7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.
8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding.
~ Ephesians 1:7-8, Holy Bible (New International Version).
Friday, March 29, 2013
Lest We Forget
"But He [Jesus] 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."1
Today is Good Friday, the day we remember with profound appreciation that it was for this day that Jesus came to earth … to die in our place on that cruel Roman cross to save us from the terrible consequences of sin—a disease far deadlier than AIDS or any other disease that is a physical death sentence.
Today, we also remember that Jesus Christ was not an ordinary man. True, he was a man but he was and is the Son of the Living God—the Great Creator who became our Savior—the one who laid aside his external garments of deity, stepped out of the Ivory Palaces of Heaven, clothed himself in a garment of human flesh and came to earth to pay the redemption price for our sin. He died on the cross in your place and mine. In so doing he provided the only cure for the deadly disease of sin whose sentence is spiritual and eternal death.
Today, we remember, too, that without Jesus as our Savior, we would be headed for hell from which there is no escape beyond the grave. Wherever and whatever hell is we can be sure of this, it is eternal disconnection from God the author of all love and life—cut off forever from all love and all loving relationships. Such consequences are unthinkable.
And today we need to remember that Jesus died for us because he loved us far more than we can even begin to understand. As another has said, Jesus would rather go to hell for us than to go to heaven without us! This he did when he died on the cross in your place and in mine.
Jesus gave his life that we might live. In thanksgiving to him for his unspeakable gift, may we give our life to live for him—to help spread the gospel so that others might also live. For without Jesus, people are lost forever!
If you have never thanked Jesus for dying on the cross to pay the price for your sins, I urge you to do this today, and accept Jesus as your Savior and receive God's forgiveness and the assurance of a home in heaven forever. To help you be sure to read the article, "How to Be Sure You're a Real Christian—without having to be religious at: www.actsweb.org/christian and/or "God's Invitation" at: http://tinyurl.com/gods-invitation.
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, how can I ever thank you enough for loving me enough to give your Son Jesus to die on the cross in my place to pay the penalty for all my sins? And dear Jesus I do thank you from the depths of my heart for what you did for me. Please help me to live a life of thanksgiving to you always in all ways. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."
1. Isaiah 53:5 (NKJV).
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With Love from Handel's Messiah!
George Frideric Handel's musical masterpiece MESSIAH, illustrated with beautiful motion pictures and short narrative between the songs to tell the Biblical story behind the music. This presentation emphasizes the purpose of Jesus' life, death and resurrection. Features The Academy of Ancient Music, Christopher Hogwood conductor, and the Smithsonian Chamber Players. 54 minutes. A DVD of this film is available for $6. Call 614-882-2126, or go to http://biblestudents.com/freevid.html Associated Bible Students of Central Ohio.
