Christians, recently during praise and worship, we were singing a song with the lyric, “how beautiful the blood flowed.” I first thought to myself, what an odd lyric, to see beauty in the macabre. As we sang further the Holy Spirit gave me insight into the beauty of the blood. We often talk about Jesus “laying” down his life. He was in fact a sacrifice for all of us. Jesus knowingly and willingly did nothing to stop the flow of blood, He embraced losing His life, He longed to complete the Father’s will, and so should we, despite what it may cost us.
Jesus, in the Garden the night before His crucifixion prayed to the Father, if there be any other way, but Father let your will be done. This clues us in to two things. First, that Jesus was not desiring to be crucified. Crucifixion was the WORST death they could give anyone. The second thing we see is that Jesus’ own desire did not trump His desire to complete God’s will. He ultimately submitted to the Father’s will, to fulfill the Father’s purpose for His life.
Once Jesus knew that there was no other way, He had the mindset to embrace the process. As soon as the first whip cracked on His back and the first drop of blood hit the ground, He could have quit. Jesus could have called on legions of angels and gotten out of there. Too often Christians, we do this. As soon as following God’s will costs us something personal (pride, earthly desire, money, independance, relationships, time, energy, or safety and security) we bolt. We stop the flow of loss, because we associate loss with losing. Jesus looks further, He knows that loss in this VERY temporary world equals gain FOREVER.
After being beaten severely, blood was flowing readily from His back down his legs. They stuck a crown of thorns on His head, now blood was flowing from His head. After a treacherous march out of the city they nailed His hands and feet, where more and more blood flowed. As they hoisted Jesus up on the cross, He had to have looked physically horrible. A matted and dirty, bloody mess, so how could anyone see beauty?
Like most tests and trials, you must look beyond the “here and now” to see the beauty. As Jesus hung on the cross, literally feeling every drop of life pour out of Himself, He had to have been looking forward. He knew that there would be redemption from His blood. He knew that there would be healing from His blood. He knew there was power over every tactic of the enemy in His blood. He knew that every drop would pay for every sin, for every person that calls upon the name of the Lord to be saved. He saw the bigger picture. He saw you, and He saw me, and He saw our desire to be re-connected with the Father, and He said, “it’s worth it, I’ll do it”.
As we look at the tests and trials God brings us face to face with, we have a choice, to either submit to His will and walk through them despite the cost or to turn away from the challenge and walk away from the test and also the results from that test. The next time, Christians, we find ourselves being tested and torn, and we feel as though God is wanting to do something great, but it will cost us something along the way, let’s look to the cross. Let’s look to the blood, and remember how truly beautiful that blood flowed. Let’s embrace the tests and trials, and wait for God to work it for our good and ultimately His Glory, in Jesus name, Amen.
No one has greater love [no one has shown stronger affection] than to lay down (give up) his own life for his friends. John 15:13 (AMP)
And going a little farther, He threw Himself upon the ground on His face and prayed saying, My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will [not what I desire], but as You will and desire. Matthew 26:39 (AMP)
Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? Matthew 26:53 (NIV)
For whoever is bent on saving his [temporal] life [his comfort and security here] shall lose it [eternal life]; and whoever loses his life [his comfort and security here] for My sake shall find it [life everlasting]. Matthew 16:25 (AMP)
But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him, and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole. Isaiah 53:5 (AMP)
written and posted by Daniel Poggensee | 2017
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