Easter Sunday is the monumental day and focal point of our faith. As I think about the resurrection of Jesus, I can't help but think about the the way He was tortured and beaten on the Friday before... Isaiah 52 says, "his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness"... He was so disfigured that He was unrecognizable as a human being. I get sick to my stomach when I think about how that kind of treatment could be put on anyone, let alone the savior or the world.
He knew that all of that was going to happen to him, and instead of removing himself from the cross, He endured the pain. He hung there because He knew the affect it would have on the rest of mankind. He knew that the only way to redemption was through His sacrifice. Here's the coolest part: He took that place for me. Had it only been me that was going to walk on this earth after Him, He still would have spilled His blood for me. A sinner; unworthy; so extremely undeserving... I could never earn my place into Heaven, but the moment he let His son be crucified on that cross, He gave me the opportunity to accept the gift of free grace and enter into His family. He invited me into his family, and secures me in His love. I can't escape Him. I am His forever, and He is mine.
I think too often we see the outer shell of the lives that the people around us live and we feel like we can't compare to them; we think that they are so much more deserving than we are. The good news is: the ground at the foot of the cross is level for everyone. We are all saved by grace. There isn't a single one of us that is more deserving than the next... "and all of our righteous acts are like filthy rags..." (Isaiah 64:6)
The blood of Jesus washes me. His sacrifice saved my life. His blood is my victory.
It's easy to get upset when we think about the treatment that Jesus persevered through... but that is exactly what he did! He persevered! He rose again. He rolled the stone away, and went to go celebrate with His friends! He defeated death, sin, hell, satan... He destroyed all the things that come against us in life.
When we accept Jesus into our hearts, we are a new creation. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says that we are a new creation, the old is gone and the new has come. We are redeemed, and we are co-heirs with Christ. We are victorious in Jesus!
We are victorious in Jesus.
We live in this world, but we are not of it. We know that we are here to love and to serve people. We are here to sing praises, and to carry the good news to our peers; to our offices; to our campuses; to the homeless; to the widows; to the Nations. We are here to be Jesus to the world - We bare the name of Jesus.
Don't you ever forget that YOU were created in God's image. He sent His one and ONLY son to die for YOU. He endured through the crucifixion for YOU. He rose again for YOU. Through Him, YOU are victorious. Walk in Victory today - You are a new creation. His grace and mercy is made new every single morning. He loves you far beyond what You could ever imagine in your wildest dreams, and He marvels at Your beauty.
"Today suggests we're part of a bigger story, one in which Love wins." -TWLOHA
