Quick Read #27: Love hung bleeding…

That the Creator of all things seen and unseen (John 1:1-3) would come to us in physical form, walk among us, teach us His ways and build a discipleship to carry His message through the ages is beyond understanding. That He would go as far to purchase the curse of sin with His blood goes further than we can possibly know. What then drove Him to give His life, to suffer and die in agony at the hand of His creation, for no apparent gain?

Is there a suitable answer to this difficulty, which has for millennia arrested human minds? It’s the great question eluding many who seek explanation from the very moment it was known; even the Angels dwelt upon it. Why the Mighty God would offer Himself when the fault is not His but ours; yet this is what happened ….

when love hung bleeding on a tree.

And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns and placed it on his head, (John 19:2) which pierced His skull: nailed by the wrists and again through His feet, made fun of and spat upon, by the mocking crowd, given vinegar to quench His thirst, and was pierced through the side to confirm His death when blood and water flowed from the spotless Lamb of God. The Prophets told us it would come.

And one shall say unto him, what are these wounds in thy hands? Then He shall answer: those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. (Zechariah 13:6)

But His death was only the half of it, for out of it came eternal life. The purpose was a love so deep, so overwhelming, it was inescapable. The Apostle John shows that, God is love (1John 4:8); He first loved us (1John 4:19); a covering for our sins. (1John 4:10)

So, as all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) He purchased our debt. How could He not, when the Spirit of Jesus is Love without limit; the Blood of His Mercy purges the stains we cannot remove.

So in torment, He cleansed us all in the Spirit of release and life as a loving Father would do. And this is why our kindred redeemer came. To save His own caught in the snare of the one who would take us from Him; that liar who threw down the gauntlet of the ultimate price when death entered Eden. So Jesus picked it up willingly because He has said; Greater love has no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13)

And yet He asks little when He has given greatly. A place we call home, air to breathe, sun to warm and soil in which to grow food and pleasures to the eye, which He waters with His rain. He has given us all manner of companions; friends to cherish families to love; a mind to think, a heart to feel, a soul to understand and a Spirit to bond. So how do we honour Him, when He shed His Blood that we may also have eternal life?

We do what He asks of us. It does not require going without; it only takes faith to defeat unbelief. And when we believe, His Spirit will start to move in us, and only then will we begin to see and hear. We will see the truth of His Word and hear His call to repentance. And when our faith is set, our sins and iniquities will be remembered no more. He has erased the debt and curse of sin and death, by a never-ending gift through love made perfect. A gift of great price that has opened the Gates of His Kingdom to all…

To Alex, in brotherly love and affection in Christ.

And to everyone, love and peace as always,

James