Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha).
Here they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.
John 19:17-18
We can see the love Christ displayed on the cross even from a distance, where we may have stood terrified and huddled together under some tree on that dark day of crucifixion. We see the love for His mother as He asked the Apostle John to care for her once He was gone. We see the love for the believing thief on the cross next to Him as He promised, “Today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). We see His love for every man and woman created by His Father throughout history and beyond as He made the ultimate sacrifice for mankind. His sacrifice expressed His love for you and for me.
What do we see as we draw closer? That Jesus didn’t just pay the price for our sin, rather He took on all the sin of the world so that nobody anywhere would have to suffer eternal consequences for being less than perfect. When John the Baptist first saw Jesus on the shore of the Jordan River he said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). Believe. Come to the cross, and your sin, past, present and future, is gone. Not rationalized or sugar-coated in some way. Gone. As is the guilt of that sin. You are completely forgiven.
One step closer and we see the abject humility of the one who is both the Son of God and the Son of Man. We see His wounds and the blood flowing down.
He lowered Himself to the very pit of hell—separation from God—so that we might go higher than we could ever go on our own. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross (Philippians 2:8).
The Bible promises that if we also humble ourselves in the eyes of the Lord, He will lift us up. Are you there at the foot of the cross? There’s no better time than this Easter to take that journey. Fall to your knees in humility and worship the One whose resurrection from the dead we celebrate on Easter Sunday. Accept His unconditional forgiveness. You are welcome at the foot of the cross.
Excerpted from The Hope of Glory, Volume Two, Lesson 56.
Thank you so much for this powerful, rich excerpt from your new book, Nancy. I particularly love this sentence: He lowered Himself to the very pit of hell—separation from God—so that we might go higher than we could ever go on our own.
Beautiful, life-filled truths, my friend.
No matter what changes, the Good News is still the Good News! Thanks, Beth. Happy Easter!
Once again, Nancy, thank you for drawing your readers (me included) closer to Jesus. His love for us is beyond imagining.
Yes, it is, Betty. As Philip Yancey wrote in Amazing Grace, “there’s nothing we can do to make Him love us more, and nothing we can do to make Him love us less.” Truly amazing!
Thank you Nancy. By His stripes we have been healed from our transgressions. I am so grateful and humbled by His love for all of us. What a magnificent act of love! I love your writing and bringing others to focus on Jesus in this crazy world. Happy Easter to you and your family.
Same to you, Jo Beth! It’s so good to hear from you. Hope all is well. And yes, we are eternally healed, praise God!! Seems more important with each passing day.
As I read this meaningful excerpt from your book, I am reminded of the old gospel hymn “There’s room at the cross for you. Yes, there’s room at the cross for you. ‘Though millions have come, there is still room for one…there’s room at the cross for you.” Happy Easter to you, Nancy.
Oh, Linn, I’ve not heard that hymn but I love the words. Thank you for sharing them. It was wonderful to see you at the Good Friday service. God bless your Easter as well!