Darkness. I can’t imagine the hopelessness that fell over the earth when the Son of God was crucified on a bloody cross. All day, I’ve been thinking about why. Why would God let that happen? How could He watch Him be falsely accused, mocked and ridiculed? How could He watch as His one and only son was beaten beyond anything any of us could ever fathom? How could God watch His son be nailed to a cross? How could He watch as Jesus took his last breath? How could He not stop all of it? He had the power to… why didn’t He?
Because God already had a plan. He knew what Christ’s death on the cross would mean for you and I. He knew that Jesus would be raised from the dead only three days later. He knew what He was doing back then, and He knows what He is doing today.
“It is finished”. Those words alone are enough for me. They give me chills every single time I think about them and the meaning behind them. The “it” that Jesus finished while hanging on a cross was the beginning of our lives. The “it” was God’s salvation plan for the entire world. The “it” was our freedom. The “it” was propitiation. The “it” was the absolute greatest demonstration of God’s love for man.
Three days of darkness. I cannot even begin to understand what that would have felt like. Our Savior crucified on a cross. Our hope for eternity went with him into the grave. For those days it seemed as if death had won. It was all a part of God’s plan, but no one could have known that. No one could have known that on the third day, the stone would be rolled away and Jesus would get up and walk out of that tomb- a risen Savior. No one could have known that God’s grace would save us all from the darkness.
I like to think sometimes that I still live in darkness. I have the tendency to pity my life at times because I get plagued by the ways of this world. Life becomes what I like to call unbearable. I feel more often than not that I’ve reached my breaking point with trials or hardships that I am able to handle. I forget God’s promises to me. I forget about the ultimate sacrifice for my sins. I forget about my PERFECT SAVIOR who rose from the dead with the keys to my freedom in his scar-filled hands.
Shame, embarrassment, guilt, jealousy, pain, fear- I carry them all and so much more.
Here’s the beautiful part… the day that I gave my life to Christ and put my hope in him, that’s the day that I had the choice to leave all of that at his feet. I needed that reminder this week. I needed to refocus on him. I needed to wake up every day and consciously choose Jesus because if not, I was subconsciously choosing everything else.
He died so that I can live. He carried the weight and sins of the world on his shoulders so that you and I wouldn’t have to, and yet I sometimes still find myself choosing to.
The shame of my past- Jesus nailed it to the cross. The guilt of my sins- he left them in that grave. The jealousy and feelings of insufficiency that I battle with- he calms those by calling me a daughter of the King. The pain and heartbreak I have felt- he reminds me that he was with me every step of the way. My fear of the unknown future- he lifted it off of my shoulders and onto his own. My goodness, our God is incredible.
He paid the price for my sins and then offers his unending, unfailing forgiveness every single time that I fall short. Jesus is alive, and he invites us all to be alive with him on a daily basis. A cross meant to kill is my victory. That’s overwhelming to me. That’s unfathomable at times.
My freedom was made possible by Jesus. My hope for eternity was a gift from my Perfect Savior. I cannot help but stand in awe of his grace and mercy. I cannot help but be overcome with emotions when I think of the fathomless depth of love that sent Christ to the cross. I cannot believe that God would ever choose me to help take the keys of freedom to His nations through the World Race. I cannot wait to watch him set other prisoners free like he did for me. How amazing is our God that He is allowing me to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus in RWANDA next year?
Jesus is alive, and he brought the keys to our freedom with him out of the grave. I cannot imagine a better reason to celebrate than that.
