Word of God for His Children often reminds them that Jesus was one of us.
The Word of God comes right out of God’s mouth to reveal to human kind He experienced joy and suffering and sorrow, feasting and hunger, the fruits of hard work and the setbacks of humiliation, injustice, poverty, life and death.
He also knew the grief of losing a close friend, which led him to weep (John 11:32-35).
In addition, Jesus was sometimes discouraged by the spiritual numbness of his disciples (Matthew 16:8-12), and weary from hot, dusty travel (John 4:6).
He became angry when people mistreated God and others (Matthew 21:12-13), he also took children in his arms, taught and blessed them (Matthew 19:13-14).
Countless times we read of him healing the sick and destitute, individually and by the village full, approaching the unapproachable, touching the untouchable.
In the account of his crucifixion, as Isaiah foretold, Jesus even experienced total rejection, complete betrayal and unimaginable physical and spiritual suffering.
The reality: Our salvation wasn’t won in the beauty and safety of a royal palace.
Jesus pioneered our salvation through the experience of human living in this world.
He faced all the temptations and struggles we meet daily—and yet he never sinned (Hebrews 4:15).
There is not one single human heart who can claim it has never been wounded.
There is not one single human heart which can claim it has not ever suffered.
His words from the cross “I am thirsty” (John 19:28) assure us that he willingly and obediently dealt with all human experiences as he worked to defeat sin.
For humanity, there must eventually, gradually, subtly, suddenly, come the realization that there is a very real place in God’s divine order – where all our hurting, our woundedness, our suffering, our brokenness, sin, come together.
From Genesis to Revelation, The Word of God reveals to all of God’s children Jesus is our ultimate example of the type of heart we need to turn to, we need to surrender to, because by his crucifixion, He is our healer, our wounded healer.
And we see this heart, the heart of Jesus, not only from His life but also in the death He died for us, not only by the death He died for us, but by the witness of the EMPTY tomb, the angels’ words, by His resurrection and by His Ascension.
A Wounded Healer’s Heart
Jesus is a Wounded Healer.
He experienced our wounds by coming in flesh so He could feel what we feel.
“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.”Isaiah 53:5. NKJV.
Are You A Wounded Healer?
Am I A Wounded Healer?
You and I may not even know there is a name for it; you are too busy doing what needs to be done.
You and I have almost certainly, surely been gravely wounded, hurt, maybe too even abused, maybe even bullied, maybe even betrayed, maybe even humiliated.
Somehow, by some means, in too many ways, we are all wounded throughout our lives, physically, emotionally, psychologically; some of us have been hurt in more ways than we can remember – the measure of trauma is too inconceivable.
A Wounded Healer is one who, although they have been wounded time and time again; discern they learn to take those experiences and use them to help others, to minister like Jesus, during their time of loss, tragedy, grief, pain or illness.
Even from hospital beds, with bodies wracked by severe illnesses, like Jesus, they realize that though they are suffering, have suffered in their bodies, they have also learned, by prayer, witness and their testimony of the work of their Savior Jesus in their lives, they can now benefit all others from that suffering.
Now they have become a Wounded Healer.
God isn’t causing their pain but He can use their pain to get your attention and help you and me and others grow, teach the many of compassion and grace.
By their example, you and I can learn how we too can share all our Savior Jesus Christ, minister to others in the middle of our own pain and it helps them heal!
Hebrews 13:1-2 Amplified Bible
The Changeless Christ
13 Let love of your fellow believers continue. 2 Do not neglect to extend hospitality to strangers [especially among the family of believers—being friendly, cordial, and gracious, sharing the comforts of your home and doing your part generously], for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.
When this passage in Hebrews was anonymously written, people were expected to show generous hospitality to travelers and strangers who might otherwise have nowhere else to stay as they went from village to village and town to town.
The context of this advice urges believers in God to show love and care for one another as well for others who may be in need, such as strangers, travelers.
This advice echoes the words of Jesus in Matthew 25:31-46, where Rabbi Jesus teaches us all that caring for the needs of others is like doing the same for him.
This passage in Hebrews also invites us to consider that a stranger or visitor we encounter might be an angel—that is, a messenger from God (also Genesis 18).
The point is that we should treat anyone we meet as being so valuable and fully worthy of our time that they might be sent from God, and that showing love and care and compassion to them would be like doing the same for the Lord himself.
This can be hard to imagine, especially if hospitality is not so common anymore in our culture and we need to be ever so much more wary of “stranger danger.”
But here the Spirit of God is challenging us simply to treat others well, showing love and kindness to everyone, no matter who they are.
In other words, we are called, even from the midst of our suffering, to love and care for others just as our Lord, Savior Jesus Christ has done for us at Calvary.
Angels of Mercy who will probably not have a set of initials after their name, they won’t ever claim to know it all, and they won’t ever have all the answers.
But they know how to listen, they know how to care, whose families will show up with a casserole, a care package, or sit with you through the night if need be.
Sometimes they say nothing at all.
They do not have to because they have been there.
They were wounded, they know.
Silence is golden, a hug is infinitely better than words.
Where Our Hurt and Our Healing Collides
Isaiah 53:3-5 Amplified Bible
3 He was despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and pain and acquainted with grief; And like One from whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we did not appreciate His worth or esteem Him.
4 But [in fact] He has borne our griefs, And He has carried our sorrows and pains; Yet we [ignorantly] assumed that He was stricken, Struck down by God and degraded and humiliated [by Him]. 5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was crushed for our wickedness [our sin, our injustice, our wrongdoing]; The punishment [required] for our well-being fell on Him, And by His stripes (wounds) we are healed.
Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is all of mankind’s Wounded Healer.
He experienced our wounds by coming in flesh so He could feel what we feel.
“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.”Isaiah 53:5. NKJV.
If you have damaged emotions and physical and emotional scars, ABBA God the Father and Jesus His Son and God the Holy Spirit, are able to take care of those.
For God so loved the World that God sent His Son into the World that we should be saved – NOT CONDEMNED for our sins as we all so very righteously deserve.
Jesus gave His life at Calvary and rose again so that we could have eternal life AND be healers on this earth.
We cannot have open wounds and be a healer, we must have those taken care of.
Our resurrected Jesus is the only One who can overcome and heal our hurts so we can then recognize His Sovereignty and become the blessing God intended.
Maybe from your ailing’s you have never thought you had anything to offer.
My friend, I am certain you do.
If the Lord has forgiven you and restored you, pray for opportunities to give others hope and a light at the end of their tunnel.
Pray for the wisdom of God’s testimony and Jesus’ witness at Calvary above all, it is not an easy road to walk the road of suffering, but there are great rewards.
Are there areas in your life where you have opportunity to be a Wounded Healer?
I would love to hear about them!
Has someone else been a Wounded Healer to you?
Feel free to share Jesus Christ, your thoughts and encourage others here today.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Gracious God,
on this day we gather to remember the suffering death of Jesus.
He was despised and rejected,
oppressed and afflicted,
yet he was prepared to be wounded for our transgressions. We come overwhelmed by the depth of Jesus’ love for us,
and his commitment to defeat evil,
even when that meant his own suffering and his own death.
In his willingness to make us righteous, he poured himself out to death, even death on a cross, and so, in response to such love and sacrifice, we commit all of ourselves as his disciples to overcome evil with Your good, our suffering with Your wholeness, with love and compassion, acceptance and mercy for all, meeting oppression with Your justice. Thank you, Jesus, for being willing to enter the grit and grime of our humanity to save us. There has never been a greater sacrifice! Let that be our Witness and let that we our sure and certain Testimony unto the world. Jesus’ name, we pray.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.
29 The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God [a]who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is He on behalf of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who has a higher rank than I and has priority over me, for He existed before me.’ 31 [b]I did not recognize Him [as the Messiah]; but I came baptizing [c]in water so that He would be [publicly] revealed to Israel.” 32 John gave [further] evidence [testifying officially for the record, with validity and relevance], saying, “I have seen the [d]Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him. 33 I did not recognize Him [as the Messiah], but He who sent me to baptize [e]in water said to me, ‘He upon whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this One is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I myself have [actually] seen [that happen], and my testimony is that this is the Son of God!”
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.
The Preacher, with an inviting tone, filled the air with, “Who wants to testify about the goodness of the Lord?”
Testimonies of the goodness of God are a sure and certain motivation for the saints of God to keep going forward when the struggles in life weighed heavy.
John the Baptist had a sure, certain testimony about the goodness of God.
John 1:29-34 declares God has invaded the world in the person of Jesus Christ.
John 1:29-34 gives every Christian a sure and certain model testimony that we can draw powerful inspiration from, to learn to give about our own life journey.
First, John the Baptist knew instantaneously that in the salvation business, his ministry was decisively limited, only the perfect Lamb of God can take away sin.
Second, John the Baptist surely and certainly accepted the role of second chair.
He declared without hesitation that he absolutely was not the main thing.
John the Baptist unequivocally said, “A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.”
He was a humble servant to Jesus.
Third, John the Baptist gave a testimony of what he saw and experienced.
Without hesitation, the story John the Baptist told throughout his ministry is this: “I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”
On this day before Palm Sunday, we too will have a powerful and inspiring testimony: tell your family and friends the story of Jesus, the Lamb of God!
That is our Witness!
That is our Testimony
That is our Coming Story!
“BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD WHO TAKETH AWAY THE SINS OF THE WORLD”
Why Is the ‘Lamb of God’ So Significant To Us?
The Bible talks about the “Lamb of God” and often features imagery about lambs.
Spiritually, the Lamb of God is incredibly significant because it expresses the core of our faith.
In these our most contemporary of times, two thousand years after the words of John were first spoken and resoundingly declared, our learning why the Lamb of God is so significant can inspire us too with awe, to deepen our trust in Jesus.
Who is the Lamb of God?
The phrase “Lamb of God” is a name given to Jesus in the Bible.
The Bible first mentions the Lamb of God in John 1:29, John sees Jesus and declares, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”.
John the Baptist continues to testify about Jesus and concludes in John 1:34:“I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”
Whenever the Lamb of God appears in the Bible, it refers to Jesus.
What Does the “Lamb of God” Mean?
Jesus as the Lamb of God expresses significant theological and symbolic meaning.
It highlights the sacrificial nature of Jesus’ mission as the world’s Savior.
Just as lambs – gentle animals who symbolize purity – were offered as sacrifices in the Old Testament to atone for sins, Jesus served as a sacrifice to atone for the sins of humanity.
The phrase “Lamb of God” refers to Jesus as the perfect and ultimate sacrifice provided by God for the single perfect atonement of all the sins of his people.
Why Is the “Lamb of God” So Significant?
Relating to Jesus as the Lamb of God shows us the heart of why our faith is important.
It is only by trusting Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins we can connect with a holy God.
Otherwise, we would perish.
John 3:16 celebrates the love behind this core sacrifice: “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 3:17 declares God’s intent behind this core sacrifice: “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge and condemn the world [that is, to initiate the final judgment of the world], but that the world might be saved through Him.”
It’s important for us to trust Jesus’ work as the Lamb of God in order for us to be able to enjoy relationships with God and grow in holiness and gentleness.
Apostle Paul wrote, “For our sake he [God] made him [Jesus] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Sacrifice is necessary because, as Hebrews 9:22 says, “In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”
The entire sacrificial system established by God in the Old Testament prepares the way for Jesus coming to save the world as the Lamb of God.
In that system, lambs were often sacrificed in temples as offerings to God to atone for people’s sins.
A lamb was sacrificed for the sins of the people every morning and evening in Jerusalem (Exodus 29:38-42).
These sacrifices foreshadowed the perfect sacrifice of Christ on the cross that would happen later.
Interestingly, Jesus died on the cross at the same time the evening sacrifice was being made in the temple.
The Jews at that time were familiar with the Old Testament prophets Jeremiah and Isaiah, who foretold the coming of someone who would be led “like a lamb to the slaughter” (Jeremiah 11:19 and Isaiah 53:7).
Isaiah 53:5-6 prophesies about how Jesus’ suffering and sacrifice will redeem people: “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace [Isaiah 26:1-3] was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
This person was none other than Jesus, the Lamb of God.
God instructed the Israelites to sacrifice a lamb for the Passover feast (Exodus 12:1-30).
The innocent lamb represented purity, and its sacrifice was a symbol of repentance and submission to God’s will.
Similarly, Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross at Calvary to save humanity from sin shows he is the Lamb of God who makes the ultimate sacrifice necessary to ultimately and finally connect woefully sinful humanity to a perfectly holy God.
In fact, the slaying of the Passover lamb and applying its blood to the doorposts of the houses powerfully depicts Jesus’ atoning work on the cross.
If we trust Jesus as our Savior, we are spiritually covered by his blood, which protects us from spiritual death.
Romans 8:1-4 explains how Jesus’ physical sacrifice has made spiritual freedom possible for people:
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”
Since humanity had sinned in the flesh (physically), and our holy God can’t be corrupted by sin, through Calvary, God made a way for our sins to be atoned for physically so we would no longer be separated from Him because of our sins.
Jesus’ work as the Lamb of God made it possible for all people to enjoy loving relationships with God, despite sin.
1 Peter 1:18-19 celebrates that redemptive work: “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.”
Jesus has provided all we need to be forgiven forever for all of our sins, and he serves as our advocate for everything we need.
The entire chapter of Hebrews 10 describes the importance of Jesus’ work as the Lamb of God who takes away our sins.
As Hebrews 10:10 proclaims: “… we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”
Now, there is no need to sacrifice animals like lambs to God in a temple, because Jesus has provided an everlasting sacrifice on our behalf so we can enjoy relationships with God.
The chapter goes on to encourage us to persevere in our faith with confidence because of Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice for us:
“Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.”
Not only does the Bible look back to Jesus’ crucifixion as the Lamb of God, but it also looks forward to Jesus as the Lamb of God in heaven.
Revelation 5:6 describes Jesus in heaven as “a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain.”
This image reinforces the sacrificial nature of Jesus’ mission and emphasizes the victory he achieved through his sacrifice.
A few verses later in Revelation 5:11-13,
the Bible reveals all created beings in heaven and earth – angels, people, and other creatures – worshiping Jesus for his work as the Lamb of God:
“Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they were saying: ‘Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!’ Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying: ‘To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!’”
This passage shows the importance of our own selves learning, appreciating, the indescribable wonder of God’s work and responding to it with gratitude.
Revelation 7:9 shows Jesus in heaven as the Lamb of God, with a huge amount of people whose souls had been redeemed thanks to his sacrifice on earth:
“After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.”
An angel explains to the apostle John in Revelation 17:14 that Jesus, the Lamb of God, will defeat evil and reign victorious over the universe:
“They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings – and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”
Significance of Jesus as the Lamb of God Conclusion
The Lamb of God refers to Jesus as the perfect and ultimate sacrifice for sin.
The significance of the Lamb of God speaks to the core message of Christianity:
that through Jesus’ sacrifice at Calvary, we can be reconciled to God and receive forgiveness for our sins.
The Lamb of God is undeniably significant and central unto the Christian faith!
Because it emphasizes Jesus’ sacrificial mission and symbolizes his innocence, purity, and victory over sin and death.
As we approach tomorrow, the umpteenth time of our “holding up our palm branches, shouting our Hosannas” celebrating Jesus’ arrival into Jerusalem;
As we reflect on the meaning of the Lamb of God, may we be inspired to the utmost by the great love God has for us, the price that Jesus paid to redeem us.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Loving Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Jesus as the true Lamb of God Who has taken away all my sins. I am so thankful that Jesus died on the Cross for me, becoming the only perfect substitute for my sins. In Jesus’ name I pray, AMEN.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 