Radical Sacrifice

How many sermons about Jesus dying for us do we need to listen to before we will become a different church? Sometimes I wonder if saying some bad words will get our attention & awaken us to the radical truth, this unparalleled story of God dying for man. Can I grasp the magnitude of such a gift, the expense, the radical act of sacrificial love, the depth of unselfishness, the expanse of mercy & grace that rescues a chaotic world from the destruction of sin & selfishness? Can I grasp the intensity of sin, its hideousness, its hellishness, it destructive power & damning purpose? When I see Jesus broken, beaten, abused, mocked, tortured beyond comprehension, am I awakened to the putrid reality of my sin? God in his infinite wisdom declared that without sacrifice there would be no redemption. That sacrifice was a life given to redeem. Not merely something, but a living being had to be given to pay the price. A sacrifice that cost-a life was given, death was experienced, someone had to stop breathing & enter the darkness of death to become my Savior. The gap, the chaos of sin & selfishness that exists between man & God demanded a sacrifice greater than I can give. The Son left heaven, emptied himself, laid down His life, took my place, died my death, became sin for me-hideous, obnoxious, repulsive sin-the holy, sinless one got the raw end of the deal so that I can be alive & free & know rest of God & escape chaos.

Radical Sacrifice

How many sermons about Jesus dying for us do we need to listen to before we will become a different church? Sometimes I wonder if saying some bad words will get our attention & awaken us to the radical truth, this unparalleled story of God dying for man. Can I grasp the magnitude of such a gift, the expense, the radical act of sacrificial love, the depth of unselfishness, the expanse of mercy & grace that rescues a chaotic world from the destruction of sin & selfishness? Can I grasp the intensity of sin, its hideousness, its hellishness, it destructive power & damning purpose? When I see Jesus broken, beaten, abused, mocked, tortured beyond comprehension, am I awakened to the putrid reality of my sin? God in his infinite wisdom declared that without sacrifice there would be no redemption. That sacrifice was a life given to redeem. Not merely something, but a living being had to be given to pay the price. A sacrifice that cost-a life was given, death was experienced, someone had to stop breathing & enter the darkness of death to become my Savior. The gap, the chaos of sin & selfishness that exists between man & God demanded a sacrifice greater than I can give. The Son left heaven, emptied himself, laid down His life, took my place, died my death, became sin for me-hideous, obnoxious, repulsive sin-the holy, sinless one got the raw end of the deal so that I can be alive & free & know rest of God & escape chaos.

In Christ Hope

The amazing hope that is prepared in Christ for His followers does not negate the reality of our humanity with all its weakness, nor does it negate the reality of life's uncertainties. Hope in Christ is our bridge to tomorrow. The follower of Christ awakens each day to new grace and the opportunity to journey with the living God. This hope is not a mind game with the realities around us, but is a settled state of spirit and mind as one embraces the truth that Jesus Christ reigns. Watchman Nee captures the tension that we often experience as we live as aliens and strangers in this world. "The chistian life is a paradox of power in weakness, joy amid pain, faith triumphing in the presence of doubt. When the Christian is strongest in the Lord he is often most conscious of inabiilty; when he is most courageous he may be profoundly aware of fear within; and when he is most joyful a sense of distress readily breaks upon him again. It is only the exceeding greatness of the power that lifts him on high (Nee/Table In The Wilderness, 3/24)."