IT IS FINISHED

6 Days to Resurrection Sunday

John 19:30  “It is finished…”

 

SCRIPTURE READING: JOHN 19:30

 ³⁰When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.

 

REFLECTION: 

What was finished? 

When our our Lord Jesus perfectly obeyed and completed all of His Father’s will—it was finished!

When Christ fulfilled the sacrificial types and prophecies of the Old Covenant—it was finished!

When Jesus satisfied the demands of Divine Justice to redeem every repentant—it was finished!

When the Savior’s suffering was sufficient to destroy the works of the devil—it was finished!

When the way to the Holy of Holies and access to the Mercy Seat was opened through Christ’s shed blood—it was finished!

When Spirit answered to the blood—it was finished.

 

What was not finished?

 

Was the need for sinners to repent “finished?”  God forbid.

Was the need for men to turn from idols to God “finished?” Not hardly.

Was the necessity for faith in the blood of Christ absolved? No way.

Was the need for a holy life annulled at Calvary? Certainly not.

Was our need to be sanctified wholly in spirit, and in soul, and in body “finished” at the cross? No.

Was the requirement that men be separate from the world “finished” when Christ died? Impossible.

 

Too many have been lured into a false sense of eternal security by a gross misunderstanding and misapplication of these last words—“it is finished.”  They suppose that though they are disobedient, untruthful, and unfruitful, they can “rest on the finished work of Christ.”  A. W. Pink’s indictment of these antinomians (people who oppose God’s law) is right on: “The fear of God is not upon them, the commands of God have no authority over them, the holiness of God has no attraction for them.  They are worldly-minded, money-lovers, pleasure-seekers, Sabbath-breakers, who think all is right with them because they have ‘accepted Christ as their personal Savior.’”

 

Reader, lay it to heart.  The “finished work of Christ” is of no benefit until you acknowledge that you are a sinner only one heart-beat away from hell for eternity.  The “finished work of Christ,” is of no avail unless you have that victorious faith that saves from the power and the pollution of sin.  (Matthew 1:21) The “finished work of Christ” is of no use so long as you still love the world (1 John 2:15).  The “finished work of Christ” is only efficacious for those who by thorough repentance and living faith have been made “new creatures” in Him. (2 Corinthians 5:17).

 

Christ met and finished the requirements that the holiness of God demanded of Him. Now this same Holy God has one demand for us: “Be ye holy, for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:16). 

 

If Christ had not finished, we could have never started this walk of faith. And there is more! He finished so that He might be both the “author and finisher of our faith.” (Hebrews 12:2).

 

Thank God Christ finished.  Thanking Christ, we will too.

 

PRAYER: Our Father in Heaven, We praise you today for finishing the work of redemption at the cross.  With your blood you saved us!  To God be the glory!  We pray that the great “Finisher of our faith,” would have free right of way in our lives today.  Bless us Lord and make us blessing in a world that desperately needs to see living, active, sincere faith.  Keep Thy cross before us.  We pray in the name of our wonderful Lord and Savior, Amen. “Our Father, &c.”

I THIRST

7 Days to Resurrection Sunday

 

John 19:28 “I thirst.”

SCRIPTURE READING: JOHN 19:28,29

 ²⁸After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.

 ²⁹Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and they filled a spunge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth.

REFLECTION: 

Shrouded in darkness our crucified Savior whispered His first cry for relief—“I thirst.”

How touching.

“He said, ‘I thirst,’ yet He made the river.

He said, ‘I thirst,’ yet He made the sea.

‘I thirst,’ said the King of the ages,

In His great thirst, He brought water to me.” 

            Lyrics by “Mama” Lowrey

In these plaintiff tones we hear again the humanity of our Lord. Dehydrated by His critical loss of blood and that perspiration which so often accompanies excruciating pain, the life of Christ was literally being drained out of Him.  Still there was no hint of anger at His assassins.  Still there was no revenge in His voice. Still He held at bay the legions of angels standing ready to rescue Him. He simply cried, “I thirst.”

 

We hear also the echo of His Divinity.  A thousand years before the Psalmist heard the Messiah cry, “Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.” (Psalm 69:20,21). 

 

Jesus perfectly fulfilled this, and every other prophecy of Messiah.  He did thirst.  They did give him vinegar to drink.  A few miles away, a few months later, Peter affirmed, “Let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made the same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.” (Acts 2:36). Indeed He was, and He is Messiah.

 

Knowing who it is that is speaking, might we hear more? We remember Him at the well.  He said to the Samaritan woman, “Drink this, not that.”  “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I give shall never thirst.” He promises to slake not only the thirsty soul in a moment, for a moment, but forever!  “the water I give, will be a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” (John 4:13,14).

 

There is more to be heard! The songwriter was right.  “In His great thirst, He brought water to me!”  In fulfilling a prophecy, He presented a promise. “I will pour waters on Him that is thirsty.”  (Isaiah 44:3)  He thirsted and opened a fountain of living water, so that all “who hunger and thirst after righteousness, shall be filled!” (Matthew 5:6).

PRAYER:

Our Father in Heaven, Creator of all that is seen and unseen, our soul thirsts for Thee!  We pray that we would be filled with all the fullness of God.  We pray that as we are filled we would be channels of blessing to a world that so desperately needs Thee.  May we follow in the footsteps of our Savior who loved and gave Himself for us.  Let us never presume that we are above our Master: let it be the one desire of our heart, to do not my own will, but the Will of Him that created us for His glory.  Fill us and use us today we pray.  In Jesus’ name, Amen. “Our Father,& c.”

 

 

FROM TRIUMPH TO TEARS

7 Days to Resurrection Sunday

Luke 19:41“And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it…”
 

SCRIPTURE READING: LUKE 19:29-44

  ²⁹And it came to pass, when he was come nigh to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called the mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples,

 ³⁰Saying, Go ye into the village over against you; in the which at your entering ye shall find a colt tied, whereon yet never man sat: loose him, and bring him hither.

 ³¹And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose him? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him.

 ³²And they that were sent went their way, and found even as he had said unto them.

 ³³And as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said unto them, Why loose ye the colt?

 ³⁴And they said, The Lord hath need of him.

 ³⁵And they brought him to Jesus: and they cast their garments upon the colt, and they set Jesus thereon.

 ³⁶And as he went, they spread their clothes in the way.

 ³⁷And when he was come nigh, even now at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen;

 ³⁸Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.

 ³⁹And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples.

 ⁴⁰And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.

 ⁴¹And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,

 ⁴²Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.

 ⁴³For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,

 ⁴⁴And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.

 

REFLECTION: 

To a crescendo of praise Jesus headed to Jerusalem for His final Passover.  “Hosanna!” His faithful shouted.  “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” Word spread along the way.

 

His disciples took their clothing and laid it on the path as the Lord rode toward the Holy City on a colt.  Some took branches from nearby palm trees and waved them in celebration. 

 

I suppose that some of the children whom Jesus loved were there. “Forbid them not!” Jesus invited. 

 

No doubt there were some in that crowd whom Christ had healed. Eyes that had never before seen witnessed the majesty of that moment.  

 

The lame that Christ had touched now ran to participate.  Perhaps there were some of the 5,000 whom Christ had fed with five loaves and two fish.  I cannot imagine that Lazarus, whom Christ had raised to life only a few days earlier, would have missed this moment.

 

The critics were there too.  “Master, rebuke thy disciples!” they shrieked.  They could not see Christ for who He was. They would not. He just didn’t fit their expectations.

 

But this was our Lord’s day.  He said, “if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.” (Luke 19:40)

As the procession rounds a turn in the path, the city appears in panoramic view. Jesus halts. The sound of praise turns to hushed tones.  A warm tear courses down our Savior face. Those who were closest heard Him, “If only you had known…”  Staring off into the future the Savior whispers, “The days will come…your enemies will compass you…keep you in on every side…lay you even with the ground, and your children…not leave one stone on another…”

 

He knew what was coming.  “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem,” He warned, “You kill the prophets, stone them that are sent to you; how often would I have gathered your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wing, and you would not.” (Luke 13:34)

 

In the year of our Lord 70, forty years after that first Palm Sunday, the Roman ruler Titus laid siege to Jerusalem. Conditions inside the city walls deteriorated. There were even reports of cannibalism among the starving inhabitants. For some unexplained reason Titus lifted the siege for a short time.  

 

The Christians, remembering what our Lord had said, fled for their lives.  Those who remained were devastated when the full force and fury of the Roman military was unleashed on the city.  Listen to Jesus.

 

Looking down the road, Jesus saw the future for the Holy City.  Looking down the pathway of our lives, Jesus sees our destiny.  Is there a tear in His eye? Is He crying, “If you had only known…”  Does our Lord see you refusing His Word, ignoring His witnesses, and denying His love? Does Christ see destruction in our future? 

 

The Lord knows our destiny.  But it is we who determine our destiny.  He is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

 

PRAYER: Our Father, We pause again to thank you for your great faithfulness.  We thank you for caring.  We thank you for loving.  We thank you for demonstrating your compassion.  We thank you for warning us.  We pray that our eyes would be open, that our ears would be listening, that our hearts would be willing ,and that our feet would be walking on the highway of holiness.  May it be that when we stand before you there would only tears of joy, as we hear the Lord say, “Welcome home.”  In the name of Jesus we pray, Amen.  “Our Father, &c.”



LINKS FOR YOUR INTEREST

Faith Community Church www.FCCStLouis.org

Pastor Rick Jones' Blog www.PastorRickJones.blogspot.com

Easter 2015 Devotional www.NationoftheCross.blogspot.com

Pastor Rick Jones You-Tube www.youtube.com/user/rmjones58

Pastor Dennis Skinner http://bloomingtoncrusaders.org/

Pastor Marsh Jones http://www.fccurbana.org/
 
 

 

 

YOUR EASTER VIDEO INVITATION ... APRIL 5 2015

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfXqsu45LZM&feature=youtu.be

WHEN I SURVEY THE WONDROUS CROSS

7 Days to Resurrection Sunday
Mark 15:34 "My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me"

SCRIPTURE READING: JOHN 19:25-27; MARK 15:33-35John 19:25-27
25Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.
 26When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!
 27Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.

Mark 15:33-35
33And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.
 34And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
 35And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elias.

REFLECTION:  There are seven recorded sayings of Christ as he hung on the cross.  The first was a prayer that His executioners would be forgiven.  The next two were conversations.  He spoke to the penitent thief and then to His mother.

Is it not touching that our Lord's last conversation was with His grieving mother and the beloved disciple beside her? Nowhere in the New Testament do we read of Christ addressing his mother as "mother."  Yet all through the Gospels we see Him honoring her.  

Our Lord's pathetic cry, "Behold your son," must have cut to her heart. She had carried this miracle in her womb.  She had nursed this Christ-child.  There was so much that she had kept her heart as she raised this son who from the beginning knew "I must be about my Father's business."  (Luke 2:49) She was there at His first miracle.  She was the one who instructed the servants at the wedding feast-"Whatsoever He saith unto you, do it." (John 2:5). She was faithful.

Though her Son was the one who was dying for our sins, she suffered too. Sin is seldom, if ever, without collateral consequence.  The Innocent died for our sins but sadly the innocents suffer too.  It would be too much to bear but our Savior has "made a way of escape." (1 Corinthians 10:13)

From the cross Jesus made provision for his mother's care. Godly children honor their parents. 

At noon, the hour we anticipate the brightest daylight, darkness descended over the whole land.  Some have thought a thick layer of clouds blanketed the land. Others believe that it was a total eclipse of the sun.  Whatever the cause, when the "Light of the World" was nailed to the cross, the light in the world turned to darkness.  Those who deny the Light are finally deprived of the Light.

As our Lord passed through the valley of the shadow He cried, "My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me."  Those were familiar words to the Jews who stood near the cross. 

For centuries they believed the 22nd Psalm spoke of their Messiah.  With these words Christ not only identified himself as Messiah, He implored "his own" to believe Him. To His dying breath He never gave up trying.

Of course it is not ontologically possible that Christ, in whom "dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily" (Colossians 2:9) could have divested Himself of His divinity at this crucial moment.  If He had, His sacrifice would have been deprived of its infinite merit. However, it is true that God the Father, purposefully withheld His consolations as Christ suffered and died.  He was left in the hands of the worst, so that He might redeem the worst.

The whole sorry scene impresses upon us the doom, the darkness, and the death, caused by sin-yes my sin.  I am repulsed.  I turn away. I do not want to see it.  But I must. For it is:

When I survey the wondrous cross, 
On which the Prince of Glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss, 
and pour contempt on all my pride.

See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down,
Did ere such love and sorrow meet
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?  Isaac Watts

PRAYER: Our Father in Heaven, We are so grateful that you gave your only Begotten. We are so thankful that our Lord Jesus laid down His life for us.  When we see the price of redemption, we are convicted and broken-hearted.  We are so unworthy of your love. We pray that today, and every day, we would take seriously the consequence of sin.  We pray that we would walk in the Light of your Word. We pray that we would honor the blood you shed-not only with our words, but in our deeds, and by our love. Everything we are we owe to Thee. We love you Lord.  In Jesus' name, Amen. "Our Father &c."

THE CYNIC, THE SEEKER, AND THE SAVIOR

8 Days to Resurrection Sunday

Luke 23:43 “Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.”

 

SCRIPTURE READING: LUKE 23:35-43

 ³⁵And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God.

 ³⁶And the soldiers also mocked him, coming to him, and offering him vinegar,

 ³⁷And saying, If thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself.

 ³⁸And a superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

 ³⁹And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.

 ⁴⁰But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?

 ⁴¹And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.

⁴²And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.

 ⁴³And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.

 

REFLECTION: 

Suffering is a window to the soul.  Nowhere was this more evident that at Calvary.

 

The cynic impaled on one side of Jesus railed, “If thou be the Christ, save yourself and us.” (Luke 23:39). Count him among that multitude who doubts the divinity of Christ and delights in the deity of self.  The first article of their creed is “please thyself.” People and things are seen as means to self-fulfillment.  Even Christ is seen as a means not an end. 

 

This tormented soul, only hours away from an eternity of unfulfilled desire, refused to abandon his self-centered agenda.  Imagine it. Physically he was inches away from the Savior, but spiritually he was a thousand miles away.  He writhed on the cross, longing to escape the consequences of his choices, but unwilling to make a different choice—to make Christ his sovereign.

 

On the other side of Christ, a man whom we will call the seeker saw the vulgar error of his companion in suffering.  From his painful post he spoke to the cynic: “Dost thou not fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?”

The seeker humbly acknowledged his sin and the propriety of his punishment.  He confessed, “We receive the due reward of our deeds.”  When we awake to the fact that we have sinned and that we deserve retribution we are well on our way to salvation.

 

Focusing his eyes on Christ, the seeker expressed his faith, “this man hath done nothing amiss!”  He is continuing toward Christ, but he has not yet arrived.  The recognition of Christ’s perfection is essential, but it is not enough. Remember Pilate had said a few hours earlier “I find no fault in this man.” 

 

The seeker’s salvation was secured the moment he sincerely prayed, “Lord…”  In that moment, he stepped off the throne of his life and crowned Jesus Lord of all!  The cynic saw Christ as a means to an end.  The seeker embraced Christ as the end.  His heart sang,

My stubborn will at last hath yielded,

I would be Thine, and Thine alone,

And this the prayer my lips are bringing,

Lord, let in me Thy will be done!

Lelia Morris

 

The Seeker’s fear of God brought him to humbly acknowledge his need for God.  His confession and faith in the Son of God instantly infused his soul with the blessed hope that is unique to people of God.  “Remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” (Luke 23:42).  “We have here no continuing city”, but “we look for a city whose builder and maker is God.” (Hebrews 13:14; 11:10)

 

Suffering revealed the sad soul of the cynic, it moved the longing soul of the seeker, and it demonstrated the great soul of the Savior. Extreme suffering only proved His extreme goodness and His extreme love for us.

“Oh what a Savior! Oh Hallelujah!

His heart was broken on Calvary. 

His hands were nail-scarred, His side was riven,

He gave His life’s blood for even me.” 

PRAYER: Our Father in Heaven, what a joy to call Thee “Father.” We are so grateful for the promises of your Word. It is such a comfort to know that “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for Thou are with me.” We pray that whatever trial we face today, that we will emerge better not bitter.  Whatever you will that we suffer today, we pray that our faith would hold firm, our love would grow greater, and our hope would hold us secure.  Lord we love you more than anything, more than anyone, and more than ever before.  In Jesus name, Amen.  “Our Father, &c.”

FATHER FORGIVE THEM

9 Days to Resurrection Sunday

Luke 23:34 “Father, forgive them…”

 

SCRIPTURE READING: LUKE 23:32-43

³²And there were also two other, malefactors, led with him to be put to death.

 ³³And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.

 ³⁴Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.

 ³⁵And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God.

 ³⁶And the soldiers also mocked him, coming to him, and offering him vinegar,

 ³⁷And saying, If thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself.

 ³⁸And a superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

 ³⁹And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.

 ⁴⁰But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?

 ⁴¹And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.

 ⁴²And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.

 ⁴³And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.

REFLECTION: 

With the precious blood of Jesus literally on their hands, the soldiers heard the Savior pray, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34).  The first of Christ’s seven sayings from the cross was a prayer, not for himself, but for His assassins.

 

Were the soldiers repentant? There is no evidence that they were even remorseful. They played games at the foot of the cross, gambling for our Lord’s clothing.

And yet, there was no tinge of revenge in what our Lord said during this whole pitiful ordeal.  Eyewitnesses and ancient historians, even those who were not believers, are unanimous—“never a man spake like this man.” (John 7:46)

 

If it is true that, “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh,” (Matthew 12:24) then our Lord’s heart was purer than the purest. Pilate presented Christ saying, “Behold the man.” We say, “Behold the God man.”

 

There was compassion. It would have been impossible for those who were responsible to understand the implications of their actions that day.  “They know not what they do,” was our Lord’s verdict.  He felt pity for His persecutors. Not the kind of pity that comes from that malignant  “I’m so much better than you fools” attitude, but the kind of pity that is genuinely sorry to see anyone so lost.

There was forgiveness. He was not angry. He was not blaming.  He was not resentful.  He made no claim for repayment. He did not withdraw. He freely forgave. Think of that.  He forgave.

 

The soldiers asked for His forgiveness and so He forgave? Actually they never asked, but He forgave, and prayed that they would be forgiven by His Father.

 

The Jewish leaders begged for His forgiveness and so he forgave them?  That’s not in the Scriptures. They never plead for mercy, but He forgave, and prayed that God would be merciful to them.

 

Does such an effusive forgiveness imply universalism—that Christ is so forgiving, that everyone who repents and those who do not repent will be granted eternal life? God’s grace is universally offered “the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,” (Titus 2:11), but God’s forgiveness is conditional, He is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)

 

Jesus forgave before He was asked to forgive. Forgiving people do that.

We say that “to err is human and to forgive is Divine.”  But put the Divine in the heart of the human and forgiveness springs spontaneously.  

 

God’s offended people rest assured and confident—assured that God knows what is an intended and an unintended wrong, and confident that God’s justice will prevail, “vengeance is mine, I will repay saith the Lord.” (Hebrews 10:30). We believe “The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.” (Psalm 19:9). We gladly leave the judgment to Him.

Whether or not sinners are ultimately forgiven, we must be forgiving.  Whether or not thoughtless people ask for our forgiveness, we must be forgiving—not angry, not blaming, not resentful, not demanding repayment, not withdrawn, but forgiving from the bottom of our hearts.

 

If are not forgiving we will not be forgiven.  Hear Jesus, “If ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matthew 6:15).

 

Was our Lord’s prayer answered?  Did God the Father forgive those who cruelly mistreated and

executed His only begotten Son?  For their sakes I certainly hope so. 

If He did forgive them, He did it for one and only one reason—they came to faith in the blood of the Lamb of God--the very Lamb they sacrificed at Calvary. 

PRAYER: Our Father in Heaven, We are so undeserving of your forgiveness.  You are holy and pure and right.  Apart from you we are sinful, impure, and unrighteous.  But “Thanks be to God for His unspeakable gift!”  We thank you for praying for us.  We thank you for your offer to forgive us.  We thank you for desiring our redemption. We pray that the same Spirit of forgiveness that Christ exampled at Calvary would fill our hearts.  We pray that we would be forgiven and forgiving today, and every day.  In the name of Jesus, Amen. “Our Father, &c.”

 

THEY CRUCIFIED HIM

11 Days to Resurrection Sunday

Luke 23:33 “When they were come to Calvary they crucified him…”

SCRIPTURE READING: JOHN 19:17,18

17 And He bearing His cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha. 

18 Where they crucified Him, and two other with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst.

Mark 15:25; Matthew 27:35

REFLECTION: 

 

How succinct. How stark. How sad.

 

With little or no commentary the Gospels report our Lord’s crucifixion.  Two recount His miraculous birth.  But all four tell of His death.

 

It was 9 o’clock in the morning when our Lord laid His bruised and bleeding body against the patibulum (the cross member) with his shoulders against the wood.  The soldiers drove a square wrought-iron nail through His wrist and deep into the wood.  Quickly the action was repeated on his other wrist.  The patibulum was then lifted into place at the top of the stipes (the upright post).  Jesus’ legs were extended and with toes down a nail was driven through the arch of each foot.  It is generally believed that Christ hung not more than a few feet off the ground. 

 

A titulus (sign) was nailed above his head, “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.”  The soldiers stood back to watch their victim.  They gambled for his clothing.

 

Both John and Luke tell us that Christ was crucified at “the place of the skull.” John recorded the Hebrew name Golgotha.  Luke recorded the Latin name, Calvarie Locus.  It is from this we derive “Calvary.”

 

Some have thought it was called “the place of the skull” because when it is viewed from a certain angle the hillside appeared to resemble a skull.  Others suppose that it was known as “the place of the skull,” because regular executions were carried out at that location. Origen, a Church Father of the 3^rd century, imagines that Adam’s skull was buried at the precise place where Christ died.  More recently some have thought that it was the place where King David buried the skull of his arch-enemy, Goliath. 

 

While the place is uncertain, it is certain that it was a place. 

 

The cults are notorious for either over-spiritualizing (accenting the truth that “Christ was very God” and teaching that physical realities are not actual) or over-materializing (emphasizing the truth that “Christ was very man,” and denying the spiritual nature of the Savior’s sacrifice). 

 

Yet at a certain place, on a certain day, at a certain time, a certain very God very Man Savior suffered on a certain cross, to redeem a certain sinner.  Oh What A Savior!

 

Historians divide human history at the point of Christ’s birth—BC and AD.  But the redeemed know that Calvary was the decisive point that changed history and eternity for one and for all.

 

Had it not been for a place called Mount Calvary,
Had it not been for the old rugged cross;
Had it not been for Man called Jesus,
Then forever my soul would be lost.

Rusty Goodman

 

PRAYER: Our Father, We come to you in the Name of your Son, our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.  We thank you for your Providence—protecting and providing for our needs. We thank you for your Presence—assuring and guiding us moment by moment.  We thank you for your Promise—that you will not leave nor forsake us, and that you will come again for us.  As we look again at the cross, we pray that we would never take for granted the price you paid for our redemption.  With the song writer we say, “Were the whole realm of nature mine, that were a present far too small, love so amazing so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.”  In the name of Jesus, Amen. “Our Father, &c.”

 

 

THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE FORSAKEN

12 Days to Resurrection Sunday.

 

Matthew 26:56 “…Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled…”

 

SCRIPTURE READING: MATTHEW 26:55-57

⁵⁵In that same hour said Jesus to the multitudes, Are ye come out as against a thief with swords and staves for to take me? I sat daily with you teaching in the temple, and ye laid no hold on me.

 ⁵⁶But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled.
 ⁵⁷And they that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled.

REFLECTION: 

Elijah was inducted on the day he alone challenged the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. (1 Kings 18)

 

Daniel joined the day he disobeyed the King, and knelt to pray alone. (Daniel 6)

 

David was admitted when as a lad he alone ran to face Goliath. (1 Samuel 17)

 

Jeremiah was accepted when he was thrown into a dungeon and was left to starve and sink in the mire.  He alone had the courage to tell the King what he did not want to hear. (Jeremiah 38)

 

The Apostle Paul was included on the day he stood trial in Rome.  "At my first answer no one stood with me, but all men forsook me." (2 Timothy 4:16).

And Jesus, the Captain of this band, stood alone to face trial--"all the disciples forsook him and fled." 

 

It is "THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE FORSAKEN."

 

Ah there were great crowds and calls for Christ to be crowned King when He fed the multitudes.  But when the dinners stopped the crowds disappeared.

There were multitudes waving palms and shouting "Hosanna," when Jesus rode into Jerusalem hailed as a King. But when the parade was over and the party became a prayer vigil, and the prayer vigil turned into a vicious ordeal of false accusation and suffering, Jesus was left standing alone.

Heroes of the faith--those whose lives are immortalized on the pages of Scripture, those who we admire in the annuls of Christian history (i.e. Justin Martyr, Huss, Luther, Knox, Wesley, and Bonhoeffer), and those unknown to men but certainly known by God--are all numbered with "THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE FORSAKEN."

Too often we measure success by the numbers of men who are standing with us.  God is looking for men who will stand with Him--and stand with Him alone.  Jesus stood alone for us.  Will we stand alone for Him?

 

I wonder how those disciples could have forsaken our Lord--every last one of them?  I am amazed at the professing Christians I see today--talk about a bunch of "forsakers."  They will not stand for anything, and yes, they are falling for everything.

 

And then I think of my own choices.  How often have I followed the crowd rather than identify with the Christ?  How often have I sacrificed my integrity at the altar of popularity or expediency?  How often have I refused to stand with Christ at a specific point of obedience He has required?

 

God grant that with His help we will never again forsake, but faithfully serve Him in "THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE FORSAKEN." 

PRAYER: Our Father, Which art in Heaven, Blessed be the Father, Blessed be the Son, and Blessed be the Holy Spirit.  We give you all the praise for your great work of redemption and for granting us glorious freedom. We pray that we would be so filled with all the fullness of God that your strength would be made perfect in our weakness.  We pray that today and everyday, we would stand for Thee, even if we must stand alone.  If and when we must stand, may we do so in a right spirit and such a winsome way that others will be drawn to stand with you.  In the name of Jesus we pray, Amen. “Our Father, &c”