Get ready to start a journey…a journey through the pages of the Bible and the pages of your life.
Exhausted by the beatings and floggings of the day, Jesus collapsed under the load. A man from Cyrene was forced to carry the cross for Jesus. Little did Simon of Cyrene know that the cross was actually for his sins…and yours and mine. Simon carried the cross to Golgotha, then laid it down for the Savior to become our sacrifice.
The Almighty took on flesh and made His dwelling among us. His existence was for this painful purpose. Sin had separated man from God. Death was sin’s penalty. Jesus, fully God and fully man, took on death for us. The Sinless One died for sinful man. The penalty of sin was paid for in full at the cross. He sacrificed Himself for you.
What an amazing scenario! The people chose to have a dangerous man back on the streets rather than have Jesus live. The innocent would die. The guilty went free. The same applies today. The spotless Lamb of God bore our sin in His body on the cross. He died in our place so we could be free forever.
Jesus did not come to perform. He did not come to show us another sign. His mission was clear. He came to die so we could live. He purchased life for us by His death on the cross. Signs will draw a crowd; the cross drew scorn. Signs will fade away; the cross purchased life eternal. Jesus let His actions speak for Him. He came to give His life as a ransom for many.
Jesus did not respond because He was not a victim to a trial; He was a servant following the Father’s plan. The Sinless One gave no defense of His innocence. The time had come for the cross. Jesus was about His Father’s business.
For some reason, Judas couldn’t grasp forgiveness. The shame drove him deeper into his guilt instead of to the forgiving Lord. He took matters into his own hands and ended his life. Judas not only betrayed Jesus, but he also ran from the One who could forgive him, even after the kiss.
All of us can relate to Peter, can’t we? We have remained silent as others use Jesus’ name as slang. We have remained silent as His claims have been laughed at. We have even joined in the laughter as His person is satirized. We have ignored His Word by open rebellion. We have followed Peter in our own denials, but have we joined him in remorse and repentance?
God was humiliated. With the angels poised at the edge of heaven to charge, the Word remained silent. He prepared to be delivered as the perfect sacrifice for sin. He did it all for us.
But, remember, every movement leading to the cross was fulfilling Scripture. Jesus came to give His life as a ransom for us. Nothing took place outside of God’s sovereign plan.
We never have to be held back by past mistakes. God forgives and uses our failures to prepare us for the journey ahead.
Jesus was not a victim. He did not find Himself at the wrong place at the wrong time. He was not a casualty at the hands of the religious leaders or Roman authorities. Jesus went to the cross on His own accord and for a purpose. The penalty of sin is death. Jesus took this punishment on our behalf. He bore our sins in His body on the cross. He died so we could live.
Have you walked away from God? Have you betrayed the Lord? Have you turned your back on Jesus? Stop running. Don’t place your life in your own hands. Come to Jesus…and find the life you’ve always longed for.