I am without words.
So, because I am utterly overwhelmed by the immensity of
this task, I will simply share with you the two things that brought me to tears
(yes, literally) as I reflected on this moving chapter.
The first is seeing Mary, the mother of Jesus standing at
the foot of the cross. I witness a mother watching her son suffer one of the
most painful, torturous, barbaric deaths: death by crucifixion. Simeon’s prophecy
was being fulfilled:
“This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall, and
many others to rise. He has been sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose
him. As a result, the deepest thoughts
of many hearts will be revealed. And a
sword will pierce your very soul.” Luke 2:34-35
What might it feel like to witness your beautiful son being
put to death right before your very eyes? I cannot fully comprehend this. I
don’t think I want to. Too much heart ache. I can hardly bare to think about
it.
And our sweet Saviour speaks gently and kindly to His loving
mother. He knows the pain in her heart, the sword that has pierced her very
soul in this moment. And He sees the disciple whom he loved standing nearby
(John – the very writer of this gospel). He speaks to his mother “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to
the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her
to his own home. John 19:26-27
Up until his last breath, Jesus still had concern for his
mother. He was providing for her even as he was slowly losing air in his lungs
and sinking into the depths of death. He entrusted His mother to His beloved disciple, John. We see here the love Jesus has for this disciple: He trusted
him more than his very own brothers.
The second thing that moved me to tears was pondering Jesus
as the sinless sacrifice. We (humans) are deserving of God’s wrath. We have lived
for ourselves and NOT for God. We have clearly fallen short of God’s standards
for which he created us and deserve his righteous judgment. The same cannot be
said for Jesus. Jesus loved and obeyed God perfectly. He was the only one who
did not deserve judgment from God.
John Piper’s words about this pierce my heart:
“For our sake God did the impossible: He poured out his
wrath on his own Son – the one whose
submission made him infinitely unworthy to receive it. Yet, the Son’s very
willingness to receive it was precious in God’s sight. The wrath bearer was
infinitely loved.”
Jesus was infinitely unworthy to receive the Father’s wrath.
He was perfect. He joyfully endured
the cross (see Hebrews 12:2…WOW) because of his LOVE for us (see Ephesians
5:2). The Father willingly poured His wrath on His son instead of us because of
His LOVE for us (1 John 4:10, Romans 3:25).
Our Holy & loving God was fulfilling His plan to rescue
and redeem us. This horrible event? It was all planned out before the creation of
the world to accomplish the Lord’s purposes.
Would you reflect with me on some scriptures that point to
the ultimate meaning of this sacrifice? Choose a couple of verses below. Though it is just skimming the surface it is worthy of our meditation.
In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us
and send his Son to be the [wrath absorbing] propitiation for our sins. 1 John
4:10
God put [Christ] forward as a propitiation by his blood, to
be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine
forbearance he had passed over former sins. Romans 3:25
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a
curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”
Galatians 3:13
Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him
to grief. Isaiah 53:10
Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering
and sacrifice to God. Ephesians 5:2
Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.
Ephesian 5:25
[He] loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20
One will scarcely die for a righteous person – though perhaps
for a good person one would dare even to die – but God shows his love for us in
that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:7-8
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that
whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness
of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace. Ephesians 1:7
And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the
uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven
us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us
with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. Colossians
2:13-14
The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to
give his life as a ransom for many. Mark 10:45
This is the blood of the covenant, which was poured out for
many for the forgiveness of sins. Matthew 26:28
We have now been justified by His blood. Romans 5:9
[We] are justified by his grace as a gift, through the
redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Romans 3:24
For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made
sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous. Romans
5:19
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that
in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21
For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. Hebrews 10:14
He has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in
order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him
Colossians 1:22
He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all,
how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Romans 8:32
But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed
for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his
wounds we are healed. Isaiah 53:5
[He] gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the
present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father Galatians 1:4
For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for
the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God 1 Peter 3:18
For Christ has entered… into heaven itself, now to appear
in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly,
as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for
then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world.
But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away
sin by the sacrifice of himself. Hebrews 9:24-26
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we
might die to sin and live to righteousness. 1 Peter 2:24
And he died for all, that those who live might no longer
live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. 2
Corinthians 5:15
[He] gave himself for us to redeem us from all
lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are
zealous for good works. Titus 2:14
Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he
himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might
destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver
all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. Hebrews
2:14-15
So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of
many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are
eagerly waiting for him. Hebrews 9:28
For the joy that was set before him endured the cross,
despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews
12:2
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” Revelation 5:12
But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our
Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the
world. Galatians 6:14
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